4] Laylat al-Qadr: The Night of Power

4]
Let's analyze the significance of Laylat al-Qadr with commentary, (
tafseer ) on chapter 97 of Al-Qur'an, Al-Qadr (the Night of Power).
Al-Qadr
This chapter ( surah ) was revealed in Makkah, and itsbasic theme is
honoring the revelation of this blessed book, the Holy Qur`an. The
Night of Power or honor is a specialgift only to the community(Ummah)
of Islam. The night is one which even the angels in the heavens see as
worthy of witnessing. The night is so rich with holiness, as the night
when good deeds are returned, and is equal to a thousand months in the
sight of Allah.
Occasion Of Revelation
In a report by Abi Hatim and Al-Wahidi, by way of Mujahid, the
Messenger (saas) mentioned that there was a man among the Israelites
who devotedhis life to the cause of Allah for a thousand months. The
companions were amazed and impressed, but were saddened because they
knew there would be no way that they could reach this status of
devotion. So Allah (SWT) revealed this surah to inform them that He
had just blessed this Ummah with the Night of Honor, which is equal to
a thousand months.
"We have indeed revealed it, (Al-Qur`an) in the Night of Power."
(Al-Qur`an 97:1)
There are several points pertaining to the meaning of this verse:
The meaning and the use of the pronoun "We" is a style in Al-Qur`an
that when the Creator (SWT) is mentioned as a pronoun, He is referred
to by "We" or "I," as is evidenced in this surah. Elsewhere He said,
"Behold, thy Lord saidto the angels: `I will createa vicegerent..."
(Al-Qur`an, 2:30) . There is no problemwhen Allah uses the pronoun "I"
to refer to His Exalted Self, but when he uses "We" the explanation
becomes warranted because it cannot be perceived to indicate plural.
There is unanimity among the scholars that"We" indicates respect
andexaltation for the Creator and Cherisher of all the worlds, whose
greatness isincomprehensibly vast andbeyond our imagination.
Or, it is referring to Allah (SWT) and the angels who carry out his
words to one all, in every level of His dominion. It cannot mean
plural, or more than One Allah, for that would necessitate dropping in
ranks, the absoluteness, and the powers of each competing deity. If
each is capable of being absolute, each would have been independent
from the other and the idea that each deity can be independent from
the other, is evidence that none is absolute. This is inconceivable of
Allah (SWT) therefore, "We" cannot mean anything butrespect and
exaltation of the One and Only.
"...Have Indeed Revealed ItIn the Night of Power" (Al-Qur`an 97:1)
There is again unanimity among the commentators that "it" refers to
Al-Qur'an , meaning "We revealed" Al-Qur'an in the Night of Power. He
(SWT) did not mention Al-Qur'an explicitly because to refer to
Al-Qur'an by the pronoun implies a certain divine uniqueness of this
book, as well as greatness and honor that may not beattained if the
word Al-Qur'an was used instead. First, it ascribed the revelation of
Al-Qur'an to Himself, and not to anyone else. Second, referring to
Al-Qur'an by pronoun is an indication that the revelation of this book
was not a secret thatno one knew about. Its revelation was an event
widely known to all duringthe time of Muhammad (saas) and after,
guarding against anyone who may like to challenge it or claimany honor
of teaching Muhammad (saas) Al-Qur'an . Third, the statement also
meant to honor and memorialize the time period in which Al-Qur'an was
revealed.
By revealing Al-Qur'an in the Night of Power, Allah (SWT) inaugurated
or started its revelation for the beginning of the prophethood (
'Bi'ethah ), and the Prophet's mission of Al-Islam began in the month
of Ramadan on that Night. Al-Qur'an was not revealed in one night; it
was revealed over the course of 23 years. Ibn Abbas (raa) said: The
whole Qur'an was revealedto the lower heavens fromthe protective slate
( Lawhul Mahfuz ) on the Night of Power, then from there to the earth
in the course of 23 years.
The word power, Al-Qadr , has several implications and meaning, but we
cover only those implications which are relevant to the issues here.
Qadr implies having powerover something, as in the case of the Creator
over the creation. Allah's (SWT) excellence is Al-Qadr , capable,
omnipotent, almighty, all powerful. It also implies excellence andhigh
esteem, and as for this Night of Power, it is highly esteemed and
regarded. For this night is equal to over 80 years in the sight of
Allah (SWT).
It also implies to maintain,appoint, assign or decree an order. Thus,
in the Night of Power, Allah (SWT) proclaims to the angels His
commands and orders in regards to the affairs of the universe. From
this meaning is derived the concept of Al-Qada Wa Qadar , the fifth
article of faith, that Allah has decreed or preordained or,:->

