Khutbahs
58 / 217
How Tahajjud Removes Stress and Sins | Khutbah
What are some of the unique benefits of Tahajjud? How does one approach it in a way that is consistent and fulfilling?
Transcript
This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings. Dear brothers and sisters, when the topic of qiyamul layl, the night prayer, comes up outside of Ramadan, it can feel a bit out of touch. It can feel a bit disconnected from people because, let's be very honest, when we look at the state of ourselves collectively, it's hard for us to pray the five prayers. We have a struggle with the fara'at, with the mandatory prayers. And so some might say, why talk about tahajjud, why talk about the night prayer, when people are struggling with the five obligatory prayers? And I ask myself that question as well. If someone's struggling with the fara'at, how can they even begin to entertain qiyamul layl, to entertain the idea of praying at night? And Ramadan is of course an exception. You find people that, just like people fast Ramadan, that struggle with other obligations in the deen. And we ask Allah to make Ramadan, the fasting of Ramadan, a means for them to fulfill the other obligations. But just as people, you know, can fast Ramadan, but they can't do a lot of those other things throughout the year, in many ways, people sort of relegate this practice to this special ten nights and that's it. And we don't really touch it. And maybe one day my faith will get to the point that I feel connected enough to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that I can start to entertain that conversation. And then once I start to dive into the books and I start to read about the way that the salaf, the way that the pious predecessors viewed qiyamul layl, seemingly as an obligation, not an obligation in the technical sense, which we'll get to, but as an obligation on themselves for spiritual health, it can be demoralizing and depressing because you read that and you say, where am I and these people who would blame themselves so much for missing one night of qiyamul layl. And I don't remember the last time that I prayed a meaningful night. When you talk about coming close to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, it is true that, ما تقرب إلي عبد بشيءٍ ذا نطرته عليه
than what I have already made obligatory upon them. You can't prioritize the nawafil over the fara'at. You can't prioritize the voluntary deeds over the obligatory deeds. However, if a person tastes the sweetness of certain voluntary deeds, not only can it help them be more consistent with the obligatory deeds, it can help revive the spirit of those obligatory deeds. In fact, which is what Aisha radiyaAllahu ta'ala said about surah al-Muzzammil. If you read surah al-Muzzammil, the third revelation to the Prophet sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam, it is a page and a half. The second half is one ayah. And Aisha radiyaAllahu ta'ala says that Allah withheld the second part of al-Muzzammil for an entire year from us. Meaning what? When Allah first revealed to us, يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُزَّمِّنُ قُمِ اللَّيْلَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا نِصْفَهُ أَوْ إِنْقُصْ مِنْهُ قَلِيلًا أَوْ زِدْ عَلَيْهِ وَرَتِّلْ الْقُرْآنَ تَرْتِيلًا Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala revealed to the Prophet sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam and to the ummah by extension, to stand up and pray at night. To stand up and pray a significant portion of the night and to recite a significant portion of what was revealed. Aisha radiyaAllahu ta'ala said for a year, the obligation upon us was qiyam al-layl. Meaning qiyam al-layl, the night prayer was an obligation on the ummah for an entire year before the obligation of the five prayers came later on. Similar to how we have a yaman ma'doodat, some days that were obligatory for fasting. But when Ramadan came, they became voluntary. Like the fasting of Arafah and Ashura and other days like that. Okay, so with the prayer of qiyam al-layl, she says that for a whole year, and this was the most difficult time in the life of the Prophet sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam and by the ummah who was facing persecution and had no community,
which is one of the wisdoms that the ulema mentioned. They didn't have a community to gather. They had no masjid. They had dar al-arqam to sneak into and to study and to do what they could. But everyone really had to pray by themselves. For a whole year, she said, we all prayed until our feet would swell. And then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala revealed the second part of it, which rendered the night prayer voluntary, but the Prophet sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam still maintained the habits. Meaning the Prophet sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam still would pray until his feet would swell. And of course many of the companions would maintain that habit. And there was a wisdom to that. That when you are struggling, this practice is not just a means of giving you great perspective and great connection to your Lord, but it also provides a unique level of relief, of hem, of stress and anxiety. And that's something that's very unique about this particular habit, this particular good deed when you read about it. The way that the companions and the salaf and the pious predecessors speak about this act in particular as being one that removes stress. You stand up at night, you have a direct connection to your Lord, it's quiet, you don't have a meeting coming up, right? You can create the scene, set the scene, the kids are most likely sleeping, they should be sleeping at that time. It's just you and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the rules of qiyam al-layl are not as rigid. And I don't say that in a negative way, but with the maktouba, with the mandatory prayers, there are certain things you can and can't do, but with the qiyam, you can spend the whole night with one or two ayat, you can allocate certain time to your sajda, certain time to your standing up. It's a moment of joy. And when the scholars spoke about it, that's what they say. It's very interesting because just like with fasting, you know, you always start reading about these studies to try to make you feel better about your faith.
