The-Significance-of-Shab-e-Baraat

July 2012
Volume 2, Issue 12
A Voice of Ah-lu-Sunnah Wal Jama’ah
This is issued monthly by The FIKR-E-RAZA Organization in Cairo, Egypt
The-Significance-of-Shab-e-Baraat
In this issue
The Significance of Repentance
A beautiful advise in the regard of Shab e Braat
Visit to the Cemetery
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Prepared by: Mohammad Imamuddin Qadri Azhari
The virtue of this night established from Ahadith is that
from the very beginning of the night Allah Ta‟ ala turns
with special mercy and attention towards the creation
and forgives those who repent and seeks forgiveness.
Every Muslim should therefore value this night. Turn
towards Allah Ta‟ ala with sincere regret and shame
over sins committed and make a promise never to return to sin again and seek forgiveness from Allah
Ta‟ala. Seek forgiveness for oneself and all Muslims,
living and deceased. Have firm hope and resolution in
the heart that Allah Ta‟ ala will surely show mercy and
forgiveness.
It is understood from Ahadith that even on this great
night, some unfortunate individuals are deprived of Allah‟s forgiveness. They are:
1. Idolaters
2. Those that harbor enmity against others
3. Those who consume alcohol
4. Those that disobey their parents
5. Those who wear their trousers, kurtas, lungis, etc.
below their ankles
6. Those who commit murder
7. Those that sever family ties.
We should make note of the fact that wearing our
clothes below the ankles is a sin on par with kufr and
drinking alcohol. This should be an eye-opener for
those of us who are habitual in this sin.
The special virtues of the night of Bara‟at are:
1. Contrary to other nights where the last third of the
night has special blessings and Allah descends to the
lowest Heaven during this section of the night, on the
night of Bara‟at the special rain of mercy and forgiveness of Allah Ta‟ ala begins to shower down right from
the beginning of the night and continues until dawn.
2. The sins of countless people are pardoned. As already mentioned, Allah Ta‟ala‟s descension during this
night to the lowest Heaven occurs from the very beginning, unlike other nights. Furthermore, the number of
pronouncements seeking forgiveness far supersedes
those, which occur on other nights.
Fasting during the month of Sha‟baan is Sunnah and
clearly established practice of the Shariah. Fasting in
the month of Shábaan, without the stipulation of any
day, is proven from Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. In fact, he used to fast excessively during this
month. A Hadith of Hazrat Aisha (radiyallahu anha)
wherein she describes the fast of Rasulullah (sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam) substantiates this. She says that aside
from the month of Ramadaan, he never used to fast for
an entire month. However, of the remaining months, he
would fast in Shábaan the most.
What should be done on this night?
In order to obtain maximum benefit from this auspicious night, one should allocate a specific portion of
the night for solitude and close communion with Allah
Ta‟ala. Fervent dua and repentance should be priority
and make the sole intention for Allah Ta‟ala‟s pleasure
and reformation of the inner self. Other observances
that may be practiced are:
(a) Salaah – Salaah is one the most preferable acts to
be performed during this night. There is no particular
number of Rak‟ats but preferably it should not be less
than eight. It is also advisable that each part of the Salaah like qiyam, rukoo‟ and sajdah should be longer
than normal. Also try and recite as much qiraat in salaah as possible.
(b) Tilawah – The recitation of the Holy Quran is another form of worship that is very beneficial on this
night. After performing Salaah, or at any other time,
one should recite as much of the Holy Quran as possible.
(c) Zikr – Engage ones heart in Zikr (remembrance of
Allah Ta‟ala).
One should also recite abundant durood on Rasulullah,
(sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). Zikr can also be recited
while walking, lying on bed and during other hours of
work or leisure.
(d) Dua – The best benefit one can draw from the
blessings of this night is prayers and supplications.
Dua (supplication) itself is an „Ibadah, and Allah
Ta‟ala gives reward on each prayer along with the fulfillment of the supplicator‟s need. Even if the purpose
prayed for is not achieved, one cannot be deprived of
the reward of the prayer, which is, sometimes more
precious than the mundane benefits one strives for.
The prayers and supplications also strengthen one‟s
relation with Allah Ta‟ala, which is the main purpose
of all kinds and forms of worship.
