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Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| asalkuur |
| 06/28/03 at 01:15:26 |
| salaam [saw] just wondering and would really appreciate some feedback especially if it has worked for you.. I know some of us wake up for fajar (and I mean ON time, not when you can see the light outside :)) while most of us just can't seem to do it...:-[ For those of you who are mashAllah receiving Allah's blessings during the best and most rewarding time of the day....can you advice your fellow brothers and sisters....?? *how did you break your habit of sleeping thru fajar? *what were your strongest/best techniques--spiritual, physical means (water splashed on your face by your mom :o) etc etc ? I know we all love Allah and know the benefits of Fajar time, but how is that YOU guys are so successful in overcoming the shaytaan and we are not?? ??? :( silly question? but it will make a world of difference if you share your techniques, morning thoughts, words of inspiration, something someone said/u read/u saw/ u felt one fine day maybe today or 15 years ago that motivated you so much that u have woken up for fajar every morning since then.....so what is it brothers and sisters?? ??? remember you will be greatly rewarded for sharing this and more so if it works for us weak :-[ ones out there looking for help! :-* jazakaAllah. asalkuur |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| a_Silver_Rose |
| 06/28/03 at 01:20:00 |
| [wlm] I understand how you feel. There was a time when I would put my alarm for fajr and although Its hard for me to wake up i would definately do it fo fajr though. but now I dont know what happened I keep my alarm but I just end up closing it so now Alhumdlilah my little sister wakes me up somtimes haveing to come 2 or three times to do that... |
| 06/28/03 at 01:21:12 |
| a_Silver_Rose |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| bhaloo |
| 06/28/03 at 01:31:46 |
| [slm] The technique that works best for me is to set my alarm clock on and put it about 15 feet away from the bed. That way I have to *FALL* out of bed, roll on the floor a bit, crawl a bit and push the alarm off button. That does the trick, and also the key is not to go back to bed otherwise you'll fall asleep and miss fajr. |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| faisalsb |
| 06/28/03 at 01:59:39 |
| [slm] Well my personal observation is that mostly the reasons of getting up late for fajr are physical instead of spirtual. Following might be the reasons which keep yourself in your bed. 1) Going to bed late at night due to watching t.v., chatting online, partying, studying etc 2) Stomach disorder due to having late dinner, having spicy or protein rich food at night, eating too much at night (Sometimes we do have stomach problem but we don't know) 3) Uncomfortable bed, noisy environment or sleeping in Airconditioned room I think if you solve the upper mentioned problems then you don't even need to setup time alarm to wake you up. You should be able to get up ontime without it. But yes it needs a great deal of planning and consistancy which is not possible all the time. On spirtual end you do need strong determination that you HAVE TO do that. You will fail many times but if you don't give up then ultimately Allah will help you .... Inshallah And if your determination is strong then even if all those problems exist still you would be able to make it ..... Inshallah May Allah guide us all to his path .... Ameen |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| sunset |
| 06/28/03 at 02:56:49 |
| [slm] 1. Get an alarm clock with very noisy ringing. If possible something similar to super woofer ringing. The ringing will be so annoying that if will wake you up instantly. 2. Do not put your clock near the bed or anywhere reachable. Bhaloo gave a very good example. With all that movements in order to get to the clock plus the super woofer alarm, I don't think you will still be as sleepy. 3. Never ever go back to bed once you have awaken. Even for a reason just lying down for a while. Finally a tip I learned from a scholar is before going to sleep, make dua to Allah Subhanahu Wataala to wake you up the next day on time for fajar. This method insha allah works but provided once you feel awaken (even you just slept 2-3 hours ago) do not go back to sleep. [wlm] :-) |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Leslie |
| 06/28/03 at 03:15:23 |
| [quote author=sunset link=board=madrasa;num=1056773726;start=0#4 date=06/28/03 at 02:56:49] 1. Get an alarm clock with very noisy ringing. If possible something similar to super woofer ringing. The ringing will be so annoying that if will wake you up instantly. [/quote] Assalamu alaikum, I actually own such a clock, but I can't use it, because I live with my non muslim family. My mom has, very rightly, criticised me for my lack of consideration of her needs the few times I have set it for fajr -- when it goes off, it wakes everyone in the house! My quieter alarm only succeeds in waking me occasionally, but somehow still manages to wake my mom, who sleeps a fair distance from my room. If anyone has any quieter suggestions for waking for fajr, could you please share them with me? wassalam |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| jannah |
