Written transcript of the lecture
The Meshkat-e Noor teachings series🌼🔆🌼The Heart of God’s Chosen One Is Split Open🌼🔆🌼
🌹🔅☘️ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحيمِ ☘️🔅🌹
🔅🌹 “A Loving Passage Through Supplication 44 of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya” “The Secret of Laylat al-Qadr” “Fatima: The Embodiment of Laylat al-Qadr” “The Secret of the Heart of God’s Proof Being Split Open” “The Family of Praise to God” and more … Summary with supplement 1404.12.17 Ali Saei (Abdullah Meshkat) 110.141(903) 🌹🔅
✳️✅ ❇️ ✨💫🔆
❇️Fasting is a divine, prophetic grace
🔸Let us understand the worth and value of fasting in the blessed month of Ramadan.
🔸A prophetic grandeur is meant to emerge from every single believer!
🔸Fasting in the blessed month is a distinctive discipline and training in servitude, preparing us for something supremely lofty and wondrous.
💫🔆 قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ إِنَّ شَهْرَ رَمَضَانَ لَمْ يَفْرِضِ اللَّهُ صِيَامَهُ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنَ الْأُمَمِ قَبْلَنَا فَقُلْتُ لَهُ فَقَوْلُ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَ يا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيامُ كَما كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ قَالَ إِنَّمَا فَرَضَ اللَّهُ صِيَامَ شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ عَلَى الْأَنْبِيَاءِ دُونَ الْأُمَمِ فَفَضَّلَ بِهِ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةَ وَ جَعَلَ صِيَامَهُ فَرْضاً عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ص وَ عَلَى أُمَّتِهِ.[1]
💫🔆 Imam al-Sadiq (AS) said: I heard Abu Abdillah (AS) say, “God had not made fasting in the month of Ramadan obligatory for any of the communities before us.” The narrator says: I asked him, “What, then, is the meaning of God Almighty’s words: ‘O you who believe, fasting has been prescribed for you, just as it was prescribed for those before you’ (al-Baqara 2:183)?” He replied, “God had prescribed fasting in the month of Ramadan only for the prophets, not for their communities. Then He distinguished this community with this obligation and prescribed fasting for the Messenger of God (PBUH) and his community.”
❇️Ramadan is a month of human elevation
The blessed month of Ramadan is a month for refining and disciplining the soul, stripping it of its predatory and harmful traits and nurturing its noble qualities; it is a month for cultivating the soul’s heavenly nature.
❇️Welcoming the spring of the Quran through the Quran
Reconciliation with the Quran is a sign of reconciliation with God—with worship, obedience, ethics, spirituality, truthfulness and sincerity—and of remaining steadfast in them.
The Quran must always be enthroned in our hearts and souls.
❇️Tame a wild horse, and
a wild horse, once tamed, becomes a useful instrument.
When the lower self is tamed, it can generate a nuclear storm—a tremendous force held in check by the mighty reactor of a pure heart.
By governing and disciplining the soul, a person moves from coal-like pleasures to diamond-like ones.
The blessed month of Ramadan is a month of humility: of humbling the lower self, taming it and bringing it to serenity.
The blessed month of Ramadan is a month for cultivating and training ourselves in transcendent humility and reverence.
❇️Strengthen your capacity to experience the month
Assessing our readiness to enter the blessed month is essential if we are to be present in its sacred heart.
We must learn the language and qualities of the blessed month.
Just as we mind our manners and conduct at human gatherings, in the banquet of God we must make a glorious occasion of it!
❇️The blessed month is a special journey in divine servitude
The blessed month is a journey of the soul to the beginning and end of creation.
The blessed month of Ramadan is a month of elevation, refinement, renewal, restoration, transformation, adornment and repair.
The blessed month of Ramadan is a month in which the constraints of time are broken, servitude is elevated, and the journey of spiritual wayfaring and human perfection is accelerated.
❇️The heart’s opening in the heart of the blessed month of Ramadan
The heart of “al-Rajul” is opened on the Night of Decree! From its opening, worlds are created, and knowledge and wisdom rain down!
Whatever God, the Cleaver, opens, He brings forth wonders!
The Originator of the heavens and the earth has opened every seed, bringing beauty, verdure, and marvels forth from within it!
He is the Cleaver of the dawn: when He opens the morning, He sends forth its distinctive manifestations of life and breathes new life into the world.
He opens the Muhammadan Light, bringing forth from within it the Lights of Ali and Fatima; His opening gives rise to the arts and technologies of the Best of Creators.
