6.5.15. Suitable Timings
It is appropriate that a suppliant should pay special attention about the
timings of his prayer. Following are some of the most suitable timings
for supplications:
A. Friday Day and Night
It has been narrated from Imam al-Baqir (A.S.)
1 :
____________
1— Imam al-Baqir (A.S.): (57/675-114/372), the son of the fourth imam, he was
present at Karbala at a young age. Because of changing political and
religious conditions, among them the general revulsion following the events at
Karbala, many people came to Medina to learn the religious and spiritual sciences from
him. He trained numerous well known men of religion, and mainly for this reason is
the first Imam after Imam `Ali(A.S.) from whom large numbers of traditions are recorded.
He is buried in the Baqi Cemetery in Madina [Tr].
( 96 )
Every Thursday night till the end of Friday, Allah calls his
believing servants from the Upper Heavens,inviting them towards
Himself and announces: 'is there any believing servant who before the
day break ask forgiveness for his sins and I forgive him, is there any
one who seek any thing from me and I grant his requirements, is there a
believing servant, who cry for Me, and I respond? '
Also, it has been narrated:
Allah delays the grant of a supplicant's
prayer and fulfilment of his needs untill Friday.
Also, it has been narrated from the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.):
The day of Friday is the most superior and exalted among all
the days in the sight of Allah, even is
superior than the Days of Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Qurban. He continued
and said: there is a special particular
hour in Friday, that at that time there is no one who desires any
thing permissible and proper, but Allah grants his requirements.
The Holy Prophet (SAW.) continued:
during Friday there are two hours
which possess special merits; firstly, the hour when the
'MUM of Friday congregational-prayer finishes his sermon untill the
lines of congregational-prayer get
readied for the prayer, and the other hour is the end of the day.
B. The noon
(dhor) and afternoon
(asr) of Wednesday, especially, for prayer and cursing of infidels.
C. During night
(isha), it has been narrated that
such opportunity and preference were not given to the past nations.
D. The first hour of the first half of the
Night, it has been narrated from Imam al-Sadiq(A.S.):
( 97 )
There is a particular hour during, the night, in which if a
believer would offer the prayer, it is
impossible but it would be accepted (by Allah). He was asked: 'which
hour is it? The first hour of the first half of the night.' Replied the Imam.
Also, it has been narrated from the
Commander of the Faithful Imam 'Ali (A.S.) that:
It was at this hour that Prophet David (A.S.) went out to fight
against Goliath. Also he said: whoever prays during this hour, his
prayer is granted but ....
E. End portion of night till the dawn or
the last one third of the night. It
has been narrated from the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.):
Whenever the end portion of night
arrives Allah looking at his servants says: 'is there any suppliant
so that I could grant his prayer? Is there any needy so that may
I fulfil his needs? Is there any repentant so that
I there could accept his repentance? Is there any one offering
Apology so that I could accept it?
In another tradition it has been narrated: that Allah (the glorious,
the exalted) says:
Oh righteous ones strive and oh sinners and transgressors
stop doing it.
Also it has been narrated:
Whoever sleeps that portion of the night
till the dawn, Satan urinates in his ears.
( 98 )
6.5.15.1. Response of Sayyid ibne-Taoos to Divine Proclamation
The most celebrated learned scholar and jurisprudent Sayyid ibne
Taoos (R.A.) who in the words of my own teacher — holds the highest rank
in the community after the Sinless Imam (A.S.) and no one else could
be compared to him — has responded to this devine invitation with most
elegant and sublime themes and sentances. And it would be most desirable
if the wayfarer towards the spiritual journey, during this hour of the
night, should recite those sentances and content from the book
Eddateh al-Dai, in response to that divine proclamation.
6.5.15.2. Another Important Point From Sayyid ibne Taoos
It must be mentioned that this pious tradition of responding to divine
proclamation, for the first time was established by ibne Taoos,
similarly he was the pioneer of celebrating the first day of his
becoming obliged for religious duties as the
Day-of-Feast (Jashn-e-Takfin) for thanking Allah (the glorious, the
exalted), because of bestowing upon him this distinction (i.e. to
perform religious obligations). And it was not heard that before him any one
has done so, therefore, in truth both of the above-mentioned initiatives are
indicative of his sagacity, great spirit, and lively mind.
F. At the breaking of dawn, the duration
between the real and false day
break, in my opinion this is the best time especially for prayer of
sustenance.
