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What is Laylatul Qadr or Night of Power
therefore?
You
are all aware of its importance so I will just
briefly re-run through it. In surah Al-Qadr Allah (SWT)
clearly states:
"Surely We revealed it (the Holy Quran) on the grand
night. And what will make you comprehend what the
grand night. The grand night is better than a
thousand months. The angels and Gabriel descend in
it by the permission of their Lord for every affair,
Peace! It is till the break of the morning." Holy
Quran (97:1-5)
Allah (SWT) is inviting all the believers for a
Divine feast; the invitation which has been brought
by the messengers. Allah (SWT) is the host, his most
favorite angels are the servants and the believers
are the guests. The table is spread with Divine
blessings containing all sorts of rewards and
favors. Though the eyes cannot see them nor the ears
hear them not the human hearts imagine them, yet the
bounties are all kept in readiness to be awarded to
the guests in accordance to her actions.
Laylatul Qadr is a blessed night because the
Almighty brings down during it goodness, bliss, and
forgiveness for His servants. It is a feast which
has come with a message that shows one the way to
achieve happiness in both the worlds. Laylatul Qadr
is a feast for the spirit, a feast of worship and
prayers.
Ahadith indicate that the fate of every believer for
the coming year is decreed on this night. When our
Prophet Mohammad (saw) was asked how man could enjoy
the favors and good grace of proximity to, and mercy
of, Allah (SWT) he quoted Prophet Moosa / Musa /
Moses (peace be upon him) supplication:
"Oh My God, I seek
proximity to You; He (Allah) said: Proximity to
Me is for him who stays awake on Laylatul Qadr.
Oh My God, I am in
need of Your Mercy; He (Allah) said: My Mercy is
for him who shows mercy to the poor on Laylatul
Qadr.
Oh My God, I am in
need of the passport to cross the bridge; He
(Allah) said: that is for him who give alms on
Laylatul Qadr.
Oh My God, I am in
need of the trees in Paradise and their fruits;
He (Allah) said: that is for him who seeks
forgiveness on Laylatul Qadr.
Oh My God, I seek
deliverance from fire; He (Allah) said: that is
for him who remembers Allah on Laylatul Qadr.
Oh My God, I seek
Your good pleasure; He (Allah) said: that is for
him who says a two Rakat prayer on Laylatul Qadr."
On
another occasion Prophet Moosa / Musa / Moses (peace
be upon him) said: "Oh My God, are You far away that
I shout at You, or are You near that I whisper to
You?" He (Allah) said: "O Musa, I am sitting
together with you!"
What do we therefore have to remind
ourselves about Laylatul Qadr?
We
have to remind ourselves about Laylatul Qadr that it
is:
-
A unique once in a
year opportunity to do a life times worth of
activity.
-
A once in a year
occasion for influencing our future destiny - "QADR"
- Taqdeer.
-
Full of long
lasting blessings.
-
The night of
unsurpassed grandeur when the absolute Grand God
revealed the Grand Quran through the Grand Wahy
- Jibreel into the heart of the Grand Prophet
Mohammad (saw).
The
Ma'sumeen have explained to us that God in his
infinite wisdom had planned the system of the
universe in such a way that every persons destiny
will be determined on a yearly basis in the angelic
spheres through the agency of the Imam of the age.
Who is the leader and focus of the whole spiritual
world this gives MANKIND a unique opportunity to
influence his own future (gains, loss, health,
sickness, richness, poverty, etc by performing
certain acts, e.g. Dua, Salat, Sadaqah, Jihad,
acquiring knowledge, Holy Quran recitation etc.
Do we than still need to PREPARE OURSELVES
FOR LAYLATUL QADR after knowing its significance?
Yes, Let us imagine for a moment that we are invited
for a special feast by the president of our country,
who also tells us in advance that he is going to
reward us with magnificent gifts as per the way we
present and behave ourselves during the feast - What
would we do?
After the initial euphoria, we would leave no stone
unturned to present themselves in the best possible
manner. Preparations of what to wear, how to get
there, what will I speak with the president, If I
have to go through his secretary what will I say to
him, what sort of gifts will I take with me, what
sort of conversation I have with him, all this and
more will be thought about, rehearsed and
re-rehearsed. Correct me if I am wrong!
All
this 'tension' in honor of an invitation from the
President of a country. Laylatul Qadr is an
invitation form the President of all Presidents, The
Supreme One. Do we need to make preparations for
this night?
Undoubtedly, we must start our preparations way
ahead of time, after all going by human fitra, there
is more than profit that can be got from this feast
of Laylatul Qadr unless out of sheer carelessness we
end up amongst those negligent and idle ones, who do
not achieve anything except tiredness, loss and
eternal doom, who will gain nothing except regret
and cry out aloud on the day of Reckoning:
"Ah! Woe upon me! In that I neglected (my duty)
towards Allah (SWT)"
What sorts of Pre-preparations are needed
before the advent of this grand Laylatul Qadr?