💫🌹 An example of the wonders wrought by opening and blooming
❇️When the Light of Ali is opened, its blossom becomes the Throne and the Footstool
💫🔆… فَقَالَ لِي اعْلَمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى خَلَقَنِي وَ خَلَقَ عَلِيّاً مِنْ نُورِ عَظَمَتِهِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ الْخَلْقَ بِأَلْفَيْ عَامٍ إِذْ لَا تَقْدِيسَ وَ لَا تَسْبِيحَ فَفَتَقَ نُورِي فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَ الْأَرْضَ وَ أَنَا وَ اللَّهِ أَجَلُّ مِنَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَ الْأَرْضِ وَ فَتَقَ نُورَ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ ع فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ الْعَرْشَ وَ الْكُرْسِيَّ وَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ أَبِي طَالِبٍ أَفْضَلُ مِنَ الْعَرْشِ وَ الْكُرْسِيِّ وَ فَتَقَ نُورَ الْحَسَنِ فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ اللَّوْحَ وَ الْقَلَمَ وَ الْحَسَنُ أَفْضَلُ مِنَ اللَّوْحِ وَ الْقَلَمِ وَ فَتَقَ نُورَ الْحُسَيْنِ فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ الْجِنَانَ وَ الْحُورَ الْعِينَ وَ الْحُسَيْنُ وَ اللَّهِ أَجَلُّ مِنَ الْجِنَانِ وَ الْحُورِ الْعِين[2]
💫🔆… Then he said to me: “Know that God Most High created me and Ali from the light of His Majesty two thousand years before He created creation, at a time when there was neither sanctification nor glorification. Then an opening appeared in my light, from which He created the heavens and the earth; and, by God, I am nobler than the heavens and the earth. An opening appeared in the light of Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), from which He created the Throne and the Footstool; and Ali ibn Abi Talib is greater than the Throne and the Footstool. An opening appeared in the light of Hasan, from which He created the Tablet and the Pen; and Hasan is greater than the Tablet and the Pen. An opening appeared in the light of Husayn, from which He created the gardens of Paradise and the houris; and, by God, Husayn is nobler than the gardens of Paradise and the houris.”
❇️The art of opening and the technology of dawn
💫🔆 رَوَى أَنَسُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ قَالَ صَلَّى بِنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ص فِي بَعْضِ الْأَيَّامِ صَلَاةَ الْفَجْرِ ثُمَّ أَقْبَلَ عَلَيْنَا بِوَجْهِهِ الْكَرِيمِ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنْ رَأَيْتَ أَنْ تُفَسِّرَ لَنَا قَوْلَهُ تَعَالَى فَأُولئِكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَ الصِّدِّيقِينَ وَ الشُّهَداءِ وَ الصَّالِحِينَ وَ حَسُنَ أُولئِكَ رَفِيقاً فَقَالَ ص أَمَّا النَّبِيُّونَ فَأَنَا وَ أَمَّا الصِّدِّيقُونَ فَأَخِي عَلِيٌّ وَ أَمَّا الشُّهَدَاءُ فَعَمِّي حَمْزَةُ وَ أَمَّا الصَّالِحُونَ فَابْنَتِي فَاطِمَةُ وَ أَوْلَادُهَا الْحَسَنُ وَ الْحُسَيْنُ قَالَ وَ كَانَ الْعَبَّاسُ حَاضِراً فَوَثَبَ وَ جَلَسَ بَيْنَ يَدَيْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ص وَ قَالَ أَ لَسْنَا أَنَا وَ أَنْتَ وَ عَلِيٌّ وَ فَاطِمَةُ وَ الْحَسَنُ وَ الْحُسَيْنُ مِنْ نَبْعَةٍ وَاحِدَةٍ قَالَ وَ مَا ذَاكَ يَا عَمِّ قَالَ لِأَنَّكَ تُعَرِّفُ بِعَلِيٍّ وَ فَاطِمَةَ وَ الْحَسَنِ وَ الْحُسَيْنِ دُونَنَا قَالَ فَتَبَسَّمَ النَّبِيُّ ص وَ قَالَ أَمَّا قَوْلُكَ يَا عَمِّ أَ لَسْنَا مِنْ نَبْعَةٍ وَاحِدَةٍ فَصَدَقْتَ وَ لَكِنْ يَا عَمِّ إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَلَقَنِي وَ خَلَقَ عَلِيّاً وَ فَاطِمَةَ وَ الْحَسَنَ وَ الْحُسَيْنَ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ اللَّهُ آدَمَ حِينَ لَا سَمَاءٌ مَبْنِيَّةٌ وَ لَا أَرْضٌ مَدْحِيَّةٌ وَ لَا ظُلْمَةٌ وَ لَا نُورٌ وَ لَا شَمْسٌ وَ لَا قَمَرٌ وَ لَا جَنَّةٌ وَ لَا نَارٌ فَقَالَ الْعَبَّاسُ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ بَدْأُ خَلْقِكُمْ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ يَا عَمِّ لَمَّا أَرَادَ اللَّهُ أَنْ يَخْلُقَنَا