And you don't need to, right? The benefits of fasting. It just, it feels good, right? When you hear about the physical benefits and things of that sort as well. Basically, these studies confirming what you already have been acting upon because it was prescribed by your Lord. And so you read these studies about mindfulness meditation. 20 minutes a day, 20-25 minutes a day. But don't do it all at one time because you need to break up your mindfulness meditation throughout the day because it will reset the cycle for you and get you back to where you need to be and put, you know, between those breaks, those meditation breaks, everything in perspective. And it will improve the quality of your sleep. And if you improve the quality of your sleep, then you're energized during the day. I'm like, these people just need salah. They just need prayer. We already, we have something prescribed to us that is so beautiful. That doesn't mean that times of dua and dhikr and introspection are not good as well. But salah really offers that vehicle and improves the quality of a person's day and a person's night. And when you think about the unique stress relief, Abu Suleiman al-Darwani rahimahullah ta'ala, he said, أهل طاعة بليلهم ألذ من أهل اللهو بلهوهم You know, people spend the entire night binge watching movies or, you know, hanging out and there are halal ways to spend time as well, right? But, you know, there is a certain relaxation. I need some relief tonight. So I'm going to spend some time and I'm going to just, you know, kill some time and feel good. And sometimes if it's halal, it's good for you. But what he was saying is, أهل الطاعة, that people who have established this night prayer, even if it's a small portion, that they are in more joy than the people of lahw with their lahw. Now we're not even talking about people of sin, right? That's a whole nother level. And he said, you know, describing it, he says, وَرُبَّمَا رَأِيْتُ الْقَلْبَ يَضْحِقُ ضَاحِكًا He said,
it's as if I could see my heart laughing when a person enjoys that night of prayer. He said, لَوْ لَا قِيَامُ اللَّيْلِ مَا أَحْبَبْتُ الْبَقَاءَ فِي الدُّنْيَا He said, had it not been for qiyamul layl, I really wouldn't see any use in living in this life. I don't think about anything in life as giving me as much joy as I do qiyamul layl. ثابت البناني رضي الله تعالى عنه, he used to say, ما شيء أجده في قلبي ألذ عندي من قيام الليل I have not found anything in my life that is just sweeter, gives more pleasure. That's how they're speaking about it. Then qiyamul layl. الفضيل رحمه الله تعالى, he said, أَفْرَحُ بِاللَّيْلِ مُنَاجَاتِ رَبِّي وَأَكْرَهُ النَّهَارَ لِلِقَاءِ خَلْقِ اللَّهِ He said that I love the night prayer, or I love the night because that's when I get to meet my Lord. That's when I get to spend time with Allah. And we were talking about the last few weeks, how people can be exhausting. He said, In the daytime, I'm not so crazy about because I have to meet the creation of Allah. Dealing with the Lord at night, dealing with people during the day, there is a peace and a tranquility that comes from that, that makes what comes throughout the day more bearable. And that joy is freshening. That joy is replenishing. That joy is meaningful. It's, you know, people are searching for it here and there. And it's in those few moments at night. And I'm going to get to this at the end, but that doesn't mean praying all night. That means those few moments, that 10-15 minutes, that 20 minutes of recalibrating every single night, at some point in the night, between you and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Al-Imam Hassan al-Basri rahimahullah ta'ala, he was asked, مَا بَالُ الْمُتَهَجِّدِينَ بِاللَّيْلِ مِنْ أَحْسَنِ النَّاسِ وَجُوهَا He said, how come the people that sleep the least at night have the freshest faces during the day? It's as if they're energized. قَالَ لِأَنَّهُمْ خَلَوْا بِالرَّحْمَانِ فَأَلْبَسَهُمْ مِنْ نُورِهِ SubhanAllah.
