Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

The Significance of the Fast will be realized only at the moment of Death

One will know how well he observed the fast at the moment he dies; it is then that prayers will take a form and stand at his right, as he lies in his grave, and zakat on his left, while his benevolence and good treatment of his parents will look him in the eyes. Everything will be personified in the life hereafter, starting from the moment of death. The fast will then be personified as perseverance, the exercise in patience as one faces thirst and hunger; it will stand not far away, urging prayers and zakat to help the deceased person, telling them that if they did not, he would.

It is in such dire situation that the true value of fast is realized__when it is too late for many. And one will feel the profound pain of regret for not having observed the fast and the prayers as he should have when questions are put forth to him by the two angels Munkir and Nakeer who will come to him in the most horrific form, addressing him in a voice louder than thunder and looking at him with eyes emitting lightning, asking him one question after another. Nothing can compare with the agony of death for those with whom Allah is not pleased, absolutely nothing.

A dying person, as we are told in many books dealing with death and the hereafter, will encounter agonies the extent of which is known only by the Almighty. Life, real life, starts at the moment of death... A dying person is like one awakening from a brief dream. This brief dream is life as we know it here on earth.

Shaykh al-Ghazali had made a very terse statement in this regard when he said, on p. 445, Vol. 4, of his book Al-Ahya, "Had a servant of Allah had no more than the agony, the horror, and the torment of the moments of death, he would have found no joy in his life at all, and he would not have felt happy for a moment, and he would not have become indifferent or negligent [with regard to his obligations] in the least." Prophet Moses (as) was asked by the Almighty how he found death. "I found it," he said, "like a live bird being fried in a pan; it neither dies so it can rest, nor does it fly away and be saved."

He also is quoted saying that he found it like a live sheep being skinned by a butcher. It is during moments like these that a servant of Allah wishes he had spent his entire life in fast and prayers. Abraham (Prophet Ibrahim, peace be upon him), as we are told on p. 79 of Ibrahim Muhammad al-Jamal's book on life after death, asked the angel of death (as) to show him how he takes away the soul of a good servant of Allah, one who has performed his prayers and observed the fast and all other obligations, so he told him to look the other way. He did, then he looked at the angel and saw a young man wearing good clothes, smelling good, and his complexion was radiant.

Ibrahim (as) said, "By Allah! Had a believer enjoyed nothing more than casting a look at your face, he would have felt contented." Then he asked him how he took the souls of the disbelievers away. "Look the other way," said the angel of death to Ibrahim (as). When Ibrahim (as) looked again, the angel of death appeared to him in human form: a person as dark as coal with his feet on earth and head in the skies, the ugliest the eyes can ever see; each

hair on his body was a flame of fire. Ibrahim (as) then said, "By Allah! Had a disbeliever cast one look at you, it would have sufficed him."

What is al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem?

The significance of fast will be realized during a much more critical time: when the souls are to pass on al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem, the Straight Path, the path regarding which the believers pray Allah to keep their feet firm as they pass on it, the one mentioned in Surat al-Fatiha and regarding which they plead to the Almighty at least ten times a day (twice in each rek’a) saying:

"Guide us to the Straight Path (al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem)" (Holy Qur'an, Surah Fateha 1:6).

Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (as), as recorded on p. 41, Vol. 1, of Tabatabai's1 Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an, was asked once about the meaning of this verse; he said, "It means: Guide us to upholding the path that leads to Your pleasure, that ends at Your Paradise, that prohibits us from following our own desires and thus deviate, or follow our own views and thus perish."

In his Tafsir, al-Ayyashi quotes Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (as) saying that al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem is the Commander of the Faithful Imam Ali (as). Al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem is referred to in verse 61 of Surat Ya-Sin (Ch. 36), in verse 52 of Surat al-Shura (Ch. 42), in verse 16 of Surat al-Maaida (Ch. 5), in verses 126 and 161 of Surat al-An’am (Ch. 6), in verses 70 and 174 of Surat al-Nisaa (Ch. 4), in verse 42 of Surat al-Hijr (Ch. 15), and in other verses where it is described as the Sabeel, another word for path, leading to the Almighty.