2a] Laylat ul-Qadr: Peace Until Fajr

2a]
After Fajr, as the sun creeps above the horizon, reddish and weak in
its appearance, without any rays, the effort at night will have been
worthwhile. The believer rejoices, knowing that this was quite
possibly Lailat-ul-Qadr and "whoever stays up (in prayer and
remembrance of Allah) on the Night of Qadr fully believing (in Allah's
promise of reward for thatnight) and hoping to seek reward (from Allah
alone and not from people), he shall be forgiven for his past sins."
[Bukhari, Muslim]

2] Laylat ul-Qadr: Peace Until Fajr

2]
In each of the daily prayerswe offer, we solemnly declare to Allah,
"Iyyaka na'budu" (You alone do weworship). While the intelligent and
committed believer realizes that his very lifestyle spells worship, he
knows, remembering the words ofour Prophet (pbuh) that "Du'aa'
(supplication) is worship" [Tirmidhi, Abu Daud]
Allah, the Most Merciful, has encouraged the believers to take
advantage of certain timesduring the year to make du'aa'. Such an
occasion presents itself annually during Ramadan — especially on the
Lailat-ul-Qadr, the Night of Power. On this night, the single most
important event in human history unfolded as, after the Glorious Quran
was preserved in the Protected Tablet, Jibril descended with the
blessed book to reveal it, upon Allah's command, to His Messenger
(pbuh).
Accentuating its significance, Allah says "And how would you know (the
value of the) Night of Qadr." [97:2] So valuable is this Night of Qadr
that the Quran devotes a special surah to it. "Lailatul Qadr is better
than a thousand months" [97:3] This one night surpasses the value of
30,000 nights.
The most authentic account of the occurrence of the Night indicates
that it can occur on any one of the last ten, odd numbered nights of
Ramadan. The fact that theexact night is unknown reflects Allah's will
in keeping it hidden. Indeed, the Prophet (pbuh) was prevented from
telling us its precise time. One day, he came out to tell the
companions the exact night. On the way he saw two men arguing with
each other. By the will of Allah, he (pbuh) forgot andsubsequently
rememberedit. Afterwards the Prophet (pbuh) was instructed not to
divulge this information. "Had I been allowed," he (pbuh) remarked
once, "I would have told you (of its exact time)." [Ahmad]
The Almighty in His wisdom kept this hidden from us for many reasons.
Perhaps He wants us to strive hard in our worship during the last ten
days of Ramadan so that we don't become lazy, worshipping hard on just
that one nightand denying ourselves the benefit of doing the same on
the other nights. "Had people not left their salah except for that
(one) night,I would have informed you (of its exact date)."
[Al-Tabarani]
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 (pbuh) promised that all who bear down during thelast ten
days shall have all their sins forgiven. To achieve this, he remembers
the Prophet's (pbuh) advice in different sayings wherein he used words
like "seek", "pursue", "search", and "look hard" for Lailat-ul-Qadr.
Moreover, Allah and His Prophet (pbuh) provided us some signs of its
occurrence. Allah (swt) describes the night as "..peace until the rise
of the morn." [97:5] In various sayings, the Prophet (pbuh) described
the night as serene, tranquil, and peaceful. The sun at sunrise would
appear reddish and without its normal blazingand sharp rays. The
Prophet (pbuh) added that "the angels on earth on that night of Qadr
will be more numerous than all the pebbles of the earth."
What should one do during the last ten days in pursuit of Lailat-u-
Qadr? The devoted servant of Allah makes these nights alive with
prayer, reading and reflecting on Quran. He makes du'aa' to Allah,
penitently beseeching Himfor His forgivness. He is inspired by the
Prophet's (pbuh) words "Our Lord, most Exalted, Most high comes down
to the lowestheaven during the last third of each night and announces
(reassuringly): Whoever makes du'aa', I shall answer it. Whoever asks
(for something halal) Ishall grant it; and whoeverseeks forgiveness, I
shall forgive him." [Bukhari] Thebelievers, conscious of Allah and
their sins, will continue to beseech Allah, in and out of prayer,
during their prostrations. For a time, the only concern will be
cleansing oneself of the forgetfulness that this life propagates in
one's heart, the sins that accumulate, darkening the heart, making it
insensitive to disobeying Allah. The believer begs Allah to keephim
away from misfortunes in this world, the punishment of the grave, and
the torment of Hell. He asks Allah to makehim patient and steadfast in
struggling to maintain his Islam in this world and asks Him to
overlook his shortcomings, periods of laziness and neglect.
Sincere devotion on that night will render the believer forgtful of
the time, until he is surprised by the Adhaan of Fajr. After Fajr,