| 06/28/03 at 03:29:55 |
| [slm] u know.. there's nothing like hearing the athan... maybe get one of those cool athan alaram clocks? and always get up as soon as u hear it.. in syria there was always 3 or 4 and if ur like .. oh i'll wait for the next one forget it :) but if u get up right away u'll be ok inshallah :) |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| muahmed |
| 06/28/03 at 04:15:54 |
| [slm] ;-) I wholeheartedly agree with Faisal Siddiqui that those habits need to be broken to wake up for fajr. Ofcourse you can find an "alarm" (mechanical or human) that would eventually wake u up no matter when you went to sleep and when you had your dinner but the best thing is to train yourself so that you get up even without an alarm. That is better because then you won't be sleepy during prayer. If a loud alarm wakes you up, you may still be sleepy in prayer, you might yawn or just not have as much attention in it. To do that one should have a regular sleeping time, and do what brother Faisal suggested and pray to Allah for help. |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| BroHanif |
| 06/28/03 at 15:51:35 |
| Salaams Hey if your in the Uk do as I do, stay awake! I don't sleep after Isha during summer time as the time is so short that I find it hard getting up for fajr. And when in winter keep the a cople of alrams, the mobile, the pda, alarm clock, hen have them going off at different intervals so even if you do fall asleep at least another one will get you up. Salaams Hanif |
| NS |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| sabri |
| 06/28/03 at 16:24:39 |
| [slm] Going to sleep early is important. When I wake up (sometimes my mom wakes me up, sometimes I wake up myself), I normally just turn on the light and after a few minutes I feel awake enough (the brightness of the light helps... halogen lamp works) to go take wudu and pray. [wlm] |
| 06/28/03 at 16:42:03 |
| sabri |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Nisa |
| 06/28/03 at 17:00:20 |
| [slm] Alhamdulillah..great suggestions posted by the bros and sisters so far :-* Personally...all the reward goes to my nani jaan (granny) who started waking me up, and after a few time, my body became used to it, and there were times where I used to get up before her and she'd be like mashaAllah ;D Keeping the alarm clock as far away as possible is the best way inshaAllah.....along with a pure intention....before sleeping as the ukthi before me said, you should have a sincere intention and wish to wake up for fajr, to wake up and pray and stand before your Lord....which is why they say Fajr is the toughest (along with Isha) to pray....for to some, the sacrifice is great (to disturb ones sleep), but for us alhamdulillah...how little a price we have to pay to earn rewards unimagineable! :) Here's a great article I'd like to share, long but well worth the read...pray it helps, Ameen: Why are we not able to wake up for Fajr? (and some helpful tips) Our Prophet (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam) is our exemplar who provided the best example in spending long hours of the night in prayer and waking in time for Fajr Prayer. This record was authentically known of him both in his teachings and his living example as he did not like sleeping before Ishaa [night] Prayer and discouraged his followers from useless talk after it. In this he was followed by his companions and all the muslims up to a time not very far from our own days. They knew the reasons which cause laziness and lessen motivation to observe prayers in time (be such prayers Fard [obligatory] or Nafla [optional]) and warned people against them so much that some of them ara reported to have said: "If you are unable to pray at night, then that is a clear sign that your sins have shackled you and deprived you of good deeds". Al-Hasan al-Basri was once asked: "Why is it that we cannot uphold prayers at night?" He answered: "You are shackled in your own sins". Motivation is presently lacking among muslims. Otherwise they would not have given in to sleep even if they had to stay awake in the first part of the night. When one of them is required by his work arrangements or for his own worldly benefit to wake early at dawn, he would no doubt take the necessary precaution not to miss his appointment. He will forsake his peace of mind and have a restless sleep just for fear he might be punished or have his salary reduced. When it comes to prayer, they have no excuse especially when in our modern times Allah has