What is the Purpose of Qiyaamullail?

Assalaamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

I read this in our musalla just after Ishaa' service where they had pasted it at the board of current issue. I think the reminder is quite nice and I would like to share it with brothers and sisters world wide who unintentionally hit this humble site may Allah bless all of you. 

Introduction to Qiyaamullail

First of all I would like to explain what is Qiyaamullail. It is Arabic compound words which means wake up in the night. This term means we sleep early at night maybe around 22:00-23:00 at night and wake up again at maybe 3:45 or 4:00 at the morning. About an hour or half an hour before obligatory Fajr prayer service. For a traditional person, he might be walking to masjid after the Qiyaamullail according to the prayer time. For me usually, I will take bath and finding my hygienic stuffs first before Qiyaamullail so if brothers and sisters could not bear cold water use hot water if you wanted to take bath. If you don't smell like rotten socks then it is ok to talk with Him without shower or bath, lol.

This thing is also founded in other traditions such as the Brahmin traditions as to make it easier to understood by non-Muslims or non-religious Muslims. They have several what I could say as quite harsh rites which should be followed by Brahmins as part of customs. I don't call it as Hinduism but only Brahmanism because not all Hindus perform this as this is only the duty for Brahmins and I am not going to talk in detail about it but in Islam it could be practiced by everyone who feels it as a necessity for them. I think Christians for example Roman rites also have this and they call it with few terms such as the three nocturns during special religious festivals. Orthodox churches as well and they also have terms in Syriac and in Christian nations' languages who adhere to Orthodox faith. I went to several churches and asking here and there to priests just after prayer services in churches. Avoid speculating if we never ask anything from the right person. We would be outraged too if people speculate something which does not really represent us right? 

Qiyaamullail is a discipline which helps human-being to develop their spiritual strength and it protects us from diseases because our weak inner selves will harm our physical selves. Psychological problem is about spiritual. I read psychological journals too about Sigmund Freud and others but I am not as fanatic as people who are obsessed to certain things. I rely also on researches when talking about things and this is what we are. We believe in holistic approaches and it is also approaches used in several fields such as in nursing in the United Kingdom for example since I helped my sister with her assignments and I read all of the journals for her thesis and assignments. I hate people who love to boast such as those who claim themselves as proving this and that as false, comparing this and that trying to show to people who is better who is not. I believe that they have no life, ugly attention whores and I bet their life must be boring and pathetic as hell, hahaha. This is addressed equally for Muslims, Christians, Atheists, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Wiccans, Satanic religion followers and etc, hahaha. We hate all of you boastful people!!  

For Muslims, we have Qiyaamullail during Ramadan and also Qiyaamullail in everyday if we had already make our selves familiar with it. It is wrong and sinful to stop from Qiyaamullail when one has chosen to perform it everyday and already familiar with it.

Qiyaamullail as a Sunnah

Noble prophet Muhammad s.a.w mentions that: "Wake up in the night to pray and remember the Lord at that time as it is the common acts of pious people before you. It helps you to be close to the Lord and prevents you from committing sinful acts. It blows away your past sins and evil around you besides prevents you from diseases" (Hadith narrated by Imam Ahmad, at-Tirmidzie, Hakim and Baihaqi).

Goals of Qiyaamullail as a Discipline

Now let us see the purpose of Qiyaamullail and the article pasted at the musalla stated there are 10 goals for it.

1. Merit will be granted without obstacles to His servant who wake up to remember Him (Surah Ali-Imraan 113-115).

2. His Grace in the paradise descends on those who remember Him in the early hours (Surah Ali-Imran 15-17).

3. A person who wakes up early at nights only for His Lord are assured noble and appraised position in His view (Surah al-Israa' verses 78-79)

4. When a person performs Qiyaamullail, the Lord will grant him with a sacred heart and noble manner. He is respectful to people and environment around. This is the sign of a person who remembers His Lord in contrast to boastful people who writes nonsense things like in answering Islam or answering whatever it is (Surah al-Furqan verses 63-64). When I read those things I just laugh at the writers and I think that they are just clowns. The same thing also about scientific proving of the scriptures and etc. Scriptures are beyond scientific research. It is metaphysical, beyond physical boundaries. I read physics and chemistry books though I was from Shariah streams, not a talented student in academic and I don't know why people love to look at us as stupid than them just because we are humble. Sometimes these people confuse me and make me think should I also show off to make them realize that their attitude is so annoying? I don't like to make people crying and I made one of our colleague crying simply because he showed off to me and my friend, Amir ahahaha. I am so sorry for being bad ass person but sometimes we can't bear these kind of people.

