Seeking Laylatul Qadr
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Channel: Ammar Alshukry
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Tonight is one of the last 10 nights
and there's a lot to be said about
even
though
from the beginning we're gonna do a disclaimer
and say
that the 27th night could be Laylatul Qadr
and it could not be Laylatul Qadr. But
we're gonna
talk about a lot inshaAllah ta'ala with regards
to Laylatul Qadr. The plan that I have
for this session is going to be simply
number 1,
a brief overview of Surah Al Badr itself.
And then number 2, talking about how a
person can enliven
the last 10 nights.
Whatever is remaining of the last 10 nights,
we still have 3 or maybe 4 nights
to go.
Still seeking.
And then the last thing is
going to be
what I like to call the exhausted person's
guide to Laylatul Qadr because some of us
are burning the candle at both ends.
And
we might need some tips on at least
what's the baseline
of what a person can be doing every
night to make sure even if you're going
to work the next day, even if you
have school, even if you you don't have
the time to spend the entire night in
prayer like is the sunnah of the prophet
sallallahu alaihi wa sallam in these last 10
nights.
So beginning with
Surat Al Qadr,
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says,
that we have brought it down in laylatul
qadr.
And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
brought the Quran down on laylatul qadr.
He says, it and it is understood
that it is it doesn't even need to
be mentioned specifically
because of how great it is. Like when
somebody walks in and you say, he's arrived.
Or someone who everybody's anticipating comes and you
say, she's arrived.
And you don't even need to say who
because everybody understands and so Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala says,
He says, and what will allow you to
know what laylatul Qadr is? He says,
It is better than the worship of a
1000 months.
Something that I want you to appreciate right
from the very beginning
is this night that is worth or greater
than a 1000 months,
what was the event
that made this night special? What is that
event? Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala could've made laylatul
Qadr tied to the salawu muwaj.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala could have made Laylatul
Qadr tied to
the Hijra of the Prophet salallahu alayhi wa
sallam. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala could have made
Al Laylatul Qadr tied to a great battle
like the Battle of Badr. But Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala tied
the greatest night of the year to the
revelation of the Quran.
It was the night that the Quran was
revealed.
And so the Quran
this is a concept that my friend, the
great sheikh and poet Ibrahim Jabir said. He
said everything the Quran touches turns to gold.
The Quran was revealed on Dayna Al Qadr
so it becomes the best
night of the year.
The Quran was revealed
through the angel Jibril and so he is
the best angel. The The Quran was revealed
to the Prophet Muhammad salallahu alayhi wa sallam
so he is the greatest Prophet. The Quran
was revealed to this Ummah and so we're
the greatest Ummah.
He says, everything the quran touches turns to
gold, so don't be afraid to let it
touch your soul.
The quran
is the great gift of this ummah that
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gave us. And Allah
says, we
have brought it down on the night of
power.
Qadr, I'm translating as power, sometimes I'm translating
as decree. What is the meaning of qadr?
What does qadr mean?
Scholars mention a number of reasons why it's
called native qadr but I'll mention to you
3 of them. Number 1, qadr means
it means status.
So you say,
someone So it's a person of great nobility.
And so that's why at times it's translated
as the night of
power, the night of decree or not the
night of decree but the night of power
or the night of nobility.
Qadr also means restriction.
It means restriction.
How is it the night of restriction?
Because they say that the angels
crowd
the world
on the night of Qadr so much that
space is restricted.
If you thought the driveway here at click
was packed, if you thought the parking lot
was packed, the entire world is packed with
the presence of angels
on Laylatul Qadr. And so it means restriction
and Qadr in the Quran comes a number
of times with the meaning of restriction. Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala says,
If Allah
restricts this person's risk, they say my lord
has humiliated me. Or Allah
encourages the person who's separating or divorcing
his wife. He says, woman Whoever's risk is
restricted,
he doesn't have a lot, then let them
spend from what Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala has
given them. The idea here is that rizq
also means or qadr also means restriction. So
that's one of the meanings of this night.
And a third meaning is that qadr means
destiny.
It is the night of destiny.
How is Laylatul Qadr the night of destiny?
There are a number of writings that happen
of a person's destiny.
There is what's called an eternal writing,
there is a writing of a lifetime,
There is the
writing every year and there is a daily
writing. These writings all happen.
The first writing which is the eternal writing
is Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala created the pen.
It was the first thing that he created
and he commanded it to write. The pen
said, what should I write? He said, write
everything until the day of judgement. And so
this is the writing that happens on Alur
Al Mafuth.
It is the writing that's in the preserved
tablet, it is a writing that does not
change, it's the first and final draft.
Then you have a second writing that happens
once in a person's lifetime. The prophet sallallahu
alaihi wa sallam tells us in the hadith
of Abdullahi bin Mas'ud
which is in Bukhari Muslim. He says that
that talking about the development of the embryo
until the angel is sent
and it breathes in the soul of
the child
into their body,
in the womb of the mother. And then
the angel is commanded to write down 4
things. It's commanded to write down their lifespan,
their age, their not their age, their lifespan,
their actions, their risk, or whether they'll be
of the people of paradise or the people
of the hellfire.
These four things are commanded to be written.
This is alterable.
This writing that happens can change.
The third writing
is the writing that happens on Laylatul Qadr.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says at the beginning
of Surah Al Duqar
Allah
says, we have brought down the Quran on
a blessed night.
Verily we are warners.
On this night every matter
of,
of every matter, every every great matter is
ordained.
And so this is a yearly writing that
happens on Laylatul Qadr. Ibn Abbas comments on
this and he said, even the pilgrims
of the next year, their names are written
on Laylatul Qadr. And so all of my
people right now who are really really excited
about trying to go to Hajj and they're
refreshing the nus'at app everyday,
make sure that you are making du'a to
Allah
Allah in these nights
that Allah writes you to be of the
pilgrims. And in fact, the scholars mentioned that
a person could be walking amongst the people.