provided us with alarm clocks which would be set at any time we wish. The problem therefore, is one of laziness. Such people do not know what they are missing. The Prophet (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam) said with respect to those who do not observe Ishaa and Fajr prayers: "Had one of them known that he would find a wholesome meal or two good targets, he would have come for Ishaa prayer." All in all, for him who sincerely wants to purify his soul from the attributes of the hypocrites, let him steer clear of laziness, be active, put into practice the action inspiring instructions laid out in our religion, accustom himself to take the initiative and realise what he and everybody in his position are missing in terms of the health of the body and great reward from Allah. Only then will his performance improve, Allah willing, and he will make up for what he has missed and follow the lead of the best of generations. Allah, the Most High and Exalted, is the Provider of success and assistance. Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muhammed, his household and followers. Signed, Abdullah Ibn Abdur-Rahmaan al-Jibreen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Text ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Most surely all praise belongs to Allah, we praise Him and we seek His Aid and Forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allaah from the evils of our souls and from the evils of our actions. Whomsoever Allaah guides there is none to misguides and whomsever He misguides their is none to guide. I send prayers and blessing upon our leader Muhammed with the best of prayers and the most complete submission. To proceed: One of the ill-seeming phenomena and most serious precedents boding impending danger and punishment, giving reason to fear and calling for most urgent consideration on our part requiring immediate investigation into its causes and treatment of its symptoms is the fact that a growing number of observers of prayer deliberately shun Fajr prayer in congregation and only perform it at times other than its lawful time. It may be the case that this is due to their wasting away long hours at night engaged in idle and leisure pursuits. Our ancestors not very long ago used to make a point of going to bed early, to lock their doors after Ishaa prayer and to make their dinner light so as to be able to wake up for Fajr prayer in an energetic state. That is why they led a happy, peaceful and healthy life experiencing the real taste of life. The advent of modern civilisation spoiled both our religious observances and our worldly arrangements. As a result, we have fallen into laziness and inertia; our bodies grew fat and flabby; we move about less frequently whilst showing a greater readiness to sleep and a marked inability to perform the most trivial of manual actions. The present paper attempts therefore to suggest ways which may be of help in inducing us to wake up for Fajr Prayer; for instance: ONE: To make sure to go to bed early as the Prophet (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam)used to discourage sleep before performing Ishaa prayer and especially engaging in conversation after it. Certain cases were excepted, some of which are enumerated by Imam Nawawi in his explanation of Muslim's account. Nawawi, may Allaah have mercy upon him says: The reason why conversation after it is discouraged is the fear lest it leads to staying awake for long , which might induce drowsiness and difficulty with observing night prayers or Subh [dawn] prayer in their permitted, preferred or best times. The topics covered by this restriction are all fulfilling no good useful purpose. However, as to useful verbal activities, such as the pursuit of knowledge, listening to the wise tales of righteous people, talking to one's guest or bride, or members of one's family for the sake of company, interacting with travellers with a view to protect themselves and their goods, embarking on talks designed to conciliate between people or intercede before them in a good cause or to enjoin good and forbid evil and admonish people by pointing to a beneficial course of action to follow etc... there are no such restrictions. TWO: To be assiduous in observing the Aadaab [good mannersprescribed in Islam] as to what to do before sleep such as making Du'aa [supplication], bringing one's palms together, very mildly spitting into them and reciting the last three soorah's of the Qur'aan into them and them wiping them over one's face, head and body, being physically and religiously pure and performing a two rakah voluntary prayer after wudhoo [ablution]. A muslim has to ask his wife, parents, relatives or neighbours to help waking him up. Once waken up, he should not linger lazily for long in bed, lest he acquires the vices of the hypocrites who come to prayer showing ample signs of laziness and lack of enthusiasm. THREE: To fill one's heart with faith and good deeds. Once faith is alive in the heart, it induces the person to do good deeds and strive unremittingly hard. Faith is like a tree which only yields good fruit when irrigated from the streamlets of good deeds, thus bringing about an improvement both in personal conduct and at the interactional level with society at large. The lack of such streamlets or water supplies proportionately causes faith to wither and wilt. The heart is highly sensitive to external hardening stimuli, such as excess food or drink or aberrations in watching or listening (letting your eyes and ears loose to what is unlawful for them). You should therefore protect your heart from such external allurements. FOUR: To keep away from Ma'aasi [acts of disobedience to Allah] by protecting the eyes, the tongue, the hearing and all the senses from indulging in the perception of objects that Allah has made unlawful for us. As an alternative, one should concern himself with matters pertaining to the worship of Allaah, such as devoting one's sight to the reading of Allaah's Book, meditating over the creatures that Allaah has created in this universe, reading books of knowledge etc. One member of the rightly guided early generations was asked about the reason why people found it difficult to uphold voluntary prayers at night. He answered: "Your sins have shackled you". No doubt sins can be a major cause for a persons inability to enjoy the blessings of piety. As Imaam Ibn ul-Qayyim said, sins are wounds and some wounds can be fatal. FIVE: To bear in mind the great reward for attending Fajr prayer in congregation on time, and the strong rebuke for him to fails to observe it and to satisfy its conditions. Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan related: I heard Allah's Messenger (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam) say: "He who prays Ishaa in Jamaa'ah [congregation] is as if he has prayed for half the night . As to him who (also) prays Fajr in congregation, it is as if he has prayed all night." [narrated by Maalik and the wording is that of Muslim who also reported it] Similarly, Bukhaaaree and Muslim and An-Nasaaee related on the authority of Ibn Mas'ud (radiallaahu-anhu) that he said: The case of a man who slept all the night up to sunrise (without waking up for Fajr) was related to the Prophet ears". The urinating is literally true, as Imaam Qurtubi says, since Shaytaan urinates and has sexual intercourse and procreates in a manner that Allah alone knows (1). To ascertain for yourself the truth of this assertion, look at the faces of those who come to deal in their daily business without having prayed Fajr in congregation at due time; look at their faces at working hours. You will surely ask Allaah for refuge from a lot as miserable as theirs. But, after all what do you expect from a person in whose heart Shaytaan has urinated!!! SIX: To realise the bad effects resulting from one's failure to pray Fajr, such as the melancholic and depressive state of mind and the loss of many religious and worldly benefits, and the good effects resulting from managing to perform it. In this respect the Prophet (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam) said: "Shaytaan ties three knots on the crown of any one of you in your sleep. He says upon each knot that he ties: "You have a long night before you, therefore sleep". But if you wake up and mention Allah, Most Exalted in remembrance one knot will be untied. If you then make ablution another knot will be undone. If you then proceed to pray the last knot will be disentangled. Thus, you will feel in the morning energetic and in good spirits. Otherwise you will feel in a despicable state, lazy". [narrated by Maalik, Bukhaaree, Muslim and Abu Dawood] The time following Fajr prayer is full of goodness and blessings. At-Tirmidhee narrated upon the authority of Al Ghamdi that the Prophet (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam) said: "O Allah bless my Ummah in its early rising!" and whenever he dispatched an expedition or army he sent them early at the beginning of the day. Sakhr was a merchant who always sent his merchandise early in morning thus, becoming wealthy (3). That is why we find the craftsmen and traders are particular about making good use of this time. Those who sleep up to the late morning have denied themselves the blessings of this early hour. There are many benefits to the health derived from waking up for Fajr prayer. For instance, the highest proportion of ozone gas (O3) in the atmosphere is registered at dawn. It then gradually fades away until comlplete disappearance by sunrise. This gas has a very beneficial effect on the nervous system as it vivifies the brain and energises the muscles such that when a person inhales the beautiful breeze of the dawn, known as the SABAA wind, he will experience a pleasure that is unparalleled at any other time