Sheikh ul-Islam ibn Taymiyya about the night of predestination and the last ten days of Ramadan. Last days of Ramadan

Allah says in the Quran in Surah Al-Qadr: “The night of destiny (or greatness) is better than a thousand months. On this night, the angels and the Spirit (Jibril) descend with the permission of their Lord according to all His commands. She is safe until dawn.” The night of Laylat ul-Qadr can be found on any of the last 10 nights of Ramadan, which are the most blessed time of the year. Therefore, it is necessary to increase worship throughout this period. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “When the last ten nights (of Ramadan) came, the Prophet tightened his isar (i.e., refrained from contact with his wives in order to have more time for worship), spent the whole night awake ( in prayer) and woke up his family." Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet said: “Whoever stands (in prayer) at Laylat al-qadr, believing in Allah and expecting His reward, all his previous sins will be forgiven.”

What a huge reward you can receive in these blessed 10 nights! How can you afford to miss this? How can we be sure that we will celebrate the next holy Ramadan? So we just have to make these 10 nights as productive as possible. There is a saying that a person who does not plan is set up to fail. Therefore, we have prepared a worship plan for you for these days to make this time as productive as possible.

10 points to consider when drawing up a plan:

1. Itikaf time. The best way not to miss the night of Laylat ul-qadr is to spend the last 10 days in itikaf.

2. Spend the last 10 nights in worship. Try to spend as much time as possible in worship. Just like on these blessed nights, your prayers and duas are never rewarded! Every good deed performed from the time of evening prayer to morning prayer on this day receives a reward as for 83 years of worship.

3. Best duas for the last 10 days. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: (Once) I asked: “O Messenger of Allah, tell me, if I find out (about the onset of) the night of Destiny, what should I say?” He said: “Say: “O Allah, verily You are Forgiving, Generous. You love to forgive, so forgive me!” “Allahumma innaka ‘afuvwun tunibbul-‘afwa fa‘fu‘anni.”

4. Eat little. If you plan to stay up until Fajr, the more you eat, the harder it will be to stay productive.

5. Drink plenty of water. Always have some water with you. This will help you stay awake, feel energized, and keep your mind clear.

6. Complete all tasks in advance. Do your best to reduce the number of tasks waiting for you as much as possible or prepare a plan for their implementation. This will allow you to devote yourself to worship without being distracted by worldly concerns.

7. Show exemplary character. The Prophet (peace and blessings of the Almighty be upon him) said: “On the Day of Resurrection, there will be nothing heavier on the scales of a believer than good behavior (for) verily, Allah hates the one who utters obscene and bad words.” Therefore, we must strive to improve our character, our disposition. And do this not only in the last 10 days and nights, but throughout the entire year, until the end of your earthly life. We should not argue, swear, deceive, slander or gossip.

8. Don't waste time. We must clearly decide for ourselves that during these 10 days we will not take part in idle conversations, watch TV, play computer games or spend time in social networks. If you can't live without all this, then you have the remaining 355 days of the year. Avoid distractions for at least 10 nights.

9. Change your life. During these 10 days and nights, we must work on ourselves, improve our character. And these changes must remain in our lives. We must declare our allegiance to Allah and perhaps He will erase our sins.

10. And most importantly, trust and hope in Allah. Remember, when you call upon Him and ask Him, you are asking the Most Merciful, Generous and Forgiving.

If you hope for the best, He will give you the best. Believe Him, open your heart to Him, and do not allow a single doubt, obstacle or bad thought to distance you from the Gracious and Merciful!

Islam-Today

The night of Laylat ul-Qadr can be found on any of the last 10 nights of Ramadan, which are the most blessed time of the year. Therefore, it is necessary to increase worship throughout this period.

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “When the last ten nights (of Ramadan) came, the Prophet tightened his isar (i.e., refrained from contact with his wives in order to have more time for worship), spent the whole night awake ( in prayer) and woke up his family."

Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet said: “Whoever stands (in prayer) at Laylat al-qadr, believing in Allah and expecting His reward, all his previous sins will be forgiven.”

There is a saying that a person who does not plan is set up to fail. Therefore, we have prepared a worship plan for you for these days to make this time as productive as possible.