5. A person who performs Qiyaamullail is hardly a boastful and hardly a show off person (Surah as-Sajjadah 15-17). It is because boastful and show off are some kinds of mental illnesses.

6. When performing Qiyaamullails, a person will receive profits and benefits through His Mercy (Surah az-Zumar verse 9). If one is conducting say business, his business will receive blessings from the Lord and though we can't see the blessings but we can feel it. If we are on some affairs, the Lord will bless us and make everything goes smooth though we do not notice it. So, we have to be very careful with environment as we don't know where is his blessings and mercy and how they look like.

7. Qiyaamullail teaches a person to be patient and it is a very good discipline for a person who can't control patience (Surah Qaaf verses 39-40). Try perform this for few nights and feel it your selves. You don't have to be a Muslim to perform this. If you are a Christian, then perform this according to your rites. If you are a Buddhist or Hindu, try perform it according to your responsibility of birth. If you are a Muslim, then perform it according to Sunnah and prophetic traditions. Who says that when we are different from each other and trying to return to the faith, we have to chop everyone's head? This is the act of a pea-brain sized person not the act of civilized people. We can see this kind of people in all community, society, and faiths. Their mind is dirty their heart is filthy thus their mouth instigate evil things for people to scratch each others' faces.

8. It will lead a person who performs it to feel wrong if they do not sacrifice themselves to help the poor, the unfortunate and the tyrannized people (Surah az-Zaariyat verses 15-19). A person who always remember his Lord alone in the darkness of the night will try to take part in social works in the daylight.

9. The Lord will grant a person who performs Qiyaamullail with perseverance to wait the decree of the Lord (Surah at-Tuur verses 48-49). Whatever decree of Lord will be the things which is uncertain in the future or anything which had already happened. This discipline teaches us to accept everything that will happen or that had happened as it helps us to get rid anxiety.  

10. Waking up in the darkness of night alone to worship makes us more focus to Him and it is more effective rather than when we pray optional prayers in front of people because we might get distracted (Surah al-Muzammil verses 1-6). We will recite things and ponder the meanings of the recitation. It will make us think deeper as we contemplate the messages of the Lord in His divine revelation. We also can cry and confess everything to the Lord without being known by others because many people are sleeping so they can't see or even hear us, lol!

Respected brothers and sisters in faith, please check the meaning and messages of the surahs for yourselves. A person who performs Qiyaamullail usually possesses wisdom and he is always blessed by the Lord though people look at him as no less than a tiny dust. Qiyaamullail is an additional worship act apart of the obligatory prayer services performed by orthodox sunnah Muslims. It helps us to get His Mercy and Love while we are still in this harsh world. In Qiyaamullail, a person will perform the salaat tahajjud, recites supplication or wazifas in devotion to the Lord and begging His Divine intervention to solve daily problems. 

So, brothers and sisters, I would like to advise myself and those who share the faith with me to stop talking about my Wahhabi movement is better, my Barelwi movement is better, my Deobandi movement is above all, my Tabligh movement is better, my Sunnah madzhab is correct, my Shi'ah madzhab is more honorable. Stop talking about who is wrong or who is correct. Let us together open up our scripture (Quran) and open up our Sunnah (prophetic traditions). We won't scratch each other faces when we are uniformly guided by these two primary sources of our Sacred Path. Stop fanaticism, stop being obsessed with our selves. The first creature/being who is obsessed with his self is the Devil the father of genies and the leader of evil genies, animals and human-being. Are we going to be one of his followers? Na'udzubillahu min dzaalik (may Allah helps us to be away from evil traits) may Allah makes us only as His followers and not others'!

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Repentance: Clearing Mind and Soul

Assalaamualaikum wa rahmatullah

Lord, I wanted to repent to You on all the errors that we had mistakenly committed and for all the sins I had committed without I realize them or I realize. We were ignorant and we realize that now. We seek Your forgiveness and please forgive us, be Merciful to us never leave us alone... We have no Shield and vulnerable if You leave us alone.

Lord ordered us to repent through His Word in Surah at-Tahrim verse 8th : "O faithful believers, repent to the God with the real repentance!" 

