Allah revealed the Quran in the most blessed month; the month of Ramadan, the month in which the Quran was sent down.
On the most blessed night, the Grand night: Laylatul Qadr; “Verily, we revealed the Qur’an on the night of Qadr.”
It is reported from Abu Hurairah that he said: “When the month of
Ramadan came, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: ‘The month of Ramadan has
come, a blessed month in which Allah has made it obligatory for you to
fast; in it the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are
closed and the devils are chained. In it is a night better than a
thousand months, whoever loses the benefit of it has lost something
irreplaceable.’”
[Narrated by Imam Ahmad and An-Nasa’I, Ahmad Shaker
declared its chain to be authentic]
«قد جاءكم رمضان شهر مبارك افترض الله عليكم صيامه تفتح فيه أبواب الجنة ويغلق فيه أبواب الجحيم وتغل فيه الشياطين فيه ليلة خير من ألف شهر من حرم خيرها فقد حرم» رواه الإمام أحمد والنسائي، وقال أحمد شاكر: إسناده صحيح
It is reported on the authority of Abu Hurairah, that Allah’s Messenger
(Peace be upon him) said: “Whoever stood in prayer on the night of
Al-Qadr, in faith and hoping for a reward from Allah, he will have all
of his previous sins forgiven.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
This one night surpasses the value of 30,000 nights. The sincere
believer who worries day and night about his sins and phases of neglect
in his life patiently awaits the onset of Ramadan. During it he hopes to
be forgiven by Allah for past sins, knowing that the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) promised that all who bear down during the last ten days shall
have all their sins forgiven. To achieve this, the believer remembers
the Prophet’s (Peace be upon him) advice in different sayings wherein he
used words like “seek”, “pursue”, “search” and “look hard” for Laylatul
Qadr.
Laylatul Qadr is the most blessed night. A person who misses it has
indeed missed a great amount of good. The Mu’min should search for it in
the last ten nights of Ramadan, passing the nights in worship and
obedience.
For those who catch the opportunity, their gift is that of past sins wiped away.
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) illustrated for us some of
the things we should be doing on this Grand Night. From his blessed
Sunnah we find the following:
Praying Qiyam (Night Prayer)
It is recommended to make a long qiyam prayer during the nights on
which Laylatul Qadr could fall. This is indicated in many ahadith, such
as:
“Whoever stands (in qiyam) in Laylatul Qadr [and it is facilitated for
him] out of faith and expectation (of Allah’s reward), will have all of
his previous sins forgiven.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
The addition “and it is facilitated for him” is recorded by Ahmad from
the report of ‘Ubadah Bin as-Samit; it means that he is permitted to be
among the sincere worshippers during that blessed night.
«من قام ليلة القدر (ثم وفقت له)،إيمانا واحتسابا، غفر له ما تقدم من ذنبه» رواه البخاري ومسلم، وما بين القوسين في رواية للإمام أحمد
Making Supplications
It is also recommended to make extensive supplication on this night.
‘A’ishah reported that she asked Allah’s Messenger (Peace be upon him)
“O Messenger of Allah! If I knew which night is Laylatul Qadr, what
should I say during it?” And he instructed her to say: “Allahumma innaka
`afuwwun tuhibbul `afwa fa`fu `annee - O Allah! You are forgiving, and
you love forgiveness. So forgive me.” [Recorded by Ahmad, Ibn Majah and
at-Tirmidhi, authenticated by Al-Albani]
«يا رسول الله أرأيت إن وافقت ليلة القدر ما أدعو قال تقولين اللهم إنك عفو تحب العفو فاعف عني» رواه الإمام أحمد وابن ماجه والترمذي وصححه الألباني
Abandoning Worldly Pleasures for Worship
It is further recommended to spend more time in worship during the
nights on which Laylatul Qadr is likely to fall. This calls for
abandoning many worldly pleasures in order to secure the time and
thoughts solely for worshipping Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala).
‘A’ishah reported: “When the (last) ten started, the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) would tighten his izar (i.e. he stayed away from his wives in
order to have more time for worship), spend the whole night awake (in
prayer) and wake up his family.” [Reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
«كان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم إذا دخل العشر شد مئزره ، وأحيا ليله ، وأيقظ أهله» رواه البخاري ومسلم
And she said: “Allah’s Messenger (Peace be upon him) used to exert more
(in worship) on the last ten than on other nights.” [Reported by
Muslim]
«كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يجتهد في العشر الأواخر، ما لا يجتهد في غيره»رواه مسلم
Have We Estimated Allah Correctly?
The opportunity of Laylatul Qadr is coming in the next few days. Life
is about people that take advantage of their opportunities to win the
love of Allah, and this is indeed one of those chances. Abu Dah Daah was
one of those who found an opportunity and won that which is greater
than the heavens and the earth. An adult companion of the Prophet (Peace
be upon him) cultivated his garden next to the property of an orphan.
The orphan claimed that a specific palm tree was on his property and
thus belonged to him. The companion rejected the claim and off to the
Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) went the orphan boy to complain.
With his justness, the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) measured
the two gardens and found that the palm tree did indeed belong to the
companion. The orphan erupted crying. Seeing this, the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) offered the companion, “would you give him the palm tree and
to you is a palm tree in Jannah?” However, the companion in his
disbelief that an orphan would complain to the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) missed the opportunity and went away angry.
