Man should remember Allah with much remembrance:

 Dear brother, Allah the Almighty says:

"Verily! We have sent it (this Qur'an) down in the night of Al-Qadr (Decree) * And what will make you know what the night of Al-Qadr (Decree) is? * The night of Al-Qadr (Decree) is better than a thousand months (i.e. worshipping Allah in that night is better than worshipping Him a thousand months, i.e. 83 years and 4 months). * Therein descend the angels and the Ruh [Jibrael (Gabriel)] by Allah's Permission with all Decrees, * Peace! (All that night, there is Peace and Goodness from Allah to His believing slaves) until the appearance of dawn."

[Al-Qadr, 1-5]

 Dear brother, as a lead-in to the meanings of the Night of Al-Qadr consider the noble ayah below in which Allah the Almighty says:

"O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance."

[Al-Ahzab, 41]

 And in another noble ayah, Allah the Almighty describes the hypocrites saying:

"and they do not remember Allah but little."

[Al-Nisa, 142]

 Is the command contained in the expression "O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance" related to remembering Allah or to remembering Him with much remembrance? Of course it is related to remembering Allah abundantly, while the other ayah describes the hypocrites as follows: "and they do not remember Allah but little." This means that the Divine Command in the ayah "O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance" is related to plentiful remembrance of Allah –this is the first lead-in.

The true faith is to believe in Allah as the Most Great:

 The second lead-in is when Allah the Almighty says:

"Then as for him who will be given his Record in his right hand will say: "Take, read my Record!* "Surely, I did believe that I shall meet my Account!" * So he shall be in a life, well-pleasing. * In a lofty Paradise, * The fruits in bunches whereof will be low and near at hand. * Eat and drink at ease for that which you have sent on before you in days past! * But as for him who will be given his Record in his left hand, will say: "I wish that I had not been given my Record! * "And that I had never known, how my Account is? * "I wish, would that it had been my end (death)! * "My wealth has not availed me, * "My power and arguments (to defend myself) have gone from me!" * (It will be said): "Seize him and fetter him, * Then throw him in the blazing Fire. * "Then fasten him with a chain whereof the length is seventy cubits!"

[ Al-Haqqah, 19-32]

 Now, pay close attention to the noble ayah below:

"Verily, he used not to believe in Allah, the Most Great,"

[Al-Haqqah, 33]

 Does it mean that Allah the Almighty completely negates his faith? Definitely not. He negates his belief in Allah as the Most Great. We find something similar in Allah the Almighty's Words:

"O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance."

[Al-Ahzab, 41]

 And when He says:

"Verily, he used not to believe in Allah, the Most Great,"

[Al-Haqqah, 33]

 So, Allah the Almighty negates that he believes in Allah as the Most Great, not his faith in Allah as such.

True faith should lead to good deeds and uprightness:

 Actually, Shaytan believed in Allah when he said:

"[Iblis (Satan)] said: "By Your Might,"

(Sad, 82)

"You created me from fire, and him You created from clay."

(Al-Araf, 12)

"(Iblis) said: "Allow me respite till the Day they are raised up (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)."

(Al-A'raf, 14)

 I have repeatedly stressed the fact that unless faith is transformed into good deeds, into uprightness, into abiding by the orders of Allah, into doing what Allah has ordered and avoiding what Allah has prohibited and remaining steadfast upon the straight path, it has no value at all, and, actually, this is the faith which prevails among Muslims and which could be almost called the "satanic faith". It neither brings benefit nor rescues the one who has it from the torment of the Hellfire.

The priority of knowing the One Who gives the command:

 Actually, knowing the One Who gives the order is more important than knowing the order itself. As a preamble to this surah Allah the Almighty says:

"Verily! We have sent it (this Qur'an) down in the night of Al-Qadr (Decree)"

 What is the meaning of the Night of Al-Qadr (Decree)? With respect to that, it has been said that sometimes one noble ayah interprets another one. Thus, Allah the Almighty says:

"They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. And on the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His Hand and the heavens will be rolled up in His Right Hand. Glorified is He, and High is He above all that they associate as partners with Him!"