And they have been written to be of
the dead.
On laylatul kadr it was written that this
person, this is their last year.
And they're walking amongst the people now. So
that's also another writing that happens yearly. And
then the 4th one is a daily writing.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says in Surah Al
Rahman.
Every day Allah is decreeing a matter. Every
day Allah is decreeing a matter. So real
quick pop quiz to see who's awake. Who
can tell me the 4 writings?
But you have to give me all 4.
One shot. We're not gonna do the I
give one and then another person gives me
another one. Who can give me all 4
real quick?
Yes, sir.
So you're giving me
the 4 things that an angel writes in
one writing but I want the 4 times
that the angels write. The 4 times in
a person's existence. Yes? The eternal one? The
eternal one. And then, we also have the
1 in the womb. Okay. The 1 in
the womb. The What we have is,
The last the last one is daily. Right?
Daily. But then there's one more. Yes.
The womb of the mother we covered.
Laylatul Qadr which is why we're all here.
Right? The third one is Laylatul Qadr.
So these are the 4 writings. Now 3
of these writings change and one of them
doesn't change. The 3 that change is the
one that's in a person's
lifespan.
Sorry. It's the one that's in the womb
of the mother when the angels write your
lifespan and all of that. That can change.
And in fact there are hadith where the
prophet salallahu alaihi wa sallam tells us. For
example, the hadith in Buhari, he says, whoever
wants for his lifespan to be extended
and for his risk to be increased, then
let them connect the ties of kinship.
And so connecting with your uncles and your
aunts and your cousins and all of these
people answering their phone calls, getting back to
them, that increases your life.
Number 2,
Abdulai ibn Umar, he used to say, oh
Allah, if you have written me as one
of the people who is wretched, I. E.
Of the people of the hellfire,
then erase it and write me of the
people of paradise,
indicating that it can change.
Then you have the yearly one, Dayla Zulqadr.
Of course, you're making du'a and all of
these types of things so that you can
change your decree. And then the daily one
changes as well. So then the question becomes
why? What's the purpose of having destiny that
can be changed and destiny that can't be
changed? Scholars mentioned something beautiful. They say, even
the angels while they're writing down your lifespan,
while you're in the womb of your mother,
they themselves
do not have full knowledge of the unseen.
And so they don't know for sure that
this is your final decree. Only Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala keeps that knowledge to himself. Even
the angels don't know the unseen completely like
that. In any case,
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala says
You know this story?
A story of revelation for why the surah
was revealed in the first place. Rasulullah salallahu
alaihi wasallam told the companions
of a man
who was
everyday would go out campaigning from Bani As
Sala'id. Everyday he would go out campaigning in
the path of Allah in military expeditions.
And every night he would retire and pray
qiyamulil.
How do you feel about that?
This guy every And he did it for
over 80 years. He did it for over
a 1000 months.
What I want you to appreciate
is the spirit of competition that the suhaba
had.
You know these days,
in general our life, Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
describes Jannah and He says,
Allah says regarding Jannah, let those who compete,
compete.
Like if you have competitive spirit,
the way that that's supposed to manifest is
in your seeking of jannah.
Ramadan is our playoffs, Ramadan is our world
cup, Ramadan is our whatever you wanna call
it. This is the season of competition. Everybody
who says they have a competitive nature,
this is Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala saying this
is what you should compete in. And the
prophets had competitive spirit.
The prophets themselves had competitive spirit. And so
Musa alayhi salam, when the prophet salallahu alayhi
wasalam is coming back from speaking to Allah
on the night of Al Isra'ah, and Musa
says to him, what did your Lord command
you with?
Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wasallam tells him he commanded
me, instructed me to 50 prayers. And Musa
says, nope. Go back.
I tried.
Your ummah is not gonna be able to
handle
And so the prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam continues
to go back between Allah and Musa. Every
time Allah lessening the amount of prayers that
we were obligated to pray and every time
Musa is saying to him, go back. No.
That's too much. You're not gonna be your
ummah is not gonna be able to handle
it. Trust me. I dealt with Bani Israel
before.
When finally,
Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wasalam comes back to Musa
and says, he instructed me with 5 prayers,
and Musa says to him, go back. People
aren't gonna be able to do 5 a
day. Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wasalam says, I'm ashamed
of asking my lord for more. That's it.
Musa When the prophet salallahu alaihi wasalam leaves,
Musa weeps and they asked him, Why did
you are you weeping? He said, Because of
this young man
who was sent after me,
more of his ummah are going to enter
jannah than
my ummah.
Musa alaihis salaam
is grieved that his ummah is not going
to be as large as the ummah of
the Prophet salallahu alaihi wa sallam.
But don't think that that's out of any
sort of jealousy. Musa alaihis salam in that
moment is showing incredible greatness
because even as that's something that saddens him,
he is being the most sincere adviser to
this ummah. The most sincere advisers to the
prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam. Every time you
pray 5 and all you have to do
is pray 5, you say alhamdulillah. May Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala have mercy on Musa. It
could've been 10, could've been 20, could've been
30, could've been 40. But Musa continued to
argue with our Prophet salallahu alaihi wa sallam
and encourage him to go back and ask
for less. The point here is that spirit
of competition. Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wasallam says that
on the day of judgment,
he wants to have the largest number of
followers on the day of judgement. So he
says, marry women.
Marry women that are wadood, that are loving
and produce a lot of children. Why? He
says,
I wanna boast the largest number of followers
on the day of judgement.
That's that spirit of competition. When everybody shows
up with whoever followers they have, Rasulullah salallahu
alaihi wa sallam wants to have the horizon
full with his ummah. The sahaba learned that
from the prophet shalallahu alaihi wa sallam. And
so the sahaba would compete.
They competed in everything that there was to
compete.
Umar is chasing Abu Bakr because he sees
that Abu Bakr is ahead of him.
The poor companions come and complain about the
rich companions.
