The
Chishti Nizami Habibi Soofie
Pietermaritzburg
South Africa
786/92
Sura
ad- Dukhan 44: Verse 1-6
Ha-Mim. By the Book that makes things clear; We sent it down during a blessed night: for We (ever) wish to warn (against Evil). In that (night) is made distinct every affair of Wisdom, By command, from Our Presence. For We (ever) send (revelations), As a Mercy from thy Lord: for He hears and knows (all things);
The
letters HA MIM are called ‘abbreviated letters’ (Hurfe Mukatiat) in
Qur’aanic Terminology. Allah and his Rasul (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) know
the meaning and it is revealed to the Urafa
(special servants of Allah), who have deep knowledge. The commentators (Mufassireen) among the Urafa
therefore say HA MEEM is one of the blessed names of the Holy Prophet
(sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) i.e. "My Beloved".
HA refers to Allah's Beloved, Rasul (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) one of
whose blessed names is "Haamid"
-the one who praises Allah. "MEEM" refers to Allah, whose Blessed
attribute is "Mahmood" -
"The Praised".
By the Qur’aan that makes everything clear
Which was revealed during a blessed night as a warning against evil
This night all affairs are decided.
Our
commands descend. This is your Lords Mercy (rahmah) (Muhammad’s Rab
).
With
reference to the "Blessed Night"- from the time of the Sahaba to the
present their has been 3 interpretations i.e.
1)
The
Night of Ascension (Meraj) – as mentioned in Sura Najm 53: Verse 10
So did (Allah) convey the inspiration to His Servant;
(conveyed) what He (meant) to convey.
2)
The
Night of Power (Qadr) –
This is a majority view majority view deduced from a narration by Abdullah ibn
Abbas (radiallahu anhu)
3)
The
Night of Forgiveness (Shabe Baraat)- that is also deduced from a
narration by Abdullah ibn Abbas (radiallahu anhu)
‘The
Night of Forgiveness’ (Shabe Baraat)- is also called ‘The Night of
Prayer’ (Shabe Dua), ‘The Night of Acceptance of Prayer’ (Shabe
Qabooliat) and ‘The Night of Spiritual Plenty’ (Shabe Barakah[1]).
It is narrated that Allah forgives all His creation on this night except
for an idolater, one who harbours hatred and one who commits murder: as
mentioned in the following Ahadith.
Al-Tirmidhi
Hadith 1307
Narrated by Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As (radiallahu anhu)
Allah's
Messenger (peace be upon him) said, Allah, the Exalted and Glorious looks down
on the middle night of Shabaan and forgives all His creation except two
people, the innovator and the murderer.
Transmitted
by Ahmad.
Al-Tirmidhi
Hadith1306
Narrated by AbuMusa al-Ash'ari (radiallahu anhu)
Allah's
Messenger (peace be upon him) said, Allah, the Exalted and Glorious looks down
on the middle night of Shabaan and forgives all His creation except a
polytheist or one who is mushahin (innovator in religion and out of the main
stream of the community.
Transmitted
by Ibn Majah.
On this night Allah makes all decisions, which is the job of
angels to execute. There is a connection between Qadr and Baraat both of which
were referred to by Hazrath Abdullah ibn Abbas (Radiallahu anha) whom The Holy
Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) called, "Tarjuman ul
Qur’aan" - commentator of The Holy Qur'aan".
Some
scholars accept one night and reject any reference to the other, but Abdullah
ibn Abbas (Radiallahu anha) accepts Qadr and Baraat as being true.
What
connection does this night have with Qadr and Baraat?
On
the night of Baraat the decision for each individual for the whole year
is given i.e. happiness, sadness, birth, death, illness etc. is given. On the
night of Qadr the angels execute these orders. A Hadith that says
that Allah will change decisions as long as it is not given to angels to execute
supports this. Bayhaqi
relates from `Aisha (Radiallahu anha) in Shu`ab
al-iman with his chain of transmission that she said,
"The
Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) stood
up in prayer during part of the night and made his prostration so lengthy that
I thought his soul had been taken back. When I saw this I got up and went to
move his big toe, whereupon he moved, so I drew back. When he raised his head
from prostration and finished praying, he said: "O `Aisha, O fair little
one (humayra')! Did you think that
the Prophet had broken his agreement with you?" She replied: "No, by
Allah, O Messenger of Allah, but I thought that your soul had been taken back
because you stayed in prostration for so long." He said: "Do you
know what night this is?" She said: "Allah and His Prophet know
best." He said: "This is the night of mid-Sha`ban! Verily Allah
(Almighty and Glorious is He) look at His servants on the night of mid-Sha`ban,
and He forgives those who ask forgiveness, and He bestows mercy on those who
ask mercy, and He gives a delay to the people of envy and spite in
their state."
Believers are
granted forgiveness on this Blessed night, except
1.
Those who commit shirk by
attributing a partner to God,
2.
Those who keep a grudge in their hearts, who severe the relationship with
their relatives and friends,
3.
Those who practice sorcery, who drink alcohol, who indulges in interest (riba),
and who “sell” their honor.
Therefore between Baraat and Qadr is the time
between DECISION and EXECUTION - Allah's door of Mercy (rahmah) is open.
One can submit ones appeal by means of Optional Devotion (nafil), Fasting
(roza), crying, seeking forgiveness (taubah), vows, etc. In a
Hadith in ibn Majah it is stated that Ali (Radiallahu anhu) reports that Rasul
(sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said,
'Spend the night of mid-Shabaan in prayer and the day in fasting, for Allah descends to the nearest heaven during that night and says, "Is anyone asking forgiveness that I may forgive them? is anyone asking sustenance that I may grant them sustenance?, is anyone in difficulty that I may relieve them and so forth."
This
is similar to a court of law, where one is given leave to appeal and the court
reviews the decision. Here Allah is giving us tidings of instant reprieve and he
also Allah gives us about 1 month and 10 days (+_ 40 days) to appeal to Him to
review decisions before they are executed. The review petition should contain
vows, tears, prayers , obedient worship (ibadah), remembrance of Allah (Zikrullah),
tasbih, gifts to the needy (sadaqa and qairaat), etc. which should
reach Him by Qadr.
It
is The Holy Prophet’s compassion (sadaqa) that the nights of both
EXECUTION and DECISION are told to us. Qadr is the greater night because it is
the last time for appeal. Allah in His infinite mercy, through His blessed Rasul
(sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has given us numerous opportunities to repent, may
we all take heed.
IRSHAD
SOOFI 1997.
Revised
1999-11-18
And
2003-09-29
[1] Barakah is a subtle spiritual energy, which flows through everything, but is strongest within the human. The more purified the human becomes, the greater the flow of barakah. Overpowering barakah can be experienced in sacred places, on sacred days and in sanctified people..