of the day or night (4). SEVEN: To lose no time to categorically clear yourself from the stigma of hypocrisy. Because of the difficulty of waking for this time, praying Fajr in congregation provides evidence that a person has firm faith and is free from hypocrisy. That is why in a hadeeth narrated by Bukhaaree and Muslim, the Prophet (sallallaahu-alaihi-wasallam) said: "Indeed, the most difficult of prayers to bear, for the hypocrites, are Ishaa [night] and Fajr prayers. If only they knew what they are missing , they would sooner come, even if crawling on their knees". The most worthy companion, Abdullaah and Ibn Mas'ood (radiallaahu-anhu) asserts "The onhy one indeed who misses them [i.e. Ishaa and Fajr prayers] is a confirmed hypocrite" (5). Ibn Umar (radiallaahu-anhu) said "When we find a man missing from the Ishaa and Fajr prayers we nurture suspicions about him" (6). If you want a criterion for evaluating a person's degree of faith and truthfulness monitor his observance of Fajr prayer. If he passes the test, that should be taken as a sign indicating the strength of his Eeman [belief, faith]. Let us then testify to his truthfulness since he managed to achieve the greatest victory over himself and to be superior to the pleasure of sleeping in bed. If he fails the test, this is an index to his weakness in faith, a hardness in his heart, an indulgence in self-gratification and a defeat against his own whims. How is it then that he who indulges in sleep and misses prayer should conceivably feel comfortable while people are delighting in the mosques in the company of the Qur'aan, listening raptuously to Allaah's message, and basking happily in His gardens. He who prefers the pleasures of the bed to the pleasure of the communion with Allaah is the real loser. These are a few suggestions to help you wake up for Fajr prayer. May Allah make them useful. Glory be to Allah, Most Exalted over any false attributions and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of all Beings. Written by an anonymous student of Islamic knowlege with an introduction by Sheik Abdullah Ibn Jibreen [wlm] :-) |
| 06/28/03 at 17:07:57 |
| Nisa |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Nomi |
| 06/28/03 at 17:03:09 |
| [slm] What bro Faisal said is the best way to go about it, i have also tried what sis sunset has recommended and it works alhamdolillah. [quote author=Madina Wrestler link=board=madrasa;num=1056773726;start=0#8 date=06/28/03 at 15:51:35] stay awake! I don't sleep after Isha during summer time as the time is so short that I find it hard getting up for fajr. Hanif[/quote] I was going through all the posts and was thinking of myself as the only weird person in here until i read the quoted part :P. I started this routine a month back i.e. i sleep after fajr, i know its unhealthy but this habbit of going to bed late is kinda in my blood now !!! Answer: i sleep after fajr jama'at Asim Zafar PS: bro hanif clam down, i dint call you a weird person :) and i wont be surprised if both of us look alike too :P |
| 06/29/03 at 04:06:47 |
| Nomi |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| samr |
| 06/28/03 at 19:02:34 |
| bsmlahh [slm] note:when u wake up u feel so tierd until u wash ur face right :) well some people say that it is the sayaten that bother u untill u wash u face then thay dont like u anymore. am nat sure it is just a thing that i heard. salam |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| faisalsb |
| 06/29/03 at 00:32:24 |
| [slm] Well brother Nomi I think there is big difference in not going to bed after Isha in England and having the same routine in Pakistan. Because if I am not wrong sun sets at 10:00 pm in England. On the other hand in Pakistan it's around 7:00 pm. I heard mostly muslims in England don't fast because the time span is so long. I don't know either it's true or false but no doubt days are very long in there. |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Nomi |
| 06/29/03 at 02:16:56 |
| Assalamo Alaikum [quote author=Faisal Siddique link=board=madrasa;num=1056773726;start=0#13 date=06/29/03 at 00:32:24] Well brother Nomi I think there is big difference in not going to bed after Isha in England and having the same routine in Pakistan. [/quote] Agreed bro, so it leaves only me.... w**** heh.. |
| NS |
| 06/29/03 at 02:22:26 |
| Nomi |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Nisa |
| 06/29/03 at 07:01:54 |
| [quote] I heard mostly muslims in England don't fast because the time span is so long. I don't know either it's true or false but no doubt days are very long in there.[/quote] [slm] Not true brother!!! The days are long in the summer months for sure...with isha being as late as 11pm at times and fajr starting at around 3 am.....however, this does not mean that when ramadhan comes in these summer months, that muslims here don't fast! Alhamdulillah...I have heard from people who fasted in these months (currently ramadhan occurs in the winter months) and they did express a certain amount of difficulty in performing them, but Allah swt gives strength. It's a fard and cannot be missed!! [wlm] :-) |