G. From dawn till sun rise .
( 99 )
H. The Night-of-Power
(Qadr), especially the night of
twenty-third of the Holy Month of Ramadhan.
I. The Nights of Awakening
(Shab-e-Ahya), i.e. the first
night of the Holy Month of
Rajab,
the night of 15
th of the Holy Month of
Sh'aban, the
night of
Eid-ul-Fitr, and the night of Eid-ul-Dhoa.
J. The Days of
Ead-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Dho'a, and the Day-of-Arafa.
1
K. After finishing the daily mandatory prayers, the Commander of the Faithful Imam
`Ali-(A.S.) has quoted from the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.):
Whoever, after offering daily mandatory prayers
supplicates — his supplictions are granted.
Ibne Faham says:
I saw the Commander of the Faithful Imam 'All (A.S.) in my
dream and asked him about this tradition, he replied that it is
correct, and said after the mandatory prayer put your head in
prostration and recite:
Oh Allah! By the one who has reported this
tradition, by the one who has quoted this tradition from its narrator,
send salutations upon all of them and grant my such and such needs.
It has been reported from Imam al-Sadiq (A.S.):
____________
1— Day-of 'Araf'a: the ninth day of the Month of Dhu'l-hijja, when all the pilgrims
participating in the Hajj must be present at the plain of `Arafa outside
Mecca. For the text of the prayer that Imam Hussien (A.S.) recited on this day, see Sheik
'Abbas Qummi; Mafatih pp.350-369, and for a translation of it, see William
C. Chittick, A Shi'ite Anthology (Albany, N.Y., 1980), pp.93-113 [Tr].
( 100 )
Allah has made daily prayers mandatory upon you at times most liked by Him. You too
should beseech Him for fulfilment of your needs at those times.
There are traditions regarding beseeching Allah (the glorious,
the exalted), after performance of recommended
(nafileh)
prayers and other recommended deeds.
L. During blowing wind, rain fall, at the days end, when shadow
disappears, and when the first drop of the blood of a martyr is spilled; during
all of the above incidents the gates of the Heavens are opened and
the background for the grant of prayer is materialized.
6.5.16. Suitable Place
Selection of suitable place like the
Ras al-Hussein
(the place where the Head of
Imam al-Hussein (A.S.) lis
buried), or any other sacred place,
is another etiquette and manner of supplication, which has been mentioned
in some of the traditions; supplication at such places undoubtedly possesses more
distinction and is more nearer to be granted.
____________
1— Imam al-Hussein(AS.):
The younger son of the Commander of the Faithful Imam 'Ali
(AS.) by Fatimeh al-Zahra (S.A.) — the daughter of the Holy Prophet
(SAW.) —
was born in Medina on Thursday 3rd Sha'ban 4.A.H; like his brother
he lived most of his life quietly in Medina under the watchful eyes of the
Caliph's
officials and spies. When Mu'awiyah's son Yazid became Caliph, he demanded
allegiance from Imam al-Hussein (AS.), who refused to give it. Finally Imam
al-Hussein (AS.) felt it necessary to go into battle against Yazid to protest
against the
injustices which were being carried out in the name of Islam. He and a small
group of followers including most of his immediate family were cruelly massacred
at Karbala.
The day of his martyrdom is 10th. Mohan-am 61, A.H. Ashura
has become
the most
solemn day of the Islamic calendar, marked by processions and universal
mourning . He is buried in
Karbala in Iraq [Tr].
( 101 )
6.5.17. Important Thing About the Prayer
It will be sufficient to limit the
description about the etiquettes and codes of supplication to
whatever already have been explained above, with
the reminder that what constitute the
most important thing in supplication
are its esoteric codes and etiquettes.
Therefore, it is up to the suppliant that he should mobilize his best
endeavors for their utilization, keeping in
mind that all the profit and loss, good
and evil lie in Allah's hand. He
should never forget that all his good and welfare rest only in Allah's
guardianship, nearness, and
pleasure. Therefore from these
considerations in his supplications, he should not think any thing, or ask
Allah any thing, other than these,
or whatever contains their background;
that a true believer even likes Allah's
bounties only from this
consideration that he considers them from Him, rather in bounties too
does
1 not see any thing
except their relationship with Allah (the glorious, the exalted). It
is because of this reason that all his existence, self, actions,
____________
1— The famous Iranian poet Sheik Sa'dt*
has composed the following famous Persian verses:
(be jahan khurram az anam ke jahan khurram az ost,
asheqam bar hame slam ke hame Warn az ost).
