While the entire period of Ramzan is a time of fasting and praying, there is one night that is special for Muslims. For, it is believed that there is one night when Allah first revealed the first verses of the Quran to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel. Muhammad was then 40 years old and unlettered.
This most blessed of all nights falls on a night that no one can pinpoint with any certainty. Yet the faithful who have prayed through the night say that the heart always knows when communion has been reached. Shab-e-Qadr or Lailat ul-Qadr, understood variously to mean the Night of Honour and Dignity, the Night of Destiny and Power, can fall on any of the odd nights in the last ten days of the month of Ramzan. This year it will correspond with the 12th, 14th, 15th, and 17th of September. Since no one knows which of these four is the night, one prays on all of these alternate nights.
Unlike other anniversaries, this is a solemn occasion — a time to reflect and pray, to celebrate the arrival of the message from Allah not through a feast for the senses but through abstinence and worship. Some go into retreat (i’tikaf), spending all their time in a mosque for the last ten days of Ramzan; others take as much time out as possible on these special nights for prayer and the study of the Quran.
As children we were told to tell the beads of the rosary, chanting whichever prayer we could remember; the very young could say something simple like ‘Allah ho Akbar’ (Allah is great!). As we got older and had memorised whole verses, such as the kalmia and the qul, we were told to recite that several times before going to bed.
Dinner is usually early all through Ramzan and during Shab-e-Qadr especially so as the elders want to be well prepared for a long night. The idea, then, is to have a light meal and stay up as late as one can. Some don’t sleep at all, preferring to offer late-night prayers, reciting verses from the Pansura, reading from the Quran and Hadith till it is time to eat sehri, offer the pre-dawn fajir prayers.
It is said that on this night one should ask for Allah’s bounties to one’s heart’s content, but above all one should ask for forgiveness. The Prophet’s wife, Aisha, is said to have asked him: “O Messenger of Allah! If I knew which night is Lailat ul-Qadr, what should I say during it?” The Prophet instructed her to say, Allahumma innaka Tuhibbul Afwa Fa’fu A’nne. (“O Allah! You are forgiving, and you love forgiveness. So forgive me.”)
A nice post. However, some corrections in the technical information provided here…
As per my limited knowledge, Shab-e-Qadr or Lailat ul-Qadr is the night when the Holy Quran was revealed from Lauh-e-mahfooz to the first level of Arsh; not when the first 5 verses were revealed to our Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him).
“This year it will correspond with the 12th, 14th, 15th, and 17th of September. Since no one knows which of these four is the night, one prays on all of these alternate nights.”
Five; not four nights are considered for supplication of Shab-e-Qadr or Lailat ul-Qadr. Accordingly, these correspond to the five odd nights in the last 10 days of Ramadan. This year it will correspond with the 12th, 14th, 15th, 17th, and 19th (as well) of September.
Fellow experts on Islam, please correct me if I am wrong. May Allah guide us and show us the correct path. Ameen!!
As Salamu Aliekum….
Lailat ul-Qadr is specially meant for forgiveness from Allah(SWT)….
So let us pray n ask for his mercy and blessings….
Allahumma innaka Tuhibbul Afwa Fa’fu A’nne. (“O Allah! You are forgiving, and you love forgiveness. So forgive me.”)Aameen….
Oh! Allah please forgive all of the Ummah for there sins and give us permission to enter Jannah… Aameen….
Eid Mubarak…
Wassalam….
As Salamu Aliekum….
Brother Sharjeel Ahmad: Thanks for the correction….
You been an writer for the blog, but your statement “Fellow experts on Islam, please correct me if I am wrong.”….
It give an impression more as a taunt to all those, who are making an effort on this place to spread the right msg of Islam, to the people running n working here that even include you…
No one is an expert on Islam, only Allah(swt) knows the truth, even almost all the Ulem-e-Din don’t call themselves experts on Islam…
We are not the one who will judge people but it’s only Allah(swt)…
Allah(swt) only sees the Niyat of a person… I just hope he accepts our honest Niyat…Aameen…
Wassalam…
@ Waseem – I don’t know what prompted you to think and perceive that I am taunting at others. “… experts on Islam” means someone who has a good knowledge on Islam; probably better as compared to me. We generally refer to such people as experts (experts in Islamic Finance, for example) in our normal day-to-day conversations…
You are right in saying that only Allah knows the truth. However, I do not see any harm or taunt in calling a person an expert on Islam if he/she is knowledgable to a good extent. Furthermore, it would also depend on how you perceive things…
If my language is a taunt, what would you call the direct abusive language for acclaimed leaders and people known and respected for their contribution towards spreading Islam – “Attacking the arts for being frivolous and dangerous, Wahab sanctioned the rape; murder and plunder of those who refused to follow his injunctions. … Ala Mawdudi, a journalist who translated the Quran outside the paradigms of classical propagated the Wahabi ideology.” … http://indianmuslims.in/the-threat-of-political-islam/
Anyways, to conclude, I do not see a need to justify my stand to anyone else, except the Almighty. And my intentions in writing “… experts on Islam” is pretty clear between me and the Almight Allah.
Probably we should think more in the direction of spreading the message of Truth rather than indulging in unwanted comments and counter-comments.
As Salamu Aliekum….
Brother Sharjeel Ahmad:
I apologize if my words have hurt you in any way.But it wasn’t a unwanted comment, i just wanted to know reason behind your comment.
Yes we will not indulging counter-comments. However i still feel that we can’t call any one an expert on Islam. Islam is a way of life and a person having knowledge about Islamic Finance is just an expert on a particular stream but i’m quite sure even he/she will not call them self “AN EXPERT”…
I never doubt your intention. Don’t take me in wrong way…
Read my comment on this Article “http://indianmuslims.in/the-threat-of-political-islam/”..
We are not the one who will judge people but it’s only Allah(swt)…
Allah(swt) only sees the Niyat of a person… I just hope he accepts our honest Niyat…Aameen…
Wassalam…