Laylat al-Qadr: The Significance of the Holy Qur’an during Ramadhan

by Ramjan Mubarak

Ramadhan is a holy month in which Muslims refrain from food, drink & sexual relations every day from dawn until after the sun has set in order to gain Taqwa (roughly translated as God consciousness, so we become closer to Allah [One God]), to be forgiven for any past sins and to become more disciplined. Check out my previous article for more information here.

The Holy Qur’an has great significance in Ramadhan as this is when the first few verses started to be revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) over 1400 years ago on Laylat al-Qadr (The Night of Decree).

Different verses of the Qur’an were revealed and taught to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) by the Angel Jibreel (or Gabriel, peace be upon him) at different times over a period of 23 years. One interesting fact about the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was that he was known to be ‘Unlettered’, so he was unable to read or write (1) which is one of the signs this was a Divine Revelation (maybe something to discuss in a future article!). As these verses were revealed, the whole Qur’an was easily memorised by heart by the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). There are many Muslims who aim to memorise the whole Qur’an and there are many who have already memorised it by heart. They are called a Hafiz, meaning a Preserver (of the Qur’an).

As Muslims, we should strive to understand the importance of the Qur'an as it is a Guidance for mankind whereby Allah teaches us how to live according to His Guidance and how to distinguish between right and wrong (2). It is also a great way to reflect upon many things such as our own lives, the lives of the people of the past (so we can emulate the good, but learn from their mistakes) and the beautiful creations of Allah.

Generally, during Ramadhan we increase our reading of the Qur'an and try to complete its recitation in Arabic (and if required, we'll read the translation in our native language too) during the 29 or 30 days we have (depending on the moon sighting).

As stated earlier, the Qur'an was revealed on Laylat al-Qadr (the Night of Decree) which is a significant Night for this reason and other reasons. During this Night, the angels and the Angel Jibreel (peace be upon them all) will descend and the angels will write down what Allah has decreed for each individual for the upcoming year (3).

It is also mentioned in the Qur'an that this Night is better than a thousand nights (4), so it is a chance for Muslims to earn more rewards for any good deeds that are performed. It is the perfect time to sincerely ask Allah for forgiveness so inshaAllah (God-Willing) we can be forgiven for all of the sins we may have committed during our lives, to accept our good deeds during the month of Ramadhan and to also pray to remain guided on His Path, so we continue our good habits learned in Ramadhan and become better and improved versions of ourselves.

The exact night of the Night of Decree is unknown. Authentic sources state that it occurred on one of the odd-numbered nights in the last ten nights of Ramadhan (5) (we use the Islamic lunar calendar for this), so Muslims try to do more acts of Ibadah (worship) during these nights. However, many Muslims do more Ibadah during the last ten days of Ramadhan anyway because that is what the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do.

I usually stay awake for a bit longer or go to sleep for a bit and wake up 1-2 hours before I have my Suhoor (pre-dawn meal). What I love to do (which many Muslims also do) is:

· Increase in the recitation of the Qur’an

· Increase in the remembrance of Allah by saying phrases (generally in Arabic) such as:

o Glory be to Allah and His is the Praise (6)

o I seek the forgiveness of Allah and repent to Him (6)

o Our Lord! Grant us the good of this world and the Hereafter, and protect us from the torment of the Fire (7)

· Recite this famous du’a (supplication): Allahumma innaka 'afuwwun tuhibbul-'afwa, fa'fu 'anni (O Allah, You are Forgiving and love forgiveness, so forgive me) (8)

· Pray more Salah (prescribed prayer: which we do 5 times a day anyway, but we do even more during Ramadhan and especially during the last 10 nights)

· Give more charity to those in need

· Make personal du’as for myself, my family, the Ummah (Muslim Community) and the World at large, especially for those who are suffering

· Just listen to the Qur’an and ponder over its words

Here’s a short recitation from the Holy Qur’an: https://youtu.be/J3YvSim7sh4?t=9

Sources

(1) Qur’an 29:48 https://quran.com/29/48?translations=131

(2) Qur’an 2:185 https://quran.com/2/185?translations=131

(3) Qur’an 44:4 https://quran.com/44/4?translations=131

(4) Qur’an 97:3 https://quran.com/97/3?translations=131

(5) Sahih al-Bukhari 2017 https://sunnah.com/bukhari:2017

(6) Riyad as-Salihin 1877 https://sunnah.com/riyadussalihin:1877

(7) Qur’an 2:201 https://quran.com/2/201?translations=131