He said, because they spent the night in seclusion with the Most Merciful. So Allah dressed them with His light. Sa'eed ibn al-Musayyib rahimahullah ta'ala, he said, إِنَّ الْرَجُلَ لَيُصَلِّ بِاللَّيْلِ فَيَجْعَلُ اللَّهَ فِي وَجْهِهِ نُورًا يُحِبُّهُ عَلَيْهِ كُلُّ مُسْلِمٍ And so Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gives them nur, gives them light, gives them something that would connect them with every single Muslim. To the point, when you talk about الحب في الله, when we love each other for Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, you see a brother, you see someone in the masjid, brother seeing brother, sister seeing sister, and right away you love that person. For Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So you know there is a sakinah, there is a tranquility that is coming from that person. قَالَ فَيَرَاهُ مَن لَمْ يَرَهُ قَطْ A person would see that person for the first time. فَيَقُولْ إِنِّي لَأُحِبُّ هَذَا الْرَجُلَ He would say, you know, I really love that man for Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. I don't know that person, but I love them for Allah. Something is being emitted from that person. And that is that time that they're spending with their Lord at night. One of the things that the scholars also mention particularly about this is that during the day, the challenge of salah is that you're thinking about what comes next. The greatest distraction, and that's how you treat the nafs is that you learn what it is that ails it. Most people get distracted in their prayers, as Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah said, by the appointments of what comes next. So you're in salah, but you're planning your next step, your next, you know, I got to go do this at four o'clock, five o'clock, you're going here, you're going there. Your mind is racing ahead of the salah. Most people, that's what catches them and distracts them. And you indeed have appointments. You might have to squeeze in your prayer time. Some of you right now are still at work, thinking about your next thing. It's natural, right? That's your struggle.
But subhanAllah, what they say about qiyam al-layl is that it's a gift from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala because you're not missing appointments. You're not distracted by this immediate need that you have next. It's at the quietest time of your existence. And the only thing that you're giving up is sleep. There's a very beautiful example that was given by a tabi'i by the name of Shuraikh ibn Hani rahimahullah ta'ala. He likened it to physical exercise. You know, when you physically exercise, initially there is an exhaustion of the body. But then you realize that you're exhausting the body for the sake of what? The body. You're exhausting the body for the sake of the body. And so he said, when you give up sleep, you realize at some point that your sleep is actually filled with more blessing, has more barakah in it. That 15 minutes or 20 minutes that you compromise is not gonna make you a groggy person throughout the day. It's not gonna mess things up for you. The sleep has more blessing in it and what you gain from that time in qiyam ul-layl makes the sleep the easiest thing to give up in this dunya. You're not giving up appointments. You're not thinking about, I got this in 10 minutes. Hopefully you're not checking WhatsApp at 3 a.m. or whatever it is at 4 a.m. You have time. You can pause. You can focus. It's quiet. And the day has not yet started. And that's wisdom from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So whether it's in the beginning of the night, when other people are going to sleep, or the end of the night, when most people are still asleep, you can dedicate and allocate that time. And this is where we find this idea of what it means to have qurb, closeness to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Dear brothers and sisters, aim high. If you seek to be an average Muslim, you know, and that's why I despise it when people self-label, say I'm a non-practicing Muslim. You've basically sealed your salah.