Abdul-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Hassani quotes Ahmed ibn ‘Eisa ibn Abu Maryam quoting Muhammad ibn Ahmed al-’Arjami quoting Ali ibn Hatim al-Minqari quoting al-Mufaddal ibn ‘Umar saying, "I asked Abu Abdullah (Imam al-Sadiq [as]) about the Sirat, and he said, ‘It is the Path to knowing Allah, the most Exalted, the most Great, and there are two such paths: one in the life of this world, and one in the life hereafter.

The Sirat in this life is the Imam whose obedience is incumbent; whoever knows him in this life and follows his guidance will be able to pass on the (other) Sirat which is a path over hell in the hereafter, and whoever does not know him in this life, his feet will slip away from the Sirat in the hereafter so he falls into the fire of hell.'" This is recorded on pp. 13-14 of Ma’ani al-Akhbar and also on p. 66, Vol. 8, of Bihar al-Anwar.

It is when you come to that Sirat that you will find out how well you performed your fast in the life of this world. Each and every soul has to pass over al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem, the straight path over hell, a fire more intense in heat than boiling molten brass, with seven bridges over it the length of each one of which is three thousand years: one thousand to vertically ascend, one thousand to horizontally cross, and one thousand to descend.

It is thinner than a human hair, more sharp than the sharpest sword, and darker than the darkest night inside a tunnel. Each bridge has seven branches, and each branch is like a long lance with sharp teeth: each servant of Allah will be confined on each and every one of them and be asked about all the injunctions the Almighty had required him to perform during his life on this planet. In the first of such stops he will be asked about belief and conviction, about shirk and hypocrisy. In the second he will be asked about prayers, what they contain, how to perform them, and whether he performed them properly and on time.

In the third he will be asked about zakat, its types, and whether he paid it or not. And it is in the fourth one that he will be asked about the fast... It is then that he will realize whether he upheld this important obligation or not, whether he offered charity or not, and whether he regretted and repented during the month of Ramadan or not. In the fifth he will be asked about the pilgrimage and ‘umra, why he did not perform them, or why he failed to perform them properly, and how they are to be performed. In the sixth he will be asked about wudu (ablution) and ghusul, how he performed them, which one is compulsory and which one is optional.

Finally, in the seventh, he will be asked about how kind he was to his parents and kin, and whether he did injustice to any human being. In the absence of sufficient optional good deeds such as offering charity, helping a needy Muslim, performing optional prayers or fasts..., etc., if one gives the wrong answer to any question in any of these stops, he will fall into the pit of hell underneath..., as Abdel-Jabbar al-Rubay’I tells us in his book Al-Tathkira fi ahwal al-mawt wal akhira, having collected such details from various books of hadith and Sunnah.

He adds saying, on p. 130, that the bridges will be shaken by the weight of crossing people who will climb on top of one another, causing these bridges to move like a ship tossed by a wind storm in the midst of the sea. al-Sirat separates Paradise from hell. Only those who cross it successfully will achieve salvation and bliss. With reference to those who will fall into hell, the Almighty says:

Have you not considered those who have changed Allah's favor into blasphemy and caused their people to fall into the abode of perdition? (Holy Qur'an, Surah Ibrahim 14:28)

To whomsoever My wrath is due, he shall fall therein. (Holy Qur'an Surah Taha 20:81)

Whoever follows My guidance will not lose his way nor fall into perdition. (Holy Qur'an, Surah Taha 20:123)

Nor will his wealth benefit him when he falls headlong (into the pit of fire) (Holy Qur'an, Surah Layl 92:11).

