The Hearts Joy in
Remembering Laylat al-Qadr : New,
*[A5] Paperback - pages,
Sharh al-Sadr by Wali al-Din ibn al-Iraqi [d.1423h],
A Critical Edition with
Annotated Transl. by Yousef Wahb,
Published by Yaqeen Institute.
Description :
The Hearts Joy in Remembering Laylat al-Qadr - 'On the Timing and Virtues of the Night or Power.' Sharh al-Sadr is a concise and clear summary of the virtues, events, and timing of Laylat al-Qadr. It methodically presents 27 scholarly opinions on its timing, supporting each viewpoint with evidence from Prophetic reports.
This book begins by exploring the tafsir of the chapter (surah) of al-Qadr, reflecting on the origin of the name of Laylat al-Qadr, its virtues, and events. It then delves into frequently asked questions regarding its timing by comprehensively narrating majority and minority scholarly opinions and providing proof for each opinion from Prophetic reports. The book presents a total of 27 opinions on the timing of Laylat al-Qadr. These opinions may be categorised as follows :
*** [1] The occurrence of Laylat al-Qadr has been abrogated (one opinion);
*** [2] The timing of Laylat al-Qadr is entirely hidden (one opinion);
*** [3] Laylat al-Qadr is a fixed night every year (23 opinions); and
*** [4] Laylat al-Qadr shifts from year to year (two opinions).
The number of opinions on the timing of Laylat al-Qadr even exceeds what Ibn al-ʿIraqi listed in this book. Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalani, for instance, reported 46 opinions in his commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari. The disagreement is likely semantic, as most opinions agree that its exact time is not definitively known.
The varied opinions prompt reflection on the wisdom of keeping the exact timing of this night unknown to us. The apparently conflicting reports from the Prophet ﷺ, his Companions, and their Successors demonstrate that the purpose of this ambiguity is to encourage Muslims to exert their utmost effort in worship. This wisdom is applicable to most opinions, whether they posit that Laylat al-Qadr may occur on any night of the year or any night during the entire month of Ramadan, on one of its last ten nights, or one of the odd nights among the last ten. After listing the 46 opinions, Ibn Ḥajar commented, “All of these opinions which we reported, from the third one onwards, agree on the possible occurrence of Laylat al-Qadr and on encouraging seeking it.”
He then added, “These are all that I could gather from the reported opinions [on Laylat al-Qadr]. Some of them can be amalgamated with others, even if they seem different.”
Ibn al-ʿIraqi’s book concludes with a reflection on Allah’s wisdom in concealing the exact timing of Laylat al-Qadr, along with a summary of its signs, as reported in several hadiths of the Prophet ﷺ.
Ibn al-Iraqi :
The author of this text, he is Wali al-Din Abu Zurʿah Ahmad ibn ʿAbd al-Rahim ibn al-Husayn ibn al-ʿIraqi, rahimahullah. He was born in Egypt in 762/1361. His father is the famous hadith scholar and Shafiʿi jurist al-Hafiẓ Zayn al-Din Abu al-Fadl ʿAbd al-Rahim al-ʿIraqi (d. 806/1403); hence, Ahmad was known as “Ibn al-ʿIraqi.”
After moving with his father to Damascus to study, Ibn al-ʿIraqi returned to Egypt and became its Chief Judge. However, as he refused to compromise his integrity or religion to comply with the authorities, he was removed from judicial office within a year. Ibn al-ʿIraqi authored several works on hadith, Islamic law, and Qur’anic exegesis (tafsir). He passed away in Cairo in 826/1423.
Also see Ramadan.
*Dimensions : 20 x 13cm (approx).