I've never heard
the poor companions complaining about the rich companions
other than in one particular hadith. They didn't
complain about their resources. They didn't complain about
their horses, they didn't complain about their houses,
they didn't complain about anything.
Other than they said, You Rasulullah
They said, O messenger of Allah, the rich
have taken all of the reward.
They pray like we pray and they fast
like we fast and they give charity that
we don't give.
Right now, we were sitting in this fundraiser
for click. And Sheikh Waleed goes off and
starts at $50,000.
Was that the highest? That's what he started
at. Right? $50,000.
I'm assuming almost all of us did not
give $50,000
because I think it was just one person.
But were we sitting there between us? Were
we sitting there annoyed,
upset,
fuming in our seats
that there's somebody tonight who's giving the most
and it's not me?
Because that's what the poor companions came and
complained about. They said, you Rasool Allah, they're
taking the reward. This person is saying 50,000.
This person saying 40,000. This person is saying
30,000. This person is 20. The tens are
going like this. The fives are going like
this. And I'm sitting here waiting for Shaikh
Hoori to get down to $50 or a
$100
so that I can raise my hand and
it never got down to that.
We just got a general dua at the
end.
Right? That's
that's that's how the poor companions they they
This was so real for them that they
literally come and complain to the prophet sallallahu
alaihi wasallam about that. They're like, the rich
are taking all of the reward. Because they're
fasting like we're fasting. They're praying qiyam like
we're They're in tarawih like But here they
are, there's this avenue, there's this lane that
they are competing on and I'm I don't
have access to that.
And so the prophet says to them, do
you not have something that you can give
in sadaqa? Every time you say subhanAllah, sadaqa.
Every time you say alhamdilah, sadaqa. Every time
you
say
Allahuqbarasadaqa.
And then the poor companions,
they snatch that, they take it and then
they start practicing that. That's something that we
can do.
I can't give money but I can do
this.
And then the rich found out about that
and started doing it too.
And so they came back to the prophet
shalallahu alaihi wa sallam and complained again. They
said, You Rasoolallah, they heard about what we're
doing and they're doing it too.
Like look how serious this is for them.
And then the Prophet
says, That is the the bounty of Allah.
He gives it to whomever he wishes.
But the question that we have to have
is
who are we competing against right now?
You know,
Abu Muslim Al Khawalani,
he has a beautiful statement.
He's from the Tabireen. He didn't see the
prophet but he met the Sahaba.
But I want you to imagine the Tabireen,
at some sense there's like this great sense
of loss. It's like we just missed the
prophet
by 10 years or 20 years or 30
years or 40 years.
So Abu Musl ibn Khawwal Ali, he was
praying
1 night. He didn't have energy drinks. Caffeine
wasn't coffee wasn't a thing.
And he was getting tired.
And so while he was
battling with his sleeplessness,
he
slaps his leg and he wakes himself up.
And he says this amazing statement. He says,
He says, do the companions of Muhammad think
that they're going to have him exclusively again
in the akhirah? No. By Allah, we are
going to crowd them at the pool.
So that they know that the people who
came behind him are men.
Like, okay. Allah's qadr was that we come
1400 years after the prophet
We we missed him by a long shot.
But do the think
that they're gonna have him exclusively again? No.
No. No. On the day of judgement when
the ummah is crowded at the pool, I'm
a be right there.
I'm a be right there.
I'm going to crowd them at the pool
so that they know that the ones who
came behind are men as well.
Like we we we held it down too.
But that's competing.
A person is visualizing.
A person is competing with those who are
ahead of them. So the question then is,
in these last 10 nights or 3 nights
or 4 nights or whatever it's last, who
are you competing with? Who have you noticed,
for example, in the masjid is always in
the first row. They're just always on time.
They're on point. Who's reading more Quran than
you? Who's showing who amongst your siblings is
showing a better bill to your parents than
you? Who is who is volunteering more at
the masjid than you? Who's distributing more food
than you? Who's who's being more warm than
you? Like, who are you competing with?
We compete naturally with the dunya, and we
compare ourselves to each other in the dunya.
But the prophet, salam, told us not to
do that. Who cares about the dunya? It's
not about who has a better job or
who makes more money or who has this
or who has that, but rather it is
in the akhirah. And Allah says that is
where competitors need to compete. So the first
thing that we have to do as far
as an approach goes is just
have that spirit of competition. Have a little
bit of that competitive energy or a lot
of it when it comes to what we
are seeking right now.
Then number 2, Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala and
and sorry. This entire Surah was revealed. One
of the causes of revelation is because of
that man. The prophet salam alayhi wasalam told
them of that man who for a 1000
months was worshiping Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala at
that level. Jihad in the path of Allah
during the day.
At night. And the suhaba when they heard
that story, they weren't just like, oh, that's
a nice story from someone in the past.
They had that spirit of competition that said
that, You Rasulullah,
one one of us doesn't even live 80
years. We don't even get to live that
long. Our ummah is our our our lifespans
are much shorter,
between 60 and 70. And so the Prophet
tells them of that man. And Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala responds to their response by saying,
The night of power or the night of
decree or the night of restriction is better
than the worship of a 1000 months. So
in one night,
because of the favor that Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala bestowed upon this ummah, we get the
reward of more than a 1000 nights of
worship.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, Allah says, the
angels descend and the roar and the roar
is Jibreel.
The angel Jibril
comes down.
I e, by the permission of their lord
by the permission of their lord and with
every command.
It is peace and tranquility until the morning
time. The scholars
debate. And they say,
what is better? The day or the night?
And they put forth a lot of arguments
that the night is better than the day.
Of the arguments that the night is better
than the day is that laylatul Qadr is
at night. The Quran was revealed at night.
The prophet salallahu alaihi wasallam had his first
revelation of experience at night. They said that
the night is the time of
the majority of the prayers, Maghrib and Isha
and Fajr.
