Introduction to Laylat al-Qadr and Its Virtues

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, the praise of those who are grateful. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon the Master of all prophets and messengers, and upon his family and all his companions. Peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you.

As we are in these blessed days, in these fragrant days, on the first night of the last ten nights of the blessed month of Ramadan—these great nights that Muslims all over the world eagerly await, yearning for them from one year to the next—may Allah grant them the opportunity to witness this blessed month, to fast it, and to attain its nights of prayer and devotion. We bear witness to these days by the grace, mercy, and favor of Allah. We cannot but stand long and reflect upon this blessed surah that speaks to us about Laylat al-Qadr, the night that Muslims seek with their hearts, their gaze, and their ears, here and there, finding tidings from one place or a dream from another that assures them that the night they spent in worship for Allah, with faith and seeking reward, was indeed the intended blessed night.

This surah, which we reflect upon regarding Laylat al-Qadr and which is named Surah al-Qadr, answers many questions. In reality, it brings tranquility, security, and peace to our hearts—the peace that we aspire to. The Muslim, in truth, when seeking Laylat al-Qadr, what does he want? What does he ask for? What does he desire? The most precious thing he seeks is the forgiveness of his sins, believing in what the Beloved Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever stands in prayer on this night with faith and seeking reward, his past sins will be forgiven." Yet, when you reflect upon the blessed Surah al-Qadr, you find that it carries immense glad tidings, virtues, excellences, merits, and attributes that far exceed anything you could imagine or envision.

Surah Al-Qadr's Status and Connections

Surah Al-Qadr, which Allah has elevated in status, is named Surah Al-Qadr. In every letter and verse of this surah, there is a form of sublimity, elevation, veneration, and glorification directed specifically toward the verses of this blessed surah. Before we begin to reflect upon it, if you look at its placement in the Quran—the surah that precedes it and the one that follows—you will see that the surah preceding it is the first surah revealed to the beloved Prophet ﷺ: "Read in the name of your Lord who created." This blessed surah marked the beginning of the Quran’s message, the message of revelation, the connection of revelation, and the message between heaven and earth, concluding with the words of the Exalted:

"No! Do not obey him; prostrate and draw near [to Allah]." (Al-'Alaq 96:19)

Then comes Surah Al-Qadr:

"Indeed, We sent the Qur'an down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

The surah that follows it in the Mushaf is Surah Al-Bayyinah:

"Those who disbelieved among the People of the Book and the polytheists were not to be parted [from misbelief] until there came to them clear evidence—a Messenger from Allah, reciting purified scriptures." (Al-Bayyinah 98:1)

Between these two surahs—both of which, like Surah Al-Qadr, undoubtedly speak about the Quran—lies a profound connection. The surah before it commands the beloved Prophet ﷺ and all believers:

"Read in the name of your Lord who created." (Al-'Alaq 96:1)

Read what? Read the universe and read what will be recited and sent down to you in the form of magnificent verses. And when you read, you must do so in the name of your Lord who created. It concludes with the words of the Exalted:

"No! Do not obey him; prostrate and draw near [to Allah]." (Al-'Alaq 96:19)

A series of challenges faced by the beloved Prophet ﷺ, including the harm inflicted by the Quraysh and the stubbornness of their leaders like Abu Jahl, and their futile attempts to dissuade the Prophet ﷺ from continuing his call. Then comes the prohibition:

"No! Do not obey him; prostrate and draw near [to Allah]."

The surah begins with an order:

"Read in the name of your Lord who created." (Al-'Alaq 96:1)

And ends with a prohibition:

"No! Do not obey him; prostrate and draw near [to Allah]." (Al-'Alaq 96:19)

A prohibition and an order to prostrate, to continue drawing near to Allah the Exalted through prostration, recitation, and persistence in conveying the Quran—a great struggle (jihad). This was not by mere coincidence. We always affirm that the placement of the surahs in the Mushaf, their order in the Book of Allah the Exalted, along with their revelations, positions, endings, and openings, serves profound purposes.