If one is found as having been derelict in performing any of his obligations, the angels questioning him will try to find out whether he somehow made up with optional good deeds. Once he is cleared, he will be escorted into Paradise. It is to such stopping and questioning that the Almighty refers, addressing His angels to

Stop them, for they must be questioned. (Holy Qur'an, Surah Saffat 37:24)

On p. 133, Vol. 17, of his Al-Mizan, Tabatabai quotes various views regarding what the questioning will be all about. He isays that some scholars are of the opinion that they will be asked about the Unity of Allah, while others believe it will be about the wilayat of Imam Ali (as), but he also concedes that such stopping and questioning will take place on the Sirat over hell.

On p. 107 of al-Saduq's Al-Amali, and also on pp. 64-65, Vol. 8, of al-Majlisi's Bihar al-Anwar, al-Waleed quotes al-Saffar quoting Ibn ‘Eisa quoting Muhammad al-Barqi quoting al-Qasim ibn Muhammad al-Jawhari

quoting Ali ibn Abu Hamza quoting Au Busayr quoting Abu Abdullah Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (as) saying, "People will pass on different levels on the Sirat, and it is thinner than hair and sharper than the sword. Some will pass as swiftly as lightning, while others will pass as fast as a horse, while some of them will crawl on it, some will walk on it, while some others will pass hanging, so the fire will consume some of their body parts and leave others."

Imam Abu Ja’far al-Baqir (as) is quoted on p. 65, Vol. 8, of al-Majlisi's Bihar al-Anwar saying, "When the verse saying ‘...and hell is brought that Day' was revealed, the Messenger of Allah (S) was asked about what it meant, so he (S) said, ‘The trusted Spirit (Gabriel) has informed me that when Allah, the One and only God, resurrects all people and gathers their early generations and the late ones, hell will be brought by a hundred thousand angels, very stern and mighty angels, and it will be coming roaring, inhaling and exhaling. The force of its exhalation is such that had Allah not delayed them for the reckoning, it would have caused everyone of them to perish.

Then a flame will come out of it and encircle all humans, the good and the bad, so much so that any servant of Allah, be he an angel or a prophet, will call out: ‘Save me, O Lord, save me,' except you, O Prophet of Allah, for you will call out: ‘Save my nation, O Lord, save my nation!'" Muqatil, ‘Ataa and Ibn Abbas are among the greatest traditionists in the history of Islam without any contention. They are the ones who transmitted the ahadith of the Messenger of Allah (S) for all posterity.

All three of them, as stated on p. 67, Vol. 8, of Bihar al-Anwar, have interpreted the verse saying, "The Day when Allah shall not humiliate the Prophet" to mean: "Allah will not torment the Prophet (that Day, the Day of Judgment)," and the phrase "and those who believed with him" to mean that He will not torment Ali ibn Abu Talib, Fatima, al-Hassan, al-Husayn, peace be upon them, al-Hamza, and Ja’far, Allah be pleased with them, that "their light runs before them" means "their light shall illuminate the Sirat for Ali and Fatima seventy times more so than light in the life of this world." Their light will then be before them as they continue to cross.

The intensity of their light will be indicative of their iman, conviction. Others will follow. "Members of the Ahl al-Bayt (as) of Muhammad (S) will pass over the Sirat like swift lightning. Then they will be followed by those who will pass like a speedy wind. Then there will be those who will pass as fast as a racing horse.

Then another group of people will pass in a walking pace followed by those who will crawl on their hands and bellies, and finally by those who will crawl on their bellies (with extreme difficulty). Allah will make it wide for the believers and very narrow for the sinners." Then these narrators interpret the verse saying "Lord! Complete our light for us" to mean "complete it for us so that we may be able to pass on the Sirat."

Ibn Shahr Ashub, in his Manaqib Ali ibn Abu Talib, comments, as quoted by al-Majlisi on the same page, saying, "The Commander of the Faithful (as) will pass in a howdah of green emeralds accompanied by Fatima on a conveyance of red rubies, and she will be surrounded by seventy thousand huris, as fast as lightning."