And
that the night is a time of better
focus and spirituality
and worship. It's when everything settles and everything
stills.
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says that the the
prayer of the night
grants you that steadfastness.
In any case,
what are some of the things that a
person can do when they're seeking laylatulqadr?
Number 1, the first is salah.
Rasulullah salawaihi wa sallam says,
That whoever stands the night of power,
the night of destiny, that their sins will
be forgiven.
So standing
on Laylatul Qadr, that you pray what you
can.
Like we just did.
And the bare minimum of what's considered to
be
is 2 raka'as as Ibn Abbas radiAllahu said.
Ibn Abbas said that if a person prays
2 rakas after Isha,
That person has spent the entire night in
prayer if they've prayed 2 rakas after Isha.
So at the very least, no matter how
busy I get to tomorrow, the day after,
Sunday,
which is the day after, Monday if there
is. No. Monday there will be. Tuesday night
if there is. And at the very least
I always make sure no matter how busy
I get, that I pray something of the
night.
And salah, the prophet salallahu alayhi wa sallam
says, is khairumu du'l. It is the best
object. It is the best thing that a
person can do. Salah.
Salah combines
all of these beautiful acts of worship, like
the dhikr of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, it's
in the salah. Like du'a, it is in
the salah. Like recitation of the Quran, it's
all in the salah. All of that is
all in the salah anyway. And so a
person praying with focus.
Number 2 is after salah, is recitation of
the Quran.
Dhikr of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, Allah says,
waladikrullahi
aqba. That the dhikru of Allah is greater
than everything.
But yet the greatest dhikr is the Quran.
The greatest of all dhikr is the Quran.
And so a person making dhikr of Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala by recitation of the Quran.
Whatever a person can read of the Quran,
if you're tired standing that you sit down
and you read what you can, Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala loves that the Quran be recited.
And then number 3 is dua itself.
Dua
Sofianath Thawri says
that dua is more beloved to me
in this night
than even salah.
Dua
comes part and parcel with Ramadan. Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala in the verses in Surat Al
Baqarah where he talks about
Ramadan.
In the middle, he mentions this concept
of
dua.
Allah in the verses of fasting, right in
the middle he this verse where he says,
if my servants ask you about me, then
I am near. I respond to the call
of the caller when they call upon me.
That being said,
Aisha radiAllahiAllahi, she says.
In the hadith that's reported by Tirmidi, she
asked the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam. She
said, if I know that a night is
late atul Qadr, what should I say?
And Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wa sallam said to
her, say,
Oh Allah, you are
You love
so have on me.
Question, what does mean?
What does Afl mean? Who can give me
a a good translation for Afl?
Yes.
To erase it
so much so
that it's not even present at all.
That's exactly it.
Is there a single word though to to
use for that?
Because generally when you when you choose one
word you just use parted.
But it is exactly that. Afat arihu al
al Asad the arabs
would say that the wind erased.
It erased the trace of the footprints.
And so is for the sin to be
erased. On the day of judgement,
that thing that I did, if has already
happened, it's not even there. It's not on
my record. We're not gonna talk about it
because it never happened.
And that's the best.
And so you're asking Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala,
Oh Allah, you are And look at this
du'a. This du'a begins
by number 1, mentioning Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's
name. And then number 2,
emphasizing.
You love Afu.
So I'm seeking nearness to Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala by mentioning His name, praising Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala with that tawheed, and then it's
followed with tawkid, it's followed with emphasis. You
love it. You love to pardon. You love
to erase the trace of sins.
So erase mine.
This is the highest level. You know,
in in the end of surah,
Al Baqarah,
you ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for 3
things. Four things actually. You say,
You say, oh Allah have on us.
Erase the trace of our sins.
And then you say,
and
means what?
What does
mean?
Okay. It means to forgive but I need
something a little bit more detailed. I need
something a little bit more
What does mafira mean technically?
Is to be protected from the harm of
your sins.
It's to be protected from the harm of
your sins.
Al mifar is the helmet that they would
wear in battle. It's called a mifar. It
protects you from the harm of your enemy.
And so is to be protected from the
harm of my sins. Is for the sins
to be erased. It's not gonna show up
on the day of judgement. But is that
it's still on my record, however, I am
from its harm.
And then number 3 So now at the
end of surah Al Baqarah, you're basically asking
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for number 1,
Afu.
I'm also asking
for I'm also asking for rahma. And the
rahma is, oh Allah just embrace me in
your mercy. The sin is there, it's present,
I have no protection from it, I don't
have any magfirah, I'm just banking on your
mercy. Oh Allah, envelop me in it.
So it's it's 3 steps.
And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says or the
prophet salallahu alayhi wa sallam says, on later,
no. You seek out the best of them.
You seek out the highest.
And interestingly enough at the end of Surah
Al Baqarah you say,
you are our protector.
So give us victory over the disbelievers.
I always used to I always used to
wonder, what is the relationship? Where is the
transition? Oh Allah forgive us. Have mercy on
us. Give us victory over the disbelievers.
Like do you notice that shift?
It's like almost a completely different subject. What
is the relationship between forgiveness of sins and
victory over the disbelievers?
Actually it's very very linear and it's very
clear.
Umar ibn Khattab
He used to write to his generals and
he used to say to them,
He would say to them, you are given
victory from the heavens.
You are only given victory because you sin
less than your enemy.
You don't have more resources than the Romans.
You don't have more
You don't have bigger bodies than the Persians.
You're not stronger than these armies that you're
meeting. You don't have more resources than them.
However,
you are given victory because you sin less
than them. And then he would say, if
you become equal in your sins then it
goes back to whoever has better resources.
And so we're saying to Allah, O Allah,
these sins of ours, forgive them, have mercy
on them,
and give us victory over the disbelievers. Do
not let our sins become an impediment between
us and
victory.
And that brings me back to this topic
of du'a.