[Az-Zumar, 67]

 As if Allah the Almighty were making it clear to us here that those heedless of Allah have not made a just estimate of Him; that is, they merely believe, as most people do, in Allah as the Creator, but this faith is not deep-rooted in their hearts and it does not give rise to a specific behavior and adherence to Allah's Order. Therefore, making not a just estimate of Allah indicates a serious fact, which is that you have not come to know the One Who gives the Command (Allah the Almighty). Actually, either at school or during Fridays khutbah most Muslims learn about Allah's Order and Prohibition, the pillars of faith, the pillars of Islam, the licit and the illicit, and so on. However, they have not come, at this point, to know the One Who gives the Command. Therefore, they disobey Him in many different ways. They search for a weak fatwah, a weak opinion, a very weak hadith, sometimes a fabricated one, and seek, in this way, a leave to get away from the Divine Method. Hence, when you do not really know the One Who gives you the order, you disobey Him in various ways. This, indeed, seems to be the most critical flaw in the Muslim world –the fact of knowing Allah's Order but not knowing the One Who gives it. They have not really got to know Allah the Almighty; they are unaware of what is awaiting man in case he obeys or disobeys Allah; they are oblivious to the lasting bliss which Allah has prepared for the one who obeys Him; they are unmindful of the fact that Allah has created man for Paradise which is as wide as the heavens and the earth, in which there is what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard and what no mind has conceived.

Allah has created mankind to have mercy upon them:

 The believers know Allah the Almighty and they know that Allah the Almighty has created them to please them in Paradise. By contrast, Allah the Almighty says:

"Verily, he used not to believe in Allah, the Most Great,"

 The above means that he does not believe that he has been created for Paradise.

"By the night as it envelops; * And by the day as it appears in brightness; * And by Him Who created male and female; * Certainly, your efforts and deeds are diverse (different in aims and purposes); * As for him who gives (in charity) and keeps his duty to Allah and fears Him, * And believes in Al-Husna."

[Al-Lail, 1-6]

 He believes that he has been created for Paradise, so he bewares of disobeying Allah and builds his life on giving. Thus, man should believe in Allah the Most Great; he should believe that he has been created for Paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth; and he should believe that the biggest loss he may suffer is his losing the Hereafter. Allah the Almighty says:

"So worship what you like besides Him. Say (O Muhammad): "The losers are those who will lose themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection. Verily, that will be a manifest loss!"

[Az-Zumar, 15]

Constellations constitute a signs of Allah's Greatness:

  So what is the meaning of: "Verily! We have sent it (this Qur'an) down in the night of Al-Qadr (Decree)"? What is the meaning of "qadr" (which means in Arabic "decree" or "estimate")? The following noble ayah explains it:

"They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. And on the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His Hand and the heavens will be rolled up in His Right Hand. Glorified is He, and high is He above all that they associate as partners with Him!"

[Az-Zumar, 67]

 Dear brother, consider the following example: The distance between the earth and the sun is 165 million km, the latter being a million and three hundred thousand times bigger than the earth, which means that the interior of the sun can contain a million and three hundred thousand planets the size of the earth. Allah the Almighty says:

"By the heaven, holding the big stars.* And by the Promised Day (i.e. the Day of Resurrection); * And by the witnessing day (i.e. Friday), and by the witnessed day [i.e. the day of 'Arafat (Hajj) the ninth of Dhul-Hijjah];

(Al-Buruj, 1-3)

 The big stars are the constellations. During its revolution around the sun, the earth passes through twelve towers, whose names are known. However, reading your horoscope to know what will happen in the future is an act of kufr (associating sh3er with Allah the Almighty). The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

"Whoever goes to a fortune teller has disbelieved in what has been sent to Muhammad, and the prayer of whoever goes to a sorcerer, though he does not believe in him, will be unaccepted for 40 days."

 Anyway, constellations in this ayah is a great sign about which Allah the Almighty says: "By the heaven, holding the big stars." One of these constellations is the Scorpio, in which there is a star called Antares, the heart of the Scorpio, which can contain the sun, the earth and the distance between them. Allah the Almighty says:

"This is the creation of Allah. So show Me that which those (whom you worship), besides Him have created."

(Luqman, 11)

Allah's Signs lead man to absolute obedience to Him:

 Is it reasonable to disobey this Great God? Shouldn't we do our best to please Him? Shouldn't we hope to enter His Paradise and fear to enter His Hell? Actually, when you get to know the One Who gives the Command through the signs of His universe, through the signs of His creation, and through His ayaat in the Noble Qur'an, this knowledge will lead you to doing your best in obeying Him, in abiding by His Command and in adhering to piety which has beneficial consequences.
 Consider the following clear statement: When you know the command but you do not know the One Who gives it, you will follow numerous ways with a view to disobey it; while when you know the One Who gives you the order as well as the order itself, you will make every effort to obey Him.
 So, the star called Antares, the heart of the Scorpio, can contain the sun and the earth with the distance between them. Some scientists said that if this star were to replace the sun, it would absorb the entire solar system. Verily it is a giant star.
 Dear brother, we should reflect on these signs in the creation of the universe to estimate Allah with the estimate due to Him. Allah the Almighty says:

"They (the Jews, Quraish pagans, idolaters, etc.) did not estimate Allah with estimation due to Him."

"Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding. * Those who remember Allah (always, and in prayers) standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and think deeply about the creation of the heavens and the earth, (saying): "Our Lord! You have not created (all) this without purpose, glory to You! (Exalted be You above all that they associate with You as partners). Give us salvation from the torment of the Fire."

(Al-Imran, 190-191)

Getting closer to Allah is the essence of Islam:

  There is another subtle allusion to this point in the Surah of Al-Qadr:

" Verily! We have sent it (this Qur'an) down in the night of Al-Qadr (Decree) * And what will make you know what the night of Al-Qadr (Decree) is? * The night of Al-Qadr (Decree) is better than a thousand months (i.e. worshipping Allah in that night is better than worshipping Him a thousand months, i.e. 83 years and 4 months)."

 Actually, a thousand months is about 83 years; it is as if this ayah indicated that if a man worshipped Allah for 80 years, which is the entire life of a long-lived man, but his worship lacked the knowledge of Allah, his worship would be meaningless, his salah would be just movements or immobility and some words reauthord in it without getting closer to Allah. Thus, it would be a meaningless, merely nominal act of worship displeasing to Allah. In fact, Allah wants you to get closer to Him through salah, fasting, performing hajj and paying zakah, and so on. Thus, getting closer to Allah is the essence of the Deen of Islam, through which you attain perfection, tranquility, satisfaction, security, wisdom and fulfillment. Allah the Almighty says:

"So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord."

(Al-Kahf, 110)

The good deed sheds light upon man's faith; he feels during salah as if he were presenting a gift to Allah the Almighty.

Reflection upon the creation of heavens and earth:

 Thus, Allah the Almighty says:

"They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. And on the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His Hand and the heavens will be rolled up in His Right Hand. Glorified is He, and High is He above all that they associate as partners with Him!"

(Az-Zumar, 67)

 I have mentioned to you earlier that while the earth revolves around the sun, it moves along an oval track with a long diameter and a short one. When at the short one, the earth is more likely to be attracted by the sun because the distance between them gets reduced and gravity is directly related to the distance and mass. Who, then, orders it to increase its speed in order to produce a centrifugal force which counterbalances the force of attraction? "And on the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His Hand… " So, the earth gets grasped by His Hand in this life, which means He compels it.
 Dear brother, it is as if Allah the Almighty were drawing our attention to the fact that reflecting upon the creation of the earth is the way to know Allah and to estimate Him in a way that is due to Him, and when you do that, you will obey Allah to the best of your ability and you will be pleased by this obedience. Furthermore, pondering over the creation of the heavens and the earth which leads you to estimate Allah as is due to Him is better that one thousand months, or 80 years, of performing meaningless, merely nominal acts of worship.

Allah does not want us to get closer to Him by force:

 Actually, Allah the Almighty does not want us to get closer to Him under compulsion. Rather, He wants us to get closer to Him out of love for Him. Allah the Almighty says:

"He will love and they will love Him"

[Al-Maida, 54]

"But those who believe, love Allah more (than anything else)."

[Al-Baqarah, 165]

 Also, He says:

"There is no compulsion in religion"

[Al-Baqarah, 156]

 Allah does not want us to get closer to Him compelled. He says:

"There is no compulsion in religion"

[Al-Baqarah, 156]

 It does not show any flaw in His Ability:

"had Allah willed, He could have guided all mankind?"

[Ar-Ra'd, 31]

 On the contrary; Allah wants them to believe in Him willingly and of their own free will.

Allah assures you that all the matters return to Him:

 Dear brother, Allah the Almighty says:

"They have not estimated Allah His Rightful Estimate; Verily, Allah is All-Strong, All-Mighty."

[Al-Hajj, 77]

 Are you aware of His Might, O man? For example, the force of a tsunami equals that of 1 million atomic bombs:

"They have not estimated Allah His Rightful Estimate; Verily, Allah is All-Strong, All-Mighty."

[Al-Hajj, 77]

 There are many ayaat in which Allah the Almighty shows us that He has power over everything and that He is the Creator of everything.

"And to Him return all affairs (for decision). So worship Him (O Muhammad) and put your trust in Him."

[Hud, 123]

 Allah orders you to worship Him only after He has assured you that all the matters return to Him. This is what we call tawheed (oneness of Allah); as the saying goes: "The servants of Allah have not learnt anything better that tawheed."

"So invoke not with Allah another ilah (god) lest you be among those who receive punishment."

[As-Shu'ara, 213]

Worship through reflection:

 I will mention to you some of the Islamic texts (some of the noble ayaat and ahadith) which insist on reflecting upon the creation of the heavens and the earth in order to estimate Allah as is His due, to obey Him, to get closer to Him, and to make the month of fasting a means to get to know Allah, the One, the Judge.

