Laylat al-Qadr, The Night of Power – 2013/1434

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

We have indeed revealed this (Message) in the Night of Power:
And what will explain to thee what the night of power is?
The Night of Power is better than a thousand months.
Therein come down the angels and the Spirit (Jibril, or Gabriel) by Allah’s permission, on every errand: Peace!…This until the rise of morn.   – Qur’an, 97:1-5

Laylat al-Qadr, (also known as Shab-e-Qadr), the Night of Destiny, Night of Power, Night of Value, the Night of Decree or Night of Measures, is the anniversary of the night the first verses of the Qur’an were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.

The Night of Power will be, inshAllah, on Sunday, August 4th this year for those countries that started fasting on July 9th, and Saturday, August 3rd for those countries that started Ramadan on July 8th.

Muslims believe that revelation of the Qur’an occurred in two phases, with the first phase being the revelation in its entirety on Laylat Al-Qadr by Allah to the Archangel Gabriel in the lowest heaven, and then the subsequent verse-by-verse revelation to Prophet (pbuh) by Gabriel (Jibril in Arabic). The revelation started in 610 CE at the Hira cave on Mount Nur in Mecca.

Because of the revealed importance of this night, Muslims strive harder in the last ten days of Ramadan since the Laylat al-Qadr could be one of the odd-numbered days in the last ten (the first, third, fifth, seventh or ninth)

The Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “Whoever prays on Laylat al-Qadr out of faith and sincerity, shall have all their past sins forgiven.”   –  Bukhari and Muslim, from Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased with them).

if you stay awake
for an entire night
watch out for a treasure
trying to arrive

you can keep warm
by the secret sun of the night
keeping your eyes open
for the softness of dawn

try it for tonight
challenge your sleepy eyes
do not lay your head down
wait for heavenly alms

night is the bringer of gifts
Moses went on a ten-year journey
during a single night
invited by a tree
to watch the fire and light

Mohammed too made his passage
during that holy night
when he heard the glorious voice
when he ascended to the sky

day is to make a living
night is only for love
commoners sleep fast
lovers whisper to God all night

all night long
a voice calls upon you
to wake up
in the precious hours

if you miss your chance now
when your body is left behind
your soul will lament
death is a life of no return

– Jalaluddin Rumi – translation by Nader Khalili from Rumi, Fountain of Fire.

Ya Haqq!

The Soul of Genius

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

“Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of genius. Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius.”

–  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Ya Haqq!

“What is the Best Religion?”

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

“What is the best religion?” asked a truth seeker.

“Self-realization,” Master Yogananda replied, “Self-Realization is in fact the only religion. For it is the true purpose of religion, no matter how people define their beliefs. A person may be Christian or Jewish, Buddhist or Hindu, Muslim or Zoroastrian; he or she may proclaim that Jesus Christ is the only way, or Buddha, or Mohammed—as indeed, millions of believers do. He or she may insist that this ritual, or that place of worship, bestows salvation. But it all comes down to what he or she is within.”

– from The Essence of Self-Realization by Paramhansa Yogananda

Ya Haqq!

“Seek, and you may find the Truth.”

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

“…If you can walk on water,
you are no better than a straw.
If you can fly through the air,
You are no better than a fly.
Conquer thy heart,
So that you may become someone.

A person takes seventy years in learning,
and fails to become illumined.
Another, all his life learned nothing,
But hears a word, and is consumed by it.

In this Path argument has no value,
Seek, and you may find the Truth.”

– Khawaja Abdullah Ansari of Herat.

Ya Haqq!

Rumi’s Ramadan Poem

O moon-faced Beloved,
the month of Ramadan has arrived
Cover the table
and open the path of praise.

O fickle busybody,
it’s time to change your ways.
Can you see the one who’s selling the halvah
how long will it be the halvah you desire?

Just a glimpse of the halvah-maker
has made you so sweet even honey says,
“I’ll put myself beneath your feet, like soil;
I’ll worship at your shrine.”

Your chick frets within the egg
with all your eating and choking.
Break out of your shell that your wings may grow.
Let yourself fly.

The lips of the Master are parched
from calling the Beloved.
The sound of your call resounds
through the horn of your empty belly.

Let nothing be inside of you.
Be empty:  give your lips to the lips of the reed.
When like a reed you fill with His breath,
then you’ll taste sweetness.

Sweetness is hidden in the Breath
that fills the reed.
Be like Mary – by that sweet breath
a child grew within her.

– Rumi

A Special Ramadan Du’a (Prayer)

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

Ramadan Mubarak!

