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Saturday 2 March 2024

Which is the time when Allah promises responding to invocations of believers

It is obligatory on every adult and sane man and woman to offer prayers As Salat five times a day. And Allah responds to their invocations in His own way. But there is one prayer which is not obligatory, yet it carries far more dividends and blessings for the believers. This is the voluntary prayer of Tahajjad, when a believer breaks his sleep in the night and stand in front of his Creator when everyone else is asleep. This is the prayer that Allah loves the most for a His servant has sacrificed his sleep for the love of his Creator. And this is the time when any invocation made by a believer is personally listened to by Allah and Allah promises to respond to the invocations of His servants. 

In one of his Hadiths, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ has mentioned the descending of Allah to the nearest Heaven from earth and is pleased with His servants praying and supplicating. This Hadith is mentioned in Sahi al-Bukhārī  (Book 19 -   Prayer at Night (Tahajjud) /  كتاب التهجد / Chapter 14: Offering Salat (prayer) and invoking Allah in the last hours of the night / باب الدُّعَاءِ وَالصَّلاَةِ مِنْ آخِرِ اللَّيْلِ) as Hadith 1145, given herein under:

Narrated by Abu Huraira
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) (p.b.u.h) said, "Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains, saying: "Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?"

Arabic Text:
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مَسْلَمَةَ، عَنْ مَالِكٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ أَبِي سَلَمَةَ، وَأَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الأَغَرِّ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ "‏ يَنْزِلُ رَبُّنَا تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى كُلَّ لَيْلَةٍ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا حِينَ يَبْقَى ثُلُثُ اللَّيْلِ الآخِرُ يَقُولُ مَنْ يَدْعُونِي فَأَسْتَجِيبَ لَهُ مَنْ يَسْأَلُنِي فَأُعْطِيَهُ مَنْ يَسْتَغْفِرُنِي فَأَغْفِرَ لَهُ ‏"‏‏.‏

Though it is very difficult for men to get up in the last quarter of night for one is already tired of working the whole previous day and resting to get up the next day for the repetition of his daily chores. And if one breaks one's sleep and stand in front of his Rabb voluntary for there is no Adhan for Tahajjad prayer and opens his heart out to Him, hoping his invocations will be heard to. And believe me these are heard and responded.  

This is the time when there is no barrier between the man and his Creator - a time when in the quietness of last quarter of night, a man opens his heart out to his Creator as if he is in direct communication with his Lord. The immense joy of such a time and invocation can be described, but felt. Try it out and once a believer makes it a habit to pray the Tahajjad prayer, there is no stopping then. Try it tonight!
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى‎) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door. 
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ‏ 
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.

May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.

Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.

Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.

You may refer to our reference page: As Salat / Prayer for more related Hadiths attributed to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ 

You may refer to our reference page:  Supplications attributed to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ for more supplications attributed to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ 

Please also refer to our reference page: Sunnah and Hadith of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to know more about sunnah / Hadith of Prophet of Allah. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.

Disclaimer: The material for this post has been collected from the references as given below. If anyone differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors.  If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.

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