Jibreel was asked; "What has the Almighty Allah done
on this night with the wishes of the believers among
the nation of Prophet Mohammad (saw)?" He answered,
"The Almighty Allah has looked upon them on this
night and forgiven them, all of them, except the
following: "One who is addicted to drinking, One
who severs his ties with his kin, and One who is a
trouble-maker."
We
have been advised to beseech Allah (SWT) during the
whole year before the arrival of the Night of Power
or Laylatul Qadr, to keep us alive for this night:
-
To bestow upon us
the Tawfiq to remain vigilant during this night
and pray for blessings and forgiveness.
-
To bless us that
we are able to do the best of deeds on this
night.
-
To comprehend
fully the importance of this night which is
superior to one thousand months.
-
To pray that we
can become one of the favorites of Allah (SWT)
and be blessed with His love, learning,
nearness, union, pleasure, together with health,
happiness, and welfare.
-
To yearn and act
so that Allah (SWT) be so pleased with us in
such a manner, that after this night He would
never be displeased us again.
-
To pray that our
Aimma especially the Imam-ul-Asr (as) be pleased
with us intercede on our behalf.
How to prepare oneself for The Night of
Power (Laylatul Qadr)?
(I) Preparing Mentally
-
Strive to keep
Allah (SWT) at the fore of one's mind the whole
night long.
-
All the Ibadah
(worship) done should be recited in the state of
being completely awake, aware, conscious, and
with a live heart. If one feels that one will
not be able to concentrate then start reciting
from now "We are from Allah and towards Him is
our return." - Holy Quran (2:156) for it is
considered as a tragedy if one can not in this
night receive the divine grace in supplications.
"Their prayers ascend upwards and reaches Allah,
their words are accepted, and Allah loves to
listen to their prayers the way a mother likes
her own child."
Is
not it shameful that the prayers which ascend
upwards should be recited from the tip of the
tongue, while the heart and soul remain occupied in
worldly affairs?
Many a times, one feels that one cannot 'properly'
perform a certain Ibadah and so decided to forgo it.
One should not do listen to this 'waswas' instead,
one should perform it and more, for acceptance lies
in the Hand of the Mercy of Allah (SWT).
(II) Preparing Physically
-
For worshipping in
this night a suitable place, dress, and perfume
should be arranged in advance (comfortable dress
which does not distract us).
-
Paying alms during
this night - to the people who really deserve
financial support.
-
Follow the
translation of the Duas in order to understand
what you are reciting for lutf is only got when
one knows what one is reciting.
(III) Preparing Spiritually
-
Increase ones
eagerness for receiving the promised bounties
and blessings.
-
Select worships
and deeds which are more in harmony with ones
mood.
-
When one stands
for prayer, or any other Ibadah, to briefly
spare a moment to think about the wisdom of that
action/its meaning etc for e.g. Why am I
standing towards Makkah? To realize that when I
stand on my two feet, it indicates my hope and
fear about the acceptance of my worship.
-
Resorting (Tawassul)
to Ahlul Bayt (as) - With persistence,
supplicating in a polite and soft manner, with
words and content arousing their sympathies,
should beseech them for bestowing upon us the
grace of being vigilant during this night.
-
Crying and
Shedding Tears: that during these nights ones
fear, humility, tears, crying, anguish and
lamentation be increased as much as possible.
The Learned Scholar Hajj Mirza Javad Agha Maliki
Tabrizi (ra) in his book (Suluk-i Arifan)
Spiritual Journey of the Mystics tell us that
One of the best method is that one should tie
ones hands around ones neck; should pour dirt
upon ones head; should place ones head against a
wall; sometimes one should stand and sometimes
one should cry; should imagine oneself at the
scene of Judgment Day; and the way sinners are
rebuked with harshness, then one should imagine
and be scared least Allah (the Glorious, the
Exalted) orders: "Seize ye him, bind ye him,
burn ye him in the blazing fire, and make him
march in a chain whereof the length is seventy
cubits." - Holy Quran (69:30-32)
Then one should cry: "O' Thou are the most
compassionate, and Thou Who are the shelter of
unsheltered ones!" "Where is Your vast blessing?
Where is Your infinite forgiveness? Where are Your
love and benevolence?" Ask for forgiveness of past
sins in the most appealing manner with a promise to
try never to return to the sins again - a TAWBA in
every sense of the word Present ones requests before
the Almighty with full hope that they will be
answered.
Prophet Mohammad (saw) when asked what one should
invoke Allah (SWT) during these nights, said: "Ask
for your safety (here and in the hereafter)". |
