Last 10 nights: A gift of divine proportions

We are in a month of magnanimous goodness, great righteousness and abundant blessings. The blessed month of Ramadan is praised abundantly in the Noble Quran and the traditions of the Prophet (PBUH). It is the month of the Quran and goodness, and the month when people return to their Creator in a unique demonstration of faith.

This month is granted a privilege that is not granted to any other month, which is ten blessed nights - the last ten nights when God The Almighty blesses us in munificent ways. Thus, we should make the best use of these ten nights by: Observing Ihtikaaf (staying in seclusion for worship) in a mosque. Ihtikaaf is very important for those who devote themselves to the Creator and get rid of many endless worldly attractions by refraining from those countless issues in which he/she usually indulges.

If one cannot observe this complete retreat, he/she should aim to spend long hours in worship. Praying during most part of the night (Qiyaam) and Dhikr (remembrance of Allah). With the start of the last ten days of Ramadan, the Prophet (PBUH) used to keep his family awake for the prayers all night and abstained from conjugal rights. The least people can offer in the last ten days of Ramadan is increasing Qiyaam and reviving the night.

The last ten nights are the right time to increase reading the Holy Quran, reflecting on and understanding the messages mentioned therein along with increasing Dhikr (remembrance of Allah). These last ten nights should be devoted to worship. A wise person is he who directs his capacities and time to benefit the most from these days of blessings and enlightenment.

We should not forget in these ten days that we have brothers and sisters who are suffering from great calamities. We should not forget them, even if the least we can do is to make sincere supplication from a heart devoted to Allah The Exalted and give charity. Lastly, we should keep the poor and needy in our thoughts by giving charity.

The Night of Al-Qadr: It should be noted that the last ten days include a night that is the greatest night in the whole year namely the Night of Al-Qadr (Night of Divine Decree), which is considered to be better than a thousand months. How great is this gift - A gift of divine proportions! The majority of Muslim scholars agree that this night is one of the odd nights in the last ten nights of Ramadan.

Like Muslims all over the world, the night of AlQadr has a special place in the hearts of the Kuwaiti people too. Thousands of them long for it every year and gather in the Masjids to pray for relief from worries and woes, and to safeguard Kuwait from evil. Special preparations are made for the last ten nights of prayer.

Another distinct practice that takes place in most mosques during the blessed month of Ramadan is Ihtikaaf, where men abandon the comfort they enjoy at home and reside in the mosque in order to devote and dedicate themselves for worship during the last ten nights of Ramadan. Many mosques around the country distribute the Iftaar meal (the meal at sunset to break their fast) throughout the month and particularly during the last ten days of Ramadan.

Eid Al-Fitr: Also known as the “Festival of Breaking the Fast”, is an important religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide that marks the end of Ramadan. The holiday celebrates the conclusion of the 29 or 30 days of dawn-to-sunset fasting during the entire month of Ramadan. Eid Al-Fitr is celebrated for one, two or three days. It is forbidden to fast on the first day of Eid.

A specific prayer is nominated for this day. As an obligatory act of charity, money is paid to the poor and the needy (Zakat-ul-Fitr) before performing the Eid prayer. Literal meaning of Fasting: to abstain from and avoid the consumption of a particular thing. Shariah meaning of Fasting: Worshiping Allah by abstaining from ingestion of food, drinks and sexual intercourse, from dawn until sunset.

Merits of Fasting: O you who believe! Observing as-Saum (fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may be pious (2:183). Observing Saum (fasting) for a fixed number of days is obligatory, but if any of you is ill or on a journey, the same number should be made up from other days. And as for those who Fast with difficultly, (eg an aged person, terminally ill person, etc.) they have a choice - either to fast or feed a poor person.

Courtesy of the TIES Center: As one of the projects funded and managed by Kuwaiti Society for Cultural Dialogue, TIES aims at empowering Kuwait’s expats through social and educational services that promote a positive and productive role in society, and to facilitate opportunities for intra- and interfaith interactions that promote social solidarity. For more information, please call 25231015/6 or e-mail: info@tiescenter.net.