| 06/29/03 at 07:02:59 |
| Nisa |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| theOriginal |
| 06/29/03 at 12:12:05 |
| [slm] I tell everyone in my house...or when I'm alone, I tell my friends, that I'm going to WAKE THEM UP for Fajr.... That way it becomes like my duty to do that, and then if I don't do it, I would have the sin of not waking up and not waking others up and breaking a promise..... That's just the wrong way to start a day :) It usually works. Oh and alarm clocks scare me...so I tend to wake up like 2 seconds before it rings to turn it off....works every time, Alhumdulillah. |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| faisalsb |
| 06/30/03 at 00:44:49 |
| [slm] [quote]I have heard from people who fasted in these months (currently ramadhan occurs in the winter months)[/quote] Sister just wondering you have heard others fasting during those months what about yourself ??? ...........;) Just kidding .... and you don't need to reply since it's a kind a personal I know ...........:) |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Nisa |
| 06/30/03 at 06:36:32 |
| [slm] LOL brother, I don't mind replying :) When I was born, Ramadhan was in the summer months and since then as we know the Islamic calendar works slightly different and each year Ramdhan is 10 days earlier than it was the year before. Since I was born, Ramadhan has occured in the summer months, but I was too young to keep them....now that I'm old enough alhamdulillah, I pray that Allah swt blesses me with good health and life so that I can experience it too, Ameen! [wlm] :-) |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| wardah |
| 06/30/03 at 07:00:21 |
| [slm] [Taken from local masjid news letter] [u][i]Guidelines to Maintain Fajr Salaah[/i][/u] 1) Sleeping early. The Prophet (saw) used to dislike sleeping before 'isha' and talking afterwards. The Muslim should not sleep before salaat ul Isha because those who sleep before it will spend the rest of the night feeling so tired and heavy that it will be as if they are ill. He should avoid idle talk after Isha as it leads to people staying up late. 2) Making sure that one is clean and reciting adhkaar (prayers) before sleeping. This helps a person to get up for fajr. 3) Having a sincere intention and being determined, when going to sleep, that one will get up for fajr. A person who goes to sleep hoping that the alarm will not go off, and that no one will come and wake him up, will not - with such a corrupt intention - be able to get up to pray fajr, as long as he had this bad intention. 4) Remembering Allah as soon as one wakes up. This will loosen one of the Knots of shaytaan, and will motivate him to get up. As he perform wudhoo, his determination becomes stronger, and shaytaan is driven further away, and when he prays, his shaytaan is defeated, his balance (of good deeds)becomes heavier, and he will feel happy and energetic. 5) seeking help from one's family and friends to pray fajr, and encouraging one another in this regard. [i]'...Help you one another in al-birr and at-taqwa (virtue, righteouseness and piety)...' [Quran; 5:2][/i] [i]'By al-asr (time). Verily! Man is in loss, except those who believe and do righteous good deeds, and recommend one another to the truth and recommend one another to patience.' [Quran; 103: 1-3][/i] 6) The The Muslim should encourage his wife, and wake her to pray fajr, and she should encourage him, no matter how tired and exhausted he may be. Children should seek their father’s help to wake up. No father should say “They have exams, they are tired, let them sleep.” It is a mistake to think that by doing this one is being kind and merciful; true parental mercy means that the father wakes them up to worship Allaah. [i]“And enjoin al-salaah (the prayer) on your family, and be patient in offering them (the prayers)…”[/i] [20:132]. 7) Brothers in Islam can also help one another. eg, students living in the same residence or neighbours in the same neighbourhood can help one another by knocking on a neighbour’s door to wake him for prayer. 8] Praying to Allaah to help him to wake up to pray fajr in congregation. Du’aa’ is one of the greatest sources of strength and success in all things. 