تَكَلَّمَ كَلِمَةً خَلَقَ مِنْهَا نُوراً ثُمَّ تَكَلَّمَ كَلِمَةً أُخْرَى فَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا رُوحاً ثُمَّ مَزَجَ النُّورَ بِالرُّوحِ فَخَلَقَنِي وَ خَلَقَ عَلِيّاً وَ فَاطِمَةَ وَ الْحَسَنَ وَ الْحُسَيْنَ فَكُنَّا نُسَبِّحُهُ حِينَ لَا تَسْبِيحَ وَ نُقَدِّسُهُ حِينَ لَا تَقْدِيسَ فَلَمَّا أَرَادَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى أَنْ يُنْشِئَ الصَّنْعَةَ فَتَقَ نُورِي فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ الْعَرْشَ فَالْعَرْشُ مِنْ نُورِي وَ نُورِي مِنْ نُورِ اللَّهِ وَ نُورِي أَفْضَلُ مِنَ الْعَرْشِ ثُمَّ فَتَقَ نُورَ أَخِي عَلِيٍّ فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ الْمَلَائِكَةَ فَالْمَلَائِكَةُ مِنْ نُورِ عَلِيٍّ وَ نُورُ عَلِيٍّ مِنْ نُورِ اللَّهِ وَ عَلِيٌّ أَفْضَلُ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ ثُمَّ فَتَقَ نُورَ ابْنَتِي فَاطِمَةَ فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَ الْأَرْضَ فَالسَّمَاوَاتُ وَ الْأَرْضُ مِنْ نُورِ ابْنَتِي فَاطِمَةَ وَ نُورُ ابْنَتِي فَاطِمَةَ مِنْ نُورِ اللَّهِ وَ ابْنَتِي فَاطِمَةُ أَفْضَلُ مِنَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَ الْأَرْضِ ثُمَّ فَتَقَ نُورَ وَلَدِي الْحَسَنِ وَ خَلَقَ مِنْهُ الشَّمْسَ وَ الْقَمَرَ فَالشَّمْسُ وَ الْقَمَرُ مِنْ نُورِ وَلَدِيَ الْحَسَنِ وَ نُورُ الْحَسَنِ مِنْ نُورِ اللَّهِ وَ الْحَسَنُ أَفْضَلُ مِنَ الشَّمْسِ وَ الْقَمَرِ ثُمَّ فَتَقَ نُورَ وَلَدِيَ الْحُسَيْنِ فَخَلَقَ مِنْهُ الْجَنَّةَ وَ الْحُورَ الْعِينَ فَالْجَنَّةُ وَ الْحُورُ الْعِينُ مِنْ نُورِ وَلَدِيَ الْحُسَيْنِ وَ نُورُ وَلَدِيَ الْحُسَيْنِ مِنْ نُورِ اللَّهِ وَ وَلَدِيَ الْحُسَيْنُ أَفْضَلُ مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ وَ الْحُورِ الْعِينِ ثُمَّ أَمَرَ اللَّهُ الظُّلُمَاتِ أَنْ تَمُرَّ عَلَى سَحَائِبِ الْقَطْرِ فَأَظْلَمَتِ السَّمَاوَاتُ عَلَى الْمَلَائِكَةِ فَضَجَّتِ الْمَلَائِكَةُ بِالتَّسْبِيحِ وَ التَّقْدِيسِ وَ قَالَتْ إِلَهَنَا وَ سَيِّدَنَا مُنْذُ خَلَقْتَنَا وَ عَرَّفْتَنَا هَذِهِ الْأَشْبَاحَ لَمْ نَرَ بُؤْساً فَبِحَقِّ هَذِهِ الْأَشْبَاحِ إِلَّا مَا كَشَفْتَ عَنَّا هَذِهِ الظُّلْمَةَ فَأَخْرَجَ اللَّهُ مِنْ نُورِ ابْنَتِي فَاطِمَةَ قَنَادِيلَ فَعَلَّقَهَا فِي بُطْنَانِ الْعَرْشِ فَأَزْهَرَتْ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَ الْأَرْضَ ثُمَّ أَشْرَقَتْ بِنُورِهَا فَلِأَجْلِ ذَلِكَ سُمِّيَتْ الزَّهْرَاءَ فَقَالَتِ الْمَلَائِكَةُ إِلَهَنَا وَ سَيِّدَنَا لِمَنْ هَذَا النُّورُ الزَّاهِرُ الَّذِي قَدْ أَشْرَقَتْ بِهِ السَّمَاوَاتُ وَ الْأَرْضُ فَأَوْحَى اللَّهُ إِلَيْهَا هَذَا نُورٌ اخْتَرَعْتُهُ مِنْ نُورِ جَلَالِي لِأَمَتِي فَاطِمَةَ ابْنَةِ حَبِيبِي وَ زَوْجَةِ وَلِيِّي وَ أَخِي نَبِيِّي وَ أَبِي حُجَجِي عَلَى عِبَادِي أُشْهِدُكُمْ مَلَائِكَتِي أَنِّي قَدْ جَعَلْتُ ثَوَابَ تَسْبِيحِكُمْ وَ تَقْدِيسكُمْ لِهَذِهِ الْمَرْأَةِ وَ شِيعَتِهَا وَ مُحِبِّيهَا إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ قَالَ فَلَمَّا سَمِعَ الْعَبَّاسُ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ص ذَلِكَ وَثَبَ قَائِماً وَ قَبَّلَ بَيْنَ عَيْنَيْ عَلِيٍّ ع وَ قَالَ وَ اللَّهِ يَا عَلِيُّ أَنْتَ الْحُجَّةُ الْبَالِغَةُ لِمَنْ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ وَ الْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ.[3]
💫🔆 Anas ibn Malik relates: One day, after the Messenger of God (PBUH) had prayed the dawn prayer with us, he turned to us with his noble face. I said to him, “O Messenger of God, would you explain to us the words of God Most High: ‘Those who obey God and the Messenger will be with those whom God has blessed: the prophets, the truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous. What excellent companions they are!’ (al-Nisa’ 4:69).” He replied, “As for the prophets, I am one of them. As for the truthful, that is my brother Ali. As for the martyrs, that is my uncle Hamza. And as for the righteous, they are my daughter Fatima and her sons Hasan and Husayn.”
