I am depressed and sad. What should I do to drive these feelings away? What can I do so that I can see the Prophet, sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, in my dreams? I saw him four years ago and it has not happened again since.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

The remedy for what you suffer from is to resort to Allaah The Almighty to obtain what you desire, remove any evil, be forgiven or any other thing. You should say the supplication for removing distress and sorrow many times. It is narrated on the authority of ‘Abd Allaah ibn Mas‘ood that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said that anyone who says:

“Allaahuma inni ‘abduk wa ibnu ‘abdik wa ibnu amatik naasiyaati biyadik madhin fiyya Hukmuk ‘adlun fiyya qadhaa’uk as’aluka bikulli ismin huwa lak sammayta bihi nafsak aw anzaltahu fi kitaabik aw ‘allamtahu ahadan min khalqik aw ista’tharta bihi fi ‘ilmi Al-ghaybi ‘indak an taj‘ala al-Quran al-‘atheem rabee‘ qalbi wa noora sadri wa jalaa’a huzni wa thahaaba hammi" (O Allaah! I am your slave, and the son of your slaves, my life and fate are in Your hand, just is Your judgment. I implore you by means of all the Names You attribute to Yourself, or taught to any of Your creatures, or mentioned in Your Book, or kept hidden in the Unseen, to make the Quran the delight of my heart, the light of soul, and the relief of my sadness and distress.) will have their distress removed by Allaah The Almighty. [Ahmad]

Regarding seeing the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, anyone who sees the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, in his dreams with the same characteristics that were mentioned in the Sunnah (tradition), will actually have seen him. This is a blessing that Allaah The Almighty grants those whom He Wishes.

We do not know of any proof of certain things that a person must do to see the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. However, it should be known that following his Sunnah and taking him as an example is the best thing to do for those who love the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Therefore, you should be diligent in doing this. Moreover, you should ask Allaah The Almighty to enable you to see the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

Allaah Knows best.