“And those who spend the night before their Lord, prostrate and standing. And those who say: ‘Our Lord! Avert from us the torment of Hell. Verily! Its torment is ever an inseparable, permanent punishment.’” [Furqaan 25:64-65]
Standing in the night prayer is from the characteristics of the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] as A’aisha [May Allaah be Pleased with her] said, “Do not leave the night prayer! For verily, the Messenger of Allaah [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] never left it, even when he was sick he would pray sitting.” [Agreed Upon]
It is also narrated on the authority of Aboo Hurayrah [May Allaah be Pleased with him] who said that the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “Whoever stands in Ramadhaan with Faith and Hope, his previous and forthcoming sins will be forgiven.” [Agreed Upon]
“And enjoin As-Salat (the prayer) on your family, and be patient in offering them [i.e. the Salat (prayers)]. We ask not of you a provision (i.e. to give Us something: money, etc.); We provide for you. And the good end (i.e. Paradise) is for the Muttaqun (pious - see V.2:2).” [Taaha 20:132]
And Ibn ‘Umar [May Allaah be Pleased with him] used to recite the Aaayah:
“Is one who is obedient to Allah, prostrating himself or standing (in prayer) during the hours of the night, fearing the Hereafter and hoping for the Mercy of his Lord (like one who disbelieves)? Say: "Are those who know equal to those who know not?" It is only men of understanding who will remember (i.e. get a lesson from Allah's Signs and Verses).” [Zumar 39:9]
Shaykh Abdul-Azeez aal ash-Shaykh, current Grand Muftee of Saudi Arabia [May Allaah Preserve him] said:
Look at this great opportunity, my Muslim brother, by standing in front of your Lord. The result of standing the night in prayer is that if you ask, you will be given and made steadfast upon the truth and true guidance, therefore, you will end your life upon a great deal of goodness.
Oh Muslim! Standing the night in prayer brings about many benefits, as the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “You should stand the night in prayer, it was from the habit of the pious people that came before you, it expiates your sins, it brings you close to your Lord, it takes away defects from your body and it prevents you from sinning.”
Therefore, standing the night in prayer has benefits; it means you are following the path of the pious, it means your sins will be removed from you, it means you will become close to Allaah, it removes diseases and harm from your body and it makes us from those who are obedient, as praying in the night helps us stay away from sins.
Some of the Salaf would be astonished by the beauty on the faces of people and when they were asked on the reasons for the face of the person shining, they would reply by saying, “Standing during the night makes your face beautiful in the day.”
Meaning, standing the night in prayer has great benefits and effects, its helps program one to be good deeds, bring about light and Taqwaa.
It was said to Ibn Mas’ood [May Allaah be Pleased with him], “I am not able stand during the night.” To which he replied, “Your sins have made it heavy for you, if you are truthful and really want to stand, then Allaah will help you. Have you not heard the statement of Allaah, ;
‘And if they had intended to march out, certainly, they would have made some preparation for it, but Allah was averse to their being sent forth, so He made them lag behind, and it was said (to them), "Sit you among those who sit (at home)."’ !?”
So standing the night in prayer is from the greatest of favours that Allaah can bestow upon you. The person who stands during this time becomes accustomed to its taste, he rejoices and it reaffirms his heard and opens it to the truth. The person who stands in prayer, recites the Quraan and ponders on it. He Glorifies Allaah, He Praises Allaah and He resorts to Him in all his affairs. So what favour of Allaah is greater than this? We will truly never comprehend the greatness of this favour and its effects on us, as some of the Salaf used to say, “Verily, the people of the night, during their night prayers, are in a state of bliss, just like when people who enjoy being entertained feel when they are being entertained.”
[Taken from the Khutbah; ‘The Night Prayer’]
Shaykh Saaleh al-Fawzaan [May Allaah Preserve him] said;
There is no doubt that leaving praying during the night is a great loss, it’s a loss for the pages and scrolls of the Muslim. The Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “The best prayer is the night prayer after the obligatory ones.”
Standing at night in prayer has great virtues, so it is incumbent that we are not negligent in it, or be lazy in relation to it, because you the Muslim has a need for it. So the Muslim must
Turn back to it and program himself to pray during the night, so that when the night comes he finds himself busy. This is because the soul follows whatever it is trained to do. If one leaves praying the night prayer and becomes lazy, it will only increase him in laziness. However, if he programs himself to pray then it will eventually become easy for him, with the help of Allaah, the Exalted and Glorfied.
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