The narrator said: Abbas was present. He rose, sat before the Messenger of God (PBUH), and said, “Are we not all— you, Ali, Fatima, Hasan, Husayn, and I—of one lineage?” He replied, “What do you mean, uncle?” Abbas said, “You have named Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn, but not us.” The Prophet (PBUH) smiled and said, “As for your saying, uncle, that we are of one lineage, you are right. But God created me, Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn before He created Adam, at a time when no heaven had been raised, no earth spread out, and there was no darkness or light, no sun or moon, no Paradise or Fire.”
Abbas said, “O Messenger of God, how did your creation begin?” He replied, “Uncle, when God willed to create us, He spoke a word and created a light from it. Then He spoke another word and created a spirit from it. He joined the light to the spirit and created me, Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn. We glorified Him when there was no glorification, and we declared Him holy when there was no sanctification.”
Then, when God Most High willed to bring creation into being, He split my light and created the Throne from it. Thus the Throne is of my light, and my light is from the light of God; my light is greater than the Throne. Then He split the light of my brother Ali and created the angels from it. Thus the angels are of Ali’s light, and Ali’s light is from the light of God; Ali is greater than the angels. Then He split the light of my daughter Fatima and created the heavens and the earth from it. Thus the heavens and the earth are of my daughter Fatima’s light, and her light is from the light of God; my daughter Fatima is greater than the heavens and the earth. Then He split the light of my son Hasan and created the sun and the moon from it. Thus the sun and the moon are of my son Hasan’s light, and Hasan’s light is from the light of God; Hasan is greater than the sun and the moon. Then He split the light of my son Husayn and created Paradise and the houris from it. Thus Paradise and the houris are of my son Husayn’s light, and his light is from the light of God; my son Husayn is greater than Paradise and the houris.
Then God commanded the darkness to pass over the rain clouds, and the heavens grew dark for the angels. The angels groaned in glorification and sanctification, saying, “Our God and our Lord, since You created us and made these forms of light known to us, we have known no hardship. By the right of these forms, we ask You to lift this darkness from us.” So God brought forth lamps from the light of my daughter Fatima and hung them behind the Throne. The heavens and the earth shone, and were then illuminated by that light. That is why she was called “Zahra.”
The angels said, “Our God and our Lord, to whom does this radiant light belong, by which the heavens and the earth have been illuminated?” God revealed to them: “This is a light I have fashioned from the light of My majesty and glory for My servant Fatima, the daughter of My beloved, the wife of My vicegerent, the brother of My Prophet, and the father of My proofs to My servants. My angels, I make you witnesses that I have granted the reward for your glorification and sanctification, until the Day of Resurrection, to this woman, her Shi‘a, and those who love her.”
The narrator said: When Abbas heard this from the Messenger of God (PBUH), he rose, kissed Ali (AS) between the eyes, and said, “By God, Ali, you are a decisive proof for anyone who believes in God and the Last Day.”
❇️From the Splitting of Light to the Opening of the Heart
On the Night of Power, the heart of our Imam of the Age is opened, and written upon with the pen of light.
When the most beloved heart in the world is opened, the most wondrous blossoms of miracle bloom across the universe.
