Asalamualaykum.
The Night Ascension and Responsibilities Placed Upon Us.
A Muslim should – which a lot of us don’t – read Salah or prayer five times a day. I am simply in the following text giving you some things I have noticed about Salah, whilst reading, pondering and questions that were aroused in my mind that through the passage of time were given their answer, usually through experience.
I’ve heard the story of The Night Ascension also known as Laly a Tul Qadar in the glorious language of Arabic, many times. Almost all the times I was told or read the story; Salah was given as a present to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). As a present I thought. What kind of present is this? This is indeed a present, and a glorious one too. We need something to grasp onto, something to keep us steady – in line; on the true path. Not veering from the path of those whom Allah has blessed. Something that will keep us close and in touch to Allah (SWT). Most people would reply that it is the religion of Islam that does all of this. We believing, being a Muslim is enough. A grave error on their part. Yes indeed our religion of Islam does keep us steady, if followed properly. Salah keeps the connection between you and Allah there, never cut or severed in any way. And if it does sever in any way, we revert back to our Salah. It is thing we use to firm our hold on reality, the object we use to grasp onto faith. Notice how a person who does not pray is caught up in this fake/temporary world as if it will never end. That person has lost his grip. If we were not given this blessing, we would have become like wild pack of roving animals by now, wondering astray like a bunch of cloud.
During descending back to this earth with this sacred present, the blessed Prophet Muhammad was stopped and questioned by the Prophet Moses (PBUT). He queried about what the Prophet had received from The Almighty Allah. The Prophet of Islam replied that he had received Salah, which was to be preformed 50 times a day. The Prophet Moses (PBUH) then ordered the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to ascend back to Almighty Allah and ask to decrease the amount allotted. Allah (SWT) decreased the amount by 5. The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) then descended once more, was again was questioned by the Prophet Moses (PBUH) and was again asked to ascend and ask Allah (SWT) to decrease the allotted amount; which He did, again by 5. This whole scenario was repeated till the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was left with 5 prayers. But he was asked again the Moses (PBUH) to ask Allah (SWT) to decrease the amount. But this time the Prophet Muhammad replied that he was too ashamed to face his lord once again. So we are now left with 5 prayers. But the question arises that why the Prophet Muhammad was repeatedly asked, to ask Allah (SWT) to decrease the amount? Well all of us can deduce that we unworthy humans cannot even perform 5 prayers properly, let alone 50. But the Prophet Moses (PBUH) knew this, and told the prophet in the last attempt to decrease the prayers that my Ummah (i.e. the Jews) were given prayers to perform 3 times a day. And they weren’t capable of performing those, so how could your Ummah manage to achieve that? Allah states in the Glorious Qur’an that:
“You are the best nation (Ummah) that has been raised up for the (benefit of) people. You enjoin the good and forbid the evil…” (Qur’an 3:110).
Allah states the above verse in the Qur’an, the book of which there is no doubt. Allah (SWT) states this, putting a responsibility upon us to stay the best of
Ummah’s till The Day of Resurrection. The question is are we? The Moses (PBUH) compares us to his nation; the Jews who wavered and drowned in disbelief from the beginning. And there we are also put to the test and challenged once more. Are we better than the Jews? We certainly don’t act like we are. Constantly Allah (SWT) states in the Qur’an – when He has to prove or make a point about something forbidden or erroneous – He referrers to the Jews as the unbelieving nation. The nation that lost its faith. That is how low the Jews stooped; as to kill and plot against the Prophets, to make ghastly remarks and lay false charges upon them. They stooped exceedingly low, so low as to be mentioned in the Qur’an countless times, most or all times to show that don’t stoop as low as them. And then again: Are we better than the Jews? A responsibility placed upon us. So don’t sit idle, and commence praying five times a day, remembering that the Jews couldn’t even perform 3.
Salam.