On p. 182 of his Amali, al-Tusi quotes al-Fahham quoting Muhammad ibn al-Hashim al-Hashimi quoting Abu Hashim ibn al-Qasim quoting Muhammad ibn Zakariyya ibn Abdullah quoting Abdullah ibn al-Muthanna quoting Tumamah ibn Abdullah ibn Anas ibn Malik quoting his father quoting his grandfather quoting the Prophet (S) saying, "On the Day of Judgement, the Sirat will be spread over hell. None can pass over it except one who carries a permit admitting the wilaya of Ali ibn Abu Talib (as)."

Also with reference to the Sirat, Abu Tharr al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, is quoted by both al-Majlisi on p. 67, Vol. 8, of his book Bihar al-Anwar, and by al-Kulayni on p. 152, Vol. 2, of his Al-Kafi, as saying, "I have heard the Messenger of Allah (S) say, ‘The edges of our Sirat on the Day of Judgment will be kindness to the kin and the returning of the trust. When one who is kind to his kin and faithful to his trust passes (over the Sirat), he will make his way to Paradise, but when one who is unfaithful to the trust and severs his ties with his kin passes, none of his good deeds will avail him, and the Sirat will hurl him into hell.'"

There are so many references to noor, divine light, throughout the Holy Qur'an, in the hadith, and in du’a, supplication. It is the light of guidance whereby the Almighty guides whomseover He pleases both in the life of this fleeting world and in the hereafter. Such light will be most sorely needed especially in the life hereafter.

The reader is reminded that the intensity of his light, be it during the period of the barzakh, when most graves will be almost as dark as hell, during the time when people are judged on the Day of Judgment, or as one passes over the Sirat..., all depends on the depth and sincerity of his conviction, on his iman. No good deeds, no matter how great, will avail him as will his sincere and deep conviction regarding the Unity (Tawhid) and Justice (‘Adl) of the Almighty, the truth which He revealed to His prophets (Nubuwwah), and that we will most certainly be resurrected and judged (Ma’ad), so that one will be either rewarded or punished.

There will be no sun in the life hereafter, nor will there be electricity; so, one's own light will be his guiding star. Everything in the life hereafter will have a light of its own; there will be no reflection, nor can one walk in the light of another, nor can one be benevolent and give of his light to another. There will be no giving. The time of giving is right here; so, it is now your golden chance to give your all to your Maker, to worship Him and obey Him as He ought to be worshipped and obeyed__or at least try; pay Him His dues, and be aware of your responsibilities towards His servants, believing men and women, and to mankind, your extended family.

Give them of what Allah has given you; pray for them; be kind to them; think well of them so that they may think well of you; observe the fast in months other than the month of Ramadan in order to remind yourself of the hunger from which others, especially indigent Muslims, suffer, and give by way of charity. Otherwise, keep everything to yourself, hoard, treasure, and be damned. Hell is characterized by its darkness, yet its residents will still be able to see things, and what they will see will not please them at all. May Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala keep it away from us, Allahomma Aameen.

Nobody in the entire lengthy history of Arabia (estimated at more than seven thousand and five hundred years) has ever been known to be more courageous and daring when combatting his foes than Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (as) who was the right hand of the Messenger of Allah (S), the man who single-handedly uprooted the main gate of the fort of Khaybar, a gate so heavy it required forty men to close or open it. Ali (as) once was suffering acutely from an inflammation of the eye, and he was in extreme pain, screaming, the hero that he was. The Messenger of Allah (S) visited him and saw him scream, so he asked him whether he was suffering from an acute pain or whether it was due to his frustration and agony.

The Imam (as) said, "How intense my pain is! I have never felt such pain..." whereupon the Prophet (S) said to him, "When the angel of death comes to take away the soul of a disbeliever, he brings with him a rod of fire whereby he takes his soul away, whereupon hell itself will scream because of the intensity of his pain and suffering." Having heard him, the Imam (as) stood up then sat and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Please repeat what you have said, for it has made me forget my own pain."