Thus, the blessed Surah Al-Qadr, which begins with the words of the Exalted:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

is consistent with its counterparts that precede and follow it in continuing to speak about the Book of Allah the Exalted, the Quran. Since the matter is so great—since the discourse is about the greatest of things, the words of Allah the Exalted—the blessed surah is named Surah Al-Qadr (The Surah of Decree). It begins with the Exalted’s words:

"Indeed" (إِنَّا)

to emphasize, confirm, and venerate it. The revelation is attributed solely to Him the Exalted, as He says:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

To further emphasize and venerate it, the Quran is not explicitly mentioned in the first verse of Surah Al-Qadr. Instead, it says:

"Indeed, We sent it down" (إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ)

using a pronoun. What does this pronoun refer to? It refers to the surah that precedes it in the Mushaf:

"Read in the name of your Lord who created, created man from a clinging substance. Read, and your Lord is the Most Generous—who taught by the pen, taught man that which he knew not." (Al-'Alaq 96:1-5)

One of the greatest linguistic styles is that when something is manifest and grand, there is no need to state it explicitly or ask about it. Thus, it says:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

What is remarkable—and everything in this great surah is remarkable—is that in a surah of only five verses, the Night of Decree is mentioned three times:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)
"And what can make you know what is the Night of Decree?" (Al-Qadr 97:2)
"The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months." (Al-Qadr 97:3)

No other surah in the Quran mentions the Night of Decree in three consecutive verses in this manner. This indicates the Quran’s deliberate intent to surround this great and blessed night with every form of veneration, esteem, and glorification.

When the listener, recipient, or reflector (muttadabbir) ponders these verses, they see that every indication, rhetorical device, and method of glorification and veneration is directed toward the verse and the blessed night. Through this blessed surah, one begins to sense how one should live in the atmosphere of esteem, veneration, and glorification of these blessed nights—a connection we will address shortly.

Some Muslims today engage with the Night of Decree by striving for obedience, which is indeed a great and noble matter. However, it is essential to understand and grasp—through our reflection on these verses—that the Great Quran, which surrounds this blessed surah with rhetorical devices indicating veneration, glorification, esteem, and the exaltation of its significance, and creates an atmosphere that makes the reader feel the glorification and veneration of its matter and command, intends for you, O reflector, to do something befitting of this blessed night.

What is it? Veneration and glorification—but what should you venerate on this blessed night? Venerate the command of Allah the Exalted, venerate His words, venerate what He commands, and venerate what He forbids by avoiding it. Venerate Allah the Exalted Himself.

We mentioned in our reflection on Surah Al-Hajj the words of the Exalted:

"That [is so]. And whoever honors the symbols of Allah—indeed, it is from the piety of hearts." (Al-Hajj 22:32)

Surah Al-Qadr carries a similar meaning, though perhaps few people reflect upon it: the command to venerate the symbols of Allah the Exalted and to venerate what Allah has deemed great.

Let us ponder at the beginning of the surah: What did the Exalted venerate first in the first verse of this surah? He says:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

Before mentioning the Night of Decree, He first mentions the Quran:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree."

Thus, one of the greatest things a Muslim should seek and with which to meet these blessed nights—striving for these nights and attaining them through acts of obedience and drawing near to Allah the Exalted—is the veneration of the Great Quran.

Reflect with me on the first word, as we said: "Indeed, We sent it down" (إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ), using a pronoun rather than explicitly stating "the Quran," to emphasize and glorify its status. The revelation of the Quran is attributed to His essence the Exalted, further emphasizing and glorifying it.

In other words, one of the greatest ways a believer can draw near to Allah and seek the Night of Decree is by venerating the Quran in their heart, life, and conduct.

This is the Quran for which the Exalted, in this verse and in this blessed surah, says:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

He sent it down during the Night of Decree and elevated its status, saying:

"And what can make you know what is the Night of Decree?" (Al-Qadr 97:2)

And again elevated it:

"The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months." (Al-Qadr 97:3)

All of this, along with the atmosphere surrounding the revelation of the Quran, is to glorify the status of this blessed and great Quran.