Aisha
is taught by the prophet salallahu alaihi wa
sallam to say
I wanna mention 2 quick points about this
dua and then I wanna mention some of
the impediments for what our dua or why
our dua may not be accepted.
Number 1,
the scholars mentioned two meanings to this dua
or two reasons
Yeah. Let's say two meanings.
Number 1, they say that this dua is
really perfect and appropriate for these nights.
And you say, O Allah forgive me.
I want you to appreciate that Laylatul Qadr
could've been on any day of the calendar
year. It could've been on 15th of Muharram.
It could've been on the 3rd of Rajab.
It could've been on any random day and
we would've had all of the energy in
the world. We would've been so fresh
and so ready to come on one night
and just worship Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala super
hard and then go home. But Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala made it at the end of
Ramadan, the last 10 nights. When you are
already dehydrated for 20 days and sleep deprived
for 20 days, and you're already holding on
by a thread because you've been trying for
the past 20 days. And then when it
seems like you're already on empty, Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala says, You know what? There's 10
more days and I put a super surprise
for you.
But you have to go until the end
and you have to you have to leave
the tank on empty.
So after those 20 days, now you don't
even get to rest. You have to go
even harder.
And still
even as you're worshiping Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
at a level I think we can all
agree when Ramadan comes, the last 10 nights
come, we are worshiping Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
at a level that we don't the entire
year.
And yet still your dua
while you are staying up and making dua
and you've cut off all of the nonsense
that we all engage in outside of the
year and we're trying as best as we
can to watch our gaze and watch what
we hear and avoid all of these things,
We're not asking Allah for acceptance, we're asking
Allah for forgiveness.
We're asking Allah for forgiveness.
And that's a common motif in our acts
of worship. We don't just ask Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala for forgiveness for our sins. We
actually ask Allah forgiveness for our good deeds.
Yes. We ask Allah forgiveness for our good
deeds.
So as soon as you're done with salah,
what's one of the first things that you
say? Astaghfirullah.
Astaghfirullah. Astaghfirullah. Astaghfirullah. Why are you seeking Allah's
forgiveness when you just fulfill the pillar of
Islam? A pillar.
You're asking Allah for forgiveness
because
you know
that this salah that you just offered is
not what Allah deserves.
This salah where you were thinking about where
you parked your car, and you were thinking
about the assignment that you have after, and
you
jumped right after the salah to check your
phone because your mind was on something during
the salah. That salah that you just offered
to the king of kings and the creator
of the heavens and the earth. The ones
who the angels bow down to and prostrate
to and never lift their heads up out
of fear of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, you
just prayed that raggedy prayer and you offered
it to him.
And so you seek Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's
forgiveness. And even if you were to pray
the best prayer of your life, you would
still ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's forgiveness afterwards
because it's still not what Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala deserves. And so Aisha
asked the prophet
about those verses in
Those who offer what they offer and their
hearts are trembling.
They're scared. They're terrified
that they're going back to their lords. They're
the ones who race
to goodness.
They they they they rush to it. Aisha
radiAllahu anha asked the prophet, he said, You
Rasulullah, are these the people who drink? Like
these people who are terrified and scared, are
they the ones who drink and and and
and and commit theft and things like that?
And he said to her, no, You have
been to Sadiq.
No. These are the people who pray and
fast and they're afraid that it's not gonna
be accepted of them. And so we seek
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is forgiven. So it's
appropriate that a person while they are offering
what they offer of of incredible energy, that
they're still asking Allah forgiveness because you recognize
with humility
that you're not offering none of us are
offering what Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala deserves. But
then there's a second meaning to this dua.
And that dua is
it's tied to the idea that Laylatul Qadr
is the night of destiny.
And so
if my destiny
is being written tonight for the next year,
I am asking Allah,
Allah.
Oh Allah. Afu one of the meanings of
Afu is what? It is ease,
facilitation,
protection.
So Allah protect me in this next year.
Don't throw things at me that I can't
bear. Don't send calamities my way. I'm asking
you Allah for aafu and aafiyah. You
love to make things easy. You love to
protect. So So protect me.
And so you're asking Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala
for that.
Now, what are some of the impediments of
Dua?
I wanna mention to you 2 quick things.
Possibly 3, possibly 1. We'll see how it
goes.
Number 1,
one of the greatest impediments for dua,
of our dua being accepted
is our sins.
Rasoolullah salallahu alaihi wa sallam says in the
hadith is reported by Muslim. The hadith of
Abu Huraira.
The famous famous hadith. He gives the example
of a man who'd been traveling in the
desert for a while.
Dusty and disheveled.
He's raising his hands towards the sky and
saying,
My Lord. My Lord.
And his food was haram, and his drink
was haram, and his nourishment was haram. And
the prophet says, how can his dua be
accepted?
How can that person's dua be accepted?
This person normally would have their dua fast
tracked. This person is a traveler, this person
is broken, they're dusty and disheveled, they're not
arrogant, they're not pompous in that moment, they're
broken.
And yet the prophet
said the thing that caused for his
dua to be so distant from being accepted
was all of their haram income, all of
their haram nourishment, all of their haram sustenance.
And so the lesson that we learned It's
possible that this guy, his dua didn't get
accepted and he made his way back home.
And he's telling people, I have had a
faith crisis because I made du'a to Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala and He didn't respond to
me.
I am making du'a to Allah, I was
stranded in the middle of the desert and
I didn't get any help.
I don't believe that god exist.
How many people
complain about their du'a being delayed as if
why why why didn't Allah respond to me?
I made such sincere du'a.
But the prophet shalallahu alaihi wa sallam is
telling us of a major major caveat
that we would do well to pay attention
to. And that is, is my sustenance halal?
I'm drowning in interest.
But here I am making a dua on
the 27th night. And I'm asking why hasn't
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala answered my dua.