Then the Imam (as) asked the Messenger of Allah, "Will the soul of any member of your nation be taken away as you have described?" The Prophet (S) answered, "Yes! The soul of an unjust ruler, or of one who consumes the wealth of an orphan, or of one who falsely testifies [will be thus taken away]." The disbeliever referred to in this tradition is one who is unfair to Allah, Glory to Him and Exaltation, regarding one of the commandments which He has required him to uphold, one who does not recognize the Prophethood of Muhammad (S) and his Sunnah or anything required by Islam; such is the disbeliever.

You can reduce the agony of your death, or that of your loved one, by offering charity, fasting, or praying nafl prayers; among such prayers is one in two rek’ats in each of which you should recite Surat al-Fatiha once and al-Ikhlas thrice.

Fasting either a few days or all of the months of Rajab and Sha’ban, according to your ability, will surely reduce the agony of death and the pain of loneliness in the grave. If you are truly concerned about these matters, and you should be, the month of Ramadan is your golden opportunity to earn as many blessings as Allah enables you to. It is an opportunity that may not recur, for nobody knows when his/her turn comes to die.

We pray the Almighty to enable us to cross over His Sirat with hardship only in the life of this world, and without any hardship in the life hereafter, to forgive our sins, and to accept our fast and repentance, Allahomma Aameen.

Reference

1. His full name is: Muhammad Husayn ibn Sayyid Muhammad ibn Sayyid Husayn ibn Mirza Ali Asgher al-Tabrizi al-Tabatabai, the judge. He was born in 1892 in Tabriz and died in Qum in 1981. His 21-Volume exegesis, Al-Mizan, is only one of his nUmarous works. The edition utilized for this book was published in 1991 by Al-A`lami Establishment of Beirut, Lebanon. Hujjatul-Islam Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi, founder of the Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania, has for years been translating this valuable exegesis into English.

Sharing Iftar with Others

The Almighty and Praised One has said,

"O people! You are the ones who stand in need of Allah, while Allah is the self-Sufficient One, the Praised" (Holy Qur'an, 35:15).

Islam, which has carried the banner of protecting the poor, the indigent, the orphans, and the wayfarers, has urged the faithful to share the iftar with one another, to visit each other, and to invite others to break their fast with them. Islam, which does not favor an Arab over a non-Arab except on the basis of piety, according to the tradition of His greatest Prophet Muhammad ibn Abdullah (S), has established the fast in order to remind the rich of what the poor have to endure.

The greatest Prophet Muhammad ibn Abdullah (S) has said, "No poor person feels hungry except due to what another rich one is enjoying." Islam has informed us of all of this through the Islamic code of ethics, I.e., the Holy Qur'an, and through the revered Sunnah of the Prophet (S) and his progeny (as), about whom the greatest Prophet Muhammad (S) has said, "I am leaving among you the Two Weighty Things: the Book of Allah, and my progeny, that is, my family; you shall never go astray so long as you follow them both."

The early meal of the Month of Ramadan (Suhoor)

The Exalted and Praised One has said in His Glorious Book:

"... and eat and drink till the whiteness of the day becomes distinct from the blackness of the night at dawn, then com­plete the fast till nighttime" (Qur’an Surah Baqarah 2:187).

He has also said,

"Little did they sleep during the night, and they sought their Lord's forgiveness in the early hours of the morn" (Holy Qur'an, Surah Dhariyat 51:17-18).

And the Almighty has also said,

"Those who persevere, and the truthful, and the obedient (to Allah), and those who spend (benevolently), and those who ask forgiveness during the time of the morn" (Holy Qur'an, Surah Ale-Imran 3:17).