(e) There are some people due to circumstances will
not be able to carry out any vigorous or lengthy
Ibadah. Such people should not deprive themselves
completely of the blessings of this night. They should
attempt to fulfill the following:
(i) Perform Maghrib, Esha and Fajr with congregation
in the Masjid, or at home in case of illness.
(ii) Keep ones tongue wet with Zikr, in whatever condition they are until they sleep.
iii) Plead to Allah Ta‟ala for forgiveness and for their
other objectives. One can do so even whilst one is lying in bed.
(f) Women during menstruation cannot perform salaah, nor can they recite the Quran, but they can recite
any Zikr, tasbeeh, durood sharif and can pray to Allah
for whatever purpose they like in whatever language
they wish. They can also recite the Arabic prayers mentioned in the Quran or in the Hadith with the intention
of supplication (and not with the intention of recitation).
(g) According to a Hadith, Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi
wa sallam) visited the graveyard of Baqi‟ during this
night where he prayed for the Muslims buried there.
Hence, some of the fuqaha (jurists) are of the view that
it is mustahab (advisable) to visit the graveyard during
this night and pray for the dead. However, this act is
neither obligatory nor should it be observed regularly
as an obligatory condition they are until they sleep.
iii) Plead to Allah Ta‟ala for forgiveness and for their
other objectives. One can do so even whilst one is lying
in bed.
Finally,on the 13th,14th,and 15th of this month one
must fast not only to end one's AMAL NAMA with a
good deed and begin the new AMAL NAMA with a
good deed, but also because the Holy Prophethas said :
"O people,lighten and cleanse thy bidies by way of
fasting during shabaan,so that is shall be easy and
helpful to you for the fasting during ramadaan.who
so fasts three days during shabaan,all his past sins
are wiped off."
"o Allah,guides us to the right path and grant us wisdom to do what thou hast ordered so that we may receive thy favour."
A beautiful advise in the regard of Shab e Braat
A'la Hadrat, Imam Ahmad Rida Fadil e-Bareilly
(radi Allahu ta'ala anhu) has given a beautiful
advise in this regard. This great Imam said:
"Verily the auspicious night of Shab-e-Bara'a is
drawing near when the deeds of the slave will be
presented to the Almighty Allah. I humbly supplicate in the Darbar-e-Aqdas of the Almighty
Allah that through the Wasila-e-Uzma of Sayyiduna Rasoolullah (Salla Allahu alaihi wa Sallam) He forgives the sins and transgressions of
all Muslims. Aameen."On this occasion, it
should be the duty of all Sunni Muslims to forgive one another and to make sure that whatever
debts owed to one another is settled. The importance of Huqooq al-Ibaad cannot be overemphasized as this is among the pre-requisites
for proper Ibaadat. I pray that all Muslims humbly remember this night and try as much as possible to perform Ibaadat and other pious deeds
so that their Record of Deeds be presented in all
dignity."Finally, I pray that the Almighty Allah
assists you and I and the Muslim Ummah wherever you may be. Muslims should be aware of
sincerity and honesty in all their deeds. May Almighty Allah forgive all of us. Aameen." Faqeer
Ahmad Rida Qaderi (may Allah forgive him)
Visit to the Cemetery
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Visit to the Cemetery Hadrat Ayesha Siddiqa
(radi Allahu ta'ala anha) reports: "One night,
whichwas the 15th of Shabaan, I did not find
the Beloved Prophet (Salla Allahu ta'ala alayhi
wa Sallam) in the house so I went in search of
him. After a longsearch, I found him in Baqiah
(the cemetery of Madinah) offering Du'a forthe
deceased and praying for their forgiveness".
(Baihaqi) A special point must be made to visit
the cemetery during this night and pray for the
deceased buried therein, as the Most Beloved
Prophet (SallaAllahu alayhi wa Sallam) is been
reported as having visited the cemetery on this
night and spending a long time therein, lamenting, reading and praying for the deceased.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF REPENTANCE
Allah
Ta'ala relents towards those who repent (make
Tawba) and He graciously bestows His Mercy upon
those who turn away from sin. Hereunder we will Insha
Allah learn about the significance and necessity of repenting for our sins.
Hazrat Jaabir ibn Abdullah (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) narrates that Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) delivered a sermon one Friday, in the course of which he
said, “O people, repent to Allah before you die. Set
about the performance of righteous works without delay,
before you are too preoccupied. Reconcile whatever differences you have with your Lord, for then you will
prosper.”