I'm injuring people left and right. I'm oppressing
people left and right. I owe money to
people
that I haven't paid back even though I
have the money to pay them back. But
who cares? I'm just gonna put them on
pause for now. Rasoolullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam says,
That the delay in payment of somebody who
has money is oppression. That's
It's injustice.
So my point here is that people commit
sins left and right and they don't realize
that this could be an impediment very well
of your dua being accepted. So then what
does a person do on a night like
this? So like, okay. I can't solve my
credit card issue right now. I can't solve
my loan issue right I can't solve these
things. I need to make du'a though on
the 27th night. Don't tell me that I
can't because of things that I've accrued.
The answer to that is tawba.
You can repent tonight.
I can turn a new leaf tonight and
I can say, oh Allah,
You are the controller of the heavens and
earth. I repent to you from this sin.
You're the one who says be and it
can be. You're the one who if you
say yes, it doesn't matter who says no.
And you say no, it doesn't matter who
says yes.
I'm repenting to you of this sin,
find for me a way out. Make for
me a way out.
Tawba is one of the greatest acts that
a person can do in these last 10
nights.
That a person starts anew with Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala.
And it becomes one of the greatest factors
that cause for a person's
du'a to be accepted.
It's to perceive that du'a with righteous actions.
Whether those righteous actions be charity, whether those
righteous actions be,
Tawbah, whether those act righteous actions be Istighfar,
whether those righteous actions be salah or anything
like that. Anyway,
there's a lot that can be said. I
don't wanna drag on too long, but I'll
just end with this.
There's
the,
I'll share with you a couple of of
tips
on at least having a baseline for the
remaining days.
What is the baseline that we can have?
Because obviously, the maximum is to just be
up all night every night striving as hard
as you can like the prophet Sallallahu Alaihi
Sallam did.
But
for those of us who don't have that
opportunity, what are some of the the baseline
things that we can make sure that we
hit every single night? Number 1
is to do what was done earlier today
which is to pray talawih with the imam
until the imam complete is complete. It. Until
the imam finishes basically.
And if you do that you get the
reward of praying the entire night. So that's
number 1.
And by the way the imam means the
congregation.
So if a person says, Okay, Abdullah finished
after 4 Sheikh Huli took over
so I can leave because that imam is
done. No, no, no. It's the whole congregation.
So if you
and until they pray the wittir prayer.
So
if you have limited time, then don't go
to a masjid that prays 20 raka'as. Be
smart with where you go. Go to a
masjid that's light so that you can pray
with them for the entire,
duration of the prayer.
But then let's say I can't even do
that. I don't have the time to do
that. Rasulullah salallahu alayhi wasalam tells us that
whoever prays isha in congregation gets the reward
of praying half of the night, and whoever
prays feijin in congregation gets the reward of
praying the entire night.
So
at least I come in and I pray
Isha with the jama'ah, and then I leave.
It's okay. People are gonna look at me
and they're gonna realize that I was in
town and that I didn't. It doesn't matter.
Praying isha and it's something that you should
always remember that praying isha is more beloved
to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala than praying tarawiyyah.
A lot of times people make the mistake
of coming late missing Isha and catching tarawiyya.
Whatever. But Isha is more beloved because it's
obligatory.
And fajr is more beloved to Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala than a person praying tahajjud. So
if I pray tahajjud,
but I'm gonna crash like an hour before
fajr because I've been up all night, That's
not a good habit to have. It's better
more beloved to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that
you pray fajid in congregation. So it's all
about knowing how to prioritize.
Number 3,
let
me see here.
What was number 3?
We already talked about praying 2 raka'as after
Isha. Number 4 is if you need to
sleep, be intentional. If you need to sleep,
be intentional. Because the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam says
that whoever goes to his bed intending to
get up and pray qiyam at night, then
sleep overwhelms him until morning
will have recorded that which he intended and
his sleep is a charity given to him
by his Lord.
Does not get better than that.
A person, if they went to sleep and
they're intending,
I'm gonna wake up at 2 AM. I'm
gonna wake up at 3 AM. I'm gonna
wake up at 4 AM. Whatever. They're intending
to pray.
If that person But intention here means commitment.
Like it's realistic.
Like I set my alarm. Like I put
myself in a position to do it. However,
if that person is overwhelmed by sleep,
they still get the reward of everything that
they did and that
sleep that they actually slept is charity from
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So all it takes
is for you to be intentional when you
go to sleep. That you don't just go
home and collapse without a thought. That you
actually sit down and you think to yourself
that you are insha'Allah ta'ala going to wake
up for that period of time.
Number 5. If you wake, wake your family
too. If you wake, wake your family too.
The prophet salallahu alayhi wa sallam in his
last in the last 10 nights,
he was described as
He would waken his family. The Prophet salallahu
alayhi wa sallam would waken wake he would
waken his family, and
he would enliven his night. So waking up
your family. And the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam,
he told us that when a man wakens
at night and wakes his wife and they
pray 2 rakaas together, they are recorded among
the men and women who are the kireen
Allahakatheera.
They who
mention Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala a lot.
And it's vice versa. A woman who wakes
up her husband or a husband who wakes
up his wife, that if you wake them
up if you wake each other up and
then you pray 2 rak'ahs and the 2
rak'ahs don't need to be together. It doesn't
need to be a congregational prayer but everyone
prays on their own.
They will be recorded as those who remember
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala much. But the scholars
mentioned, this is for somebody who you know
would love to wake up.
You ani, if you wake up your wife
and she's gonna start swinging at you because
it's you know, she just went to sleep
with the baby for example.
Like that's not what the objective is here.
But the objective is if the spouses know
that they would love to be waken up
and then they wake up.
Don't forget dua and dhikr, number 6. To
make a lot of dua. And we mentioned
that one already.
But I would also mention this. This beautiful
du'a of Allahumma nakafun tuhibrafa fa'afani
that a person as well share it with
their family members. Teach it to your, you
know, your cousins.
In the masjid here even, young people, ask
them, do you know the dua of Laylatul
Qadr?
