Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

What are the first 10 days of fasting about? and then what are the 2nd set of 10 about? and what are teh last 10 days of fasting about?

i ask this because i recently found out that the last 10 days are of importance, and the previous 2 sets alos have meaning, i forgot the meainings, so could you list them for me?

Asslamaalakium

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Significance of the 3x10 days of Ramadhan

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

The Messenger of Allah declared in several authentic narrations that the blessed Month of Ramadan is the month of Allah’s Mercy, Forgiveness, and a month that saves from the Hell Fire. But there is no authentic narration from the Messenger of Allah (saws) whereby he specifically divided these qualities into three lots of ten days each! The whole month has been declared a blessed month by Allah and His Messenger (saws).

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 1962 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "Ramadan, a blessed month, has come to you during which Allah has made it obligatory for you to fast. In it the gates of Heaven are opened, the gates of al-Jahim are locked, and the rebellious Shayateen are chained. In it Allah has a night which is better than a thousand months. He who is deprived of its good has indeed suffered deprivation."

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 3.252 Narrated by Abu Salama bin Abdur Rahman

I asked Abu Said Al-Khudri, "Did you hear Allah's Messenger (saws) talking about the Night of Qadr?" He replied in the affirmative and said, "Once we were in Itikaf with Allah's Messenger (saws) in the middle ten days of (Ramadan) and we came out of it in the morning of the twentieth, and Allah's Messenger (saws) delivered a sermon on the 20th (of Ramadan) and said, 'I was informed (of the date) of the Night of Qadr (in my dream) but had forgotten it. So, look for it in the odd nights of the last ten nights of the month of Ramadan.’

The last ten nights of Ramadan hold a very special importance in Islam due to the fact that one of those blessed nights is the Night of Power or ‘Layla tul Qadr’, which Allah Subhanah has Decreed in the Glorious Quran to be better than a thousands months.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 97 Surah Qadr verses 1-3:

1 We have indeed revealed this (Message) in the Night of Power:

2 And what will explain to thee what the Night of Power is?

3 The Night of Power is better than a Thousand Months.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan