In the Name of Allah, the Most
Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Indeed all praise is due to Allah,
we praise Him and seek His help and forgiveness, we seek refuge with Allah from
our soul’s evil and our wrong doings, he whom Allah guides, no one can misguide,
and he whom He misguides, no one can guide.
May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon Muhammad the Messenger of Allah
and his family and Companions and all who follow them in righteousness until
the Day of Judgment.
Assalamu’alaikum
The month of Rajab- its significance
The Month of Rajab is the seventh month in the
Islamic lunar calendar. This month was regarded as one of the sacred months
(Al-Ash-hur-Al-hurum) in which battles were prohibited in the days of the Holy
Prophet SAW. It is also deemed to be a prelude to the month of Ramadan, because
the month of Ramadan follows it after the intervening month of Sha’ban.
Therefore, when the Holy Prophet SAW sighted the moon of Rajab, he used to
supplicate to Allah in the following words:
“O Allah, make the months of Rajab and Sha’ban blessed for us, and let us reach
the month of Ramadan (i.e. prolong our life up to Ramadan, so that we may
benefit from its merits and blessings).”
Although the month of Rajab has
the aforesaid merits, yet no specific way of worship has been prescribed by the
Shari’ah in this month. People have invented some special rituals or practices
in this month which are not supported by reliable resources of the Shari’ah or
are based on some unauthentic traditions. Here we briefly discuss the night of
ascension.
Celebration
of Lailatul Meraj
It is generally believed that
the great event of Meraj (ascension of the Holy Prophet SAW to the heavens)
took place on the night of 27th Rajab. Therefore, some people celebrate the
night as “Lailatul Meraj”.
Indeed, the event of Meraj was
one of the most remarkable episodes in the life of our beloved Prophet SAW. He
was called by Almighty Allah. He travelled from Makkah to Baitul Maqdis and
from there he ascended the heavens through the miraculous power of Allah. He
was honored with a direct contact with his Creator at a place where even the
angels had no access. This was the unique honour conferred by Allah to the Holy
Prophet SAW alone. It was the climax of the spiritual progress which is not
attained by anybody except him.
No doubt the night in which he
was blessed with this unparalleled honour was one of the great nights in the
history of this world. But, as we have explained in our discussion about the
month of Rabi’ul-Awwal, Islam has its own principles with regard to the
historic and religious events. Its approach about observing festivals and
celebrating days and nights is totally different from the approach of other
religions. The Holy Quranand the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet SAWdid not
prescribe any festival or any celebration to commemorate an event from the
past, however remarkable it might have been. Instead, Islam has prescribed two
annual celebrations only. One is Eid-ul-Fitr and the other is Eid-ul-Adha. Both
of these festivals have been fixed at a date on which the Muslims accomplish a
great ibâdah (worship) every year. Eid-ul-Fitr has been prescribed after the
fasts of Ramadan, while Eid-ul-Adha has been fixed when the Muslims perform the
Hajj annually. None of these two Eids is designed to commemorate a particular
event of the past, which has happened in these dates.
This approach is indicative of
the fact that the real occasion for a happy celebration is the day in which the
celebrators themselves have accomplished remarkable work through their own
active effort. As for the accomplishments of our ancestors, their commemoration
should not be restricted to a particular day or night. Instead, their
accomplishments must be remembered every day in our practical life by observing
their teachings and following the great examples they have set for us.
Keeping this principle in view,
the following points should be remembered with regard to the “Lailatul-Meraj”:
1.
We cannot say with absolute certainty in which
night the great event of Meraj had taken place. Although some traditions relate
this event to the 27th night of the month of Rajab, yet there are other
traditions which suggest some other dates. Al-Zurqani, the famous biographer of
the Holy Prophet SAW has referred to five different views in this respect:
Rabi’ul Awwal, Rabi’ul Akhir, Rajab, Ramadan and Shawwal. Later, while
discussing different traditions, he has added a sixth opinion, that the Meraj
took place in the month of Zul-Hijjah.
Allamah Abdul Haq Muhaddith
Dehlawi, the well-known scholar of Hadith, has written a detailed book on the
merits of Islamic months. While discussing ‘Lailatul Meraj’, he has mentioned
that most of the scholars are of the view that the event of Meraj took place in
the month of Ramadan or in Rabi’ul Awwal.
2.