The God has opened the door of hope to His servants and slaves: "Say (O Muhammad)! O My servants who had crossed the line of their limit don't give up from the mercy of the God. Indeed the God forgives all of sins. Indeed, He is Forgiver above all, the Most Compassionate." (Surah az-Zumar verse 35) 

Conditions for Repentance

I. Sincerity to repentance

II. Promise Him that we would never commit the same sins again

III. Remorse on the evil deeds committed

IV. Determination to leave the evil deeds

V. Performed before death

If one of these conditions is not fulfilled, the repentance is not valid. If the sin is related to brethren in humanity, another condition applies. The sinner must free himself from the right of the related person who had been wronged. For example, if it is in the form of property, it must be returned to the rightful. If it is in the form of punishment and sentence, the person must submit himself to apologize from the wronged. If it is in the form of insults and abusive words, the sinners must sincerely apologize to the one who was wronged. 

According to Hanbali madzhab, a person who missed the obligatory prayers without any valid reason is counted as an ingrate to the Lord which will lead to infidelity and being excommunicated from community. It is a serious evil deed. Besides performing the qadha salat service for the missed prayer services must also repent to Him.  

Time to Repent

Repentance should be done immediately once a person realizes his sins and crimes. Sin is dangerous to the heart and the purity of the soul. If a person delays his repentance, little by little he will be influenced by the sins. It is like dots in the heart and blocking the heart from receiving the Light.

Among the reason which will bring the soul toward repentance is the remembrance to death and reckoning the time when we will be alone in the grave. Death indeed is scary for most of human-being. It means that we will have to leave the people that we love. We will leave our family, children, wife, husband, friends, lovers, properties, belongings, parties, pleasures and etc. Death is the time when all of the grace will be taken away forever.

Says the Lord in surah az-Zumar verse 30: "You indeed will die and indeed they will die too!"

Beside remembering the bitterness of torments that will be faced by the sinners, death also reminds everyone about the grace of His Kingdom where the faithful believers will be rewarded in it. It will raise up the spirit and enthusiasm to repent because nothing to lose...

How to Repent

In our Path, we perform repentance with the prayer service alone without anyone except our selves with the God. The prayer is called as Salat at-Tawbah which means the Repentance Optional Service. The way we perform it just like other prayer services but with the intention to repent to Him on our sins. Perform the ghusl (shower or dipping in the water) and wudhu (ablution) in a complete manner. All of these require intention only for Him. Stand at a clean place and facing the qiblah (direction of holy land).    

The time to perform the prayer service for those who thinks they are sinful is most likely around 2/3 night which means around 02:00 in the morning and later which is also apart of the raising up at night time. Please check the time to perform optional prayer services before performing them. 

Intention to perform the prayer service for repentance is important. Make sure to place it firmly in the heart and mind to focus. Just mentally say: "I perform this prayer service to repent two units only for the God."

The first unit of the prayer service, it is optional to recite the opening supplication. And then, recite the surah al-Fatihah. And then choose any one surah from the Glorious Quran to recite in the unit after Surah al-Fatihah.

The second unit, recite the surah al-Fatihah again since it is obligatory for a valid service. Then another surah from the Glorious Quran and this is optional. While prostrating in the final second unit, recite the supplication of repentance of Jonah a.s at least 40 times. Make sure to focus the heart into sincerity and try to ponder on the meaning of this prophet's supplication. The prayer means: "There is no one except You, glory be to You, I am sincerely repenting on my sins and I am among those who exceed the limit of crime and sins." The meaning could be simple, I just make it longer in English so people could understand what Jonah a.s. is praying about.

Before the peace greeting and prayer or the Tahiyyat al-Akhir, recite astaghfar as much as possible. It means like: "Forgive me dear God, whom no gods other than Him, He is the Living God, the One who Stands alone without any support and I repent to Him." 

Recite the Sayyidul Istighfar which means the Chief of Apology to seek forgiveness from the Lord and asking for purity of the soul and heart. It means: "O our Lord, You are our God. There is no one except You who created me. And I am Your servant and slave (I am not slave to other idols which includes worldly materials and etc). And I am in Your grip and in Your covenant as firm as I can. I seek refuge with You from the evil that I had committed. I confess all of Your grace on me and I confess all of my sins to You. Please forgive me dear Lord. There is no one who could forgive me except You." 

Let us repent dear beloved brothers and sisters in faith. Don't wait until its too late. This is an advice firstly to myself and I really regret myself on my ignorance. It goes to others to also help me spread the message for repentance to others if stepping by this humble and meaningless slave's site. Make sure we equip ourselves with the knowledge of the Path so we won't go into wrong directions. Let us together try to obey the covenant of our patriarch Abraham a.s. with the Lord and recite salawat for both of noble prophets' soul and their family members.