Sheh Abdul Razaq Al Abbat.
He's a scholar in Madinah. He tells this
beautiful story and he said that he was
him and his his father and his grandfather
and he's from a family of scholarship.
They were travel they were going to the
haram in Madinah for tarawih in the last
10 nights.
And some young men were in a car
nearby and they just had the music blasting.
And so he said, I went to them
and I said to them, listen.
Everybody's going and they're seeking out, you know,
worship in the last 10 nights. If you
all aren't going to participate in all of
that, then at least, you know, turn down
the turn down the music.
And so he said they did. And then
I talked to them and I said, do
you know the dua of Laylatul Qadr? And
they said, no. And then he said, Allahummainnaqafoon
tohibulafaafaaani.
He said, say it back to me. So
they said it back. I said to him,
say repeat it again. He said, I I
I kept making them repeat it until they
learned it. And then I said, make sure
that tonight you make this dua a lot.
You don't have to come to the masjid.
You don't whatever. You're not gonna do all
of that. At least make this dua a
lot.
He said years later, like 5 or 6
years later, I was traveling somewhere in the
country for an a lecture.
And there was a young man who came
came up to me and he was, you
know, he seemed like a very nice young
man.
And he came and he sat down next
to me and said, Sheikh, do you remember
me? He said, No. He said, do you
remember that He said and he kept reminding
me until I remember. And he said, You
know that dua,
I kept saying it that night
and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
changed my heart. Everything that I was attracted
to of evil from before, Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala replaced it with a love for the
deen and the love of the Quran and
the love of the sunnah of the
prophet And so the sheikh was saying, this
is a a a powerful du'a. When you're
asking Allah for,
part of it included is the changing of
a person's heart. If I'm
Oh, Allah changed my heart about everything. But
they've got one sin that they're still keeping
in their pocket. They're like, I'll save this
one for next Ramadan. This one is still
a little bit too close.
But Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala controls your heart.
And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala changes your heart.
So asking Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to change
your heart. And this dua is one of
the greatest mechanisms
that a person's heart can be changed. And
then the last thing that I'll mention
is the importance of of charity obviously in
this night. In these
nights. That a person gives charity. Alhamdulillah, there's
a 1000000 different projects where you can automate
your charity. You know, you don't wanna be
that person who a night goes by and
you're like man, I didn't read Quran tonight,
I didn't make zikr tonight, I didn't
pray 2 rakaas tonight, I didn't give charity
tonight. And a person can automate their charity.
You can I mean there's a lot of
different,
ways for you to
set it and forget it in these last
10 nights as well?
And then the last thing that I'll mention
is
the most important factor
of all of this
is that a person
beyond the outer limbs and the outer acts
of worship is that a person journeys to
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala with their heart in
these last 10 nights.
That a person as best that they can
try to muster every ounce of sincerity, every
ounce of truthfulness, every ounce of humility
to subhanahu wa ta'ala, brokenness to Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala
because
Allah accepts from the people of Taqwa.
Abbahaq was asked by Juwaybir. Abbahaq is one
of the scholars of tafsir from the 2nd
generation and he learned from many of the
companions. And Abu Bakr was asked,
the woman who is,
in postpartum
and the one who's in menstruation
and the traveler,
and the one sleeping. Do they have a
share of laylatulqadr? You might have a guy
right now or a girl who's traveling on
the 27th night.
What share do they have of laylatul Qadr?
A person who's overwhelmed by sleep,
what share do they have of laylatul Qadr?
The woman who's menstruating, what share do they
have of Laylatul Qadr?
And so Abduhaq he said,
yes.
Everyone with accepted actions will have a share
of Laylatul Qadr. Qadr. Everyone who has accepted
actions.
And so at the end of the day,
Sheikh Bimaz comments on this and he says,
it is legislative for the believer to race
towards every good and to take advantage of
opportunities
and to humble themselves in front of Allah.
And their actions be propelled by sincerity,
truthfulness, and hope in what Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala has. For the value of everything is
by the sincerity it carries, and the truthfulness
it is done with, and the perfection of
it. How many single rakhaas are better than
100 of rakhaas? And how many dirhams are
better than many dirhams? And 2 people might
be praying side by side and the difference
between them is like the between the heavens
and the earth. So as best as I
can, in these last 4 nights, I try
to focus on my quality. If I'm praying
2 rak'ahs, let them be the best 2
rak'ahs
that I could possibly pray. Maybe I won't
be able to pray a 100 raka'ahs or
20 raka'ahs or 30 raka'ahs, but let me
pray these 2 as perfectly as I can.
If I give sadaqa, let me be cognizant.
I just I don't just go in and
swipe the card and not care, but that
I sit and I be grateful to Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala. Oh Allah, so much of
this ummah is in turmoil and you gave
me safety. Oh Allah, so much of this
ummah is is
is is deserving of zakah. And you may
be somebody who's able to pay zakah. There's
so many people who are deserving of sadaqa,
and in need of sadaqa. And you may
be somebody who can give sadaqa.
You've given my family so much. You've blessed
me with so much. Oh Allah, let me
give this charity with incredible gratitude and humility
to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. If I can
muster up and make my Ikhlas better in
every action that I do, it increases the
reward, it increases the acceptance.
And at the end, it's all about accepted
actions. So may Allah
accept from us all our seeking of laylatul
Qadr, and may we be of those who
witness it, may we be of those whose
sins are forgiven.
I was not expecting for it to go
this long but
I guess if there's any quick comments or
anything like that, I'll take them. Otherwise,
we'll end now.
Yes.
Yeah.
Which one?
No. No. You can make it any time
of the year, But it is the du'a
for the last ten nights of Ramadan.
Yeah.
You hear it in Jum'ah Khutbas. You hear
it all all over the place.
Anything else?
Yes.
Yes.
Excellent question. Fantastic question that I did not
mention.