The Beloved Rasool (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) also
said, “When Iblees was sent down to the earth he said,
“By Your Glory and by Your Majesty, I swear that I
shall not cease to mislead the human being as long as he
has a breath left in his body.” The Lord then said, “By
My Glory and by My Majesty, I shall not refuse to accept his repentance, as long as he has not made that gurgling sound with his last breath.””
Hazrat Muhammad ibn Mutrif (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh)
reports that Allah Ta'ala has said, “Woe unto the son of
Adam! He commits a sin, then he begs Me for forgiveness, and so I forgive him.
Woe unto him! He promptly repeats the sin, then begs
Me for forgiveness, and so I forgive him.
Woe unto him! He will not give up his sin, but neither
will he despair of My mercy. I call you to bear witness
to the fact that I have indeed forgiven him.”
Hazrat Anas ibn Malik (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) narrates
that after the revelation of the Qur'anic Verse, “And that
you ask forgiveness of your Lord then repent to Him
[Surah 11, Verse 3],”
Allah's Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) and his
Blessed Companions would pray for forgiveness a hundred times every day, and they used to say, “We beg
forgiveness of Allah, and we return to him in repentance
(Nastaghfirullaaha wa natubu ilaih).”
Hazrat Anas (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) also reports that a
man once came to Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) and said, “O Messenger of Allah, I am guilty of a
sin.” When Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)
told him, , “You must ask forgiveness of Allah,” the
man said, “I do repent, but then I commit the same sin
all over again.”
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) then said,
“However often you sin, you must always repent, so that
Shaitaan will be the one who reaches the point of sheer
exhaustion.” The man said, “O Prophet of Allah, in that
case my sins are likely to be very numerous,”
to which the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)
replied, “Allah's readiness to pardon is greater than your
sins.”
Hazrat Hassan Basri (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) once said,
“You must not entertain the wishful expectation of forgiveness without repentance (Tawba), nor of spiritual
reward without good work.”
As Allah Ta'ala states in the Glorious Qur'an, “And undoubtedly, I am the Most Forgiving to him who repents
and believes and does good deeds, then remains on guidance [Surah 20, Verse 82].
The ambitious desire for Divine Mercy and the Garden of
Paradise, without repentance and without devotion to piety, is therefore nothing short of folly, ignorance and delusion, because repentance and devotion to piety are both
stipulated in the above verse of the Holy Qur'an.
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) has said, “The
true believer looks upon his sins as if he were standing at
the foot of a mountain, afraid that it might topple down
upon him. As for the shameless sinner, he looks upon his
sins as if they were merely flies that had settled on his
nose, so he assumes that they will buzz off as soon as he
tells them to do so.”
Once, Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “It
may happen that the servant of Allah commits a sin, and
that sin enables him to enter the Garden of Paradise.” The
Blessed Companions then asked, “Ya Rasoolullah
(Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam), how can it possibly enable
him to enter the Garden of Paradise?” The Beloved Rasool (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) then replied, “The sin
keeps staring him in the eye, so he begs forgiveness for it.
He feels remorse over it, and repents, so it actually enables him to enter the Garden of Paradise!”
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) also said, “I
have never seen a remedy that is more appropriate, or that
takes effect more rapidly than a new good deed applied to
an old sin.” As Allah Ta'ala has stated in the Holy Qur'an,
“No doubt, good deeds obliterate evil deeds. This is admonition for the persons accepting admonition [Surah 11,
Verse 114].”
The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said,
“When the servant of Allah commits a sin, it takes the
form of a black stain inside his heart. Then, if he repents,
seeks refuge and begs for forgiveness, his heart will be
cleansed of that stain. But if he does not repent, does not
resort to humble entreaty and does not beg for forgiveness, sin will be added to sin, and blackness to blackness,
until his heart becomes blind and he must die.”
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) has stated,
“Remorse is a form of repentance.” He also said, “When
someone commits a sin, then feels remorse over it, his
remorse becomes his expiation (kaffaarah) for the sin.”
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) has stated,
“Remorse is a form of repentance.” He also said, “When
someone commits a sin, then feels remorse over it, his remorse becomes his expiation (kaffaarah) for the sin.”
He also causes his physical limbs and organs to forget
the sinful actions they have committed. So when he
comes forth on the Day of Resurrection there will be
nothing whatsoever to bear witness against him.”
