OUR DIALOGUE

Q. On which night lies the Lailat-ul-Qadr? What are its signs? What should we read and how to pray in Lailat-ul-Qadr?

A. In Lailat-ul-Qadr or the Night of decree, the decisions are conveyed for the year to the concerned angels about life and death and soon occurring events in the lives of people. The Prophet (Pbuh) said; “Explore the (occurrence of) night of decree in the odd nights of the last Ashra (1/3rd) of Ramadan.” (Bukhari)

The popular belief is that the night falls on 27th of Ramadan, but in the books of Hadith, there are different versions favouring different nights.

“Narrated Abu Saeed Khudri that the Prophet (Pbuh) said; I was shown the night of decree but later I forgot it. (I only remember that) on the morning after the night. I prostrated on water and mud. Now that I have forgotten, you should seek it among the odd nights of the last 1/3rd of Ramadan.
The narrator further says that (the Prophet meant that ) it rained on the night of Qad’r (that year). As the roof of the Mosque was made of date-branches, the water seeped through (resulting in mud on the floor). My eyes observed that there was mark of mud and water on the forehead of the Prophet (Pbuh) on the morning following the 21st night.” (Bukhari)

“Reported Abdullah Bin Anees that he requested the Prophet (Pbuh) to inform him of that night so that he could stay inside the Mosque on that night, as he lived in the forest (and could not come on alternate nights). The Prophet told him to stay awake for the 23rd night.

Later, enquiries were made of his son about his father’s routine. He confirmed that his father entered the Mosque after the As’r prayer on 22nd of Ramadan and did not come out for anything until the Faj’r Salat of the next morning. After the Fajr, he found his horse at the doorstep of the Mosque and he went to his house in the forest.” (Abu Dawood)

“Reported Zir bin Hubaish that when he asked (the companion) Ubai Bin Ka’ab, he replied that the night is 27th. Then he swore and did not say Insha Allah and said; indeed, it is the night of 27th. I asked him what made him so sure and Ka’ab replied; On the basis of that sign which the Prophet (Pbuh) had told us. The morning following the night, there are no sun-rays at sun-rise.” (Muslim)
Similarly, there are other narrations favouring other nights. It seems that the night is not always fixed. Lailat-ul-Qad’r, it may be derived from the above, falls on different nights on different years.

There also is another probability. The night may be different for different people. Allah may shower His blessings upon whomsoever of his bondsmen He is pleased with, on any night of His choosing. This probability is also strengthened from another fact. The occurrence of moon is on different dates in different regions of earth. When there is an even date in one country, it is an odd date in another, according to the variance of moon in the countries.

It may be that an odd night in Makkah is an even date in India. How can the odd Night Decree be the same for all countries when there are different lunar dates in different countries? What I have suggested above, may be the answer but it does not lead one to anywhere. The safest course is to abide by the Prophet’s advise instead of trying to identify the Night. To spare mere five nights out of a whole year for the prayers, is nothing compared to the promised reward.

Most of the time in Shab-e-Qad’r should preferably be devoted to reciting and trying to understand the meaning of the Qur’an as the glory of the Night is associated with the revelation of Qur’an.

Q. Is it permissible to use the miswak stick to clean the teeth while fasting? Are we allowed to take a shower to cool the body in daytime during Ramadan?

A:It is permissible for the fasting person to use a tooth stick, called miswak, or a toothbrush. There is no difference if he used it at the beginning or the ending of the day or even during the day itself. At-Tirmidhi affirms that: “Shafi did not see anything wrong with using a tooth stick during the beginning or ending of the day”. The Prophet (Pbuh) would use his miswak while fasting. Abu Bakr ibn Abudurahman reported from a number of companions that they had seen Allah’s Messenger pour water over his head while he was fasting due to thirst or extreme heat. This is related by Ahmad, Malik and Abu Dawud with a Sahih chain. In the two Sahih of Bukhari and Muslim, it is related from Aisha that the Prophet would rise in the morning on a fasting day and then would perform ghusl (bathing). If during the bath, some water is swallowed unintentionally, the fast is still valid.

