[بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيم]

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.


إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَـهُ فِى لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ - وَمَآ أَدْرَاكَ مَا لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ - لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ - تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَـئِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ - سَلَـمٌ هِىَ حَتَّى مَطْلَعِ الْفَجْرِ



(1. Verily, We have sent it down in the Night of Al-Qadr.) (2. And what will make you know what the Night of Al-Qadr is) (3. The Night of Al-Qadr is better than a thousand months.) (4. Therein descend the angels and the Ruh by their Lord's permission with every matter.) (5. There is peace until the appearance of dawn.)



The Virtues of the Night of Al-Qadr
(the Decree)


فضائل وعلامات ليله القدر


Allah informs that He sent the Qur'an down during the Night of Al-Qadr, and it is a blessed night about which Allah says,


إِنَّآ أَنزَلْنَـهُ فِى لَيْلَةٍ مُّبَـرَكَةٍ


(We sent it down on a blessed night.) (44:3) This is the Night of Al-Qadr and it occurs during the month of Ramadan. This is as Allah says,


شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِى أُنزِلَ فِيهِ الْقُرْآنُ


(The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur'an.) (2:185)

Ibn `Abbas and others have said, "Allah sent the Qur'an down all at one time from the Preserved Tablet (Al-Lawh Al-Mahfuz) to the House of Might (Baytul-`Izzah), which is in the heaven of this world. Then it came down in parts to the Messenger of Allah based upon the incidents that occurred over a period of twenty-three years.'' Then Allah magnified the status of the Night of Al-Qadr, which He chose for the revelation of the Mighty Qur'an, by His saying,


وَمَآ أَدْرَاكَ مَا لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ - لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ


(And what will make you know what the Night of Al-Qadr is The Night of Al-Qadr is better than a thousand months.)[1]

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah "When Ramadan would come, the Messenger of Allah would say,



قَدْ جَاءَكُمْ شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ، شَهْرٌ مُبَارَكٌ، افْتَرَضَ اللهُ عَلَيْكُمْ صِيَامَهُ، تُفْتَحُ فِيهِ أَبْوَابُ الْجَنَّةِ، وَتُغْلَقُ فِيهِ أَبْوَابُ الْجَحِيمِ، وَتُغَلُّ فِيهِ الشَّيَاطِينُ، فِيهِ لَيْلَةٌ خَيْرٌ مِنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ، مَنْ حُرِمَ خَيْرَهَا فَقَدْ حُرِم


&;»(Verily, the month of Ramadan has come to you all. It is a blessed month, which Allah has obligated you all to fast. During it the gates of Paradise are opened, the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are shackled. In it there is a night that is better than one thousand months. Whoever is deprived of its good, then he has truly been deprived.)''[2]

&; An-Nasa'i recorded this same Hadith.[3] Aside from the fact that worship during the Night of Al-Qadr is equivalent to worship performed for a period of one thousand months, it is also confirmed in the Two Sahihs from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah said,


مَنْ قَامَ لَيْلَةَ الْقَدْرِ إِيمَانًا وَاحْتِسَابًا غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِه


(Whoever stands (in prayer) during the Night of Al-Qadr with faith and expecting reward (from Allah), he will be forgiven for his previous sins.)[4]




The Descent of the Angels and the Decree for Every Good during the Night of Al-Qadr

Allah says,


تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَـئِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ


(Therein descend the angels and the Ruh by their Lord's permission with every matter.)

meaning, the angels descend in abundance during the Night of Al-Qadr due to its abundant blessings. The angels descend with the descending of blessings and mercy, just as they descend when the Qur'an is recited, they surround the circles of Dhikr (remembrance of Allah) and they lower their wings with true respect for the student of knowledge.

In reference to Ar-Ruh, it is said that here it means the angel Jibril. Therefore, the wording of the Ayah is a method of adding the name of the distinct object (in this case Jibril) separate from the general group (in this case the angels).

Concerning Allah's statement,


مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ

(with every matter.) Mujahid said, "Peace concerning every matter.'' Sa`id bin Mansur said, `Isa bin Yunus told us that Al-A`mash narrated to them that Mujahid said concerning Allah's statement,


سَلامٌ هِىَ

(There is peace) "It is security in which Shaytan cannot do any evil or any harm.'' Qatadah and others have said, "The matters are determined during it, and the times of death and provisions are measured out (i.e., decided) during it.'' Allah says,


فِيهَا يُفْرَقُ كُلُّ أَمْرٍ حَكِيمٍ

(There in is decreed every matter of decree.) (44:4)

Then Allah says,


سَلَـمٌ هِىَ حَتَّى مَطْلَعِ الْفَجْرِ

(There is peace until the appearance of dawn.)

Sa`id bin Mansur said, "Hushaym narrated to us on the authority of Abu Ishaq, who narrated that Ash-Sha`bi said concerning Allah's statement,


تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَـئِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ - سَلَـمٌ هِىَ حَتَّى مَطْلَعِ الْفَجْرِ


(With every matter, there is a peace until the appearance of dawn.)

