Fadail al-Siyam wa Qiyam Salat al-Tarawih
- Author died
- 1440 AH
- Editions
- Matba'at Safir
Fada'il al-Siyam wa Qiyam Salat al-Tarawih (The Virtues of Fasting and the Night Prayer of Tarawih, also titled Fada'il al-Siyam wa Qiyam Ramadan) is a short Islamic legal and devotional treatise authored by the Saudi scholar Saeed bin Ali bin Wahf al-Qahtani (d. 1440 AH / 2018 CE), completed on the evening of Thursday, 26 Jumada al-Ula 1427 AH. The work is designed as an accessible handbook explaining the definition, legal benefits, virtues, and specific rulings related to fasting (siyam) and the Ramadan night prayer (qiyam Ramadan / tarawih), drawing extensively upon proofs from the Quran and the Prophetic Sunnah.
Content and Structure
The book is arranged systematically into an introduction followed by four main thematic sections:
The Concept of Fasting
The author defines fasting linguistically as imsak (restraint), citing the Quranic verse regarding Mary: إِنِّي نَذَرْتُ لِلرَّحْمَنِ صَوْمًا ("Indeed, I have vowed to the Most Merciful a fast" [19:26]) and verses of poetry by the pre-Islamic poet al-Nabighah al-Dhubyani. He then surveys classical legal definitions from authorities including al-Jurjani, Ibn Qudamah, and Ibn Taymiyyah, adopting the preferred juristic definition as: "Worshipping Allah by refraining with intention from eating, drinking, and all invalidators, from the rise of true dawn to sunset, by a specific individual under specific conditions."
Virtues and Special Characteristics of Fasting
This section details twenty-four distinct virtues established in canonical texts, such as:
- Fasting is a shield (junnah) and a fortified fortress against the Hellfire.
- It restrains carnal desire (wijāʾ), serving as protection for unmarried youth.
- Fasting a single day for the sake of Allah distances the servant from the Fire by seventy years or the distance between heaven and earth.
- It is an unmatched deed recommended specifically by the Prophet ﷺ in the narration of Abu Umamah.
- Those who fast are granted exclusive entry into Paradise through the gate of al-Rayyan.
- Fasting expiates routine domestic sins and errors.
- The fasting servant is rewarded without measure, enjoys two moments of delight (at breaking the fast and upon meeting the Lord), and has mouth odor (khulūf) more beloved to Allah than musk.
- Fasting and the Quran intercede for the servant on the Day of Resurrection.
- It cleanses malice and rancor from the chest.
- The fasting person's supplication is not rejected until they break the fast.
- Enormous reward is promised for providing food to break the fast of others (taftīr al-sāʾimīn).
- Fasting serves as an ordained expiation (kaffārah) across numerous legal cases, including ransom for shaving during illness in Hajj, compensation for missing sacrificial offerings, unintentional manslaughter, broken oaths, hunting game in ihrām, and zihār.
Benefits, Advantages, and Wisdoms of Fasting
The author enumerates thirteen benefits and underlying wisdoms of fasting, including:
- Serving as a direct conduit to achieving piety (taqwa).
- Training the soul in gratitude for divine blessings (shukr al-niʿam).
- Subduing base urges and freeing the mind and heart for remembrance (dhikr) and spiritual reflection.
- Reminding the wealthy of their blessings and cultivating empathy and charity toward the poor.
- Constricting the blood vessels and thus narrowing the influence of Satan.
- Encompassing all three branches of patience (sabr): patience in obeying Allah, patience in abstaining from prohibitions, and patience over painful physical decrees like hunger and thirst.
- Physical and digestive health benefits through moderation in diet.
Virtues and Characteristics of the Month of Ramadan
This final division lists thirty virtues and historical merits of Ramadan, such as:
- The descent of the Quran and other divine scriptures (the Scrolls of Abraham, the Torah, and the Gospel).
- The opening of the gates of Paradise, heaven, and mercy, the closing of the gates of Hellfire, and the chaining of devils.
- The inclusion of the Night of Decree (Laylat al-Qadr), which is superior to a thousand months.
- Complete forgiveness of prior sins for those who fast and pray during its nights out of faith and anticipation of reward ( من قام رمضان إيمانًا واحتسابًا غفر له ما تقدم من ذنبه ).
- Performing the Tarawih prayer behind the imam until he departs, which is rewarded as spending the entire night in prayer.
- Historical military triumphs of Islam, such as the Battle of Badr (2 AH) and the Conquest of Mecca (8 AH).
- Performing Umrah in Ramadan, which equals the reward of Hajj with the Prophet ﷺ.
- Practices of spiritual retreat (iʿtikaf), increased generosity, and the recitation and study of the Quran during its nights.
Sources and Methodology
The work adheres to a traditional hadith-based methodology. Qahtani draws primary evidence from the collections of al-Bukhari, Muslim, the Sunan compilations of Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'i, and Ibn Majah, the Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal, and the Sahih works of Ibn Khuzaymah and Ibn Hibban.
To clarify terminology and extract legal rulings, he relies on classical commentaries, including Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani's Fath al-Bari, al-Nawawi's commentary on Sahih Muslim, al-Qurtubi's al-Mufhim, and Ibn al-Athir's al-Nihayah. He also incorporates contemporary juristic observations, frequently citing the verbal verifications of his teacher Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz recorded during lectures on Sahih al-Bukhari, alongside the evaluations of Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani and Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen.
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