10 points to consider when drawing up a plan:

1. Itikaf time. The best way not to miss the night of Laylat ul-Qadr is to spend the last 10 days in Itikaf.

2. Spend the last 10 nights in worship.. Try to spend as much time as possible in worship. Just like on these blessed nights, your prayers and duas are never rewarded! Every good deed performed from the time of evening prayer to morning prayer on this day receives a reward as for 83 years of worship.

3. Best duas for the last 10 days.

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: (Once) I asked: “O Messenger of Allah, tell me, if I find out (about the onset of) the night of Destiny, what should I say?” He said: “Say: “O Allah, verily You are Forgiving, Generous. You love to forgive, so forgive me!”

“Allahumma innaka ‘afuvwun tunibbul-‘afwa fa‘fu‘anni.”

4. Eat little. If you plan to stay up until Fajr, the more you eat, the harder it will be to stay productive.

5. Drink plenty of water. Always have some water with you. This will help you stay awake, feel energized, and keep your mind clear.

7. Show exemplary character. The Prophet (peace and blessings of the Most High be upon him) said: “On the Day of Resurrection there will be nothing heavier on the scales of a believer than good behavior (for) verily, Allah hates the one who utters obscene and bad words.”

Therefore, we must strive to improve our character, our character. And do this not only in the last 10 days and nights, but throughout the entire year, until the end of your earthly life. We should not argue, swear, deceive, slander or gossip.

8. Don't waste time. We must clearly decide for ourselves that during these 10 days we will not take part in idle conversations, watch TV, play computer games or spend time on social networks. If you can't live without all this, then you have the remaining 355 days of the year. Avoid distractions for at least 10 nights.

10. And most importantly, trust and rely on Allah. Remember, when you call upon Him and ask Him, you are asking the Most Merciful, Generous and Forgiving. If you hope for the best, He will give you the best. Believe Him, open your heart to Him, and do not allow a single doubt, obstacle or bad thought to distance you from the Gracious and Merciful!

Praise be to Allah.

The last ten days of the month of Ramadan begin on the 21st night in any case: 30 days in a month or 29.

This is indicated by a hadith from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri: “The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, retired to the mosque for worship (i'tikaf) in the first ten days of Ramadan, and we performed i'tikaf with him. Then Jibril came to him and said: “Truly, what you seek is ahead of you.” And he performed i'tikaf in the middle ten days of Ramadan, and we performed it with him, and then Jibril came to him and said: Truly, what you seek is ahead of you. Then the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, got up on the morning of the twentieth day and delivered a sermon, saying: “Let the one who performed i'tikaf in the Prophet return (to continue it). Truly, I saw the Night of Destiny, but I was forced to forget it. And truly, this is the odd night of the last ten nights. And, truly, I saw as if I was making a prostration on clay and water.” The roof of the mosque was made of palm branches and we did not see any (clouds) in the sky. But suddenly clouds rolled in and it began to rain. And then the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) led our prayer, and we saw traces of clay and water on his (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forehead and nose, which confirmed his dream.”

The version of al-Bukhari (No. 2027) says that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, performed i'tikaf in the middle ten days of Ramadan, and they performed i'tikaf. He was constantly in the mosque one year. And when the 21st night came, the night on the morning of which he left I’tikaf, he said: Let the one who performed I'tikaf with me retire to the mosque for worship during the last ten days. Truly, I saw this Night, but I was forced to forget it. And I saw that I was making prostration on water and clay in the morning after that night. So look for her in the last ten days, look for her among the odd (nights) . It rained that night and the roof of the mosque was made of palm branches and it was leaking. And I saw with my own eyes on the forehead of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, traces of water and clay on the morning of the 21st day, said the hadith transmitter.

Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

It is obvious that the Prophet's sermon was on the 20th day, and the rain began on the 21st night .

Another version of the hadith says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to retire to the mosque to worship on the middle ten days of the month of Ramadan. And when the twentieth night ended and the twenty-first day began, he returned home. And those who retired with him returned home .

That is why the madhhab of most scholars - including the imams of the four madhhabs - is that anyone who wishes to perform i'tikaf in the last ten days of the month of Ramadan must enter the mosque before sunset on the twenty-first night of Ramadan.

For more information please refer to the answer to question no.

The last ten days of Ramadan have a number of features that make them superior to all other days of this blessed month. This is confirmed by numerous sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and his companions.