Q. What was the pattern followed by the Prophet (Pbuh) when he was fasting?

A. When the Prophet (Pbuh) finished a day of fasting, he either ate a few dates, or he drank a little water if dates were not available. He then prayed Maghrib before eating his meal. This is the best course to follow. It is also much more healthy. After long hours of fasting, it is better to give our stomach just a little time to digest while we pray Maghrib. When we have finished our prayers, we can proceed to eat a full meal. A person who prefers to eat his full meal first before going on to pray will soon discover that he is doing things the wrong way. He imposes a heavy burden on his stomach very suddenly, after it had been resting for a few hours. When he has finished his meal, the last thing he wants to do is to move about and pray. He wants to relax. Yet the time of Maghrib will become very short and he must go straightaway to prayer after having eaten. Otherwise, he may miss Maghrib prayer. No one would like to miss an obligatory prayer on a day of fasting. It is very important therefore to follow the Prophet’s (Pbuh) example and eat a little and pray before proceeding to finish our evening meal.

Q. What is the Prophet’s (Pbuh) guidance on breaking the fast on time?

A. Fasting starts at dawn and finishes at dusk. The Prophet (Pbuh) has recommended having the suhoor meal just before fasting starts, as a blessing. It is learnt that the Prophet (Pbuh) used to delay the suhoor meal as much as possible so that he ate immediately before dawn. This he did because it makes fasting less hard for his followers. The same idea applies to finishing one’s fast. In this, the Prophet’s (Pbuh) guidance is to break one’s fast immediately when it is time to do so. Sahl ibn Sa’ad, a companion of the Prophet (Pbuh) quotes him as saying: “ People will be well advised as long as they finish their fast without delay.” (Related by Muslim). This indicates clearly that it is the Prophet’s Sunnah not to delay finishing one’s fast, once we are certain that the sun has set. If they change this habit, then they are making themselves liable to further deviation from the Sunnah of the Prophet (Pbuh).

Q. It is said that Satan is locked up during the month of Ramadan. If this is the case, then why do we see sins committed in this month? To whom should such crimes be ascribed?

A. I would like to state that there is no contradiction between the Prophetic Hadith which states that devils are chained during the month of Ramadan and the reality that some fasting Muslims do commit crimes during the blessed month. The commentators of the aforementioned Hadith of Abu Hurairah state that ‘the devils that are put in chains during Ramadan’ are those who can’t approach those who sincerely fast for Allah’s sake and who commit themselves to the high morals of fasting such as lowering the gaze and refraining from doing any harm to others. Ibn Khuzaymah also states that ‘putting the devils in chains’ means that their activity during the blessed month is only reduced, and that is why some Muslims sin during the month of Ramadan.

Another possible interpretation of the Hadith states that sins that are committed through Satanic whispers are halted, as the devils are chained and they no longer tempt people to sin during Ramadan. As to the sins that are committed by some Muslims during the blessed month, some commentators state that they are due to the evil souls that tempt some to sin and transgress Allah’s limits. It has become clear that the Hadith does not contradict the common reality if we tend to understand it with deep profundity.

Q:. In the month of Ramadan, specially at the time of Iftar (breaking of the fast), a lot of dishes are prepared. Is this act not an extravagance and waste?

A: Eating of Halal (lawful) dishes and inviting others to eat those food stuffs are lawful. Better alternative will be to make others eat those food stuffs, especially those who are deserving. Extravagance either in the form of Iftar party or on any other occasion is not permissible. A very few eatables may be kept ready for Iftar to keep oneself away from committing the sin of excessive spending. The very aim of observing fasting is to attain Taqwa and also eating less. Unfortunately for us Muslims, Ramadan has become a month of not less eating, but consuming more and more!. Needless to say that to spend excessively on any occasion, we are committing wrong from both worldly point of view as well as from the point of view of religion.