`The angels giving the greetings of peace during the Night of Al-Qadr to the people in the Masjids until the coming of Fajr (dawn).''' Qatadah and Ibn Zayd both said concerning Allah's statement,


سَلَـمٌ هِىَ


(There is peace.) "This means all of it is good and there is no evil in it until the coming of Fajr (dawn).''




Specifying the Night of Decree and its Signs

This is supported by what Imam Ahmad recorded from `Ubadah bin As-Samit that the Messenger of Allah said,


لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ فِي الْعَشْرِ الْبَوَاقِي، مَنْ قَامَهُنَّ ابْتِغَاءَ حِسْبَتِهِنَّ فَإِنَّ اللهَ يَغْفِرُ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ وَمَا تَأَخَّرَ، وَهِيَ لَيْلَةُ وِتْرٍ: تِسْعٍ أَوْ سَبْعٍ أَوْ خَامِسَةٍ أَوْ ثَالِثَةٍ أَوْ آخِرِ لَيْلَة


(The Night of Al-Qadr occurs during the last ten (nights). Whoever stands for them (in prayer) seeking their reward, then indeed Allah will forgive his previous sins and his latter sins. It is an odd night: the ninth, or the seventh, or the fifth, or the third or the last night (of Ramadan).)

The Messenger of Allah also said,


هِيَ فِي كُلِّ رَمَضَان


(It occurs during every Ramadan.)''[6]

The men of this chain of narration are all reliable, but Abu Dawud said that Shu`bah and Sufyan both narrated it from Ishaq and they both considered it to be a statement of the Companion (Ibn `Umar, and thus not the statement of the Prophet ).

It has been reported that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri said, "The Messenger of Allah performed I`tikaf during the first ten nights of Ramadan and we performed I`tikaf with him. Then Jibril came to him and said, `That which you are seeking is in front of you.' So the Prophet performed I`tikaf during the middle ten days of Ramadan and we also performed I`tikaf with him. Then Jibril came to him and said; `That which you are seeking is ahead of you.' So the Prophet stood up and gave a sermon on the morning of the twentieth of Ramadan and he said,


فِي رَمَضَانَ فَالْتَمِسُوهَا فِي الْعَشْرِ الْأَوَاخِرِ، فَإِنَّهَا فِي وِتْرٍ إِحْدَى وَعِشْرِينَ، أَوْ ثَلَاثٍ وَعِشْرِينَ، أَوْ خَمْسٍ وَعِشْرِينَ، أَوْ سَبْعٍ وَعِشْرِينَ، أَوْ تِسْعٍ وَعِشْرِينَ، أَوْ فِي آخِرِ لَيْلَة


(Seek it in Ramadan in the last ten nights. For verily, it is during the odd nights, the twenty-first, or the twenty-third, or the twenty-fifth, or the twenty-seventh, or the twenty-ninth, or during the last night.)[13]

Imam Ahmad also recorded from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah said about the Night of Al-Qadr,


إِنَّهَا لَيْلَةُ سَابِعَةٍ أَوْ تَاسِعَةٍ وَعِشْرِينَ، وَإِنَّ الْمَلَائِكَةَ تِلْكَ اللَّيْلَةَ فِي الْأَرْضِ أَكْثَرُ مِنْ عَدَدِ الْحَصَى


(Verily, it is during the twenty-seventh or the twenty-ninth night. And verily, the angels who are on the earth during that night are more numerous than the number of pebbles.)[14]

 Ahmad was alone in recording this Hadith and there is nothing wrong with its chain of narration.

At-Tirmidhi recorded from Abu Qilabah that he said, "The Night of Al-Qadr moves around (i.e., from year to year) throughout the last ten nights.'' This view that At-Tirmidhi mentions from Abu Qilabah has also been recorded by Malik, Ath-Thawri, Ahmad bin Hanbal, Ishaq bin Rahuyah, Abu Thawr, Al-Muzani, Abu Bakr bin Khuzaymah and others. It has also been related from Ash-Shafi`i, and Al-Qadi reported it from him, and this is most likely. And Allah knows best.




Supplication during the Night of Decree

It is recommended to supplicate often during all times, especially during the month of Ramadan, in the last ten nights, and during the odd nights of it even more so. It is recommended that one say the following supplication a lot:

"O Allah! Verily, You are the Oft-Pardoning, You love to pardon, so pardon me.''

This is due to what Imam Ahmad recorded from `A'ishah, that she said, "O Messenger of Allah! If I find the Night of Al-Qadr what should I say'' He replied,


قولى : اللْهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي


(Say: "O Allah! Verily, You are the Oft-Pardoning, You love to pardon, so pardon me.'')[15]

 At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah have all recorded this Hadith. At-Tirmidhi said, "This Hadith is Hasan Sahih.''[16] Al-Hakim recorded it in his Mustadrak (with a different chain of narration) and he said that it is authentic according to the criteria of the two Shaykhs (Al-Bukhari and Muslim).[17] An-Nasa'i also recorded it.[18]

This is the end of the Tafsir of Surah Laylat Al-Qadr, and all praise and blessings are due to Allah



يارب بالإفاده يارب
جزانا الله واياكم وكل من قام على هذا العمل كل خير .