It is reported from the words of Aisha that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, showed such diligence in the last ten days of Ramadan that he did not show on other days (This hadith was reported by Ahmad, Muslim and at-Tirmidhi). Another hadith of Aisha says: “When the last ten days of Ramadan arrived, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would tighten his isar, stay awake at night and wake up his family members.” (This hadith was narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim).

This means that during the last ten nights of Ramadan, the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, moved away from his wives in order to devote himself entirely to prayer and worship. During these days, he worshiped with special zeal, performed prayer for a long time, read the Koran, remembered Allah Almighty, gave alms, etc. And at night he stayed awake, spending nights in prayer, reading the Koran and remembering Allah with his heart, tongue and body.

As we have already noted, the reason for this was the greatness of the last ten nights of Ramadan, which, according to many theologians, are considered the most glorious nights of the year. And the most majestic among them is the night of predestination, which the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and his companions longed to spend in worship.

It is reported from the words of Abu Hurayra that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Whoever fasted during Ramadan with faith and hope of reward, his previous sins will be forgiven, and whoever stood the night of predestination with faith and hope of reward, he will sins committed earlier have been forgiven” (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari, Abu Dawud, at-Tirmidhi and an-Nasai).

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, called on believers to spend the night of predestination in diligent worship, and this does not contradict the words of Aisha: “I did not see the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, stand in prayer all night until the morning” (This Hadith narrated by Muslim). This hadith indicates that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) never prayed all night, but this does not mean that he did not stay awake until the morning during the last ten nights of Ramadan, since he performed various rituals of worship, not just namaz. And Allah knows best about this!

We have already noted that in the last ten nights of Ramadan, the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, woke up his household for prayer so that they could remember Allah Almighty and fully benefit from these blessed nights. It is not appropriate for a believing husband to miss such a wonderful opportunity - he must take advantage of it himself and encourage his family members to do the same. After all, the month of fasting lasts only a few days, but in these short moments a person can earn the mercy of Allah and find happiness both in this world and in the eternal world.

Unfortunately, many Muslims waste these precious moments by spending most of the night in empty entertainment. When is it time to stand up? night prayer, they fall asleep and are deprived of a great benefit. But next year they may not have such a wonderful opportunity to earn Paradise! Satan laughs at them, deceives them and leads them astray from the path of Allah. Addressing this daring enemy, Allah Almighty said: “Verily, you have no power over My servants, except the lost ones who will follow you” (al-Hijr, 17:42).

A prudent person will not indulge the desires of Satan, knowing the hatred that he feels for the descendants of Adam. He does not hide his hostility towards people and tirelessly tries to turn them away from everything that benefits them. Therefore, only those of little faith follow his path, who act contrary to the requirements of religion and do not listen to the voice of reason. The Almighty said: “Do you really recognize him and his descendants as your patrons and helpers instead of Me, while they are your enemies? This is a bad substitute for the wicked!” (al-Kahf, 18:50). He also said: “Truly, the devil is your enemy, so treat him as an enemy. He calls his party to become inhabitants of the Flame” (Fatir, 6).

# Another feature of the last ten days of Ramadan is seclusion in the mosque. It is known that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and his companions retired to the mosque to worship the Almighty every year.

It is reported that Abu Said al-Khudri said: “Once the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, retired to the mosque in the first ten days of Ramadan. Then he continued his seclusion in the second ten days of Ramadan. Then he said: “I retired to the mosque in the first ten days of Ramadan to catch the night of destiny. Then I continued my solitude in the second decade. Then a revelation was sent down to me that this night was in the last ten days. Therefore, whoever of you wants to retire to the mosque, let him do so during the last ten days of Ramadan” (This hadith was reported by Muslim).

It is reported from the words of Aisha that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, retired to the mosque in the last ten days of Ramadan until the Almighty and Great Allah called him to himself, and after his death his wives began to do the same.

Another hadith, transmitted from the words of Aisha, reports that every Ramadan the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, retired to the mosque for ten days, and in last year secluded himself for twenty days in his life (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari).

And in the hadith of Anas b. Malika says: “Usually the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, would retire to the mosque during the last ten days of Ramadan. One day he was unable to do this, and the next year he retired to the mosque for twenty days” (This hadith was narrated by Ahmad and at-Tirmidhi).

