Happy Muslim Mama: Shaban and Lailut-ul Bara’ah

Depending on which mosque you follow the night of Lailut-ul Bara’ah is either Thursday or Friday night, so we are halfway through Shaban and approaching Ramadan.When we were little my parents used to get us to sit up and pray for as long as we could and mum and some of her neighbours always used to send food all of their friends and neighbours. One year we were in Pakistan during Lailut-ul Bara’ah, where it is called Shab-e-bara’ah or Shabrat and there were lights, candles and fireworks.As an adult I wasn’t too sure why we did this (although Mum said that it was because this was the night that Allah (SWT) sent down the orders for births, deaths and livelihoods for the year). My husband always pointed out that he didn’t see why people didn’t bother to pray their fard (obligatory) prayers all year and then spent the whole of this night in worship – I always think something is better than nothing, but I see his point. So I decided to do some research and I was pleased to read about the benefits for those who fast during the day and pray during the night.

Ummul Mu’mineen `Aishah (RA), says, “Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), would sometimes begin to fast continuously until we thought he would not stop fasting, and sometimes he used to stop fasting until we thought he would never fast. I never saw the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) fasting a complete month, except the month of Ramadan, and I have never seen him fasting in a month more frequently than he did in Sha`ban.”

It is narrated that Ummul-Mu’mineen `A’ishah (RA) reported Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said “Surely Allah, the Possessor of Blessings, the Exalted, descends to the lowest heaven on the night of mid-Sha`ban, and forgives more [people] than the hairs on the sheep of [the tribe of] Kalb.” [Tirmidhi, Ahmad, Ibn Majah and others].

Sunni Sister has a wonderful article in her archives called Sha’ban & Ramadan Readiness with some interesting thoughts and reminders.

Al-Balagh has an excellent in-depth page on the do’s and don’ts of Shaban by Mufti Taqi Usmani.

Article at the Zaytuna Institute Website byMona Elzankaly called The Night of the Fifteenth of Sha’baan (Nisf Sha’baan)