Al-'Ashr al-Awakher

Al-'Ashr al-Awakher
Jameh Mosque of Sanandaj during Ramadan
Official name	Al-'Ashr al-Awakher
Observed by	Muslims
Begins	Last ten days of Ramadan
Date	last ten days of Ramadan before Eid al-Fitr
Frequency	annual

Al-'Ashr al-Awakher (Arabic: العشر الأواخر meaning Last ten days of Ramadan) are the best for worship and good deeds. They begin on the twenty-first day of Ramadan and continue until the thirtieth day of Ramadan, or when the month is complete. During these ten days, Muslims seek the Night of Power, which holds a great place among them. Allah Almighty says:

The Night of Power is better than a thousand months.

(Al-Qadr: 3).

Importance

The last ten days of Ramadan were of special importance to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and his companions, and they had a special guidance for them. They would be extremely diligent in performing worship, prayer, remembrance and other good deeds during these days, just as the people of old used to organize it.

It is narrated in a hadith: Aisha said:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to work as hard and strive as he did in the last ten days of Ramadan.

Searching for the Night of Power

Seeking the Night of Power means working hard in worship and good deeds, so that it can be found during the odd nights of the last ten days of Ramadan.

It is narrated in the hadith: It was narrated from Aisha that The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

Search for the Night of Power in the odd nights of the last ten days of Ramadan.

Night Vigil

It is narrated in Sahih that Aisha narrates: When the last ten days of Ramadan began, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) would gird himself with courage, stay awake all night, and wake up his family.

Staying awake all night means spending most of it in prayer, remembrance and other acts of worship. Imam al-Nasa'i narrated from Aisha that I do not know that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) recited the entire Quran in one night, nor did he stay up all night until dawn, nor did he fast for a whole month, except Ramadan. This shows that the Prophet (ﷺ) usually spent most of the night in worship, and according to some narrations, he sometimes spent the whole night in worship.

Retreat

The worship that is specially arranged during the last ten days of Ramadan is I'tikaf. It was the Sunnah of the Prophet of Islam that he would continuously perform I'tikaf during the last ten days, until he passed away, as narrated by Aisha in the Sahihs.

During these blessed days, they would completely abstain from worldly pursuits in search of the Night of Power, spend their nights in worship, remembrance, and supplication, and would keep themselves in seclusion by covering themselves with a mat in a corner of the mosque, so that they could be completely absorbed in supplication to Allah Almighty and would not mingle with people, except for an essential need.

It is narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) performed I’tikaf for twenty days in the year he passed away.

Ibn Shihab az-Zuhri says: How surprising it is that the Muslims have abandoned I’tikaf, even though the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) never abandoned it from the time he came to Medina until his death.

See also

• Jumu'atul-Wida