The Night of Empowerment: (Laylat Al-Qadr)

بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّح۪يمِ
إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ فِي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ ﴿١﴾ وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ ﴿٢﴾ لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ ﴿٣﴾ تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ ﴿٤ سَلَامٌ هِيَ حَتَّى مَطْلَعِ الْفَجْرِ ﴿٥﴾

Praise be to our Lord who has granted us to see the most virtuous of nights, Laylat al-Qadr. Have a blessed one.

In the verse I have recited, our Lord describes this night to us as follows: “Indeed, we sent the Qur'an down during the Night of Decree. And what can make you know what is the Night of Decree? And what can make you know what is the Night of Decree? The angels and the Spirit descend therein by permission of their Lord for every matter. Peace it is until the emergence of dawn.” [Al-Qadr, 97/1-5.]

In the hadith I have recited, our Prophet (s.a.w.) says: “Whoever establishes the prayers on the night of Qadr out of sincere faith and hoping to attain Allah's rewards (not to show off) then all his past sins will be forgiven.” [Bukhari, Fadlu Leyleti’l-Kadr, 3.]

A short while ago, we all experienced the peace and joy of reaching Ramadan, the month of grace. We welcomed this blessed month exclaiming, “Welcome, O Ramadan!” Now, it is time to say goodbye. The sultan of eleven months that joined us at our tables with its abundance and grace is bidding farewell to us. We are sad to see this holy guest leave.

On the other hand, we are peaceful and joyful to have the blessed Laylat al-Qadr, the heart of Ramadan. Having dedicated a specific duration to this night in the Holy Quran, Lord Almighty Himself described its value in the most beautiful way. Three messages emerge out of the surah which describes Laylat al-Qadr that comes to us like a donation, like a gift from our Lord every year to enhance our power.

First; what makes Laylat al-Qadr so valuable is the fact that it witnessed the first revelation of the Great Quran, “the book of our reason of existence.” What makes Laylat al-Qadr more special is the fact that the graceful, universal messages of the Holy Quran began to be sent down on this very night. And for that reason, we should look for the value, the power, the grandeur, the might, and the holiness of Laylat al-Qadr in our Holy Book that saves humanity from darkness. And we must let the Quran into heavens of our hearts which descended into the heavens of the Earth on this night.

Second message; Laylat al-Qadr offers an opportunity to believers for a lifetime. Our Lord gave this excellent night to believers as a gate of grace, a spring of hope. Our duty on this night is to look back and reflect on the days we consumed from our life. Our duty is to repent from our faults and sins and strive to lead a life that pleasures our Lord.

Third message of Surat al-Qadr; Allah’s angels descended on Earth on Laylat al-Qadr to bring peace and well-being. This marvelous incident is repeated every year as a great blessing and a treat from Allah Almighty to us believers. Then, we must lend an ear to the messages of peace and well-being in the Quran to properly observe Laylat al-Qadr. We must make an effort to make these messages prevail in the world.

I would like to remind you once again that in order to properly observe this blessed night, one should appreciate the value of our Holy Quran, give meaning to their life with it, and look at people and the universe through it. To rejuvenate Laylat al-Qadr, one should appreciate the value of their heart and soul which our Lord directly addresses and beholds. One should mend and please hearts, and avoid hurting them for trivial reasons.

Only by doing that can we obtain spiritual developments on Laylat al-Qadr that can last a lifetime. Only by placing value on Quran’s messages of peace and well-being can we comprehend the fact that Allah’s angels descended upon the Earth to bring peace and well-being. Only by leading our lives with the motto “Consider every guest Khidr, and every night Qadr!” can we make proper use of Laylat al-Qadr. Only then can the night of honor, dignity, and reputation earn us honor, dignity, and reputation.

We are in an exceptional period where we are experiencing the spiritual atmosphere of Laylat al-Qadr and also the joy of Eid is upon us. In such a period, groups of terror and murder once again hurt all of us and the entire humankind in Istanbul in the person of tens of innocent people.

I wish Allah’s mercy upon our brothers and sisters who lost their lives in this vicious attack, and a quick recovery to the injured.

May our Great Lord guard our nation against all sorts of disasters, troubles, and these heinous attacks. May our Lord never give the opportunity to those who attack our nation’s solidarity, togetherness, and fellowship.

Call of Time

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