What to do on the Night Of Power
| Written by RAC
Monday, 08 October 2007
Digg! Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said about Lailatul-Qadr (Night of Power):
"Anyone who stays awake for the Night Of Power with belief and for the pleasure of Allah, all his previous sins will be forgiven." (Bukhari and Muslim)
So what should we do on the Night of Power? Here are some suggestions... As far as determining the Night of Power (Lailatul Qadr) is concerned, it has been reported to be during one of the odd numbered nights of the last ten days of Ramadan, i.e. 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th or 29th. It has been emphasized that it is most likely to be the 27th night.
As far as the signs of Lailatul-Qadr are concerned:
- The sun rises early in the morning without rays.
- Rain may fall either during the night or during the day of that night.
- During night the sky will be lightly foggy.
- The sky will be slightly lighted without reflections and without rays.
- The angels and Gabriel all descend down onto earth for many purposes.
What should one person do on the night when seeking the Night Of Power
(or any night in the blessed month of Ramadan)
1. Plan before hand. Choose the appropriate mosque/mosc that you will be staying at and find out what their program is like. Try to make something that others can break their fast on to have a share in the rewards of Allah (swt). I've tried such as a platter of fruit and that seemed to go down very well with everyone.
2. Dress in your most beautiful clothes and put your best musk on (brothers) after making your Wudu at home. Arrive to the mosque for Itikaf (if you are not there already) before salatu al Maghrib (Maghrib prayers when you break your fast). Make intention for Itikaf when you get to the mosque and ask Allah to make this night a blessed one, and if indeed it is the Night of Power ask Allah to make you share in its blessings. If you just got to the mosque then pray Tahiyatul Masjid.
3. Start making Dua /Supplication before the sunset as Allah swt mentions in the Quran those who are not heedless of His Words are those who remember Him before the rise of the sun and before its set. What should you be asking for? Here are a number of things as a guidline:
- Blessing and peace upon the prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
- Forgiveness for the ummah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
- Aid and relied from injustice/aggression/tribulation for the Ummah / Nation of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
- Make plenty of Istighfaar. Ask for forgiveness from Allah swt for your parents, family and finally for yourself
4. Upon hearing the Adhan / Azan / Call to prayers repeat what the caller is saying and then send blessings upon the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
5. Break your fast on dates and water
6. Pray Maghrib in congregation (Jama'ah)
7. Have your meal with your fellow Muslims at the mosque. The Prophet (Peace and Blessings be upon him) has said "Whosoever eats with someone whose sins are forgiven, their sins are then forgiven" or as the Prophet (Peace and Blessings be upon him) has said.
8. Pray the Maghrib Sunnah. Pray some Nafl Prayers. Some Muslims pray the prayers of Awabeen after Magrhib as being Nafl prayers of a minimum six units (Rakah) performed two at a time.
9. Busy yourself while waiting for the Adhan of Isha by reading the Quran. You should have a quota during the month of Ramadan that you are trying to achieve.
10.Pray Isha in congregation (Jama'ah)
11.Pray the Sunnah of Isha which is two units
12. Perform the Taraweeh prayers in congregation (Jama'ah) for 8 or 20 Units/Raka's. If your local mosque only does 8 units, then remember you can do another 12 units on your own later on during the night
13. If your mosque is going to pray Witr prayers then either don't join them or join them and pray it as four units/raka's instead of three.
14. Sit down and listen to the Islamic talk that is going to be delivered after the Witr or Taraweeh. This is considered as a gathering of knowledge/remembrance.
15. Pray the remainder of your taraweeh if your mosque prayed only eight (8) units if you wish to do so.
16. Recite the Quran in a group. If you are a good reciter then help others in their recitation. You should aim to cover between one to four Juzu's/Chapters during this blessed Night of Ramadan.
17. Busy yourself with the remembrance of Allah and avoid vein talk. Actually avoid any talk that will relate to the worldly life outside of the mosque.
18. Ponder and contemplate about the universe, the creation of the Heavens and the Earth: "...and they contemplate the (wonders of) creation in the heaven and the earth…."(3:191)
19. Read a Hadith book in a group. Riyadu Al Saliheen is a great collection of Hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him) that go into virtues. Hearing about virtues will make you more motivated to put more effort into what remain of the blessed month of Ramadan.
20. Reading Tafseer of the Quran. Understanding the words of Allah is just as important as reading them.
21. Give your Zakat Al Fitr donation if you have not done so yet. Usually there are collection boxes and bins scattered around your mosque.
22. Give your Zakat Al Maal if you have not done so yet. Usually there are collection points or specific people in charge of this task at the mosque.
23. Pray the Tahajud prayers in congregation (Jama'ah). Tahajud prayers are basically Nafl prayers that occur in the middle to the last third of the night. you can pray eight units/rakas in sets of two.