Suhoor is the meal comprised of food and water taken before daybreak by a Muslim who intends to perform the obligation of the fast. It helps him while abstaining from eating and drinking during daytime. This is the suhoor in its absolute meaning. Its timing has been defined by the Almighty thus:

"... and eat and drink till the whiteness of the day becomes distinct from the blackness of the night at dawn" (Holy Qur'an, Surah Baqarah 2:187).

This means that suhoor can be eaten at any time during the night till a short time before daybreak. But what about this "short time" defined before daybreak? Anas ibn Zaid ibn Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, once said, "The Prophet (S) ate suhoor with us once, after that he stood for the prayers." He was asked, "What was the length of time from the suhoor till the athan?" He answered, "About the time it takes one to recite fifty Qur'anic verses." This tradition is recorded by al-Bukhari, Muslim, and Ibn Khuzaymah.

Muhammad ibn Ya’qub quotes Abu Yahya al-San’ani quoting Imam Abu Abdullah al-Sadiq (as) saying, "If a believer fasts and reads Surat al-Qadr during the time of his iftar and suhoor, he will be rewarded with the rewards due to a martyr." This tradition is recorded on p. 344, Vol. 94, of Bihar al-Anwar.

The real meaning of suhoor transcends the physical and nutritious benefits with which it provides the person who observes the fast. Quoting what the Almighty has said explains the real meaning of suhoor:

"Little do they sleep during the night, and they seek their Lord's forgiveness in the early hours of the morn" (Holy Qur'an, Surah Dhariyat 51:17-18).

He has also said,

"The patient, and the truthful, and the obedient (to Allah), and those who spend (benevolently), and those who ask forgiveness during the time of the morn" (Holy Qur'an, Surah Ale-Imran 3:17).

The first verse tells us that nighttime is the time for sleep, and the zenith of times to adore the Almighty and seek His forgiveness is during the suhoor the plural of which is ashar. The second verse contains the definition of the status of those who seek their Lord's forgiveness during the ashar

times, a status which is quite lofty and is compared only to those to whom the Almighty refers as "those who persevere, and the truthful, and the obedient (to Allah)." We may derive the following conclusions from the above-quoted verses:

1) The time of suhoor has its own status and function which transcends eating and drinking, which help the fasting person during his daytime abstention from both, and this function is to wake up during the night to perform an act of worship.

2) The epic of adoration and the seeking of His forgiveness, which the Almighty, out of His divine wisdom, has decreed, is during the time of ashar; otherwise, why has He not specified other periods during which His servants adore Him during the glorious month of Ramadan?

3) Allah, the Almighty, has granted those who seek His forgiveness during the times of ashar a status which comes out of His blessing, and He includes them among those whom He describes as "those who persevere, and the truthful, and the obedient (to Allah)."

Probably one of the greatest blessings of the Almighty is that He has included those who eat their suhoor among those who shall receive His forgiveness so that they will be the ones freed by the Most Merciful One from the fire during the month of the Glorious Qur'an. The commander of the faithful Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib, peace be

upon him, quotes the holy Prophet (S) saying, "Allah, the Praised and the Exalted, and His angels send blessings unto those who take their suhoor meal and seek His forgiveness; so, let each one of you observe suhoor even by drinking some water."1

Ali ibn Muhammad, quoting al-Nawfali who quotes al-Sukooni who quotes Ja’far who in turn quotes his forefathers, Allah's blessings and peace be upon them all, has cited the Messenger of Allah (S) saying, "There is a great deal of bliss in three things: the congregation­al prayers, the dish of sopped bread and meat (thireed), and the suhoor."2

Prophet Muhammad (S), as recorded on pages 1063-1064 of Sahih al-Targheeb wal Tarheeb, has also said, "The best a believer can eat during the suhoor is dates; but if he cannot do so, then let him at least drink some water."

References

1. This is also recorded as hadith number 3577 in Sahih al Jami' al Saghir, and hadith number 1062 in Sahih al-Targheeb wal Tarheeb.