It is reported that Aisha said: “When the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was going to retire to the mosque, he would perform the dawn prayer, after which he would go to a place of seclusion.” Aisha asked him to allow her to set up a tent for herself in the mosque, and he allowed her to do so. Hearing about this, Hafsa also set up a tent for herself. Following her, Zeinab heard about this and also set up a tent for herself. After dawn prayer, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, saw four tents and asked: “What is this?!” They told him what had happened, and he said: “What prompted them to such piety? Remove these tents so I won’t see them again!” That year he secluded himself not in Ramadan, but in the last ten days of Shawwal" (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari, and in the versions of Muslim and Abu Dawud it is reported that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, made up for the missed seclusion in the first ten days Shawwal).

From these traditions it follows that solitude in the mosque is a desirable requirement. Imam Ahmad said: “I have not heard that there is any disagreement among theologians regarding the fact that seclusion in the mosque is a desirable injunction.”

The purpose of this ritual is to completely devote oneself to the worship of Allah Almighty in order to gain His favor and catch the blessed night of predestination. Therefore, during solitude, a person should avoid worldly conversations that do not concern him, remember Allah, read the Koran, perform prayer and other rituals of worship.

The great Muslim scholar Ibn al-Qayyim wrote about the meaning of this wonderful ritual: “Mental well-being and commitment to the straight path leading to Allah Almighty are achieved when a person gathers his thoughts together and completely devotes himself to Allah Almighty. If there is a commotion in the soul, then it can only be put in order through aspiration towards Allah Almighty. Excessive food and drink, excessive sleep, useless meetings with people, empty conversations - all this creates disorder in a person’s soul, scatters his thoughts in different directions, blocks his path leading to Allah Almighty, weakens him, hinders him and, finally, stops him. his. That is why the Mighty and Merciful Allah had mercy on His slaves and commanded them to observe fasting, which allows a person not to overindulge in food and drink and to get rid of base passions that prevent him from approaching the Almighty Lord. He prescribed fasting to the extent that only brings benefit to a person. And thanks to this, the slave benefits from this for his worldly and future life. Fasting does not cause harm to a person and does not prevent him from improving his worldly and future life. And along with this, Allah ordered His slaves to retire to worship Him. The meaning and wisdom of this injunction is that a person should strive for Allah Almighty with all his soul, devote himself to Him alone, retire with Him, move away from worldly affairs and engage only in the worship of his Lord. During solitude, all a person’s worries and thoughts are related to how best to remember and love Allah and how best to strive for Him. A person gets rid of all other worries and thoughts. He cares only about striving for Allah. His thoughts are occupied only with remembering Allah and thinking about how to gain His favor and get closer to Him. He refuses to communicate with people for the sake of communication with Allah and imagines himself on the Day of Great Solitude, when he will be in the grave. Truly, there a person will not find interlocutors and will be able to enjoy communication only with Allah. This is the meaning of great solitude. And if so, then you can achieve your goal only through solitude during fasting. And therefore, it is necessary to retire to worship Allah on the most glorious days of fasting. These are the last ten days of Ramadan" (Ibn al-Qayyim, Zad al-Maad, vol. 2, pp. 82-83).

The Holy Qur'an and the Most Pure Sunnah clearly set out the rules that must be observed during solitude in the mosque.

We have already mentioned the hadith of Aisha: “When the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was going to retire to the mosque, he performed the dawn prayer, after which he went to a place of solitude” (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim).

From this hadith it follows that seclusion in the mosque during the last ten days of Ramadan should begin on the twenty-first day of this month after dawn prayer. However, Abu Hanifa, Malik, al-Shafi'i, Ahmad and many other theologians believed that the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, began seclusion in the mosque before the sunset prayer of the twentieth Ramadan. And after the dawn prayer, he retired to the tent and began to worship Allah separately. This opinion is correct, since it allows us to combine all the traditions about how the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, retired in Ramadan.

During seclusion in the mosque, it is forbidden to have sexual intercourse, as well as to perform any actions preceding this, for example, kissing your wife or touching her with lust. Allah Almighty said: “Do not have intimacy with them while you are in the mosques” (al-Baqarah, 2:187).