The following is a du’a that is constantly read in Tarim, a town in the Wadi Hadhramawt, Yemen, throughout the blessed month of Ramadan. This beneficial du’a has been translated and made available through Sidi Amin Buxton (Allah preserve and increase him):

Sayyiduna Salman narrates that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and grant him peace) spoke to the Companions on the last day of Sha`ban. He informed them that they were about to enter a great and blessed month, a month in which there is a night better than a thousand nights. He mentioned some of the merits of the month of Ramadan. Then he said: “Do four things in abundance: two things with which you please your Lord, and two things which you cannot do without. As for the two things with which you please your Lord: your testification that there is nothing worthy of worship other than Allah and your seeking His forgiveness. As for the two things which you cannot do without: your asking Allah for Paradise and seeking refuge in Him from the Fire.”1.

The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and grant him peace) taught al-Sayyida `A’isha to say on Laylat al-Qadr:

“O Allah, truly You are all-Pardoning, You love to pardon so pardon us.”^2.

On the basis of these two hadiths the scholars and people of Tarim repeat the following du`a throughout the month of Ramadan:

أشْهَدُ أن لا إلهَ إلا الله نَسْتَغْفِرُ الله نسأَلُكَ الجنَّةَ ونَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ النَّار (3)

Ashadu alla ilaha illallah, nastaghfirullah, nas’aluk’l-jannata wa na`audhu bika min an-nar

“I testify that there is nothing worthy of worship other than Allah and we seek the forgiveness of Allah. We ask You for Paradise and take refuge in You from the Fire.” (3 times)

اللهمَّ انَّكَ عَفُوٌ تُحبُّ العفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنَّا (3) يا كريم

Allahumma innaka `afuwun tuhibbu-l’`afwa f`afwa `anna

“O Allah, truly You are all-Pardoning, You love to pardon so pardon us” (3 times). On the third time say “O Most Generous” (Ya Karim).

1 Narrated by Ibn Khuzayma

2 Narrated by Ahmad, Ibn Majah and Tirmidhi with a sahih chain of transmission.

–  from Abdul Karim’s blog, Interpreter’s Path.

Note: Wadi Hadhramawt is a 220-mile wadi (seasonal river valley) which has a collection of 31 small sultanates with Aden in the middle. Hadhramawt is the biggest wadi in the Arabian Peninsula and runs for 99 miles through a stony desert. This area has been settled since at least the 3rd century AD and brilliant green fields ran alongside the wadi.

Ya Haqq!

The Fast and the Qur’an – a Ramadan Hadith

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

“The fast and the Qur’an are two intercessors for the servant of Allah on the Day of Resurrection. The fast will say: ‘O Lord, I prevented him from his food and desires during the day. Let me intercede for him.’ The Qur’an will say: ‘I prevented him from sleeping at night. Let me intercede for him.’ And their intercession will be accepted.”  

– A hadith, or saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. (Ahmad)

Ramadan Kareem!

Ya Haqq!

Rumi’s Poem on Fasting during Ramadan

Celebrate! The month of fasting has come.
Pleasant journey to the one

Who is the company of the fasting.
I climbed the roof to see the Moon,

Because I really missed fasting
By heart and soul.

I lost my hat while looking at the Moon.
the Sultan of fasting made me drunk.

O Muslims, I have been drunk
since that day I lost my mind.

What a beautiful fortune fasting has.
What a wonderful glory.

There is another secret moon
Besides this one.

He is hiding in the tent of fasting
Like a Turk.

Anyone who comes
To the harvest of fasting in this month

Finds the way to this Moon.
Whoever makes his face

Resemble pale satin
Wears the silk clothes of fasting.

Prayers will be accepted in this month.
Sighs of the one fasting pierce the sky.

The person who sits patiently
At the bottom of fasting’s well

Owns the love of Egypt, like Joseph.
O the word which eats the Sahur* meal,

Be silent so that anyone
Who knows fasting will enjoy fasting.

Come, O Shams, the brave one of whom Tabriz is proud.
You are the commander of fasting’s soldiers.

– Jalaluddin Rumi, a ghazal from the Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi, translated by Nevit Ergin.

Note:  * Sahur:  Meal before dawn during Ramadan fast.

Ramadan Mubarak! – 2013/1434

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

Ramadan Mubarak!

Contrary to what many people believe, The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)  is not the founder of Islam (Submission to God). He was a follower of Abraham, to whom God taught the religious duties that Muslims, those who submit to the One God, practice today (Qur’an 2:128). The Prophet’s (pbuh) role was to deliver the Qur’an to mankind, and purify the message and the practices of religion distorted by the idol worshippers.

God revealed the Qur’an into Muhammad’s memory during Ramadan in the Night of Power (Qur’an 17:1, 44:3, 97:1-5).  It was then gradually released from his memory in accordance with God’s will and written down by him with the help of Gabriel over a period of 23 years.