2. This is hadith number 1057 among the hadiths of Sahih al-Targheeb wal Tarheeb, and hadith number 1045 among the "Series of sahih hadiths."

Prayer during the Glorious month of Ramadan

As regarding prayers during the nights of the month of Ramadan, these are documented by al-Kaf’ami in Vol. 2 of his Misbah. On pp. 657-660, he cites al-Shaheed's book on the forty ahadith which quotes the Prophet (S) saying that whoever says his prayers during the first night (of the month of Ramadan, reciting the Fatiha once and the chapter of Tawheed (Unity, Chapter 112) twenty-five times, will receive the rewards of all those who were foremost in testifying to the truth of Allah's prophets and those who sacrificed their lives for Allah's cause; moreover, all his sins will be forgiven, and he will on the Day of Judgment be among the winners.

Anyone who says his prayers during the second night, repeating the Fatiha four times and the Qadr twenty times, will have all his sins forgiven and his sustenance increased, and he will be regarded as one who followed the Sunnah of the Prophet (S).

Anyone who says his prayers during the third night repeating the Fatiha ten times and the Chapter of Ikhlas fifty times will be addressed on the Day of Resurrection and told that Allah has set him free from the fire, and seven gates of heaven will be opened for him. Whoever spends the entire night saying optional prayers will have all his sins forgiven.

Anyone who says his prayers during the fourth night reciting the Fatiha once and the Qadr twenty times, his deeds will be presented before Allah together with those of His prophets. Whoever says his prayers during the fifth night making two rek’ats while reciting the Fatiha once and the Chapter of Tawheed fifty times, once he sends salutations unto the Prophet (S) and his progeny a hundred times, will be beside the Prophet (S) as he enters Paradise.

Anyone who says his prayers during the sixth night reciting the Fatiha four times and Tabarak once will be regarded as though he were doing so during the Night of Destiny (Lailatul-Qadr). Whoever says his prayers during the seventh night reciting the Fatiha once and the Qadr thirteen times, the Almighty will build him in the Garden of Eden a mansion of gold and he will be in security from Allah's Wrath till the next year.

Anyone who says his prayers during the eighth night making two rek’ats in which he recites the Fatiha once and the chapter of Tawheed eleven times, then when he sends salutations unto the Prophet (S) and his progeny he praises the Almighty a thousand times, the gates of Paradise will be opened for him to enter from whichever he wishes.

Anyone who says his prayers during the ninth night reciting during the time from sunset till nighttime the Fatiha once and ayat al-Kursi seven times, sending salutations unto the Prophet (S) and his progeny fifty times, his deeds will be raised as those of the siddeeqs, the martyrs, and the righteous. Whoever says his prayers during the tenth night for twenty rek’ats, repeating the Fatiha once and the Tawheed thirty-one times, Allah will expand his sustenance and he will be (on the Day of Resurrection) among the winners.

Whoever says two rek’ats during the eleventh night, reciting the Fatiha once and Surat al-Kawthar twenty times, all his sins will be forgiven that day. Whoever says his prayers during the twelfth night eight times, reciting

the Fatiha once and the Qadr thirty times, will be granted the rewards of those who have thanked Allah as He ought to be thanked, and he will be regarded on the Day of Resurrection as one of those who perse­vered.

Whoever says his prayers during the thirteenth night in four rek’ats, reciting the Fatiha once and the Tawheed twenty-five times, will pass on the right path (al-Sirat) as swiftly as lightning. Whoever says his prayers during the fourteenth night six times, reciting the Fatiha once and the Zalzala thirty times, Allah will make the hours of death, and [his being questioned by] both Munkir and Nakeer, easy for him.

