DAY 30 : HAVE A HEALTHY SLEEPY PATTERN
وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ مَنَامُكُم بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ وَابْتِغَاؤُكُم مِّن فَضْلِهِ ۚ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَسْمَعُونَ
“And of His signs is your sleep by night and day and your seeking of His bounty. Indeed in that are signs for a people who listen.”
(Surah Ar Room 30:23)
Thus, the night is created for rest and the day for work and for seeking provision. Yet we do the exact opposite. We are up at night and sleep late into the day, sometimes, up to or even beyond Dhuhr time, and waste much precious time. If we look at how the righteous before us spent their nights, we realize that they used their nights as a means to earning Jannah; praying, reciting the Qur’an, crying and supplicating to Allah سبحانه و تعالى. However, some of us Muslims, today take their nights as a means of entertainment and fun and even, na’oodhu billaah, a means of haraam and sin. Staying up late might cause one to totally miss the Fajr prayer. Even if you do wake up for Fajr, it is extremely hard to concentrate in the prayer or even know what one is saying. Staying up late causes health problems, exhaustion, weakness, and loss of enthusiasm. It also leads to lack of responsibility and laziness, as it is extremely difficult to wake up early for school, job, etc. if you are up half the night. The person ends up sleeping late into the day, missing his work, and slacking in responsibility. Al-Fudayl ibn ‘Iyaad said: There are two qualities that harden the heart: sleeping too much and eating too much. If we don’t sleep early, we can’t wake up in time for qiyaam ul-lail, a time for prayer, making dua and seeking forgiveness from Allah سبحانه و تعالى. Is it befitting that we, as Muslims, miss this honorable and virtuous time and waste it either sleeping or following our desires? May Allah سبحانه و تعالى seriously help us see and put into effect that which benefits us and may He aid us in quitting all those habits that would eventually lead to our destruction, اللهم آمين.