Articles
The Night of Power: Better Than a Thousand Months, a Night of Forgiveness and Peace
May
The greatest witness to the value of the Night of Power is the very Book that gave it that value: the Qur’an, the eternal word of Allah Almighty. As Allah Almighty says:
بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
﴾اِنَّٓا اَنْزَلْنَاهُ ف۪ي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِۚ ﴿1﴾ وَمَٓا اَدْرٰيكَ مَا لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِۜ ﴿2﴾ لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ اَلْفِ شَهْرٍۜ ﴿3
﴾تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلٰٓئِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ ف۪يهَا بِاِذْنِ رَبِّهِمْۚ مِنْ كُلِّ اَمْرٍۙۛ ﴿4﴾ سَلَامٌ۠ۛ هِيَ حَتّٰى مَطْلَعِ الْفَجْرِ ﴿5
“Indeed, We sent it down(; that eternal miracle, the Holy Qur’an) on the Night of Power (from the Preserved Tablet to the lowest heaven all at once). And what will make you know what the Night of Power is? (No one could ever tell you! So now I inform you:) The Night of Power (is, over a thousand months in which there is no Night of Power) better than a thousand months! (A righteous deed done on it is not merely equal to a deed performed continuously for eighty-three years and four months; it is more virtuous than that!) The angels and the Spirit (Gabriel, upon him be peace) descend in it (for every important matter decreed from that night until the next year) by the leave of their Lord. Until the break of dawn (and until daybreak, since the angels greet every believing man and woman they meet,) it (that night) is peace/(At other times Allah Almighty decrees both affliction and well-being, but) what is decreed on that night is nothing but peace until dawn breaks/”[1]
The Night of Power is the night in which the Qur’an was revealed: a guide to truth for humankind until the Day of Judgment, a register of justice, a veil against oppression, an ocean of spiritual knowledge and a pearl of reality.
The Night of Power was made better than a thousand months. It holds the reward of deeds that could fill more than an entire human lifetime (83 years and 4 months).
Because of the great blessings of this night, the angels descend in vast numbers. The Spirit, that is Gabriel (peace be upon him), also descends on this night by the leave of Allah Almighty.
A Night of Peace and Well-Being
The Night of Power is wholly peace and well-being. On all other nights Allah Almighty decrees both affliction and well-being, but on the Night of Power He has decreed only well-being. On this night Satan has no power to lead anyone into wrongdoing or to cause harm. Until dawn, the angels greet those who are in prostration. The angels who descend to the earth on this night outnumber the grains of sand.
In a blessed hadith narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever stands in prayer on the Night of Power with faith and hoping for reward from Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He), his past sins will be forgiven.”[2]
In some narrations it is mentioned thus: “His past and future sins will be forgiven.”[3]
It is narrated from Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “You have reached a month that contains a night better than a thousand months! Whoever is deprived of the goodness of that night has been deprived of all goodness. And none is deprived of its goodness except one who is truly unfortunate.”[4]
According to a narration from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When the Night of Power comes, Gabriel (peace be upon him) descends with a company of angels. They pray for every servant who is standing in prayer or remembering Allah Almighty, and they greet him with peace.”[5]
It is reported that Ka‘b al-Ahbar (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Allah Almighty chose Friday among the days, Ramadan among the months, and the Night of Power among the nights.”[6]
On the Night of Power, alongside acts such as remembrance, praise, glorification and sending blessings and peace upon the Prophet, it is also a sunnah to pray for forgiveness. In one narration, our mother Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) asked our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), “If I witness the Night of Power, how should I pray?” and our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) advised her to pray as follows:
“اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي”
“O Allah! You are indeed the Most Forgiving, and You love to forgive. So forgive me!”
THE VIRTUE OF I‘TIKAF (SPIRITUAL RETREAT)
Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: “Our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would observe i‘tikaf during the last ten days of blessed Ramadan.”[7]
Our mother Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said that he did this until he passed away.[8]
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) also said: “When the last ten days of blessed Ramadan began, our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would revive the night with worship, wake his family, and strive in worship during those last ten days more than he did at any other time.”[9]
It is reported from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “I‘tikaf keeps sins in check, and the one who observes it is rewarded as if he had done all good deeds.”[10]
May our Lord Almighty make all of us among those who heed the Prophetic counsel and truly act upon it!
Footnotes
[1] Surah al-Qadr: 1-4.
[2] Bukhari, Sawm, Hadith No. 1901; Muslim, Salat al-Musafirin, Hadith No: 175-(760).
[3] Ahmad ibn Hanbal, al-Musnad, vol. 37, p. 406, Hadith No. 22741.
[4] Ibn Majah, Siyam, Hadith No. 1644; Tabarani, al-Mu‘jam al-Awsat, vol. 2, p. 119, Hadith No. 1444.
[5] Bayhaqi, Shu‘ab al-Iman, vol. 5, p. 277, Hadith No. 3421.
[6] Bayhaqi, Shu‘ab al-Iman, vol. 5, p. 242, Hadith No. 3363.
[7] Bukhari, I‘tikaf, Hadith No. 2025; Muslim, I‘tikaf, Hadith No. 1-(1171).
[8] Bukhari, I‘tikaf, Hadith No. 2026; Muslim, I‘tikaf, Hadith No. 5-(1172).
[9] Muslim, I‘tikaf, Hadith No. 8-(1175); Tirmidhi, Sawm, Hadith No. 796.
[10] Ibn Majah, Siyam, Hadith No. 1781; Bayhaqi, Shu‘ab al-Iman, vol. 5, p. 434, Hadith No. 3678.
source: ismailaga.org.tr