Nisbah Magazine Nisbah, Winter 2013 | Page 60

people who are asking for things from him, listening to duas (supplication) and Insha’Allah accepting them. In a hadith narrated by Abu Huraira , Allah’s Apostle  said, “Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes down every night on the nearest Heaven to us, when the last third of the night remains, saying: “Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to his invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?” This is the main reason to wake up for tahajjud , to make long duas. Waking up for tahajjud also makes it easier for men not to miss fajr in congregation at the masjid (the mosque). The reward for praying the Fajr and Isha prayers in congregation is as if one has prayed for the whole night. Uthman bin `Affan  reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah  saying: “One who performs Isha prayer in congregation, is as if he has performed prayer for half of the night. And one who performs the Fajr prayer in congregation, is as if he has performed prayer the whole night.’’ (Muslim) Another thing we should keep in mind is that tahajjud should be prayed all year round. Many of us will pray tahajjud in Ramadan (the holy month), and that is good, but we should not restrict ourselves to only praying tahajjud in this month.   Allah’s Apostle  said, “Satan puts three knots at the back of the head of any of you, who is asleep. On every knot he reads and exhales the following words, ‘The night is long, so stay asleep.’ When one wakes up and remembers Allah  , one knot is undone; and when one performs ablution, the second knot is undone, and when one prays, the third knot is undone and one gets up energetic with a good heart in the morning; otherwise one gets up lazy and with a mischievous heart.” As well as benefitting our soul, tahajjud has many positive benefits on the body. You may think that waking early will make you tired for the rest of the