((Contemplating for an hour is better than praying the entire night.))

[Shu'ab Al-Iman]

 This means that contemplating for an hour in which you increase your knowledge of Allah, glorify Allah more, fear Him more, and get closer to Him, is better that praying for an hour.
Also, Ath-Thaqafi, a great scholar, said: "Contemplating for an hour is better than praying a whole year". Actually, we would be justified in saying that there is an act of worship which could be called worship through reflection. Anas ibn Malik said:
 "Reflecting for an hour on the alternation of the night and the day is better that worshiping Allah for a thousand years."

"And among His Signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth,"

[Ar-Rum, 22]

"And from among His Signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon."

[Fussilat, 37]

"And among His Signs is this, that He created for you wives from among yourselves, that you may find repose in them, and He has put between you affection and mercy."

[Ar-Rum, 21]

 Ibn Abbas said: "Performing only two rak'ahs with reflection is better than praying the whole night while the heart is heedless."
Bishr said: "Had people really reflected upon the Greatness of Allah the Almighty, they would not have disobeyed Him."

Getting to know Allah is the essence of Islam:

 Actually, on the Night of Al-Qadr we hope that we can get to know Allah because it is the essence of Islam, to estimate Him as is His due, to glorify Allah, to increase our submissiveness in salah, to worship Him more, to get closer to Him, to taste the sweetness of being close to Him and to be pleased by getting closer to Him, as it was said: "Indeed there is a paradise in this world; whoever doesn't enter it will not enter the Paradise of the Hereafter." Allah the Almighty says:

"And admit them to Paradise which He has made known to them (i.e. they will know their places in Paradise more than they used to know their houses in the world)."

[Muhammad, 6]

 The above means they have found out its taste. So, by Allah, apart from Whom there is no other god, I am not exaggerating when I say that unless you savor the taste of getting closer to Allah in this earthly life, you will not be able to worship Him as He should be worshipped. Furthermore, fasting has been ordained as a means of getting closer to Allah, the One, the Judge; a means of getting to know Him and to love Him, as it would be an incredibly strange thing to know Him and not to love Him; and it would be equally strange to love Him and not to obey Him. As the poet said:

You disobey the Lord while you claim to love Him!
Such is indeed a strange claim!
If your love were true, you would obey Him.
Verily, he who loves someone, does obey him.
***

 Verily, had people reflected upon the Greatness of Allah, they would not have disobeyed Him.

Part of the excellence of one's Islam is reflection:

 Actually, part of the excellence and perfection of one's Islam is reflecting upon the creation of the heavens and the earth and upon what will happen at the hour of death and afterwards. Such reflection will prevent one from disobeying Allah the Almighty. Therefore, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: "Woe to the one who does not ponder over this ayah " –as if the following ayah were the focus of the Night of Al-Qadr:

"Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding. * Those who remember Allah (always, and in prayers) standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and think deeply about the creation of the heavens and the earth, (saying): "Our Lord! You have not created (all) this without purpose, glory to You! (Exalted be You above all that they associate with You as partners). Give us salvation from the torment of the Fire."

(Al-Imran, 190-191)

Tranquility granted by Allah suffices to please the believer:

 Dear brother, the Night of Al-Qadr should stimulate us to increase our knowledge of Allah, to increase our acts of obedience, to increase our piety and to try hard to get closer to Him. So, when an act of worship is as Allah wants it to be, it will bring about love for Allah, happiness, peace of mind, balance (between physical desires and spiritual needs), wisdom and proximity to Allah. It has been transmitted:
 ((O son of Adam! Seek Me and you will find Me, and when you do, you will find everything else; and if you miss Me, you will miss everything else)).

[Tafseer Ibn Katheer]

(("Whoever concerns himself with the Hereafter, Allah will instill richness into his heart (content and optimism), and will reunite him (with whom he loves), and the world will be compelling to him (will lead a happy life on account of being hopeful); and whoever concerns himself with the worldly life, Allah will instill poverty into his heart (will be constantly afraid of poverty, will be pessimistic) and will make him disunited (from whom he loves), and will not get from this life except what has been ordained for him*)).

(At-Tirmidhi]

 I ask Allah the Almighty that the Night of Al-Qadr should prompt us to increase our knowledge of Allah, to increase our piety, to worship Allah to the best of our ability, to do our best to get closer to Him, to turn to Him more, to love Him more and to be more pleased by the proximity with Him, because when Allah the Almighty grants the believer tranquility, he will be pleased with it even if he loses everything (else), while he will be miserable when he loses it even if he has everything (else). Hence, the aim of the Night of Al-Qadr is to estimate Allah as is His due and to be pleased by being closer to Him.
 Our next lesson will bring us together again, insha-Allah.