💫🔆عَنِ الْحَسَنِ بْنِ عَبَّاسِ بْنِ حَرِيشٍ أَنَّهُ عَرَضَهُ عَلَى أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ ع فَأَقَرَّ بِهِ قَالَ فَقَالَ أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع إِنَّ الْقَلْبَ الَّذِي يُعَايِنُ مَا يَنْزِلُ فِي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ لَعَظِيمُ الشَّأْنِ قُلْتُ وَ كَيْفَ ذَاكَ يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ قَالَ لَيُشَقُّ وَ اللَّهِ بَطْنُ ذَلِكَ الرَّجُلِ ثُمَّ يُؤْخَذُ إِلَى قَلْبِهِ وَ يُكْتَبُ عَلَيْهِ بِمِدَادِ النُّورِ فَذَلِكَ جَمِيعُ الْعِلْمِ ثُمَ يَكُونُ الْقَلْبُ مُصْحَفاً لِلْبَصَرِ وَ يَكُونُ اللِّسَانُ مُتَرْجِماً لِلْأُذُنِ إِذَا أَرَادَ ذَلِكَ الرَّجُلُ عِلْمَ شَيْءٍ نَظَرَ بِبَصَرِهِ وَ قَلْبِهِ فَكَأَنَّهُ يَنْظُرُ فِي كِتَابٍ قُلْتُ لَهُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ وَ كَيْفَ الْعِلْمُ فِي غَيْرِهَا أَ يُشَقُّ الْقَلْبُ فِيهِ أَمْ لَا قَالَ لَا يُشَقُّ لَكِنَّ اللَّهَ يُلْهِمُ ذَلِكَ الرَّجُلَ بِالْقَذْفِ فِي الْقَلْبِ حَتَّى يُخَيَّلَ إِلَى الْأُذُنِ أَنَّهُ تَكَلَّمَ بِمَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ [مِنْ] عِلْمِهِ وَ اللَّهُ واسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ.[4]
💫🔆 Hasan ibn Abbas ibn Harish relates that he presented this account to Imam al-Baqir (peace be upon him), who confirmed it. The narrator said: Imam al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) then remarked, “By God, the heart that witnesses what is sent down on the Night of Decree is most noble and holds a lofty station.”
I asked, “How is that, Abu Abdillah?”
He replied, “By God, that man’s inner being is split open; then his heart is reached, and words are inscribed upon it with a pen of light. This is the whole of knowledge. The heart then becomes a written book for the eyes, and the tongue an interpreter for the ears. Whenever that man wishes to know something, he looks with his eyes and his heart, as though gazing into the pages of a book.”
After that, I asked him, “How does knowledge come outside this night? Is the heart split open then as well, or not?”
He replied, “It is not split open. Rather, God inspires that man by casting inspiration into his heart, so that it seems to the ear as though he has spoken of whatever knowledge God has willed for him. And God is all-encompassing, all-knowing.”
🔅🌼The Night of Decree is the manifestation of Fatimah al-Zahra, peace be upon her.🌼🔅
❇️أَمَّا اللَّيْلَةُ الْمُبَارَكَةُ فَهِيَ فَاطِمَةُ
💫🔆 عَنْ يَعْقُوبَ بْنِ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ قَالَ كُنْتُ عِنْدَ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ ع وَ قَدْ أَتَاهُ رَجُلٌ نَصْرَانِيٌّ وَ سَأَلَهُ عَنْ مَسَائِلَ مِنْهَا أَنْ قَالَ لَهُ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ أَصْلَحَكَ اللَّهُ قَالَ سَلْ فَقَالَ أَخْبِرْنِي عَنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي أُنْزِلَ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ ص وَ نَطَقَ بِهِ ثُمَّ وَصَفَهُ بِمَا وَصَفَهُ وَ أَنَّ لَهُ تَفْسِيراً ظَاهِراً وَ بَاطِناً فَقَوْلُهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَ حم وَ الْكِتابِ الْمُبِينِ إِنَّا أَنْزَلْناهُ فِي لَيْلَةٍ مُبارَكَةٍ إِنَّا كُنَّا مُنْذِرِينَ فِيها يُفْرَقُ كُلُّ أَمْرٍ حَكِيمٍ مَا تَفْسِيرُهَا فِي الْبَاطِنِ فَقَالَ أَمَّا حم فَمُحَمَّدٌ ص وَ هُوَ فِي كِتَابٍ هُوَ الَّذِي أُنْزِلَ عَلَيْهِ وَ هُوَ مَنْقُوصُ الْحُرُوفِ وَ أَمَّا الْكِتابِ الْمُبِينِ فَهُوَ أَمِيرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَ أَمَّا اللَّيْلَةُ الْمُبَارَكَةُ فَهِيَ فَاطِمَةُ وَ قَوْلُهُ فِيها يُفْرَقُ كُلُّ أَمْرٍ حَكِيمٍ يَقُولُ يَخْرُجُ فِيهَا خَيْرٌ كَثِيرٌ رَجُلٌ حَكِيمٌ وَ رَجُلٌ حَكِيمٌ.[5]
💫🔆 Ya‘qub ibn Ja‘far ibn Ibrahim relates: I was with Abu al-Hasan (Imam al-Rida), peace be upon him, when a Christian man came to him and asked him several questions. Among them, he said: “I have a question for you—may God set you right.” The Imam said, “Ask.” The man said, “Tell me about the Book of God, which was sent down to Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him and his family, and through which He spoke; then He described it as you have related, saying that it has an outward and an inward interpretation. What is the inward interpretation of God Almighty’s words: ‘Ha Mim. By the clear Book, We sent it down on a blessed night; indeed, We have always been warners. On that night every wise matter is distinguished’?”