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace, and love, amin!   

Sijjin: Reward for Those Who Boasts

Assalaamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

We had just came across the word سجين sijjin in surat al-Fiil which talks about Abrahah and Elephant armies. What is more important in the surah? Is it the history of Abrahah to be proven right or wrong or is it for fun where we could laugh to Abrahah? Is it for us to curse Abrahah after his misfortune? Or is it the moral teachings that we should absorb from what had been told?

For a believer and faithful Muslim, Quran is not a book of history! We do not treat Quran as history books, scientific books, and etc! We treat it as His Word where moral teachings and conducts being taught by the God to His servants as the sign of His Mercy and Love to the universe.

According to the Qudsi Hadith it was narrated that Muhammad s.a.w had passing the word of the God through Archangel Gabriel which says: "When a servant of the God is arrogant in claiming merits of his practices in the hereafter, the God will answer them: 'Didn't I had made wide (easy) for you, your position and rank in the ceremony of teaching lessons? Didn't I made you a leader of the world? Didn't I made easy for you, your business? Didn't you being respected in the world?!'" 

The hadith implies that a boasting person will never get any special treatment in the world nor in the hereafter. The Arabic term for this evil characteristic is رياء riyaa'. As what had been mentioned in the glorious Quran about Abrahah. Although he had build up a church which is a religious matter and a meritorious deeds but he didn't build it because of Him. He build it because he wanted to the people to acknowledge on how powerful he was in making the people turning to the church build by him. He had to bear humiliation while in the world where he died once he arrived in Sana'a. The madzmumah characteristics which is boasting had made all the meritorious deeds being wiped away.

What I would like to also emphasize in this post to missionaries no matter of Christian faith or of Islamic path and it of course include myself though I am not a missionary... When we perform the evangelical work or da'awa, had we really asked our heart? What exactly is our intention? We want for example a Muslim to be an apostate just to satisfy our heart because we could make he or she turn away from their religion solely because of the God or simply to prove and boast around that our path is true and could not be defeated? The same goes to Muslim and Jews and everyone who call themselves human with the faith toward the God...

The point is where is our sincerity because of the God when we did such an act? Many people looks like devoting themselves to the God and they look down to others as if others are ungodly but who we are to determine everyone's fate in the end? We read many stories from Bible or from Quran. But what had we learned? Is it only history part like what is shown in National Geography and some discussion by "scholars" or "historians" or "archeologists"? About radiocarbon tests? Are these things making a human behaving like a human-being? Or is it morality teaching passed by the God through His prophets and messengers by revelation?

In other hadiths, Muhammad s.a.w mentioned: "Indeed the paradise is talking. "Says paradise: "I am illegal for those who are skinny, a boast, slanderer and spite."

Scholars of Islam had divided arrogance into two which are the peculiar boasting and mixed boasting. Perhaps everyone including myself, pastors, evangelists around the world could also take this with consideration and by heart even if we consider each other as infidels : )

Peculiar Boasting 

It refers to someone who intended to get worldly benefits from his or her practices.

Mixed Boasting

Refers to a person who does everything with the intention to get benefits of world and hereafter. How many God that we want to serve and asking for benefit? LOL

Scholars also explained that there is no specific measurement for merit being decreased because of boasting. On the other hand, certain thing is that meritorious deeds could be decreased or rejected because of boasting. The reward for those who have this characteristic is being cast down into the Sijjin as what had been mentioned by a hadith which means: 

"When angels bringing the record of servants to the heavens with happiness, but the God suddenly says: 'Cast those practices into the Sijjin. The person is not performing those practices because of Me but for others.'"

In other narrations, it has been explained that during the Resurrection, there will be a calling which every creatures could listen to it... It sounds: "Hey you who worship human-being! Stand up! Take back all of the merits from what you did because of them. I refuse to accept anything associated with others (those who did that are polytheists!)."

Imam al-Ghazali said in the Ihyaa' Ulumuddin explained that a boast who will be rewarded with the consequences are those who boast in the meaning of the most evil boast. The person who boast are hypocrites showing that he or she is a faithful person and claimed that they are the believer of only the God orally or verbally, but the fact is that they actually never believe in Him nor even fear His torments. This characteristic is classified as a kind of hypocrisy. The boast of hypocrites will be rewarded the same as those who are stingy. It means that the person is stingy in the testament toward the God and His prophets and messengers.