I'm a non-practicing Muslim. I don't pray. That's what it means. I don't pray five times a day. Aim high. If you seek to be an average Muslim, you're going to be a very deficient Muslim. If you seek to be a person of taqwa, then maybe you'll fall short and you'll sin sometimes. But if you seek to be a person of ihsan, seek to be a person of excellence, there's one way there. And that's a personal connection with Allah. Ihsan does not come except through personalizing that connection with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And that's where you find the salaf say, the pious predecessors say. Nothing establishes that connection like qiyam. It's too busy throughout the day. Too much going on. There is nothing that connects a person to Allah like that time. Because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala mentions that He descends at that time in a way that befits Him subhanahu wa ta'ala. He's calling out to you. And He's saying who wants to come close to me? Who has an appointment? Allah has all the time for you. Allah does not take slots. It's not restricted for some religious people somewhere in the world. No, the broken, the sinner, the righteous, the person who's trying to be righteous, everyone calling upon Allah. That time of the night, that's your time to get close to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And al-Hasan rahimahullah ta'ala, he said, there is nothing. There is nothing. He said to a person who asked him, what is it that brings a person closest to Allah? He said, ma a'lamu shay'an yatakarrabu bihi al-mutakarrabun. Ila Allahi afdala min qiyamu allayl. Nothing brings you closer to Allah than qiyamu allayl. Al-Fudayl rahimahullah ta'ala, he also one time, he grabbed the shoulder of a man and he said to him, yanzilu Allah ta'ala kulla layla. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala comes down every single night ila al-sama'a al-dunya, to the lowest heaven. Fayaqulu rab. And so the Lord says,
kadhaba bina dda'a muhabbati fa'idha jannahu laylu naama'anni. A person has not told the truth. They have lied when they claim to love me, but when the night comes, he sleeps on my appointment. Naama'anni. He sleeps when I come down to meet him, when I speak, when I'm ready to listen to that person, ready to listen to him or her. And you say you love Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Alaysa kullu habibin yakhlu bi habibihi. Allah says, isn't it that every lover spends some time with their lover? And he says, haa ana dhaa muttali'un ala ahibba'i idha jannahumul layl. Here I am looking out to my servants when the night comes, looking out to my lovers, those that love Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Ghadan uqirru ayyuna ahibba'i fi jannati. And he says, and tomorrow when they come to me, then I will satisfy their eyes. I will cool their eyes. I will fill their hearts with my jannah. Those same people that I love. You want to be from those who are muhibb of Allah, those who really love Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. That's that only time, no distractions. 15 minutes, 10 minutes, something small. And the greatest thing you can ask at that time is forgiveness. That's the greatest thing. What am I going to ask Allah? Forgiveness. The greatest causer of stress is your sins because that's what puts the barrier between you and Allah. And that's why that idea is always at the forefront of any discussion on tahajjud, any discussion on the night prayer from the Quran and from the sunnah. وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ In those last moments of the night, they're seeking forgiveness from Allah. The last 10 nights of Ramadan, اللهم إنك عفواً تحب العفو فاعفوا عني You're asking Allah for forgiveness. هل من مستغفر فأغفر له Is there anyone that's seeking forgiveness so that I can forgive that person? As Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says to the angels, as he sees that slave of his standing up at night,
