Religion

Iranians observe Ramadan’s magical night

By Jaime Leon

Tehran, Apr 26 (EFE).- During three nights of the Muslim month of Ramadan, devout Iranians stay up all night to pray to God to grant them a good future and make their wishes come true.

Laylat al-Qadr, or the Night of Destiny, is observed three times during the holy month of fasting in Iran, commemorating the night when God revealed the first verses of the Quran to Prophet Muhammad.

God promised to accept all prayers and forgive all sins during those nights, exhorting the faithful to intensely worship.

A large number of people gather at the well-known Ali al-Akbar shrine in northern Tehran to pray until dawn.

“We believe that the destiny of the whole year and our wishes from God are determined in these three nights,” the shrine’s director, Farhad Hadadian, tells Efe.

Nader Mohamadi, meanwhile, describes this night as “a shortcut” to God’s help.

“I come to be with God so that he forgives me for my sins,” says the 37-year-old man.

Shiites believe the special night falls on either the 19th, 21th or 23rd night of Ramadan, while Sunnis believe it is found in one of the odd nights during the last 10 days of the month, with the 27th being the most important.

To observe the “magical” night, Muslims in Iran first perform ablution, pray and read the Quran, before they place Islam’s holy book on their head, a typical gesture in Laylat al-Qadr.

The Hadadian brotherhood serves food, tea and juice to some 6,000 devotees. Before the coronavirus pandemic, their number reached 23,000.

“This place is very good because almost 600 martyrs are buried and they act as intermediaries with God to make wishes come true,” says Hadadian.

Those buried are martyrs of the war against Iraq in the 1980s and nuclear scientists allegedly killed by Israel, among others.

Some like Mohamadi come particularly for the martyrs.

“I ask the martyrs, who have shed their blood for God, to help me before the Almighty to be forgiven for my sins,” he says.EFE

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