But someone else saw the opportunity, Abu Dah Daah (may Allah be
pleased with him). He went to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and asked,
“Ya Rasul Allah, if I buy the tree from him and give it to the orphan
shall I have that tree in Jannah?” The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon
him) replied, “Yes.”
Abu Dah Daah chased after the companion and asked, “Would you sell that
tree to me for my entire garden?” The companion answered, “Take it for
there is no good in a tree that I was complained to the Prophet about.”
Immediately, Abu Dah Daah went home and found his wife and children
playing in the garden. “Leave the garden!” shouted Abu Dah Daah, “we’ve
sold it to Allah! We’ve sold it to Allah!” Some of his children had
dates in their hand and he snatched the dates from them and threw them
back into the garden. “We’ve sold it to Allah!”
What did Abu Dah Daah lose? Dates? Bushes? Dirt? What did he gain? He
gained a Jannah whose expanse is the heavens and the earth.
Abu Dah Daah did not miss his opportunity, and I pray to Allah that we
do not miss our opportunity of standing to Allah on Laylatul Qadr.
Dear brothers and sisters, we do not obey, worship and revere Allah in a way befitting of His Majesty.
Allah revealed:
“They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. And on
the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His
Hand and the heavens will be rolled up in His Right Hand. Glorified is
He, and High is He above all that they associate as partners with Him!”
[Az-Zumur 39:67]
{وَمَا قَدَرُوا۟ ٱللَّـهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِۦ وَٱلْأَرْضُ
جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُۥ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ وَٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتُ
مَطْوِيَّـٰتٌۢ بِيَمِينِهِۦ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَـٰلَىٰ عَمَّا
يُشْرِكُونَ} الزمر: 67
Transliteration: Wama qadaroo Allaha haqqa qadrihi
waalardu jameeAAan qabdatuhu yawma alqiyamati waalssamawatu matwiyyatun
biyameenihi subhanahu wataAAala AAamma yushrikoona
Everything that we have belongs to Allah. When someone dies we say,
Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un; Indeed to Allah we belong and
indeed to Him we shall return. This is not a supplication just for when a
soul is lost. It is a supplication for every calamity that befalls a
believer, even if his sandal were to tear. Why? Because everything
belongs to Allah and everything shall come back to him. Sit and try to
count the blessings Allah has bestowed upon you. Have you ever tried to
count stars?
“And He gave you of all that you asked for, and if you count the
Blessings of Allah, never will you be able to count them. Verily! Man is
indeed an extreme wrong-doer, - a disbeliever (an extreme ingrate,
denies Allah’s Blessings by disbelief, and by worshipping others besides
Allah, and by disobeying Allah and His Prophet Muhammad SAW).” [Ibrahim
14:34]
{وَءَاتَىٰكُم مِّن كُلِّ مَا سَأَلْتُمُوهُ ۚ وَإِن
تَعُدُّوا۟ نِعْمَتَ ٱللَّـهِ لَا تُحْصُوهَآ ۗ إِنَّ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ
لَظَلُومٌ كَفَّارٌ} إبراهيم: 34
Transliteration: Waatakum min kulli ma saaltumoohu wain taAAuddoo niAAmata Allahi la tuhsooha inna alinsana lathaloomun kaffarun
We have not understood the weight of this Quran that we rest on our
high shelves, this Noble book that was sent to give life to the dead.
For even if our hearts were as solid as rock they would have crumbled to
the ground in fear and hope of Allah’s punishment and Mercy. Could it
be that our hearts are harder than that mountain?
“Had We sent down this Quran on a mountain, you would surely have seen
it humbling itself and rending asunder by the fear of Allah...”
[Al-Hashr 59:21]
{لَوْ أَنزَلْنَا هَـٰذَا ٱلْقُرْءَانَ عَلَىٰ جَبَلٍ لَّرَأَيْتَهُۥ خَـٰشِعًا مُّتَصَدِّعًا مِّنْ خَشْيَةِ ٱللَّـهِ} الحشر: 21
Transliteration: Law anzalna hatha alqurana AAala jabalin laraaytahu khashiAAan mutasaddiAAan min khashyati Allahi
Dear brothers and sisters, as you fill the Masajid for Qiyamul Layl in
the last ten nights of Ramadan, remember what Allah wants you to know:
“Know that Allah is Severe in punishment and that Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” [Al-Ma’idah 5:98]
{ٱعْلَمُوٓا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّـهَ شَدِيدُ ٱلْعِقَابِ وَأَنَّ ٱللَّـهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ} المائدة: 98
Transliteration: IAAlamoo anna Allaha shadeedu alAAiqabi waanna Allaha ghafoorun raheemun
There shall be a night, some night in your life that you shall awaken
in Jannah or Hell fire. Anas ibn Malik, on his deathbed, prayed to
Allah, “O Allah, protect from a night whose morning brings a journey to
hell fire.” Think about that morning.
Peace shall descend on Laylatul Qadr until the dawn. It may be that you
shall leave the Masjid after Fajr one day soon forgiven by Allah,
Glorious and Most High.