" I am happy with this world, because, this happiness of world is from Him,
I am the lover of this whole world, because, this whole world is from Him. "
* Sheik Sa'dt.
Mushraf-ud-din Masleh bin Abdullah famous as Sheik Sa'dt was a great
learned scholar and poet of Iran in the Seventh Century. He was born in a
religious
family in Shiraz, South-western Iran in 606 A.H. He received his earlier
education in
Shiraz and then went to Baghdad for higher education. He travelled a lot and
visited
Syria, Hijaz, and North Africa, and used to mix socially with the people in
those
journeys. His famous works are Gulistan and Bostan. Sa'dts tomb is located
in Shiraz which
attracts large number of tourists through out the year [Tr].
( 102 )
and spirit became indifferent from world and worldliness and is
continuously engaged in praise, adortion, and supplications.
Of
course, being so is not easy and such state is not achieved without
going through harsh rigorous asceticism, and only a small number of
favorite gnostics have been able to
attained such grace; but others even
the good ones and the companions of
right-hand
(Ashub-ul-yamin) look,
towards the means becoming negligent about the Source of all those
means
(Musabeb al-Asbab).
And in their prayers instead of asking only
Him, His-nearness, and His-pleasure, present other requests and other
wants. Therefore, it is for us that if we are not in the category of those
special favorite gnostics — who don't ask Him any thing except Him, and
do not ask any thing from the beloved except the beloved himself
1,
at least,
together with wordly requests, we must beseech Him for bestowing upon
us His pleasure and nearness.
And if we are not lucky to have access to such grace at least we must
ask him for forgiveness and Paradise together with our worldly deeds. May
we be among those whose prayer is:
"
Our Lord!
Give unto us in the world that which is good and
in the Hereafter which is good. "
—the Holy Qur'an (2:201).
And if we can not ask this continuously in all the prayers, at least we
must ask this in some of the prayers.
____________
1— (goyand tamanai az dost bektin Sa'dt
ft
az dost nakhuam kard juz dost tamannai).
They suggest me, ask something from my beloved,
I would never ask any thing from my beloved but beloved
himself "
( 103 )
Apart from this, what is most important in prayer is — humility,
earthliness, humbleness, and shedding tears, and it is up to the suppliant
that in addition to the heart-brokenness and heart's humility, should not
forget the exoteric manifestations of prayer such as: sitting upon dirt,
putting dirt upon the face, putting head upon the dirt, opening the head
and hairs, putting hands around the neck (like the captives), pleading with
tongue in a sweet pleasing manner, begging, and utilizing the most
appropriate phrases and sentences relevant to your own needs and His
splendor and Majesty.
( 105 )
7. Some Other Deeds of the Holy Month of Ramadhan
After heart's cleansing and purification with a true repentance
which are the most desirable and essential deeds of this month;
purifcation and cleansing of eatables, clothings, housing,
automobile ...etc. and payment of khums
l is most desirable and
compulsory, because, it has been mentioned in the traditions that Allah
(the glorious, the exalted), has established
(khums) for the purification of
man's wealth. Therefore, from these consideration it is up to the watchful
wayfarer to pay his
Khums dues
at the beginning of the month so that his food, clothings and other acts
become lawful
(halal).
In
traditions, the point which has been emphasized a lot is — that the Holy
month of Ramadhan is the beginning of the new year, and if it was
passed well and good, the entire year will pass well and good. From
____________
1— Khums: according to Shi'i
school of thought, Khans is to be levied in an equitable
manner on all agricultural and commercial profits and all natural resources
whether above or below the ground — in short, on all Proms of wealth and
income. It applies equally to the green grocer with his stall outside the
mosque and to the shipping or mining magnate. They must all pay one-fifth of
their surplus income, after customary expenses are deducted to the Islamic
ruler so that it enters the treasury [Tr].
( 106 )
this consideration, those prudent wayfarers who believe that a human being's
deeds and actions influence his characterstics and affairs; and
further, this influence is more
effective especially during the Holy Month of Ramadhan because it is
the beginning of the year, and all the future happenings of good and evil
during the coming year are predestined in this
Holy Month. Therefore, one should make
himself readied for performance
of special deeds of this month, especially for the deeds of its
first day and should not neglect the
recital of most famous and exalted
prayer consisting of most sublime themes
in the tradition quoted from Imam al-Sadiq (A.S.) in the book of
Iqbal.
