What is Laylatul Qadr?
Laylatul Qadar is a night of great blessing in which Allah (swt) showers His Mercy
upon those of His believers whom sincerely and faithfully love and obey His Will. It
is a night which is commonly associated with the revelation of the Holy Qur’an but
also has other meanings which are all deeply rooted in Allah’s attribute of
Rahmaniyyat. And it is the best night among the nights of the whole year. No night, throughout the year, is on a level with this night. On account of its merits, surpassing excellence, superiority, and the superabundant bounties, benefits and favors this night bring for the mankind it leaves behind every night known for blessing.
As revealed in the Holy Quran in Surah al-Qadr (97:3-6):"Surely, We sent it down
during the Night of Decree. And what shall make thee know what the Night of
Decree is? The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months. Therein
descend angels and the Spirit by the command of their Lord with Divine decree concerning every matter. It is all peace till the rising of the dawn", the Night of “Qadr” is better than a thousand months, therefore, acts done in these nights are better than the acts done in one thousands months. One of the most meritorious aspects of the month of Ramadhan is that it contains Laylatul Qadr, the most blessed night of the year. It is the night which Allah Taa'la chose to reveal the Holy Quran.
The Holy Quran has mentioned above that this night is better than one thousand months. It means that the worship performed in this night brings more reward than the worship performed in one thousand months. The authentic traditions of the Holy Prophet Allah's peace and blessings be upon him mention that, in this night, Allah Almighty directs his special mercy towards the people of the earth, accepts the supplications made by His slaves and forgives a large number of people who repent and pray.
Laylatul Qadr falls in one of the last five odd nights of Ramadhan i.e. 21 st , 23 rd , 25 th , 27 th and 29 th . According to authentic sources, Laylatul Qadr falls in any one of these nights alternately. The purpose of this alternation is that one should spend all five nights in worship and prayers, so that he may find Laylatul Qadr with certainty.
It is recommended to make a long Qiyaam prayer during the nights on which Laylatul-Qadr could fall. This is indicated in many hadith's, such as the following:
Abu Tharr (radhiallahu `anhu) relates:
"We fasted with Allah's Messenger (pbuh) in Ramadhan. He did not lead us (in qiyaam) at all until there were seven (nights of Ramadhan) left. Then he stood with us (that night - in prayer) until one third of the night had passed. He did not pray with us on the sixth. On the fifth night, he prayed with us until half of the night had passed.
So we said, 'Allah's Messenger! Wouldn't you pray with us the whole night?' He replied: 'Whoever stands in prayer with the imam until he (the imam) concludes the prayer, it is recorded for him that he prayed the whole night.'…" [Recorded by Ibn Abi Shaybah, Abu Dawud, at-Tirmithi (who authenticated it), an-Nasa'i, Ibn Majah, at-Tahawi (in Sharhu Ma`an il-Athar, Ibn Nasr, al-Faryabi, and al-Bayhaqi. Their isnad is authentic.]
[Point of benefit: Abu Dawud mentioned: "I heard Ahmad being asked, 'Do you like for a man to pray with the people or by himself during Ramadhan?' He replied, 'Pray with the people' I also heard him say, 'I would prefer for one to pray (qiyaam) with the imam and to pray (witr) with him as well, for the Prophet (pbuh) said: "When a man prays with the imam until he concludes, it is recorded that he prayed the rest of that night." [Masaa'il]]
Abu Hurayrah (radhiallahu `anhu) narrated that the Messenger (pbuh) said: "Whoever stands (in qiyaam) 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 `Ubaadah Bin as-Samit; it means that he is permitted to be among the sincere worshippers during that blessed night.]
Aisha reported that she asked Allah's Messenger (pbuh), "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 tuh.ibbul `afwa fa`fu `annee - O Allah! You are forgiving, and you love forgiveness. So forgive me." [Recorded by Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and at-Tirmithi. Verified to be authentic by Al-Albani]
What do we therefore have to remind ourselves about Laylatul Qadr?
@ 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 (revelation) - 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.
@ The night when the whole multitude of angels and the Great Spirit (Ruh) descend on earth, greeting and praying for the believers and conveying messages to the Imam of age.
What preparation do we need and What do we Do in that 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"
What sorts of Pre-preparations are needed before the advent of this grand 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:
1. To bestow upon us the Tawfiq to remain vigilant during this night and pray for blessings and forgiveness.
2.To bless us that we are able to do the best of deeds on this night.
3.To comprehend fully the importance of this night which is superior to one thousand months.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. Strive to keep Allah (SWT) at the fore of one's mind the whole night long.
7. 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."
8.Paying alms during this night - to the people who really deserve financial support.
9. 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.
10. Increase ones eagerness for receiving the promised bounties and blessings.
11. Select worships and deeds which are more in harmony with ones mood.
12. 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.
13. Crying and Shedding Tears: that during these nights ones fear, humility, tears, crying, anguish and lamentation be increased as much as possible.
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.
What are the signs of Laylatul-Qadar (the night of power)?
From amongst the signs of Laylatul-Qadar is that it is a calm night and the believer's heart is delighted and at peace with it, and he becomes active in doing good actions, and the sun on the following morning rises clearly without any rays.
Wallahu A'lam
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