The Imam replied: “As for ‘Ha Mim,’ it is Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him and his family, and he is in a Book sent down to him that is deficient in letters. As for ‘the clear Book,’ it is the Commander of the Faithful, Ali. As for ‘the blessed night,’ it is Fatimah. And His words, ‘On that night every wise matter is distinguished,’ mean that from her comes forth an abundance of good: one wise man and another wise man”—that is, the Imams, who are infallible.
🔸If Laylat al-Qadr were to take human form, it would appear in the beauty and person of Fatima al-Zahra, peace be upon her!
🔸This interpretation is enough to affirm the truth that eleven pure, divine stars shone forth from the blessed soul of Fatima al-Zahra, peace be upon her!
🔸The Infallibles, peace be upon them, are our models; we, too, must become embodiments of Laylat al-Qadr!
🔅🌼Laylat al-Qadr and the Era of Waiting🌼🔅
🔸The Era of Waiting is like Laylat al-Qadr: it continues until the dawn of the Reappearance!
🔸The Era of Waiting is a time of immense grace, preparing us to recognise the final Proof of God!
❇️Experiencing a Ramadan-like, Laylat al-Qadr-like life
🔸The blessed month is like a new life; each Ramadan is a whole lifetime, a stage in our spiritual growth. Whoever truly experiences Laylat al-Qadr has attained an exalted awareness of servitude to God.
❇️The heartbeat of the blessed month of Ramadan
🔸The pulse of devotion to God must reach its peak at the heart of this blessed month. We must attain the heights of feeling, love and knowledge, and let reason and noble character come alive within us.
💫🔆عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع قَالَ: إِنَّ عِدَّةَ الشُّهُورِ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ اثْنا عَشَرَ شَهْراً فِي كِتابِ اللَّهِ يَوْمَ خَلَقَ السَّماواتِ وَ الْأَرْضَ فَغُرَّةُ الشُّهُورِ شَهْرُ اللَّهِ عَزَّ ذِكْرُهُ وَ هُوَ شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ وَ قَلْبُ شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ وَ نَزَلَ الْقُرْآنُ فِي أَوَّلِ لَيْلَةٍ مِنْ شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ فَاسْتَقْبِلِ الشَّهْرَ بِالْقُرْآنِ.[6]
💫🔆Imam al-Sadiq, peace be upon him: “Indeed, in the Book of God, the number of months ordained by God is twelve, dating from the day He created the heavens and the earth. The month of Ramadan is the light and radiance of the months, and the heart of Ramadan is Laylat al-Qadr. The Quran was sent down on the first night of Ramadan, so welcome this month with the Quran.”
❇️The special Laylat al-Qadr awareness needed to experience Laylat al-Qadr
🔸An exalted awareness is needed to experience Laylat al-Qadr.
🔸We must come to experience directly and tangibly God’s blessings in every sphere.
💠 🌙 Subtle insights from Supplication 44 of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya
❇️The month of the epic of devotion
The month of clouds and rain, of God’s mercy; the month when sins are washed away, when evil, impurity and wrongdoing fall away like autumn leaves; the month of devotion to God, of reaching the heights and splendour of obedience and worship; the month of becoming truly Ramadan-like.
Ramadan is a special name belonging to the One without equal. Alongside the Greatest Name and the Most Exalted Name, it is a singular and exceptional name. Ramadan is among God’s most mysterious names, and can be rendered only through the purity of devotion to Him.
❇️The month of praising God and becoming one of those who praise Him
Kinship with the praise of God means becoming the highest manifestation and sign of the All-Beautiful and All-Glorious One, and joining the family of those who praise Him.
The pure and spiritually refined person is the most loving manifestation of praise for God.
The Imam of the Age, peace be upon him, is the embodied praise of God. Whoever holds fast to him joins the family of those who praise God.
❇️Healing of hearts
Ramadan is the month of healing hearts from inward ailments: a month of purification and of adorning the heart in full.
❇️Purity works miracles
The energy that comes from pure sustenance works miracles. Purity sets the faculties and celestial limbs in motion.
Heavenly limbs and organs function only on pure fuel.
Pure sustenance is necessary to cultivate the realm of one’s being.
Pure food—food that purifies both the bodily faculties and the inner self—is the vessel that carries the spirit and soul aloft.
