Between the Two Nights
The Mi’raj
or ascension of the Prophet (sallalahu ta‘alah ‘alaihi wa Sallam) to the special Divine presence has historically been recognized
to have taken place on Rajab 27. This date appears to be linked in the Islamic
calendar to Ramadhan 27, the likely day of the “night of power” or the Lailatul
Qadr. It seem that this period of two
months is a special season in which the collective spirituality is
progressively enhanced until finally the individual effort of even the average
worshiper elevates him to eligibility for some form of religious experience.
This, in turn, launches him on a path of spiritual growth.
The progressive enhancement begins on
Rajab 27, when the worshiper refreshes his memory about the Prophet’s Mi’raj and reminds himself that the five daily prayers (Salat) which were brought down from above in the Mi’raj, is the vehicle for his personal Mi’raj. He thus pays serious attention to improving the quality of his Salat. This involves, most of all, developing a devout frame of
mind.
In the month of Shaban he follows the example of the Prophet (sallalahu ta‘alah ‘alaihi wa Sallam) and fasts time and again to build the momentum with which to
prepare the body and the mind for the rigors of the fast of Ramadhan. Thus the preliminary fast of Shaban is added to Salat and worship moves into a higher gear. On Ramadhan 1, not only does the compulsory fast for all adult Muslims
begin but, also, there is Qiyam al-Lail or the
prayers of the night-vigil, when long passages of the Qur’an are recited.
Fasting, the night time prayer vigil and the recitation of the Qur’an have a
dramatic impact in effecting a substantial qualitative improvement of worship.
When, on Ramadhan
21, the withdrawal from worldly affairs and seclusion in the Masjid (I’tikaf) for ten days commences, the worshipers reach a pitch or
intensity of worship which makes this period most spiritually conducive for
religious experience. As he withdraws from the Dunya the veils begin to fall from off his
eyes and heart and as a consequence he now perceives the reality of things and of the world.
Finally comes Ramadhan 27, the night
of power (Lailatul Qadr) when
Allah Most High sends down the angels and Gabriel for every errand:
“…In hosts descend in it the angels,
bearing divine inspiration by their Sustainer’s leave; from all [evil] that may
happen…;”
(Qur’an, al-Qadr, 97:4)
i.e., to bestow, perhaps, the supreme
gift of Mi’raj (i.e. a direct visionary
experience of the unseen worlds) to all
those who have deserved it or who have earned it. When the Qur’an asserts that the night of power is superior to a thousand months:
“The Night of Destiny is better than
a thousand months.”
(Qur’an, al-Qadr, 97:3)
the implication is, perhaps, that the
direct visionary experience of the unseen worlds which can best be experienced
on that night is better than an entire life-span (a thousand months standing
for an average life-span) lived without it.
There are profound psychological and
sociological lessons to be learnt from Islam’s fast of Ramadhan. The enhanced collective spirituality of Ramadhan, for example, literally reaches down to embrace even the
weakest of the believers and to assist and strengthen their resolve to observe
the fast.
Secondly, with the institution of the
fast of Ramadhan and its attendant charity, prayers, and the recitation of
the Qur’an, Islam takes the believer to the third stage of the process of
religious development, the stage of total conformity and harmony with the
externally imposed sacred law.
In the first stage, we should recall,
the individual was invited to enter into Islam and to submit publicly to the
Truth. In the second stage, on the other hand, the process witnessed the
internalization of the externally proclaimed belief. This was the stage of
faith or Iman. With the achievement of stage three
or al-Ihsan, and with the possible vision of the unseen worlds, the
believer now acquires the capacity to see with the internal eye what previously
could not be seen. Thus it is that the Fast of Ramadhan delivers
the capacity for internal intuitive spiritual insight with which to penetrate
the reality of things and not to be deceived by appearance. Such a capacity constitutes
a vital dimension of power.
To Be Continued ....
