The story of Adam (alayissalam) is of course well known to all of us. After Allah (swt) created Adam and told the Angels and Jinn to bow to him, Iblis refused.
Fast forward to the expulsion of Adam, Hawaa, and Iblis from Jannah after they ate from the tree, we learn about the first Dua ever made by a human as far as we know. It is indeed the first human Dua ever recorded.

رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَآ اَنْفُسَنَا وَإِنْ لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُوْنَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِيْنَ

Rabbana thalamnaa anfusana wa-in lam taghfir lana watarhamnaa lanakoonanna mina alkhasireen Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers.
[Surat Al-A’raf: 23]

First and foremost, the fact that Adam immediately responded and made Dua to Allah (swt) and asked for forgiveness, demonstrates why Adam (alayhissalam) is superior to Iblis. Adam (alayhissalam) acknowledged his mistake and made Dua to Allah (swt) for forgiveness, while Iblis was too arrogant to do the same. Rather, Iblis accused Allah (swt) of misguiding him.
Iblis said: “Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path.” [7:16]
Worshipping Allah (swt) while being penitent and repentant is a sign a of being a good Muslim. And turning away from Allah (swt) and refusing to worship or make Dua is a sign of arrogance. That is why simply making Dua is a sign of imaan.

Secondly, we see in the story of Adam (alayhissalam), is that Adam asked for a religious, spiritual need. He begged for forgiveness acknowledging that if Allah did not have mercy upon him, there would be no hope for him. In contrast, the Dua Iblis eventually made was for a long life that lasted until the Day of Judgement. He didn’t care for what came after.
The primary emphasis on the Dua of the believer is religion and spirituality; It is connecting with Allah; it is Allah’s mercy, forgiveness and blessings. Whereas the primary Dua of those who do not have that connection is of this world alone.

The Quran is very explicit about this in Surat Al-Baqarah. Allah says,

And among the people is he who says, “Our Lord, give us in this world,” and he will have in the Hereafter no share. But among them is he who says, “Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire.” Those will have a share of what they have earned, and Allah is swift in account.
[Surat Al-Baqarah: 200-202]

Those who focus on the Dunya alone without focusing on the Akhira at all will not get any share in the afterlife.
Despite of a person’s religion, everybody asks Allah, or God, or whatever they believe in, for this world. Even the most agnostic or the furthest away, before any exam or during any fright, they will say, “God bless me, God save me, etc.” The expression will come out automatically even if he doesn’t believe in God.
That expression is a sign of Dua. Of course people who believe in God, of all faith,
they always ask for worldly need and they ask for being blessed with some kind of worldly benefit. This is exactly how Allah describes the tribe of Quraish. Every time harm comes to them, that is the only time they think of Allah. This is not the sign of a believer. The believer thinks of Allah at all times.

Thirdly, both Adam (alayhissalam) and Iblis reached out to Allah (swt), and Allah in the end actually gave them both what they wanted. And this is from the Generosity and Nobility of Allah (swt). Allah answers the Dua even of Iblis, even
of those who are arrogant. Out of Allah’s infinite Generosity, Allah answered the desperate call of the most despicable and hated creature. So how can anybody despair in calling out to Allah when prayer of Iblis was answered?
Fourthly, we learn from the Dua of Adam (alayhissalam) the etiquettes of Dua. The first etiquette of Dua is to use the Names of Allah, to ascribe Perfection to Allah and to ascribe imperfection and deficiency and sins to oneself.

1 . USING THE NAMES OF ALLAH

Rabbana is the most comprehensive Name, because Rabb means the One who will Cherish, the One who will Sustain, the One who will take care of, and the One who is in Charge of me. Oh my Rabb, You’re in charge of me, I don’t have anyone who is in charge of me. In the end of the day no one is responsible for me other than You, and I believe that. Oh Allah, You are my Rabb, who else is going to take care of me, who else is going to give me my needs, who else will answer my desperation? Oh Allah You are the Rabb, You are the only Being I can turn to outside of this entire creation.

2. AFFIRM THE PERFECTION TO ALLAH (SWT)

In the Dua of Adam this is affirmed in the statement, “if You don’t forgive or have Mercy then we will be of those who are lost.” Meaning we need You, Oh Allah, without You we are nothing, we need You.

3. AFFIRM DEFICIENCY AND WEAKNESS TO ONESELF

One of the ways Adam does this is by acknowledging his mistake by saying, “we have wronged ourselves.” He admitted to his sin and owned up to it.

The second way is to show desperation and sincere pleading from the heart. The essence of Dua is humility to come to Allah in a state of humbleness recognizing you need Allah and that is the essence of Imaan. And the height of arrogance is to ask as if you don’t need. You need Allah (swt) for each and every issue and each and every prayer. So when our father Adam (alayhissalam) is asking, you can quite literally tell how desperate he is, how much he needs Allah (swt). If You don’t do this Oh Allah, if you don’t have Mercy then there is no hope for me.
Imagine that desperation. This pure sincerity is begging from the depths of your heart. The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), “Allah does not answer the Dua that comes from a heedless heart.” A heedless heart is simply opening up the book of Dua and reading as a simple ritual without concentration. Allah does not care about the air you expel from your lungs, Allah cares about your actual sincerity and your intention from the heart.
So even if one makes a grammatical mistake in what is being said, that is negligible as what truly matters is what you intend to ask from the heart.

Duas That Changed The World

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Source – visionaireramadan.com