Impure food destroys the heavenly realm within a person.
❇️Be a hypocrite before God
Seek to be seen only by God, and seek to be heard only by God.
Present yourself to your Lord; practise seeking to be seen by God.
Adorn yourself for your Lord.
✨🔆 الأعراف : 31 يا بَني آدَمَ خُذُوا زينَتَكُمْ عِنْدَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ وَ كُلُوا وَ اشْرَبُوا وَ لا تُسْرِفُوا إِنَّهُ لا يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفينَ
🔆 O children of Adam! Wear your adornment whenever you go to the mosque. Eat and drink, but do not be excessive: God does not love those who are excessive.
🌼Ali Saei (Abdullah Meshkat) 110.141(903)🌼
💫🌹The unique and exclusive place of Ramadan fasting
Referring to a narration from Imam al-Sadiq (AS), the text stresses that the fast of Ramadan, unlike other religious duties, was not observed by earlier communities. It was prescribed specifically for the prophets—not their communities—and later bestowed as a special honour upon the Muslim community and the Noble Prophet (PBUH). This points to the “prophetic grandeur” that must emerge within every believer. From this perspective, fasting is not merely abstaining from sin; it is a discipline that brings one close to the exalted station of prophethood and servitude to God.
💫🌹Ramadan: a month for disciplining and taming the self
Ramadan is a “month of human elevation.” The evocative metaphor of the “untamed horse” for the commanding self conveys that, if a person can bring their desires under control during this month, this dangerous force can become a “nuclear reactor,” generating immense spiritual energy. The ultimate aim is to transform material, coal-like pleasures into spiritual, diamond-like ones. This process calls for “reverent humility,” “humbleness,” and “yielding to God’s command”.
💫🌹The philosophy of “cleaving” and “daybreak” in existence and the heart
“Fāliq” (the cleaver)
From the cleaving of seeds so they may sprout, to the cleaving of dawn to bring light, and the cleaving of sacred lights (the light of Muhammad and the House of Muhammad) to create the universe
and to the cleaving of the heart of God’s intimate friend
On the Night of Decree, the heart of God’s proof, the Imam of the Age (may God hasten his return), is cleft open, and all knowledge is inscribed upon it with the ink of light. This “cleaving” marks the beginning of divine knowledge and wisdom unfolding in the world.
The radiance of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS):
The heavens, the earth, the Throne, the Footstool and Paradise were created from the light of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS), whose station is exalted above that of God’s finest creatures
💫🌹Laylat al-Qadr and its essence embodied in Lady Fatima (SA)
An esoteric interpretation of the verse “إِنَّا أَنْزَلْناهُ فِي لَيْلَةٍ مُبارَكَةٍ”.
According to a narration from Imam al-Rida (AS), the “blessed night” is interpreted as “Fatima al-Zahra (SA).” This view holds that Lady Fatima is the living, human embodiment of Laylat al-Qadr. Since the eleven infallible Imams are her descendants, this also points to her sacred being as the source from which wisdom and Imamate manifest.
💫🌹Prayer 44: “The Month of the Epic of Devotion” and “The Healing of Hearts”
✨The Family of Divine Praise: By embodying divine virtues and holding fast to the wilayah, a person becomes a member of the family that praises God.
✨The Effect of Lawful Food: It is emphasised that the human being’s heavenly faculties and limbs run on the fuel of “lawful food.” Pure food is the fuel for the vessel that carries the soul on its ascent, while unlawful food lays waste to the realm of the human being’s inner, heavenly nature.
✨Being a Hypocrite for God: A striking ethical insight is the call to “show off for God”—that is, to adorn one’s outer and inner self for God and seek only His approval, not people’s.
✨Conclusion
This text invites us to enter Ramadan deeply—not merely by abstaining from food and drink, but by preparing the heart to be “cleft open” and receive the rain of knowledge. At the heart of this vision is the direct bond between a believer’s devotion and the wilayah of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS), along with the effort to embody divine attributes, in the hope of glimpsing something of the blessings of Laylat al-Qadr.
🌹🔆 A Golden Supplement and Wise Elaboration: From the Heart’s Opening to the Blossoming of Being 🔆🌹
💠 🌸The Wise Philosophy of “Opening”: From the Big Bang to the Explosion of Light
In divine wisdom, creation requires “fatq” (cleaving open). Just as the universe began with the splitting of an initial point—the Big Bang—the world of meaning and the inner realm begin with the lifting of veils, both dark and luminous.
💫The Opening of the Self: The Ramadan fast “cleaves open the shell of the self.” In this month, a person breaks through the hard shell of their habits, pride, and love of the world, allowing the luminous core of their primordial nature to emerge.