The Quran was revealed over 23 years and
the Quran was revealed on.
So which one is it? It's both.
Indicates
means to bring it,
down once. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala also
says
which means to bring it down
multiple times. So on later the Quran
was brought down from
to the first heaven.
It was brought down to the first heaven.
That being said, jibreel does not bring the
Quran down from the first heaven to the
Prophet shalallahu alaihi wa sallam. Jibreel
hears the Quran from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
and then brings it down to
Rasulullah But the Quran was brought down
on Laylatul Qadr to the first heaven, and
then also over 23 years, the Quran was
brought down by Jibreel from Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala to Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wa sallam.
And the reason why I'm particular saying that
it's important to know that Jibreel alaihi wa
sallam did not bring it down from because
then the chain would be broken. Jibreel would
not be bringing it from Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala. So Jibreel hears it from Allah and
brings it down to Rasulullah Basalaba radiAllahu alaihi
salaam.
Great question though. Any other great questions?
Yes.
Oh, fantastic question. These really are great questions.
I didn't mention at all the positions
on what night Leila Tulkadr is, that's a
simple question.
Okay. Time out. So
Abu Said Al Khudri said that is on
the 21st night.
Abin Abbas said that it's on the 23rd
27th night.
Ubay ibn Nikaab swore that it's on the
27th night,
and each one of them has narrations.
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud says that it's if you
wanna seek out Laylatul Qadr, you have to
seek it out the entire year,
all year.
So what are their evidences? Number 1, Abu
Saeed al Khudiri said that the prophet made
a in the middle 10 days of Ramadan
seeking out laylatul Qadr. And then on 20th
night, the prophet was
told and this hadith is in Bukhari. He
said, I was
shown that what we are seeking is actually
ahead of us.
It's still ahead.
So whoever seeking later continued to make a
tikafah until the end of the month. So
they went for for
and he said, I was shown a vision
of me prostrating between water and mud
Abu Sa'id Al Khudiri says, and there wasn't
even a cloud in the sky on the
21st day
or 20th day, before 21st night.
He said, but that night it rained.
And I saw the prophet sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam prostrating between water and mud.
So Abu Sayedul Khudi says, late at Qadr
is 21st night. I have a I have
an incident.
Then number 2, you have Abdulai bin Abbas
being asked by Umar ibn Khattab. What night
is Laylatul Qadr? And Abdullah ibn Abbas says,
it
is between it is either the 23rd or
27th night. And Umar says, how did you
know that?
Abdullah ibn Abbas says, listen. Allah made 7
heavens, made 7 earths, made our days of
the week 7, made
our food out of 7.
So
7 is a common theme here.
So it's either the 23rd or 27th. Meaning
7 days remaining or 7 days having passed.
And so, Umar
said to him, you have noticed something that
we all didn't notice before. So Abdullah ibn
Abbas 7 days or 7 days.
7 days past or 7 days. Then we
have,
who's left? Ubayb Nikaab. Ubayb Nikaab and Abdullah
ibn Mus'udu he said he said and he
was in Iraq. He told people he said,
listen. Anybody wants to experience their adulqadr, you
gotta pray all year. 360
days
a year, you'll experience Nayratul Qadr.
So
then people come from Iraq and they meet
Ubayib niqab in Madina. And they say, your
brother, Abdulai ibn al-'ud is saying
that whoever wants to experience the iratul Qadr
he has to stand the entire year. And
so Ubaid Nikaib said,
he knows by Allah what night it is.
He knows.
But he doesn't want you to rely on
it.
Meaning, he doesn't want the entire ummah to
not show up, and then just pack the
driveways of every masjid in the world on
the 27th night, and then call it a
day. Right? When people are leaving the masjid
on 27th night, they're saying,
No. There's still 3 nights left. 4 nights
left.
So Abdulai Nasrud did not want this to
happen.
So he didn't tell them. He's like, you
gotta pray the entire year. But Ubay ibn
Ka'b said,
it is the 27th night.
And he said, how do you know that?
He said, because of the sign the prophet
told us. What's the sign? That the next
day the sun rises without rays.
It's a very gentle sun.
So then the question becomes, how do you
resolve these different narrations from the companions? How
do you resolve that Ubayb nikab is swearing
it's the 27th? Abu Sa'id al Khudri is
giving you clear evidence that it's the 21st.
The scholars said that Laylatul Qadr rotates.
It rotates.
In 1 year it could be the 21st,
in another year it could be the 22nd,
another year it could be the 23rd, another
year could be 24th.
Why am I saying the even,
nights as well? Because the prophet said,
seek it out in the odd nights.
But he also said, seek it out with
9 nights remaining,
7 nights remaining, 5 nights remaining.
And
if the month is 30,
then that's fantastic.
9 nights remaining is an odd night. But
if the month ends up being 29,
then 9 nights remaining is what? It's an
even.
7 nights remaining is an even number. 5
nights remaining is an even number. So in
reality,
we have to try every single night of
the last 10 nights. But the scholars mentioned,
and the majority of scholars hold, that the
27th night is weighted more
than the others.
So if
I've only got one shot,
then I go for the 27th night. But
it could very easily be another night as
well. Great question.
Last great question before we end.
Yes, sir. Yes.
Oh, so you're saying
Should I say, oh Allah, you are forgiving.
You love to forgive, so forgive me. Or
should I say, forgive all of us? It's
fine. Either way. Either way is fine. Whichever
one you wanna do. Yes?
If I'm understanding your question, you're saying does
du'a change
the decree that happens on Laylatul Qadr?
Du'a changes all three of those writings.
Du'a changes the writing that happens in a
person's the womb of their mother. Dua changes
the writing that happens on Nairatul Qadr, and
dua changes the daily writing.
The only one that does not change is
the first and final draft because your dua
that you were going to make to alter
those things is already written there.
Everybody don't wanna hold everybody hostage anymore.
Everybody don't wanna hold everybody hostage anymore.