Why would the Prophet, with all the knowledge and the wisdom which he had with all the revelation which he received from Allah, say a specific dua in the greatest night of the whole year?
That night which is more valuable than a thousand months eighty-three years and four months…
The night that had you donate one dollar on is actually more valuable than donating thirty thousand dollars on any other regular night.
A night in which the book of guidance (the Quran) the food of our soul was revealed. The night in which peace and blessings and tranquility and mercy descends along with the angels to the first heaven.
The night in which Allah descends in a way that befits His majesty after one third of that night and He says:
I am The King! Who here has any du’a that I may accept? Who here has any need that I may fulfill? Who here needs my forgiveness so I can forgive? (Muslim)
All that greatness continues until the fajr (dawn).
We have indeed revealed this (message) in the Night of Power. And what will make you comprehend what the night of power is? The Night of Power is better than a thousand months. The Angels and Jibreel descend in it by the permission of their Lord with all decrees. Peace! It is till the break of the morning. (Quran 97)
The Precious Dua
Why would the Prophet (peace be upon him) say and answer Aisha’s question when she asked him:
If I witnessed that amazing night, what shall I make dua for?
He asked her to say these three statements of seven words:
O Allah you are the Pardoner you love to pardon so please have pardon upon me. (Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbul-‘afwa fa’fu ‘anni.)
In this entire amazing great night, for the Prophet to say this short sentence and dua must have an amazing value.
But there’s a secret to that dua that the Prophet did not mention the name the All Forgiving, rather he used Allah’s name Al-Afuw (The Pardoner).
And for us to appreciate that name and understand that dua more and more, let’s look into the meaning of Al-Afuw (the Pardoner) and let’s go actually understand it more and more compare it with Al-Ghafour (The All Forgiving).
If I translate both words Afuw and maghfirah, they’ll come like pardon and forgiveness.
The Pardoner
Al-Ghafour is that He will consider your shortcomings in the dunya He will not expose you in the Akhirah and He will not punish you for that which you have done.
But Allah will confront you with the sins that you’ve made and will only remind you of it.
The believer will come to Allah on the day of judgment and Allah will put a curtain between the billions of people and between Allah and that believer, and Allah will tell that person:
Do you recall that sin which you’ve made?
And Allah will keep mentioning sins and sins that which the believer have made.
The believer says:
“Oh my Lord! I do remember.”
And that believer thinks that he is destroyed. Then Allah says:
I have concealed these sins in the dunya and today I forgive you for it. (Ibn Majah 3850)
Wouldn’t be so embarrassing to come to Allah with all of these sins even though at the end of it you’re forgiven?
Wouldn’t it be embarrassing to come to Allah that said that you watch this, you drank this, you curse this, and that even though it’s forgiven?
You would feel so embarrassed that someone looks in your history (perhaps you have a bad history) for example, even though you’ve changed… You would wish no one remembers it. Isn’t that right?
Allah Al-Afuw means:
1- Completely erase and wipe away. So the Arab would say, “the wind have wiped away the traces”. So you can’t tell if someone did actually walk on this path or not.
2- Al-Afuww means excess and abundance.
And they ask you what shall they give. Tell them to give that which is excess and beyond which they need.
Allah the one who loves to pardon, He will erase all of your sins, and will not leave any single trace…
Look at this amazing dua! Shouldn’t we go and run to Allah and say that dua from the bottom of our hearts?
May Allah make us witness that great night. Ameen.