Oman Daily Observer

Ramadhan nights golden chance to come closer to Allah

- LAKSHMI KOTHANETH @lakshmioma­n

Nights of Ramadhan are special with many benefits because for these are great moments of reflection­s and prayers.

Hatim bin Harith al Abdissalaa­m, life coach and member from the Islamic Informatio­n Centre, Oman, says the nights of Ramadhan are special because people have recharged their batteries with nutrition and they are ready to be devoted to the Almighty.

After Isha prayers, the first prayer for the night is Taraweeh.

“It is almost an hour long and majority of the people pray at the mosque. Then there is another special prayer which is called

Tahajud, it starts almost at 2 am,” said Hatim.

In some mosques, the prayer starts at 3 am while at others it will go up till four to 4:30 am.

According to Hatim, the uniqueness of this prayer is that it is for the elite of the society in terms of spirituali­ty, “Because let us admit the fact that it takes a lot of courage and sacrifice to leave your sleep while everybody else is fast asleep and be alone with Allah.” This is the practice in some of the mosques but very few people go to perform this prayer.

“They turn off the lights because sometimes you break into tears rememberin­g all the sins and shortfalls he did against Allah.

You are asking for forgivenes­s. In Islam, there are no mediators and so we directly ask for forgivenes­s from Allah.”

He noted that when you hear the Holy Quran being recited, you feel that Allah is talking to you directly through those words. Therefore you become very emotional and spiritual.

“It is a golden opportunit­y where Allah has promised to answer the prayers of those who are calling in these specific times,” noted Hatim.

He added, “So we urge everyone including myself to plan and incorporat­e this prayer at least once in Ramadhan, because it will surely add a lot to your spiritual journey in the holy month.”

People are up usually late night but Hatim points out they are up for the wrong reasons because they are in restaurant­s, playing football etc.

“We need to have priorities. Ramadhan only comes once in a year and if you see the people who are not here with us anymore, they might be wishing to come back here to fast for another Ramadhan,” he said while urging, “So instead of wasting time in unproducti­ve way let us not spend these nights in an unproducti­ve way. Ramadhan is a month to develop your time for prayers and supplicati­on for Allah.”

 ?? ?? It is a golden opportunit­y where Allah has promised to answer the prayers of those who are calling in these specific times
It is a golden opportunit­y where Allah has promised to answer the prayers of those who are calling in these specific times

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