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From the Prophet's Guidance in the Last Ten Days of Ramadan
Author : Dr. Mohammad Al-Zou`bi
Date Added : 06-08-2025

 

From the Prophet's Guidance in the Last Ten Days of Ramadan

 

Allah the Almighty has honored us with a great month in which souls are purified and hearts ascend. We draw closer to Allah the Almighty through many types of acts of obedience and worship to attain the highest ranks and win Paradise.

In the last ten days, blessings are abundant, gifts are magnified, good deeds are multiplied, graces descend, and mistakes are forgiven. How much we need, in light of these ten days and before their departure, to perfect our devotion to Allah the Almighty, to make up for days of negligence, and to compensate for what we have missed. May Allah have mercy on the one who said:

O heedless one, while the nights of fasting have passed, Your sins have increased; stand at the door and weep for them. Repent, so you might attain acceptance; perhaps The soul, with piety, may reach its hopes.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to distinguish the last ten days of Ramadan with specific actions, including:

1. Standing in Night Prayer

When the last ten days would begin, the Prophet (peace be upon him) would stay up all night, awaken his family, and tighten his garment (agreed upon). This is because the night prayer is the custom of the righteous, the trade of the believers, and the action of the winners.

The weepers for the Most Merciful cried at night, And spent their nights prostrating, never tiring. The earth's patches, longing for them, Long to have them prostrate upon them again.

One of the pious predecessors had a servant who used to pray at night. His master said to him: "Your standing at night affects your work during the day, so get some sleep." The servant replied: "What can I do, my master?! When I remember Paradise, my longing for it grows long, and when I remember the Hellfire, my fear of it grows long. How can I sleep while I am between a fear that disturbs me and a longing that worries me?"

Moreover, Al-Fudayl ibn Iyad took the hand of Al-Hasan ibn Ziyad and said to him: "O Hasan, Allah descends to the lowest heaven and says: 'He who claims to love Me has lied, if he sleeps away from Me when the night falls.'"

2. Seeking Laylat al-Qadr (the Night of Decree)

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Search for Laylat al-Qadr in the last ten nights of Ramadan" (agreed upon). It is a blessed night, the crown of all nights, full of blessings and precious hours. A little work on this night is like a lot, confirming the words of Allah the Almighty {which mean}: "The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months} [Al-Qadr/3]. Great numbers of angels and the Spirit (Jibril) descend from the heavens to witness this night: "The angels and the Spirit descend therein by permission of their Lord for every matter." [Al-Qadr/4]. He who stands in worship during it has his sins forgiven if he purifies his intention for Allah the Almighty. The Chosen One (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever stands for Laylat al-Qadr with faith and hope for reward, his past sins will be forgiven" (agreed upon). On this night, gates of paradise are opened, and supplications are heard. Aisha, the Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her), said: "I said: 'O Messenger of Allah, if I know which night is Laylat al-Qadr, what should I say?' He said: 'Say: O Allah, You are a Pardoner who loves to pardon, so pardon me'" (Narrated by Ahmad).

So, be keen, O servant of Allah, that this night is in the balance of your good deeds:

O suitor of the Hoor in her chamber, And seeker of that which is according to her value, Arise with diligence; do not be lazy, And strive against the self in its patience. Stand when the night's face appears, And fast during the day; for that is part of her dowry.

3. I'tikaf (Spiritual Retreat)

This is the act of staying in the mosque for worship, emptying the heart for contemplation, reflection, and devotion to Allah the Almighty. Be sure to spend these moments in obedience to Allah, in His remembrance, and in the recitation of His verses, just as the predecessors of this Ummah used to do:

So resemble them if you cannot be like them, For resembling the noble is a path to success.

The prize is in these noble days; there is no substitute for them and no price. Whoever is granted freedom from the Hellfire in these days has won the great reward and the immense gift. O you whose Master has freed you from the Fire, beware of returning to the bondage of sins after you have become free. And say, O servant of Allah:

O eye, be generous with tears of sorrow, For the parting of nights of light. For nights of the month of fasting were not made, Except to purify sins and burdens. How wonderful we were when we were all together, Some of us praying, some devout, and some reciting. So weep for what has passed in the month, and seize What remains, my brothers, of the blessing of your lives.

It is narrated that Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) used to call out on the last night of Ramadan: "O, I wish I knew who is accepted so I may congratulate him, and who is deprived so I may console him?!"

We ask Allah the Magnificent, the Lord of the Noble Throne, to free our necks and the necks of our fathers, mothers, and children from the Fire, and not to deprive us of the reward of Laylat al-Qadr. Indeed, He is near, All-Hearing, and the Answerer of prayers.

The published article reflects the opinion of its author

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the correct point at which to raise the hands when standing up for the third rak‘ah (after the middle tashahhud)?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Raising the hands while saying the takbīr [when rising for the third rak‘ah] is a recommended sunnah, and omitting it does not affect the validity of the prayer. The proper time for this is after rising from the middle tashahhud, once one has fully stood up.
It is stated in I‘ānat aṭ-Ṭālibīn (Vol.1/P.158): "His statement, 'and rising from the first tashahhud' — meaning, this manner [of raising the hands] is also a sunnah when he rises from the first tashahhud, that is, when he stands upright from it.
Consider [the question]: when precisely does the raising of the hands begin? Is it at the very start of rising from the first tashahhud, or after he has reached the minimum position of rukū‘ [i.e., once fully upright]? The apparent, [correct] view is the latter — even though the outward wording [of the text] might suggest the former — because at the very start of his rising, he is still relying on both hands [to push himself up, and therefore cannot yet raise them]."
It is stated in ‘Umdat as-Sālik (p. 53): "If his prayer extends beyond two rak‘ahs, he sits after them in the iftirāsh position, recites the tashahhud, and sends blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ alone, without [mentioning] his family [at this point]. He then stands while saying the takbīr, supporting himself with his hands; and once he has stood upright, he raises them level with his shoulders." And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

