Only you can pray for me, Allah doesn't listen to me

Bismillah hir Rahman Nir Raheem

My Lord, expand for me my chest [with assurance] And ease for me my task And untie the knot from my tongue That they may understand my speech. Ameen

False accusation on Allah that He doesn't listen to my prayers 

We have heard this statement very often "Please make dua for me that He may guide me" to this extent I think it's fine to ask someone that "Remember me in your prayers". The problem occurs when the person starts to think that Allah doesn't listens to him, He doesn't accept my prayers, I have a lot of sins so Allah won't listen to me. One is slandering Allah by saying these things, because Allah says in Holy Quran.

And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided.

[Al Baqarah 2:186]

If you read it carefully, Allah says to Prophet PBUH that if they ask you about me. It is not written that O Prophet say that I am near but it is said that if they ask you about me I am near. Allah answers directly by removing the medium of Prophet PBUH. It means that one doesn't need any third person to talk to Allah. People say that Allah listens to him more because he is pious, who said that?! he has a better network of connection? It is like Allah is giving you his direct line phone number and you say No I will ask that other guy to deliver my message to Allah.😐 If one uses someone else's means to make supplication it is not allowed. No Wali has more power of dua than you yourself because a so called Wali cannot make a dua for you with the same devotion that you can make for yourself. So stop relying on Walis.

For those who say that we are sinners Allah won't listen to us Allah says in Quran

Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."

[Al-Zumr 39:53]

Narrated Anas bin Malik:

Allah's Messenger SAW said, "Allah is more pleased with the repentance of His slave than anyone of you is pleased with finding his camel which he had lost in the desert."

Sahih Bukhari 6309

There is but one person whose dua/prayer will not be accepted until he leaves that sin. It is he who earns and eats Haram.

Prophet SAW 

... mentioned a man who travels a great deal and becomes disheveled and covered with dust, who raises his hands to the heavens (and says), ‘O Lord, O Lord,’ when his food is haraam, his drink is haraam, his clothes are haraam and he has been nourished with haraam, so how can he receive a response?

Sahih Muslim 1015

Or the one mentioned in this Hadith

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:

The supplication of the servant is granted in case he does not supplicate for sin or for severing the ties of blood, or he does not become impatient. It was said: Allah's Messenger, what does:" If he does not grow impatient" imply? He said: That he should say like this: I supplicated and I supplicated but I did not find it being responded. and theu he becomes frustrated and abandons supplication.

Sahih Muslim 2735

Dua as Amazon.com 

Some of us thinks that dua works like Amazon.com here you order that Ya Allah give me Tesla and there will be Tesla in your garage and if not one would say that Allah doesn't listen to me. 

Allah accepts one's dua in three forms:

1) Allah accepts the dua as it is.

2) Allah will not give you what you asked for but will protect you from  an evil or huge calamity because of the dua.

3) Allah will store it and will reward you on the Day of Judgement.

Abu Sa’id al-Khudri reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “There is no Muslim who calls upon Allah, without sin or cutting family ties, but that Allah will give him one of three answers: He will quickly fulfill his supplication, He will store it for him in the Hereafter, or He will divert an evil from him similar to it.” They said, “In that case we will ask for more.” The Prophet said, “Allah has even more.”

Musnad Aḥmad 10749 (Sahih)

Dua in Salah

One of our practice or misconception one would say is that there should be dua after Salah otherwise the Salah is not complete. The Salah itself is dua, we recite Surah Fatiha it is dua then the Prophet SAW said to make dua during rukoo and sujood in prayer.

Abu Huraira reported:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: The nearest a servant comes to his Lord is when he is prostrating himself (in Sujood), so make supplication (in this state).

Sahih Muslim 482

But Quranic duas are prohibited like ...رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِىْ الدُّنْيَا etc as said in the Hadith

The Prophet SAW said

....I have been prohibited to recite the Qur’an while bowing or prostration. As regards to bowing, exalt the Lord in it, and as to prostration, make supplication with exertion in it, that is worthy of being accepted.

Sunan Abi Dawud 876 (Sahih)

Ali bin Abi Talib narrated:

"The Prophet prohibited wearing Qassi, and that which is dyed with safflower, and from the gold ring, and from reciting the Quran while bowing."

Jami` at-Tirmidhi 264 (Sahih)

And at the end of Salah after reading the Durood one can supplicate for as long as he wants before saying Salam.

One thing which is very much practiced now days is congregational dua (Ijtamai Dua) after the prayer which has no authentic source mentioning such an act by the Prophet or Sahaba nor it was seen that after the Salah the Prophet used to make dua by raising his hands. Dua is to be made inside the Salah not after it. It is the same as you went to meet the PM and he asked you to tell him your problems and you say that I will message or email you the problems that I have😑. Salah is our hotline with Allah make the dua during the hotline not after it.

Now some people may say that one doesn't know Arabic so how can they make dua in Salah. First thing first one should learn Arabic duas made by Prophet SAW and those in Quran if one doesn't know Arabic for the time being then will Allah not accept the duas just because I didn't knew the language? One can make dua in Native language at the end of Salah after Durood if one doesn't know Arabic but one should learn Arabic Duas. 

Wallahu Alam

And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind."

[Ta-Ha 20:124]

O Allah! Enable us to see the Truth as Truth and give us the ability to follow it. And show us the falsehood as false and give us the ability to refrain from it. Ameen