Whoever says his prayers during the fifteenth night in four rek’ats, repeating in the first two of them, after reciting the Fatiha, the chapter of Tawheed a hundred times, and after the Fatiha of the other two the Tawheed fifty times, will be granted what nobody knows except Allah. Whoever says his prayers during the sixteenth night in twelve rek’ats, reciting the Fatiha once and the Takathur twelve times will leave his grave like one whose thirst has been quenched, repeating the shahada till he reaches Paradise and enters it without reckoning.

Whoever says his prayers during the seventeenth night in two rek’ats, reciting in the first one the Fatiha and whatever he wishes after it, and in the second the Fatiha once and the Tawheed one hundred times, then, after having sent salutations unto the Prophet (S) and his progeny, acknowledging the unity of his Lord (I.e., by saying: La ilaha illa-Allah!) a hundred times, will be granted the rewards of performing the pilgrimage a million times, and the rewards of a million ‘umras, and the rewards of a million ghazwas. Whoever says his prayers during the eighteenth night in four rek’ats reciting the Fatiha once and the Kawthar twenty-five times, the angel of death will bring him the glad tidings that the Almighty is pleased with him.

Whoever says his prayers during the nineteenth night fifty times, reciting the Fatiha once and the Zalzala fifty times, will be regarded as though he had performed the pilgrimage and the ‘umra a hundred times, and Allah will accept all his deeds. Anyone who performs his prayers during the twentieth night in eight rek’ats reciting whatever Qur'anic chapters he wishes, his sins will be forgiven. Anyone who says his prayers during the twenty-first night in eight rek’ats reciting whatever he pleases, the gates of heaven will be opened for him, and his plea will be answered, and he will have even more rewards from Allah. Whoever says his prayers during the twenty-second night in eight rek’ats, reciting whatever he pleases, will be regarded as one who performed both hajj and 'umra.

Anyone who performs his prayers during the twenty-fifth night in eight rek’ats, reciting in each the Fatiha once and the Tawheed ten times, Allah will grant him the rewards of the pious. Whoever says his prayers during the twenty-seventh night in four rek’ats reciting the Fatiha once and Tabarak once, but if he does not memorize Tabarak, then let him recite the Fatiha twenty-five times, he and his parents will be forgiven.

Anyone who says his prayers during the twenty-eighth night in six rek’ats reciting the Fatiha once and ten times Surat al-Kursi, al-Kawthar and al-Tawheed, then after he sends salutations unto the Prophet (S) and his progeny a hundred times, he will surely be forgiven. Whoever says his

prayers during the twenty-ninth night in two rek’ats reciting the Fatiha once and Tawheed twenty times will receive mercy, and his book of reckoning will be raised to ‘illiyyeen. Whoever says his prayers during the thirtieth night in twelve rek’ats reciting the Fatiha once and the Tawheed twenty times, his deeds will be sealed with mercy from Allah after he sends salutations unto the Prophet (S) and his progeny a hundred times.

Ghusl

Lailatul-Qadr is one of the last ten nights of the month of Ramadan. Al-Majlisi, on p. 10, Vol. 94, of his Bihar al-Anwar, quotes Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (as) saying the following about it: "Seek it in the last ten days, for the mash’ars are seven, and so are the heavens, and the (layers of the) earth, and seven kine, and seven ears of grain."

He (as) is also quot­ed saying that during those days, the Messenger of Allah (S) used to roll his bed, tie his mantle, and keep his family awake (especially) during the 23rd night, sprinkling water on the faces of those who were overcome by sleep. Fatima al-Zahra (as) used not to permit anyone in her house to sleep, giving them very little to eat (since over-eating causes drowsiness and heaviness), and she used to get ready for it even during day­time.

She (as) used to say, "One who is deprived of its goodness truly suffers the greatest deprivation." It is highly recom­mended, therefore, to perform ghusul particularly during the last ten days of the month of Ramadan. According to Al-Iqbal, Abu Abdullah, peace be upon him, is quoted saying that the Messenger of Allah (S) used to have his ghus­ul each night during the last ten nights of the month of Ramadan.