It
is also not certainly known in which year the event of Meraj took place. There
are a number of views mentioned in the books of history, which suggest a wide
range between the fifth year and the twelfth year after the Prophet SAW was
entrusted with prophethood.
Now, if it is assumed that the
event of Meraj took place in the fifth year of his prophethood, it will mean
that the Holy Prophet SAW remained in this world for eighteen years after this
event. Even if it is presumed that the Meraj took place in the twelfth year of
his prophethood, his remaining lifetime after this event would be eleven years.
Throughout this long period, which may range between eleven and eighteen years,
the Holy Prophet SAW never celebrated the event of Meraj, nor did he give any
instructions about it. No one can prove that the Holy Prophet SAW ever
performed some specific modes of worship in a night, calling it the ‘Lailatul Meraj’
or advised his followers to commemorate the event in a particular manner.
3.
After the demise of the Holy Prophet SAW also,
not one of his companions is reported to celebrate this night as a night of
special acts of worship. They were the true lovers of the Holy Prophet SAW and
had devoted their lives to preserve every minute detail of the Sunnah of the
Holy Prophet SAW and other Islamic teachings. Still, they did not celebrate the
event of Meraj in a particular night in a particular way.
All these points go a long way
to prove that the celebration of the 27th night of Rajab, being the Lailatul Meraj
has no basis in the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet SAW or in the practice of his
noble companions. Had it been a commendable practice to celebrate this night,
the exact date of this event would have been preserved accurately by the Ummah
and the Holy Prophet SAW and his blessed companions would have given specific
directions for it.
Therefore, it is not a Sunnah
to celebrate the ‘Lailatul Meraj’. We cannot take any practice as a Sunnah by
our own emotions, unless it is established through authentic sources that the
Holy Prophet SAWor his noble companions have recognized it as such, otherwise
it may become a bid’ah about which the Holy Prophet SAWhas observed in the
following words:
“Whoever invents something in our religion
which is not part of it, it is to be rejected.”
Being mindful of this serious
warning, we should appreciate that the 27th night of the month of Rajab is not
like ‘Lailatul Qadr’ or ‘Lailatul Bara’ah’ for which special merits have been
mentioned expressly either by the Holy Quranor by the Holy Prophet Sallallahu
alaihi wa sallam.
However, all the recognized
modes of ibadah [worship] like salah, recitation of the Holy Qur’an, dhikr,
etc. are commendable at any time, especially in the late hours of the night,
and obviously the 27th night of Rajab is not an exception. Therefore, if
someone performs any recognized ibadah in this night from this point of view,
nothing can stop him from doing so, and he will be entitled to the thawab
(reward) allocated for that recognized act of worship, Insha Allah). But it is
not permissible to believe that performing ibadah in this night is more meritorious
or carries more thawab like ‘Lailatul Qadr’ or ‘Lailatul Bara’ah’, because this
belief is not based on any authentic verse or sunnah of the Holy Prophet SAW.
Similarly, it is not a correct practice to celebrate this night on a collective
scale and to invite people to special ritual congregations.
4.
Some
people suggest some special modes of worship to be performed in this night.
Since the Shari’ah prescribes no special mode of worship in this night, these
suggestions are devoid of any authority and should not be acted upon.
It is believed by some that the
Muslims should keep fast on the 27th Rajab. Although there are some traditions
attributing special merits to the fast of this day, yet the scholars of Hadith
have held these traditions as very weak and unauthentic reports which cannot be
sufficient to establish a rule of Shari’ah. On the contrary, there is an authentic
report that Sayyidina Umar RA used to forbid people from fasting on this day.
He would compel them to eat if they had started fasting.
It should be borne in mind here
that a ‘nafil’ fast can be observed on any day (except the six prohibited days
of the year). Therefore, fasting on the 27th Rajab is not prohibited in itself.
What is prohibited is the belief that fasting on this day is more meritorious
than fasting in other normal days. One should not fast on this day with this
belief. But if someone fasts therein, believing it to be a normal nafil fast,
there is no harm in doing so.
Source:
Madrasah Arabia Islamia Azadville
Kindly note that any
mistake in the contents of this article is due to my imperfection as a human
being as only Allah Subhanahu Wa-Ta'ala is perfect in all affairs.
May Allah Forgive us our sins, guide us right
from the evil of insincere intention, save us from misguided knowledge and
grant the entire ummah benefit from this work AMIN.
Kindly feel free to make comments,
contributions or corrections where necessary.
May Allah Bless us all, AMIN