What is the ruling on performing the night prayer (*qiyām al-layl*) between the first and second adhān of Fajr? And which is better: delaying the prayer until shortly before the Fajr adhān, or performing it earlier than that?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The time for night prayer (qiyām al-layl) begins after the Maghrib prayer and lasts until the second adhān of Fajr. The best time for it is the last third of the night, and best of all are the fourth and fifth sixths of the night. If the night is divided into two halves, the latter half is better.
Whoever intends to pray at night is encouraged to delay the Witr until he has prayed the night prayer. If he knows that he will not wake up, it is better for him to pray and perform Witr before sleeping, so that he does not miss both the night prayer and the Witr.
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vpl.1/p.462): “I say: The voluntary prayer of the night, that is, the absolute voluntary prayer (al-nafl al-muṭlaq), is better than the absolute voluntary prayer of the day, because of the report in Muslim: ‘The best prayer after the obligatory prayer is the night prayer.’ In another narration of his: ‘In the night there is an hour that no Muslim man meets while asking Allah for any good of this world and the next except that He gives it to him, and that is every night.’ It is also because the night is a time of heedlessness. I restricted the voluntary prayer to the absolute kind following the commentator, although what the ḥadīth and the underlying meaning require is that the night rawātib be preferred over the day rawātib, since the jurists preferred the two rakʿahs of Fajr over everything except Witr. The middle of the night is better than its two ends if it is divided into thirds, because heedlessness is greatest then and worship is hardest. If he wishes to pray during some third, the best is the fourth and fifth sixths, based on the ḥadīth in the two Ṣaḥīḥs: ‘The most beloved prayer to Allah the Exalted is the prayer of Dāwūd: he would sleep half the night, stand for a third of it, and sleep for a sixth.’ Then the latter part is better than the first if he divides it into two halves, because of the saying of Allah the Exalted: ‘And in the hours before dawn they would ask forgiveness’ [al-Dhāriyāt: 18], and the report of the two Shaykhs: ‘Our Lord, Blessed and Exalted, descends,’ meaning His command descends, ‘to the lowest heaven when the last third of the night remains, and says: Who calls upon Me, that I may answer him? Who asks of Me, that I may give him? Who seeks My forgiveness, that I may forgive him?’”
It is also stated in ʿUmdat al-Sālik (p. 60): “It is better to perform it [the Witr] immediately after the sunnah of ʿIshāʾ, unless he has tahajjud, in which case it is better to delay it so that he performs Witr after it. If he performs Witr and then wishes to pray tahajjud, he prays two rakʿahs at a time and does not repeat the Witr, nor does he need to cancel it with a single rakʿah before the tahajjud. It is recommended that he not deliberately pray after it.”
Qiyām al-layl is a term applied to any prayer performed at night. Tahajjud, on the other hand, refers to the night prayer that follows sleep, whether it is prayed after Maghrib or after ʿIshāʾ, or the prayer performed after ʿIshāʾ without sleep. On this basis, the Witr is also called tahajjud, since it is only prayed after ʿIshāʾ.
It is stated in al-Majmūʿ (Vol.4/p.84): “The sound position, as stated in al-Umm and al-Mukhtaṣar, is that the Witr is called tahajjud.”
It is stated in Nihāyat al-Zayn (Vol.1/p.114): “Among the absolute voluntary prayers is qiyām al-layl. If it is performed after sleep, even during the time of Maghrib and after having prayed ʿIshāʾ early (taqdīman), it is called tahajjud.”
And it is stated in Ḥāshiyat al-Bujayrimī ʿalā al-Khaṭīb (Vol.1/p.418): “His statement: ‘(the night prayer)’: the genitive construction (iḍāfah) carries the sense of fī, meaning a prayer in the night. His statement: ‘(it would be more fitting)’: the reason it is more fitting is that the night prayer includes both tahajjud and other prayers.” And Allah Almighty knows best.

Who is responsible for performing the aqiqah?

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
The one upon whom the 'aqīqah is incumbent is whoever is obligated to financially maintain the newborn — whether the father, paternal grandfather, or mother. It is to be performed from their own wealth, not from the wealth of the newborn child.
As for one upon whom the financial maintenance of the newborn is not obligatory, they may not perform the 'aqīqah except with the permission of the one upon whom it is obligatory — namely, the father. And Allah Almighty knows best.

If someone fasts on the White Days with the intention of making up for missed fasts (qada), will they receive the reward for both voluntary and obligatory fasting?

Making up missed obligatory fasts (qada) is mandatory, and the intention for qada must be specified.
If a person makes up their missed Ramadan fasts on the White Days, they must intend qada, but they may also intend to fast the White Days, and Allah willing, they will receive the reward for both.
This is similar to entering a mosque and praying an obligatory prayer, where the person also earns the reward of Tahiyyat al-Masjid (greeting the mosque) if they intend both.
● If the person missed their fasts due to a valid excuse, they may wait and fast on the White Days.
● However, if they missed the fasts without a valid excuse, they must make up the fasts immediately and should not delay them until the White Days.

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