- Be of those who pile up their good deeds -

Be of those who pile up their good deeds

Among the reports that describe the virtues of this act of worship is the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (RA), in which the Prophet (SAW) said: "The best of prayers after the prescribed prayers is prayer in the depths of the night, and the best of fasting after the month of Ramadaan is fasting the month of Allaah, Muharram." (Muslim).

Qiyaam al-Layl expels forgetfulness from the heart, as is stated in the hadeeth narrated by 'Abd-Allaah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'Aas (RA), in which the Prophet (SAW) said: "Whoever recites ten aayaat in qiyaam will not be recorded as one of the forgetful. Whoever recites a hundred aayaat in qiyaam will be recorded as one of the devout, and whoever prays a thousand aayaat in qiyaam will be recorded as one of the muqantareen (those who pile up good deeds)." (Abu Dawood).

According to the hadeeth of 'Uqbah ibn 'Aamir (RA), the Prophet (SAW) said: "When a man from my ummah gets up to pray at night, striving against his own self to get up and purify himself, there are knots on him. When he washes his hands in wudoo', one knot is undone. When he washes his face, another knot is undone. When he wipes his head another knot is undone. When he washes his feet, another knot is undone. Then Allaah says to those who are veiled (in the Unseen): 'Look at this slave of Mine, he is striving against his own self and asking of Me. Whatever My slave asks of Me shall be his." (Ahmad).

'Amrah, the wife of Habeeb al-'Ajami, prayed qiyaam al-layl one night whilst her husband was asleep. When the time for suhoor came, and her husband was still asleep, she woke him up and said to him, "Get up, my master, for the night has gone, the day has come and ahead of you lies a long road with little provision, and a small group of righteous people who have gone before us, and we are still here."

A man said to Ibraaheem ibn Adham, "I cannot pray qiyaam al-layl, so tell me the cure for this." He said, "Do not commit sin during the day, and He will help you to stand before Him at night, for your standing before Him at night is one of the greatest honours, and the sinner does not deserve that honour."

Has not the time yet come for those who believe
that their hearts should be humble for the remembrance of Allah and what has come down of the truth?
[57:16]