💫The Opening of the Heart: The heart of God’s chosen servant is opened on the Night of Power, so that the “ink of light” may flow into it. This truth shows that true knowledge, unlike academic learning, which is accumulated from outside, unfolds and springs forth from within the heart. Through spiritual discipline and prayer, the true believer must also open the fissures in the heart so that divine light may enter.
💠 🌸Ramadan: A Workshop for Divine “Becoming”
Ramadan is not merely a month of “giving things up”; it is a month of “change” and “transformation.” In Islamic wisdom, a person must attain “becoming”—that is, transform from a merely material being into a being of the heavenly realm.
💫Changing the Fuel: As noted, the faculties of the heavenly realm run on pure fuel. Fasting changes the body’s fuel from “material things” to “spiritual things.” When hunger weakens the body, it redirects desire away from the “earth” and towards awareness of the presence of “God”.
💫Positive “Showing Off” (Divine Watchfulness): The phrase “be a hypocrite for God,” used in the text, expresses a mystical truth: a person should see themselves as always in God’s presence. In mystical terminology, this station is called “presence.” A person should “adorn” themselves for God—not merely with clothing, but with the garb of piety, virtue, and humility. This inner beauty is what endears the servant to God.
💠 🌸Lady Fatima (SA): An Exemplar of “Being Laylat al-Qadr”
If the Night of Power is where the decrees for the coming year are manifested, Lady Fatima al-Zahra (SA) is where eternal destiny and wilayah are manifested.
💫Wisdom born in silence: Laylat al-Qadr is a night of silence and seclusion, yet its fruit is the Qur’an and guidance. Lady Fatima (SA), too, lived in noble silence, wise brilliance, modest veiling, and radiant purity; the light of her being became a source of civilisation and guidance.
💫The believer as a living model: A believer should be a “walking Qur’anic manuscript.” As a tradition tells us, the heart of God’s chosen servant is a book read with the eyes. The believer shaped by Ramadan should be so pure and polished that, when people look at them, they read God’s verses in their conduct and way of life—not merely hear them recite the Qur’an.
💠 🌸 The age of ظهور: practising Laylat al-Qadr throughout the year
The age of occultation and expectation is, in truth, a continuation of the spirit of Laylat al-Qadr.
💫Breaking through the ceiling of time: On Laylat al-Qadr, the ceiling of time splits open, and the future and a person’s destiny are transformed. In the age of ظهور, too, the believer who awaits must break through the limits of the material world and live with a heart connected to the Imam of the Age (AJ).
💫Preparing the soldiers of the Mahdi: Fasting and worship in Ramadan are spiritual military training for the Mahdi’s army. A soldier who hopes to fight at the side of God’s Proof (AJ) must have fully tamed the unruly steed of the ego during this month, so that on the field of ظهور they may become an effective instrument for establishing divine justice.
💠 🌸 In harmony with Supplication 44
Supplication 44 is a plea to God for “purification” and “refinement”.
The Supplication of Abu Hamza expresses “humility” and “love”.
These two stations are two wings for the flight towards God: God-consciousness (taqwa) and love. Ramadan is the season in which both wings grow together within the one who fasts.
🌿 A wise conclusion:
Ramadan is an opportunity for a person to move from potentiality to actuality. The breaking open brought about by fasting is the breaking through of fleeting desires, allowing the everlasting blossoms of knowledge to bloom in the heart. Let us, in this month, through our “kinship with praise,” shape ourselves into a full reflection of the divine attributes, so that perhaps on Laylat al-Qadr a share of the “ink of light” may be inscribed upon the tablet of our hearts.
🌼 و آخر دعوانا أن الحمد لله رب العالمین 🌼
[1] Man lā yaḥḍuruhu al-faqīh; vol. 2, p. 99 Ibn Bābawayh, Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī, Islamic Publications Office affiliated with the Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom, Qom, second edition, 1413 AH.
[2] Al-Faḍāʾil (by Ibn Shādhān al-Qummī); p. 129 Ibn Shādhān Qummī, Raḍī, Qom, second edition, 1363 SH.
[3] Taʾwīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhirah fī faḍāʾil al-ʿitrah al-ṭāhirah; p. 143 Astarābādī, ʿAlī, Islamic Publishing Institute, Iran, Qom, first edition, 1409 AH.
[4] Baṣāʾir al-darajāt fī faḍāʾil Āl Muḥammad ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhim; vol. 1, p. 223 Ṣaffār, Muḥammad ibn Ḥasan, Ayatollah Marʿashī Najafī Library, Iran, Qom, second edition, 1404 AH.
[5] Taʾwīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhirah fī faḍāʾil al-ʿitrah al-ṭāhirah; p. 555 Astarābādī, ʿAlī, Islamic Publishing Institute, Iran, Qom, first edition, 1409 AH.
[6] Al-Kāfī (Islamic edition), vol. 4, p. 65 al-Kulaynī, Muḥammad ibn Yaʿqūb ibn Isḥāq, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, Tehran, fourth edition, 1407 AH.