24. Memorize something of the Quran.
25. Perform Salat al Tasbih (Glorification prayers) in congregation (Jama'ah) or on your own.
Salat al Tasbih can be offered any time except for odious times. It is better to offer this prayer before Zuhr prayer. This prayer is highly rewarding. A hadith stresses the importance of this prayer saying "offer Salatu al Tasbih daily if you could do, if not then once a week, if not then once a month, if not then once a year if it is not possible even, then at least once in lifetime.
The followers of Hanafi madhab offer Salaatul Tasbih as has been reported in "Tirmizi Shareef i.e. one should stand up for four Rakahs prayer as per the rules; say Allah-o-Akbar and fold the hands below his navel; recite "Sana" followed by this Tasbih i.e. "Subhaanal Laahi wal-Hamdu Lillaahi walaa Ilaaha Illal-Laahu wal-Laahu Akbar" (Glory be to Allah, Praise be to Allah. There is no deity but Allah. Allah is the Most Great) fifteen times and then recite "Ta'awuz", "Tasmiyah", "Surah Faateha" and any other Surah and then recite the same Tasbih ten times; perform "Rukoo" and recite the same Tasbih ten times after "Subhaana Rabbiyal Azeem"; rise from Rukoo reciting "Sami Allaahu Liman Hamedah" and "Allaa Humma Rabbanaa wa Lakal Hamd" and then recite the same Tasbih ten times; observe "Sajdah" and recite the same Tasbih after "Subhaana Rabbiyal A'laa"; rise from Sajdah and sit in "Jalsah" and recite the same Tasbih ten times; perform second Sajdah and recite the same Tasbih ten times after "Subhaana Rabbiyal A'laa" and then complete the remaining three Rakahs in the similar way. Thus, this Tasbih is recited 75 times in one Rakah and 300 times in all four Rakahs. It is better to recite Surah "Al-Takaasur" in the first Rakah after Surah Faateha, Surah "Al-Asr" in second, Surah "Al-Kaafiroon" in third and Surah "Al-Ikhlaas" in fourth Rakah.
26. Moisten your mouth with the remembrance of the Most High. Say: - Blessing and peace upon the prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
- Istighfaar
- Tawbaah
- Zikr of Allah (swt)
and Cry to Allah swt. Let the tears flow.
27. By this time you have reached the critical portion of the Night. Make lots and lots of Dua / supplication. Do the following:
- Ask for Forgiveness for the ummah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
- Aid and relied from injustice/aggression/tribulation for the Ummah / Nation of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
- It has also been reported by Aisha, the wife of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him) who said: "I asked the Messenger>Of A11ah if I knew which night was the Night of Power and what Prayer I should say during that night? He said to me: Say: "O Allah! You are forgiving and you love forgiveness, so you too forgive me.
- Pray for Guidance of yourself, family, friends etc
- Pray for Guidance of those non Muslims that you know to the religion of Islam
- Ask for protection from the Hellfire
- Ask for the highest gardens of Paradise - Janatu Al Firdaws
- Beg for the companionship of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him) on the day of judgment and in paradise.
- Mention Allah by his most beautiful names
- Act as a person who is weak and in desperate need of Allah (swt)
28. Have Suhoor/Sehri
29. Wait for Fajr Prayers in remembrance of Allah swt
30. Upon hearing the Adhan / Azan / Call to prayers repeat what the caller is saying and then send blessings upon the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him)
31. Pray the sunnah of Fajr. There is most likely a small wait until the Fajr prayer itself so stay in silence during this time as you will be receiving the rewards of prayers. 32. Pray in congregation (Jama'ah)
33. Listen to the Islamic talk that is going to be delivered after the Fajr. This is considered as a gathering of knowledge/remembrance.
34. Read Quran until after sunrise by 20 minutes. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “He who performs the Fajr Prayer in congregation, and makes dhikr until sunrise, and then offers two rak`ahs of Duha Prayer will get a reward equal to that of complete Hajj and `Umrah.” (He [peace and blessings be upon him] said “complete Hajj and `Umrah” three times.) (Reported by At-Tirmidhi.)
35. Pray the Duha prayer on your own. Duha prayer begins after sunrise and ends at meridian, and is generally thought to include at least two Raka'ahs, though in some traditions the number is four or even twelve. It is generally prayed when one-fourth of the day has passed.[citation needed] Performing this prayer is believed to be effective in seeking forgiveness for one's sins.
36. Get some sleep. Your body deserves it.
May Allah swt allow us to have pure intentions, gives us success to have perform all those actions that please Him, accept all our efforts and reward us with closeness to Him at heart in this life and the next. Peace and blessings upon his beloved Prophet Muhammad, his household and family, his companions and all those who will follow him until the day of Judgment wal humdulilahi rabi alameen.
| | |
|