9) Using various means of being woken up, such as alarm clocks. These should be put in the most appropriate place. Some people put the alarm clock next to their head, and when it rings, they turn if off at once and go straight back to sleep. Such a person should put the clock a little further away, so that he can feel that it is really waking him up. 10) Throwing water in the face of the person who is sleeping. The Prophet (saw) praised the man who gets up at night to pray, and wakes his wife, and when she refuses to get up, he throws water in her face; and he praised the woman who gets up at night to pray, and wakes her husband, and when he refuses to get up, she throws water in his face. [Ahmad, Saheeh al-Jaami’]. Some people may become enraged when woken in this manner, and they may shout and swear and issue threats, so the person who is seeking to wake another should employ wisdom and patience, and remember that the pens are lifted from the record of one who is sleeping (i.e., his deeds are not being recorded while he is asleep) – so he should put up with any bad treatment, and not let this put him off trying to wake people up for prayer. 11) Not sleeping alone. The Prophet (saw) forbade any man to sleep alone. [Ahmad, Silsilah al-Saheehah] Perhaps the wisdom behind this prohibition is that a person could sleep too long if there is no-one to wake him up for prayer. 12) Being lively and active upon waking. One should get up straightaway, and not wake up in stages, as some people do, which usually ends in failure. 13) Not setting the alarm too early. If a person knows that there is still a long time to go until the time of the prayer, he may think, “I still have time, let me sleep a little more…” 14) Not staying up late, even to pray qiyaam al-layl. Some people may stay up late to pray qiyaam al-layl, then fall asleep a few minutes before fajr and be unable to wake up for the prayer. This happens a lot in Ramadaan – people stay up late and sleep a little while before fajr, so they miss the prayer. No doubt this is a grave error, because fard (obligatory) prayer should take precedence over nawaafil (supererogatory) prayer. So what about those who stay up late not to pray but to commit sin, or at best to do permissible things? The Shaytaan may make the idea of staying up late to discuss important matters attractive to some then they sleep late and miss the prayer, thus losing much more than they gained. 15) Not eating too much before going to sleep. Eating too much makes one sleep deeply. The one who eats a lot gets very tired, and sleeps a lot, thus losing a lot. 16) Praying qiyaam al-layl late in the night, just before fajr, so that when one finishes witr, the call for fajr prayer is given, making the worship continuous. The night prayer should be offered during the last third of the night – which is the preferred time – and immediately followed by the fajr prayer, whilst one is feeling awake and energetic. 17) Following the example of the Prophet (saw) in lying down to sleep. So a person should lie on his right side, placing his right cheek on his right hand. This position makes it easy to wake up. 18] Helping oneself by taking a nap during the day, because this will help a person by making him need less sleep at night. Not sleeping after ‘asr or maghrib, because this will make a person sleep late, and whoever sleeps late will find it difficult to wake up. 19) Finally, sincere devotion to Allaah is the best thing to motivate a person to get up for prayer, because Allaah is the One Who is controlling all means of help. If a person has that true sincerity and his heart is burning with devotion to Allaah, then Allaah will help him to get up to pray fajr in congregation, even if he goes to sleep only a few moments before fajr. This sincerity and devotion may cause some very enthusiastic people to find unusual ways to help themselves to wake up to pray, which is a sign of their eagerness and keenness. But the bitter truth is that weakness of faith and lack of sincerity are widespread among people nowadays, as we can see from the small numbers of people to be found praying in the mosques at fajr, despite the fact that there are so many people living around the mosques in many neighbourhoods. But no doubt there are people who sleep so heavily that it is almost like an illness, and they may be excused, because the matter is beyond their control. People in this situation should turn to Allaah for help, and do everything that they possibly can, and visit the doctor, to try to find a cure. by Shaykh Munajjid [www.islam-qa.com |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| sofia |
| 06/30/03 at 11:29:43 |
| As-salaamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullah, Lots of good advice & reminders posted here, jazaakum Allahu khair. Everyone's got their own tricks (my personal favorite: putting a loud alarm clock in the bathroom), which might work for some and not for others. The famous point by Hasan al-Basri (about how our sins shackle us from performing good deeds) is profoundly true. If a good deed is missed (let alone fard, like fajr or isha prayers, which are said to be the prayers most often missed/difficult for hypocrites), it's likely because of our wrong actions. And what's more sad than Allah not wanting to see us at His appointed time? Regular adhkaar (literally: rememberance; figuratively, means using the words the Prophet taught us to remember God and supplicate to Him. Includes istighfaar, which is asking God for forgivness) helps. [color=blue]Narrated 'Abdullah: I asked the Prophet "Which deed is the dearest to God?" He replied, "To offer the prayers at their earliest times." I asked, "What next?" He replied, "To be good and dutiful to your parents" I again asked, "What next?" He replied, 'To participate in Jihad in God's cause." 