Ramadan, Day 22: The Cherry on Top

The last 10 days of Ramadan are the most blessed and cherished nights of pretty much the whole year.

We are bidding farewell to the most beautiful nights of the year and it really is overwhelming.

It’s a sad but beautiful farewell, beautiful because of Laylatul Kadr, which means the Night of Power. It’s an incredible gift Allah (which is Arabic for “God”) sends to Muslims in one of these 10 final days.

God has not mentioned exactly what day it is, but it is said that it is one of the odd-numbered nights like the 21st, 23rd, or 25th.

We believe this is the night Allah sent down the Quran to Prophet Mohamed through the angel Gabriel, and we celebrate this spiritually by praying and reciting the Quran all night.

It is the crowning glory of the Holy Month. Prayer on this night is better than a thousand months of prayer, and so millions of Muslims, in Egypt and elsewhere, fill the mosques and ask Allah for forgiveness.

In Islam, all a person’s deeds, good or bad, are written in his kitab, or book. If a person’s prayer is answered during Laylatul Kadr, his kitab is cleared of his sins and his pages are clean, like that of a newborn baby.

Anything you ask of Allah on this night is surely to be answered and the gates of heaven are opened wide.

And so I call to everyone reading this, whether Muslim or not, to keep Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan in their hearts and prayers.

There is just so much beauty in the Arab world that is overlooked. Even people here don’t see how spectacular our culture is, with its simultaneous intricateness and simplicity.

For the past two days, I have had only one concern – how do I slow down time for a just a few days? I want to savor every moment left in the next seven days of Ramadan.

I honestly have never at any point in my life felt so serene and I am so worried that it will slip away as soon as school starts.

So yes, while the world is busy making war “ending” speeches and “direct” Palestinian/Israeli peace talks and negotiations, I am busy trying to find myself.

Sounds un-Ramadanish? Actually it’s what it’s all about – renewing yourself to reach the best version of you to engage with the rest of the world for the next year.

Hopefully it shows on my college apps. Yes, I kinda quivered, too, just thinking about college now.

That’s whats up, till next time.