Hazrat Ali ibn Abi Talib (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) has
stated, “These words were inscribed around the Heavenly
Throne (Arsh) four thousand years before Adam (Alaihis
Salaam) was created: “And undoubtedly, I am the Most
Forgiving to him who repents and believes and does good
deeds, then remains on guidance.” [Surah 20, Verse 82]”
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) has stated, “He
who repents his sin is like someone who is guiltless of
that sin even if he has repeated it seventy times in a day.”
From this narration we can see the importance and significance of repenting, that the words relating to it are even
inscribed on the Arsh of Allah Ta'ala.
According to a report transmitted by Hazrat Yunus ibn
Ubaidullah (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) Rasoolullah (Sallallahu
Alaihi Wasallam) once said, “There is not one servant of
Allah who does not have two angels watching over him,
and the guardian angel of the right side is in command of
the guardian angel of the left side. Whenever the servant
does a bad deed, the guardian angel of the left side asks his
commander, “Shall I write it down?” The guardian angel of
the right side responds to this by telling him, “Leave it until
he has committed five bad deeds.” Then, when the servant
has in fact committed five bad deeds, the guardian angel of
the left side will ask again, “Shall I write them down?” This
time the other angel will reply, “Leave it until he does a
good deed.” Then when the servant has in fact performed a
good deed, the guardian angel of the right side will say to
his subordinate, “We have been informed that one good
deed should be multiplied by ten, so let us proceed to cancel five bad deeds with five good deeds, and then make
sure that five of the good deeds are definitely recorded in
his favour.” At this point Shaitaan will cry out in dismay,
“When shall I ever catch up with the son of Adam?””
This Hadith is in harmony with the words of Allah, “No
doubt, good deeds obliterate evil deeds. This is admonition
for the persons accepting admonition [Surah 11, Verse
114].”
In another narration Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “If the servant of Allah does a good deed, the
guardian angel of the right side records ten good deeds in
his credit column, and if he does a bad deed, the guardian
angel of the left side is ready to record it in his debit column, but before he has time to do so, the guardian angel of
the right side says, “Don't do that just yet!” He is then
obliged to restrain himself for six or seven hours of the day.
During that time the servant may beg forgiveness of Allah,
in which case the angel will not record anything against
him, or he may fail to beg forgiveness, in which case the
angel will record one bad deed in his debit column.”
Hazrat Ibn Abbas (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) reports that Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “When the
servant repents, and when Allah relents towards him,Allah
causes that servant's angelic custodians to forget the bad
deeds he has committed.
Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) also said,
“What is meant by sincere repentance is that one repents
and then does not go back to committing the sin he has
repented for.”
Hazrat Ibn Mas'ood (Radiallahu Ta'ala Anh) is reported
as having said, “When a person first examines his record
book on the Day of Resurrection, he will see his sinful
acts of disobedience inscribed in the front part, and his
good deeds towards the end. But when he turns back to
the early pages of the book, he will see nothing but good
deeds recorded there.”
This is in keeping with the words of Allah, “But he who
repents and believes and does good deeds, then Allah will
change the vices of such persons with virtues. And Allah
is Forgiving,
Merciful.” [Surah 25, Verse 70] The recipient of this favour will be the repentant upon whose repentance Allah
has set the seal of acceptance.
It is mentioned in the Hadith-e-Qudsi that Allah Ta'ala
has stated, “O son of Adam, even if you came to meet Me
with sins as huge as the earth itself, I would come to meet
you with a correspondingly enormous measure of forgiveness.”
From this we learn how important repentance is and how
ready Allah Ta'ala is to forgive us. Allah Ta'ala is Most
Merciful and wants to forgive us. He is so Merciful that
he even wants the angels to delay recording our bad
deeds so that we may have time to repent. It is we who
need to make the effort in turning to Allah Ta'ala and repenting for our sins. Do we not want Allah Ta'ala to bestow His Gracious Mercy upon us? We should take heed
of the above narrations and try to repent as much as possible so that Allah Ta'ala may forgive us and convert our
sins into good deeds. Insha Allah with this practice we
will start having hatred for sins and will eventually stop
committing those sins.
May Allah Ta'ala grant us the Taufeeq to continuously
repent for our sins to attain the Mercy and Forgiveness of
Allah Ta'ala, Ameen.
[Compiled from Ghunyalit Taalibi Tareeqal Haqq by
Hazrat Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jilani Radiallahu Ta‟ala
Anh]