'Abdullah added, "I asked only that much and if I had asked more, the Prophet would have told me more." (Saheeh Bukhaari) [/color] Also, try to gain as much knowledge as you can about our pious predecessors, since they were at a whole different level to aspire towards. They were upset if they missed tahajjud, subhan'Allah. May Allah forgive us and help us all pray on time, aameen. |
| 06/30/03 at 11:35:06 |
| sofia |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Anonymous |
| 07/01/03 at 02:17:02 |
| I am a bit confused when people keep saying: put *the* alarm clock far away, use *an* alarm clock... Why only use one alarm clock? The more the merrier. I have four! And each has at least two alarms, and one has 3 alarms. That gives me 9 alarm systems. Count em -- NINE! Now I don't use all of them to wake up for Fajr -- I actually use only 4-7 (i.e. two or (rarely) three alarm clocks). But to make sure one wakes up -- one has gotta take the approriate precautions... My most recent alarm clock addition was an expensive CD player with digital tuning by Sony. This clock has three alarm clocks. I set the CD player to turn on at 4am, and it either plays the athan (from the opening track of Yusof Islam's Biography of the Prophet) or some surah like surah Ya Sin. I mean if you gotta wake up, you gotta wake up. Some muslims have this thing with waking up naturally -- and don't wanna use alarm clocks -- or only use one. Why? If I miss it, my whole day is flushed down the toilet. I can't focus or concentrate during the whole day...and who really wants (A) Shaytan to urinate in your ears....which is what happens if you miss it (and you wondered why some people are so smelly when the wake up!) (B) Shaytan ties something like three knots on the back of your head...or something like that....I mean I have enough trouble rebooting my brain in the morning after waking up. Who needs some dude hacker to mess up my operating system anymore. (c) One who misses a prayer and even prays Qada (late prayer) has lost the equivalent to all his wealth and his family. Maaaan that is pretty rough... Anyhow: Just get more alarm clocks, and don't skimp on em -- get ones which have multiple alarm clocks. In particular get a CD alarm clock which can wake you up with the athan. Also, its all good and well to say you shouldn't eat too much, you should sleep early, etc. But life is complicated, and things don't always work out to plan -- so the failsafe solution is more alarm clocks. |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| gift |
| 07/02/03 at 09:51:27 |
| [slm] I think I posted a question about this about a year ago, because I was dependent on my dad waking me up. Following some excellent suggestions on the board 8) what now works for me is a combination of bro bhaloo's assault course to get to the alarm clock to turn it off :P, and setting 2 alarms. i have this really excellent clock which lets you set an alarm so that it rings x-minutes before fajr everyday, and then a second one half an hour later. in summer it's pretty tough getting up in the uk with fajr at around 3am, but the reward is worth it. and like other people have said, when you do miss fajr the whole day just gets off on the wrong foot and goes down hill from there.... >:( [wlm] |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| Halima |
| 07/03/03 at 03:03:20 |
| I use an alarm clock which I switch off immediately it stars to make the noise. But I also switch on the Radio to Iqra FM an Islamic radio channel for Muslims in Nairobi. It is starts with Duas, prayers, the Adhan, first one and the second one for Salaat. Plus there are five Masjids around my house, one directly behind, three to the east and one to the west. Believe it or not, sometimes, I sleep through all these if I go back to bed which I sometimes do. The trick is never to go back to bed even if it is just lie down. When all is said and done, it is the WILL that counts. If you really want to pray the Fajr prayer, then you can and you will. Same goes for Isha prayer. [wlm] Halima |
| Re: kicking off shaytaan during fajar time! |
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| BrKhalid |
| 07/03/03 at 04:55:37 |
| Asalaamu Alaikum ;-) [quote]The trick is never to go back to bed even if it is just lie down.[/quote] Which is why its always useful to get someone to throw water over you when you do wake up ;) You'll soon learn to wake up earlier and start throwing your own water!! ;-) |
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