TAHAJJUD SALAT - PUBLISHED BY THE ACADEMY FOR LEARNING ISLAM (A.L.I), CANADA

The Divinely honored human being-  ('And Indeed We have extremely honored (karramna) [1] the children of Adam ..[2])- has  an endless journey to traverse, for the ultimate destination is Allah. This reality is beautifully summed up in the following verse: "…And whosoever purifies his soul, purifies it for himself; and the ultimate destination [3] is Allah (wa ila Allah al-masir)" [4]. Both the Holy Qur’an as well as the traditions of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) have taught us about the fundamental importance of Tahajjud prayer, without which the spiritual journey, for which the human being was primarily created, is impossible. Revealing its intense effect on the soul, Almighty Allah says: "Indeed the phenomenon of the night is deeper in impression (ashaddu wat’an)…" [5].  In a well-known tradition of Imam Hasan al-‘Askari (peace be upon him), we are told: "Indeed attaining the proximity of Allah, the Invincible and Majestic, is a journey that cannot be covered save through traveling during the night" [6]. Hence, for every sincere believer who has realized the fundamental purpose of human life, and is aware of the very limited and unpredictable opportunity of this transient life, the prayer of Tahajjud is indispensable for the realization of the innate goal of the human being.

At a time when we are overwhelmed with the degenerate material culture of the West and many of us, oblivious of the opportunity of the night,  indulge in pleasing our imaginative faculties through time wasting TV shows and the like,  the sublime culture of seeking seclusion and intimacy with the Only Beloved seems to have been nearly forgotten. Only on specific occasions are we jolted and woken up from our slumber of negligence to benefit from the presence of the Beloved.

In the wake of this, a beautiful pocket size reminder has been published by the esteemed Academy for Learning Islam (ALI) in the year 2009 (1430 AH lunar) under the title “TAHAJJUD SALAT” for all those who believe that their original hometown is the proximity of Allah.  Despite its brevity, it teaches us how to prepare ourselves to be able to comprehend its time, how to establish the nightly intimate communication with Allah, and finally under the section “FAQs on the Late Night Prayers” clears the ambiguities that we may encounter with regard to this fundamentally important prayer. One of the questions answered in this section, for example, is about the permissibility of praying qada' of Tahajjud prayer. This reminds us of a very beautiful tradition in this regard. Imam al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) is once asked by his companion about praying the qada' of the night prayer before sunrise and after ‘Asr, and he responds saying: "Yes, perform the qada’, for indeed that is among the secrets of Progeny of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his progeny)." [7]

One of the very useful features of this pocket-size companion, is that it consists of the important supplications before, during and after the Tahajjud prayer, as well as the program of recitals (a‘mal) after the prayer. These have come from the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) and can have great effect in those who eagerly observe their recitation with attention and understanding. A place where such a companion can be of great use is during Hajj, when the call of Tahajjud Salat is heard an hour before Fajr prayer. This is the opportunity when the human being, having left his world, and come to the House of the Beloved, treasures every moment of intimacy and seclusion. But the advantage of this prayer, we must bear in mind, is not only for the Hereafter. It facilitates  prosperity both in this world and the Hereafter.

I am reminded here of ‘Allama al-Tabataba’i’s narration of a beautiful instruction of his mentor Ayatull¡h Sayyid ‘Ali Qadi al-Tabataba’i. The late ‘Allama narrates: “When I went to Najaf for Islamic studies, due to our close kin relationship, I would sometimes visit Ayatullah Sayyid ‘Ali Qadi al-Tabataba’i. One day I was standing in a Madrasah, and Ayatullah Sayyid ‘Ali Qadi happen to pass by. When he reached where I was, he put his hand on my shoulders and said: “Ay farzand, dunya mikhwahi Namaze Shab bekhun, akhirat mikhwahi namaze shab bekhwan.” (O my son, if you want the world, pray the night prayer, and if you want the Hereafter, pray the night prayer). [8] This statement of Ayatullah Qadi sums up the gist of the merits described in the very beginning of this pocket size reminder booklet.

May the Almighty enable us benefit from this beautiful companion, which should be a part of every prayer mat, and slowly get absorbed in the praying one, so that he greatly benefits from this source of spiritual perfection and luminosity.

Muhammad M. Khalfan
Holy Proximity of Hadrat Ma‘suma (peace be upon her)
Qum al-Muqaddasa
Dhu al-Hujja al-Haram

References

[1] Holy Qur’an, 17:70
[2] Unlike the verb akramna which signifies “We honored”, the verb karramna is employed which confers a hyperbolic connotation. In other words instead of “We have honored” it means “We have extremely honored”.
[3] The word masir has a subtlety worthy of consideration. It is from the infinitive al-sayrura (process of becoming). The human being hence has a journey of transformation (sayrura) until the Infinite (Allah). And perhaps since the distance between the finite (creation) and the infinite (Creator) is infinite, phrases like “ila Allah al-masir”, “wa ilayhi al-masir”, and “wa ilayya al-masir” are brought in the Holy Qur’¡n.
[4] Holy Qur’an, 35:18
[5] Holy Qur’an, 73:6
[6] ‘All¡ma al-Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, v.75,p 38; Note the word al-imtita’' employed by Imam Hasan al-`Askari (peace be upon him) signifies “rukub” (to mount). Hence the literal translation would be “rukub al-layll" or "al-rukub fi al-layl" (mounting during the night). We however have avoided the literal translation in order to confer its proper meaning.
[7] Al-‘amali, al-Wasa’il, v.4, p. 244
[8] http://www.aviny.com/Bozorgan/ghazi/Tosieha/Tosieha.aspx