So, what is the greatest expectation from you on this night? To venerate the Great Quran, which is inherently great in its words, letters, meanings, message, and purposes. One of the greatest forms of drawing near to Allah the Exalted is to venerate the Quran.

Someone might say: The Quran is great, and a believer might naturally think that venerating the Quran means reciting it. This is true. However, one of the greatest ways—and forms and mechanisms—to venerate the Great Quran is to esteem its status, its message, its commands, and its prohibitions (by avoiding them). It also includes how you interact with this Great Quran.

In other words, how do you interact with the Book of Allah the Exalted? There is a vast difference—even in our dealings at various levels—between how we treat something ordinary and how we treat something of great importance.

For example, in institutions and official bodies, if they want to emphasize the importance of something or give it a degree of significance, they label it: "Of great importance" or "Of utmost importance." Why? To prepare the listener or recipient of that message, directive, or command to understand its significance and how to receive it properly.

You do not receive just any speech; you receive a speech of great importance and status. It is natural, then, that when the recipient prepares themselves and feels that the speech in their hands is of great significance, all their faculties, receptivity, and perception gear up to receive that great command.

To Allah belongs the highest example. When the Quran frames these great verses at the beginning of this blessed surah, it wants you to feel the atmosphere of veneration. It wants you to be in an atmosphere of glorifying this Book. It wants you to make one of the greatest purposes, mechanisms, and means by which you seek this blessed night the veneration of the Quran—through recitation, understanding its message, caring for it, memorizing it, receiving it, reflecting upon it, and preparing to implement its message in real life.

In other words, one of the greatest purposes of this blessed night and the revelation of this blessed surah is the veneration of the message of the Quran—the veneration of what Allah the Exalted has deemed great. What did He deem greatest and most magnificent? The veneration of His words the Exalted, as He says:

"Indeed, We sent it down during the Night of Decree." (Al-Qadr 97:1)

When we reflect upon the verses of this blessed surah, as we will in the coming nights, Allah willing, we will find that the reverence, honor, veneration, and atmosphere of glorification surrounding this blessed night—and the unique virtues, merits, and honors that Allah the Exalted has bestowed upon it—are all in service of honoring and glorifying the Quran, the message whose revelation began on this blessed night.

Let us ask: If all this atmosphere of reverence, honor, glorification, and elevation is directed toward the message of the Quran and the revelation of the Quran, then what is the purpose that the Quran intends to build in our hearts, minds, lives, and conduct by reminding us of the Night of Decree?

Is it not the message of the Quran? Is it not the relationship with the Great Quran? Is it not the relationship that should be renewed in our souls, lives, minds, conduct, and all aspects of our existence? This is the message of the Quran.

If the Exalted has granted this blessed night what He has granted no other night in the blessed month of Ramadan—and He has honored this blessed month in another verse in Surah Al-Baqarah, saying:

"The month of Ramadan [is that] in which was revealed the Quran" (Al-Baqarah 2:185)

to glorify the status of the Quran—then how should we understand these blessed nights and receive them with acts of obedience without realizing the fundamental purpose for which these blessed nights were honored and granted such proximity, status, and share of honor?

One of the issues that has become common among Muslims as they receive these nights is the meticulous preoccupation and immersion in the details of the requests they wish to make to Allah the Exalted during these blessed nights, on the assumption that during the Night of Decree, the angels and the Spirit descend with every command.

This is true, and we will address it, Allah willing. However, the Lord of Glory, the Exalted in Might, is Owner of Abundant Grace, Favor, and Generosity. He will give you—He will give you—when you venerate what He has commanded you to venerate. He will give you even if you do not ask for every detail, for He knows your state.

This is why some of the early righteous predecessors (salaf) used to say:

"It suffices me that You know my state."

Similarly, a hadith states:

"Whoever is preoccupied with the remembrance of Allah, the Exalted, such that it prevents him from asking, will be given the best of what is given to those who ask."

We are in dire need today of renewing this concept in our lives. We need to understand the purpose for which these great nights were honored. If we venerate what Allah has commanded us to venerate, then all other things become the fruits of that veneration. This is what the Quran wants from us through this blessed surah.

Peace and blessings of Allah be upon you.