يقول للملائكة أنظروا ماذا يطلب عبدي Go see what he's asking. Go see what she's asking me for. فيقول الملائكة أي ربي رضاك ومغفرتك Oh my Lord, they're asking for your pleasure and for your forgiveness. فيقول الله أشهدكم Allah says to the angels, bear witness, oh my angels, أني قد غفرت له ورضيت عنه That I have indeed become pleased with that person and forgiven that person. That's your time to get close to Allah and ask Allah for sins. That sin that's wearing you down, that sin that's bearing on your conscience, it's sins that prevent qiyam and it's qiyam that prevents sin. So you got to take that first step of walking away from that sin and that step forward is going to be at the night prayer. And that's where you say to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, Ya Allah, I'm sorry. When everything's quiet, when it's just me and you, I'm sorry, Ya Allah, and I'm seeking your forgiveness. The last thing I will say to your brothers and sisters in this regard is don't belittle the small amounts of qiyam. Beginning of the night, end of the night, middle of the night, two rak'ahs. قُلُوا اللَّهُ أَحَدُ قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ Don't belittle it. It matters. And that's why the Prophet ﷺ said in the authentic hadith, مَنْ قَامَ بِعَشْرِ آيَاتِ لَمْ يُكْتَبْ مِنَ الْغَافِلِينَ Whoever stands up and just reads 10 ayahs, 10 verses, will not be written as a person of heedlessness. Do not be from the ghafilin, those people who are heedless. Heedlessness means you have a barrier, you don't perceive God properly. You don't understand your purpose properly. If you're standing up and praying just with 10 verses, reading two short surahs, you won't be written from al-ghafilin. وَمَنْ قَامَ بِمِئَةِ آيَةِ كُتِبَ مِنَ الْقَانِتِينَ And whoever stands up and recites 100 ayahs, then they are written from the exceedingly devout, the pious. وَمَنْ قَامَ بِأَلْفِ آيَةِ كُتِبَ مِنَ الْمُقَانْطِرِينَ
And whoever stands up and recites a thousand verses, which by the way, if you want to do it once in your lifetime, the last two juz of the Qur'an is a thousand verses, then they will be written amongst those who are piling up good deeds, who have gone far ahead of everybody else with their good deeds. Sometimes it takes that example. Sometimes it takes reminding yourself that God's way is only one way. The small thing counts while you're aiming to get better, while you're aiming for the bigger thing. So that you don't think of Qiyamul Laylat as some sort of habit that's just reserved for this exclusive group of people. No, it's not. It's for the Muslims. It's for those who want to stand up and pray, those who want to enjoy that connection with Allah, seeking first and foremost His pleasure and His forgiveness. And that's why Ibn Umar, radiAllahu ta'ala anhuma, Abdullah ibn Umar, in a narration from Abu Ghalib, he says that Abdullah ibn Umar used to come upon us in Mecca. He used to pray at night, long prayers in the night. So one night he said to me right when Fajr was about to come in, Ya Abu Ghalib, said won't you stand up and pray even if you're going to read just a third of the Qur'an? I said what do you mean a third of the Qur'an? You know, Fajr is almost around the corner. So I said to him, Ya Abu Abdur-Rahman, Fajr is right around the corner. What do you mean? How am I going to read a third of the Qur'an? That's maybe something that you guys do. We don't do a third of the Qur'an. So he responded, Inna surat al-ikhlas, Qul huwa allahu ahad, ta'dilu thuruth al-Qur'an. Qul huwa allahu ahad is equal to one third of the Qur'an. Who would not want to meet Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala saying every night I used to read a third of the Qur'an? Right before Fajr. So dear brothers and sisters, I know it seems like a distant habit, one for the exceedingly
pious, but it's a way to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that cannot be replaced by any other way. And insha'Allah ta'ala those who are struggling with their five prayers to pray them on time, this will only help it bi-idhnillahi ta'ala. It's not in place of it. It's a means of connecting yourself to the Lord that you call upon day and night. You call upon Him for forgiveness and for salvation. Aqoolu qawli hadha wa astaghfirullahi wa alaikum wa risala al-muslimin fa astaghfiru inna huwa al-ghufuru wa al-rahim. Alhamdulillah, salat wa salamu ala rasulullah wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa man wala. Allahumma khfirlil mu'minina wa al-mu'minat wa al-muslimina wa al-muslimat, al-ahya'i minhum wa al-amwati, innaka sami'un qareebun, wajibun wa da'awat. Allahumma khfirlil anna wa arhamna, wa'afu anna wa a'afu anna, wa'afu anna wa a'afu anna, wa la tu'adhibna. Allahumma khfirlil waleedina, rabbil hamhuma kama rabbuna sighara. Rabbana hablana min azwajina wa dhriyatina qurrat a'ayun, waj'alna lilmuttaqina imama. Allahumma ansur ikhwanina al-mustad'afina fee masharik al-ardi wa gharibiha. Allahumma ahlikil dhalimina bil-dhalimin, wa akhrujna wa ikhwanina min baynihim salimin. Ibadullahi anna Allahi amru bil-adli wal-ihsan wa ita'idhi al-qurba wa yanha'an al-fahsha'i wa al-munkari wa al-baqi.
Welcome back!
Bookmark content
Download resources easily
Manage your donations
Track your spiritual growth
1 items
1 items
1 items
25 items
50 items
9 items