Sheikh al-Saadi, in his commentary to this verse, wrote: “Since the permission to have sexual intercourse with wives at night during Ramadan does not apply to absolutely all fasting people, Allah Almighty said that it is forbidden to have sexual intercourse with wives during seclusion in the mosque. This revelation testifies to the legality of seclusion in the mosque to worship Allah Almighty, renouncing worldly life. From this verse it also follows that solitude is allowed only in mosques, and during the time of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, mosques were considered places in which five obligatory prayers. It also follows from this verse that sexual intercourse violates privacy in the mosque" (Al-Saadi, Taysir al-Karim ar-Rahman, p. 70).

However, there is nothing reprehensible if, during solitude, a believer, of necessity, talks with his wife or with someone else. It is reported that the mother of the faithful, Safiyya bt. Huyei said: “I came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, when he retired to the mosque. I visited him at night and talked with him. Then I stood up to leave, and he stood up to see me off.” (This hadith was narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim). Then she stayed in the house of Osama b. Zeida.

During solitude, it is permissible to protrude part of the body from the mosque. It is reported that Aisha said: “When I had monthly bleeding, and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, retired to the mosque, he stuck out his head, and I washed it” (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari). Another hadith reports that Aisha said: “The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, stuck his head to me while remaining in the mosque, and I combed his hair. When he retired to the mosque, he came home only when necessary” (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim, and its text is given according to the version of al-Bukhari).

As for leaving the mosque, it can be divided into three categories.

The first category includes exit when necessary, when a person leaves the mosque to perform natural needs, ablution, eat food, etc. In this case, he has the right to leave the mosque if he cannot do this without leaving there. For example, if a mosque has a toilet and a bathhouse where a person can relieve himself and bathe, or if someone brings him food, then he is prohibited from leaving the mosque, since this is not necessary.

The second category includes going out to perform a righteous act, for example, visiting a sick person or attending a funeral. In this case, it is permissible to leave the mosque if the person stipulated this condition before starting the seclusion. For example, if a relative of a person is very sick or is dying, then he is allowed to make a reservation before starting the retreat that he will visit him.

The third category includes leaving the mosque for something that is contrary to the spirit of privacy in the mosque, such as trading or sexual intercourse. If a person leaves the mosque for this purpose, then the ritual of solitude is violated and loses all meaning.

Another feature of the last ten days of Ramadan is the night of destiny. This night is better than a thousand months, and on it important events take place that determine the fate of creation. We will talk about the superiority of this night and how Muslims should spend it in the next lesson, if Allah wills.

To conclude this topic, I can only add that the final stage of any rite of worship, any undertaking, is of exceptional importance. It depends on him whether a person’s efforts will be accepted or not, whether they will be beneficial or will turn out to be futile and useless.

It is reported that Sahl b. Saad al-Saidi said: “During one of the campaigns, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, met the pagans, and the Muslims entered into battle with them. Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, returned to his camp, and the pagans returned to theirs. Among the companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, there was one man who did not miss a single opportunity so as not to chase a pagan and kill him with his sword, and people began to say: “Today none of us has done so much, how much did so-and-so do!” However, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Verily, he is one of the inhabitants of Hell!” Then one of the people said: “I will follow him everywhere,” and he went with him, stopping where he stopped, and hurrying when he was in a hurry. And then this man was seriously wounded, and, wanting to give up his life as quickly as possible, he put the hilt of his sword to the ground, and its tip to his chest, threw himself on the sword and committed suicide. Then the one who followed him came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and said: “I testify that you are the Messenger of Allah!” He asked: “What happened?” He said: “You called that man one of the inhabitants of Hell, and this amazed people. Then I said: “I will tell you about him.” So I began to follow him relentlessly. He was seriously wounded and, wanting to give up his life as quickly as possible, he put the hilt of his sword to the ground, and its tip to his chest, threw himself on the sword and committed suicide.” Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Indeed, people may imagine that a person is doing the deeds of the inhabitants of Paradise, while he is one of the inhabitants of Hell, and people may imagine that a person is doing the deeds of the inhabitants of Hell, while he from among the inhabitants of Paradise! Another version adds: “Verily, all deeds are judged by their completion” (This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari).

This is why Muslims should honor the last days of Ramadan, devote special attention worship in them and not miss the slightest opportunity to do good deeds during this blessed period