Ramadan is the month during which the Qur’an was revealed, providing guidance for the people, clear teachings, and the statute book. Those of you who witness this month shall fast therein. Those who are ill or traveling may substitute the same number of other days. God wishes for you convenience, not hardship, that you may fulfill your obligations, and to glorify God for guiding you, and to express your appreciation.  – Qur’an 2:185

…You may eat and drink until the white thread of light becomes distinguishable from the dark thread of night at dawn. Then you shall fast until sunset. Sexual intercourse is prohibited if you decide to retreat to the masjid (during the last ten days of Ramadan). These are God’s laws; you shall not transgress them. God thus clarifies His revelations for the people, that they may attain salvation.  – Qur’an 2:187

InshAllah, God willing, the first day of Ramadan is July 9, 2013, and the last day of Ramadan is August 7, 2013 for most of USA and Canada.

The first day of Ramadan is July 10, 2013, and the last day of Ramadan is August 8, 2013 for the Middle East, Turkey, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand etc.

Laylat Al-Qadr, The Night of Destiny (or Night of Power) will be, inshAllah, on August 4, 2013 for those places that start fasting on July 9th, and August 5, 2013 for those countries that start Ramadan on July 2st.

May Allah bless us all this Ramadan, accept our fasting and sincere repentance, and forgive our sins.  Amin!

Ya Haqq!

The Prophet’s Ramadan Sermon (saw)

Salaam and Greetings of Peace:

Baihaqi reported on the authority of Salman Al-Farsi (Radhi Allah ‘Anh) that the Prophet (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasalaam) delivered a sermon on the last day of the month of Sha’ban. In it he said,

“O People! The month of Allah (Ramadan) has come with its mercies, blessings and forgivenesses. Allah has decreed this month the best of all months. The days of this month are the best among the days and the nights are the best among the nights and the hours during Ramadan are the best among the hours. This is a month in which you have been invited by Him (to fast and pray). Allah has honoured you in it. In every breath you take is a reward of Allah, your sleep is worship, your good deeds are accepted and your invocations are answered.

Therefore, you must invoke your Lord in all earnestness with hearts free from sin and evil, and pray that Allah may help you to keep fast, and to recite the Holy Qur’an. Indeed!, miserable is the o­ne who is deprived of Allah’s forgiveness in this great month. While fasting remember the hunger and thirst o­n the Day of Judgement. Give alms to the poor and needy. Pay respect to your elders, have sympathy for your youngsters and be kind towards your relatives and kinsmen. Guard your tongue against unworthy words, and your eyes from scenes that are not worth seeing (forbidden) and your ears from sounds that should not be heard.

Be kind to orphans so that if your children may become orphans they will also be treated with kindness. Do repent to Allah for your sins and supplicate with raised hands at the times of prayer as these are the best times, during which Allah Almighty looks at His servants with mercy. Allah Answers if they supplicate, Responds if they call, Grants if He is asked, and Accepts if they entreat. O people! you have made your conscience the slave of your desires.

Make it free by invoking Allah for forgiveness. Your back may break from the heavy load of your sins, so prostrate yourself before Allah for long intervals, and make this load lighter. Understand fully that Allah has promised in His Honour and Majesty that, people who perform salat and sajda (prostration) will be guarded from Hell-fire o­n the Day of Judgement.

O people!, if anyone amongst you arranges for iftar (meal at sunset) for any believer, Allah will reward him as if he had freed a slave, and Allah will forgive him his sins. A companion asked: “but not all of us have the means to do so” The Prophet (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasalaam) replied: Keep yourself away from Hell-fire though it may consist of half a date or even some water if you have nothing else.

O people!, anyone who during this month cultivates good manners, will walk over the Sirat (bridge to Paradise) o­n the day when feet will tend to slip. For anyone who during this month eases the workload of his servants, Allah will make easy his accounting, and for anyone who doesn’t hurt others during this month, Allah will safeguard him from His Wrath o­n the Day of Judgement. Anyone who respects and treats an orphan with kindness during this month, Allah shall look at him with kindness o­n that Day. Anyone who treats his kinsmen well during this month, Allah will bestow His Mercy o­n him o­n that Day, while anyone who mistreats his kinsmen during this month, Allah will keep away from His Mercy.

Whomever offers the recommended prayers during this month, Allah will save him from Hell, and whomever observes his obligations during this month, his reward will be seventy times the reward during other months. Whomever repeatedly invokes Allah’s blessings o­n me, Allah will keep his scale of good deeds heavy, while the scales of others will be tending to lightness. Whomever recites during this month an ayat (verse) of the Holy Qur’an, will get the reward of reciting the whole Qur’an in other months.

O people!, the gates of Paradise remain open during this month. Pray to your Lord that they may not be closed for you. While the gates of Hell are closed, pray to your Lord that they never open for you. Satan has been chained, invoke your Lord not to let him dominate you.”

Ali ibn Talib (Radhi Allah ‘Anh) said: “I asked, ‘O messenger of Allah, what are the best deeds during this month’?” ‘He replied: ‘O Abu-Hassan, the best of deeds during this month is to be far from what Allah has forbidden’.”

Ya Haqq!