SITTINGS IN THE MONTH OF RAMADAN
The Virtue of the Last 10 Nights of Ramadan
All praises belong to Allah, the Lord of all that exists, and may the salutations and peace of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad. his family, and his Companions.
The last 10 nights of Ramadan are the best days of the month. The Prophet (ﷺ) specified these 10 nights with noble good deeds because these days seal the month. These are the days in which the servants are freed from the Hellfire. And it is hoped that the Night of Qadr is in the last 10 nights more so than it is hoped in the other nights. The Prophet (ﷺ) used to spend most of the night in prayer, and he would lengthen the standing, bowing, and prostration. This is the meaning of his statement “spend his night” in the hadith [in which] ‘A’ishah (رضى الله عنها) said:
“With the start of the last 10 days of Ramadan, the Prophet (ﷺ) used to tighten his waist belt and spend his night in prayer, and he used to wake his family for the prayers.” [1]
This means he would stay awake most of the night, and it has been said that he would stay awake the entire night during the last 10 nights. Thus, he either stayed awake most of the nights or all of the nights involved in worship. He would not stay awake involved in “he said, she said,” laughing, or wasting time, as most of the people do during our era. Most of the people during our time stay awake at night during the nights of Ramadan not involved in what will rectify their religion or the worldly life; rather, they only spend the night in “he said, she said,” laughing, joking, and playing, and this is a tremendous loss!
He would particularize these nights by waking his family, each and every young and old person who was old enough to pray. This shows that it is necessary for the Muslims to wake their family, the youth, and their children to pray with the Muslims and participate with them in worship so they can attain the reward from Allah the Exalted. They stand in prayer themselves, and they also have their families stand in prayer and encourage them to participate with the Muslims and give life to the masjid by establishing the night prayer and reciting the Qur’an. This is in contrast to what many people do today; they are heedless of their sons and daughters. Their sons play in the streets while their parents don’t know where they go. And the daughters and women in most cases go to the shopping mall and mix with the men and the flirtatious individuals, and other unacceptable actions.
Even if a woman goes to the mall and she has religious commitment, shyness, and modesty, she still exposes herself to fitnah (trials and tribulations), and perhaps she will see those other women who are lackadaisical in their religious commitment. And the woman is more likely to be influenced by others and emulate them.
It is obligatory to safeguard the family, male and female, during Ramadan and outside of Ramadan, but during Ramadan, they will miss great rewards and many good deeds which Allah has placed inside this month. The last 10 days are blessed. If the people miss its blessing, they will miss a great deal from their lives, and perhaps they will develop a habit of heedlessness and laziness. Thus, they will not pay attention to the virtuous times of the year and the best times for good deeds, and they will waste their time the entire year. This is because if they are raised upon laziness, carelessness, and wasting time, they will not give it any concern; thus, their entire life will be based upon laziness, carelessness, and lack of concern, because they will not be cultivated upon good. Thus, cultivation upon good has a tremendous effect in developing the family and the home. And heedlessness has a tremendous effect upon the family and the home.
It is obligatory upon the Muslims to give great concern to this affair, especially during the great blessed times.
From those things that the Prophet (ﷺ) would specify during the blessed last 10 days, during the end of his life, is i’tikaf (seclusion) in the masjid. I’tikaf means: Remaining in the masjid during the night and the day and only leaving for needs that are essential, according to what is needed, and then returning to the masjid. All of his time was spent in the masjid, night and day.
The Prophet (ﷺ) would isolate himself from the people (in the masjid during the last 10 nights), even though the people loved him more than all others; they loved him more than a thirsty person loves cold water. Nothing pleased them more than seeing him, sitting with him, and hearing his speech. They loved him more than they loved themselves, their children, and everything. Despite this, he would isolate himself from the people during these last 10 days and sit in a tent where no one could see him so he could worship his Lord the Exalted and remember Him. And he is the example for all.
It is upon the Muslim to participate in this isolation and stay in the masjid as much as he is able. If he can perform i’tikāf the entire time, this is best. And if he is not able to perform complete i’tikāf, he should still participate even for a short amount of time, according to how long he is able to remain in the masjid. Sitting in the masjid is i’tikaf, even for a short amount of time, and Allah multiplies the good deeds of the worshipers; rather, He multiplies and increases them a great amount.
Thus, be diligent in spending some time in the masjid every year, but the last 10 days are the most confirmed days to spend time isolated in the masjid. So spend time in the masjid remembering Allah and worshiping Him, reciting His Book and giving life to your heart. The masajid are the places of the angels, the places of mercy, the places of humility, and places of obedience to Allah the Exalted.
The masjid contains great delight, so when you enter the masjid, you find happiness and comfort, and distance from stress and worries. It is the place of worship, the place of the angels, and the place where mercy descends. The masjid is a house from the houses of Allah the Exalted. Therefore, be connected to the masjid, always be connected to the masjid, especially during the month of Ramadan, and especially during the last 10 days.
This is the way the Muslim must conduct himself. The Muslim must be cognizant of the virtuous times of the year and the virtuous places so he can participate in the good deeds that are easy for him and so he will not forget himself. If he forgets about these virtues and these virtuous places, then he has surely forgotten about himself.
وَلَا تَكُوۡنُوۡا كَالَّذِيۡنَ نَسُوا اللّٰهَ فَاَنۡسٰٮهُمۡ اَنۡفُسَهُمۡؕ اُولٰٓٮِٕكَ هُمُ الۡفٰسِقُوۡنَ
“And be not like those who forgot Allah, thus He caused them to forget their own selves. Those are the evil doers.” [Surah al-Hashr 59:19]
We ask Allah the Exalted to grant us all success in good and righteousness, and may the salutations and peace of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and his Companions collectively.
Footnotes:
[1] Sahih al-Bukhari 2024
Excerpt taken from the book ‘Sittings in the Month of Ramadan’ by Shaykh Salih Al-Fawzan.
Precious Gems from the Quran and Sunnah 