This characteristic also contains a light polytheism in which if we keep it and exhibits it before the God, it will be worse and leading to greater polytheism, associating the God with others. Imam al-Ghazali further mentions, those who are still clinging to this characteristic will be dumped with evil consequences and will be classified as ingrates (infidels). If it still happens, a person then has no right to receive peaceful paradise or even smell the paradise. Muhammad s.a.w advised the nations of the period of the end, not to mention our own goodness or our people or our family because it could lead us to boasting and showing off. When a person boasts, it will lead to other soul diseases such as feeling surprised of ourselves or proud of our self. Then we begin to look down to others and we have 'supremacy' thoughts.

So, every believers must also realize that every good deed being performed actually comes from the God as He is the Creator Who decides the journey of servants in the life. Although we are encouraged to perform charity, we are reminded to avoid from polluting it with boasting. A person who is grateful to the God are actually a person who strive for goodness and charity while those who boast to others always think that they are better than others. 

Scholars had suggested that only sincerity could kill boasting characteristic in one self. As what had been mentioned by the God recorded in the glorious Quran: "And they are commanded to worship (serve) the God and sincere for Him in religion which is straight and to perform prayers and (serving the poor with) tithe. And that is the precious law (religion)." (Surah al-Bayyinah verse 5) 

The God further says which means: "Indeed We revealed to you the scripture (Quran) with truth, thus worship the God and purify obedience only for Him! 2 Remember that, pure (of polytheism) is the religion (and law) of the God. Whoever takes other than that and says: 'We are not worshiping them but only hoping for them to make us closer to the God.' Despite, the God will decide among them on what they had problematized. Indeed the God never guides those who are lying and not grateful 3." (Surah al-Zumar)

I wish that this is not only a good lesson for myself but for others no matter of what religion we are. Because each time we always see people who claim themselves as zealots and we could see people chopping each others head, attacking here and there not only in the real world but also in the net. So, what kind of characteristics that lead people to this? Then ask ourselves are we really monotheists who believe solely in the God? This is the core of Islamic Creed... The Creed toward the God which leads us to morality and civilized human-being. 

Our Lord please be in contact with noble prophet Muhammad s.a.w and his family as You had been in contact with our patriarch Abraham a.s and his family. Dear Lord, please bless noble prophet Muhammad s.a.w and his family as You had blessed our patriarch Abraham a.s and his family. In the universe, only You dear the God who worth the Praise and Glory. Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace, and love, amin!

Cure for the Heart : First Section on Eyes

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Says the God in surah Ghaafir verse 19 : "He knows the betrayal of eyes and and whatever hidden in the chest (heart)." It means that the God knows that our eyes are trying to see or watch something illegal while nobody sees us. The God knows whatever we think and have in our heart either the vision to commit evil or do charities.

Said the noble prophet Muhammad s.a.w : "Indeed gazing at parts of women (and men) which could stimulate is like poisonous arrows from the arrows of Devil as it is greatly destructive. Those who leave it (the act) behind due to the fear to the God the Most Highest will be granted the feeling of enjoyment in acts of worship and devotion to Him." The hadith is narrated by al-Hakim reported from Hudzaifa r.a. The source of the hadith is valid.

Said the noble prophet Muhammad s.a.w : "For every sons of Adam some parts of adultery. Eyes are committing adultery, and adultery happens when a person looks at things which he or she should not see. Hands are committing adultery, and adultery of hands happens when they touched or slapping something which is illegal. Legs are committing adultery when they walk to illegal places. Mouth committing adultery when it holds something which is illegal and 'heart and soul' is the place where all of illegal things related to adultery happens." Hadith is narrated by Abu Hurairah r.a and it explains that beginning adultery of genital is from the eyes as the portal to the illegal act.

Use your eyes only for necessary things such as when you do your work, your studies, and protect your body parts from stains of the world. Do things which is longed by those body parts. If you're doing a big work, then the responsibility to protect the parts of body is also big. Hands are longing to pluck fruits of the paradise and holding the drinks in the paradise. The eyes are longing to see the God from the paradise and it is not the same as seeing new or created "things." The grace of seeing the God appearance is incomparable to other graces in the world or in the hereafter. So, it is the responsibility of the body to protect the eyes and fulfilling their ambition for they are longing to see the God. Protect eyes with noble things for them to see Noble appearance and do not pollute them with obscene and dirty matters.

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace, and love, amin!