What is du'a? How to do du'a (make supplication)

Bismillah iRahman iRahim.

Asalam alaikom wa rathmathullah wa barakatu.

On How to Make Dua'a:

There are 2 ways to make du'a. One is an informal du'a where you simply talk to God the same as if He was with you. e.g. Oh Allah! Help me find a parking space.Oh Allah please don't let the dinner burn. Oh Allah help me to cope until pay day etc The other is a for want of a better word, "formal" du'a, according to the Sunnah, the steps of which I learned from listening to Dawood Adeeb (God bless him) who you can find for yourself here: http://abdurrahman.org/audio/index-abutasneemdawoodadeeb.html

To proceed: 1. (If possible) have Wudhu.
2. (If possible) face the Qibla
3. Begin by praising Allah (you can use(a) Any du'a from the Sunnah (b) the same du'a that you use for salah after the Takbir(Allahu Akbar) & before Surah Al Fatiha) or (c) any du'a that you make up yourself in your own language like any informal dua
4. Just Ask Allah for whatever you are praying for( the Sunnahis to repeat it 3 times)
5. (really important) Send salutations & salams on the Messenger of Allah (just like in salah) or ordinary pbuh
6. End your du'a by saying Ameen.

This is the Sunnah for Du'a.

Adding any other action including wiping the face is Biddah.

It is good to learn next the best times for making Du'a.

Hope this helps