How to Seek Laylat-ul-Qadr

Laylat ul-Qadr is the most blessed night. A person who misses it has
indeed missed a great amount of good. If a believing personis zealous
to obey his Lord and increase the good deeds in his record, he should
strive to encounter this night and to pass it in worship and
obedience. If this is facilitated for him, all of his previous sins
will be forgiven.
Praying Qiyaam
It is recommended to make a long Qiyaam prayer during the nights on
which Laylat ul-Qadr could fall. This is indicated in many hadeeths,
such as the following:
Abu Tharr (radhiallahu `anhu) relates:
"We fasted with Allah's Messenger (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) in
Ramadaan. He did not leadus (in qiyaam) at all until there were seven
(nights of Ramadaan) left. Then hestood with us (that night - in
prayer) until one third of the night had passed. He did not pray with
us onthe 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 imaam until he (the imaam)
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 byhimself during
Ramadan?' He replied, 'Pray with the people.' I also heard him say, 'I
would prefer for oneto pray (qiyaam) with the imaam and to pray witr
with him as well, for the Prophet (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) said:
"When a man prays with the imaam until he concludes, it is recorded
that he prayed the rest ofthat night." [Masaa'il]]
Abu Hurayrah (radhiallahu `anhu) narrated that the Messenger
(sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) said:
"Whoever stands (in qiyaam) in Laylat ul-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 Binas-Samit; it means that he is permitted to be
among the sincere worshippers during that blessed night.]
Making Supplications
It is also recommended to make extensive supplication on this night.
`A'ishah (radhiallahu `anha) reported that she asked Allah's Messenger
(sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam), "O Messenger of Allah! If I knew which
night is Laylat ul-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 loveforgiveness. So forgive me." [Recorded by
Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and at-Tirmithi. Verified to be authentic by
Al-Albani]
Abandoning Worldly Pleasures for the Sake of Worship
It is further recommended to spend more time in worship during the
nights on which Laylat ul-Qadr is likely to be. This calls for
abandoning many worldly pleasures in order to secure the time and
thoughts solely for worshipping Allah.
`A'ishah (radhiallahu `anha) reported:
"When the (last) ten started, the Prophet (sallallahu `alayhi wa
sallam) would tighten his izaar (i.e. he stayed away from his wives in
order to have more time for worship), spend the wholenight awake (in
prayer), and wake up his family." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
And she said:
"Allah's Messenger (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) used to exert
more(in worship) on the last tenthan on other nights." [Muslim]