Exploring the Day of Arafah: Importance and Virtues for Muslims

The Day of Arafah and Its Virtues ~ Hi, all readers! The Day of Arafah is a significant day for Muslims, occurring in the month of Dhul Hijjah. Muslims are strongly encouraged to engage in acts of worship, especially fasting, on this day. It holds numerous virtues that other days lack. Here are some important points that we should know about. This article will explain them, so make sure to read it until the end!

Before I delve into the Day of Arafah and its virtues, I will quote a few hadiths specifically related to our discussion.

Hadith About the Day of Arafah and Its Virtues

The two hadiths I am referring to about the Day of Arafah and its virtues are as follows:

قَالَ رَسُوْلُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ : لَيْلَةَ عَرَفَةَ يَنْزِلُ اللهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا , فَيَقُوْلُ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ : اُنْظُرُوْا إِلَى عِبَادِيْ هَؤُلَاءِ شُعْثًا غُبْرًا , جَاؤُوْنِيْ مِنْ فَجٍّ عَمِيْقٍ , ضَاجِيْنَ يَسْأَلُوْنَ رَحْمَتِيْ وَلَمْ يَرَوْنِيْ , وَيَتَعَوَّذُوْنَ بِيْ مِنْ عَذَابِيْ وَلَمْ يَرَوْنِيْ , فَلَمْ يُرَ يَوْمٌ أَكْثَرُ عَتِيْقًا وَلَا عَتِيْقَةً مِنْهُ

The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said, "On the night of Arafah, Allah Azza wa Jalla descends to the lowest heaven and says to the angels, 'Look at My servants, who are disheveled and covered in dust. They have come to Me from a faraway place, asking for My mercy, even though they do not see Me. They seek protection from My torment, even though they do not see Me. There is no day when more male and female slaves are freed than on the Day of Arafah.'"

عَنْ ابْنِ عُمَرَ , قَالَ : سَمِعْتُ رَسُوْلَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُوْلُ : لَا يَبْقَى أَحَدٌ يَوْمَ عَرَفَةَ فِيْ قَلْبِهِ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ مِنْ إِيْمَانٍ إِلَّا غُفِرَ لَهُ

From Ibn Umar, he said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) say, 'There is not a single person on the Day of Arafah who has even a mustard seed's weight of faith in his heart, except that he has been forgiven.'"

Read Also: The Significance of An-Nahr Day (Yaumu an-Nahri)

On that day, Allah obeys the following Quran verse:

حُرِّمَتۡ عَلَيۡكُمُ ٱلۡمَيۡتَةُ وَٱلدَّمُ وَلَحۡمُ ٱلۡخِنزِيرِ وَمَآ أُهِلَّ لِغَيۡرِ ٱللَّهِ بِهِۦ وَٱلۡمُنۡخَنِقَةُ وَٱلۡمَوۡقُوذَةُ وَٱلۡمُتَرَدِّيَةُ وَٱلنَّطِيحَةُ وَمَآ أَكَلَ ٱلسَّبُعُ إِلَّا مَا ذَكَّيۡتُمۡ وَمَا ذُبِحَ عَلَى ٱلنُّصُبِ وَأَن تَسۡتَقۡسِمُواْ بِٱلۡأَزۡلَٰمِۚ ذَٰلِكُمۡ فِسۡقٌۗ ٱلۡيَوۡمَ يَئِسَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ مِن دِينِكُمۡ فَلَا تَخۡشَوۡهُمۡ وَٱخۡشَوۡنِۚ ٱلۡيَوۡمَ أَكۡمَلۡتُ لَكُمۡ دِينَكُمۡ وَأَتۡمَمۡتُ عَلَيۡكُمۡ نِعۡمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ ٱلۡإِسۡلَٰمَ دِينٗاۚ فَمَنِ ٱضۡطُرَّ فِي مَخۡمَصَةٍ غَيۡرَ مُتَجَانِفٖ لِّإِثۡمٖ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٞ رَّحِيمٞ

"Prohibited to you are dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah, and [those animals] killed by strangling or by a violent blow or by a headlong fall or by the goring of horns, and those from which a wild animal has eaten, except what you [are able to] slaughter [before its death], and those which are sacrificed on stone altars, and [prohibited is] that you seek decision through divining arrows. That is grave disobedience. This day those who disbelieve have despaired of [defeating] your religion; so, fear them not, but fear Me. This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved for you Islam as your religion. But whoever is forced by severe hunger with no inclination to sin – then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." (Al-Maidah [5]: 3)

Conclusion

All Readers! There are some important conclusions we can draw from the two hadiths and the verses of the Quran mentioned above:

• The first hadith explains the greatness and glory of the Day of Arafah. On the eve of Arafah, Allah descended to the heavens of this world and praised His servants in front of the Angels for their obedience.
• This hadith also indicates that many slaves are freed on the Day of Arafah. Do you know what the reward is for someone who frees slaves? Freedom from Hell!
• The second hadith states that anyone who has faith on the Day of Arafah, even if their faith is small, will have all their sins forgiven by Allah.
• There is a verse from the Quran that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad on the Day of Arafah, which further emphasizes the virtues of this significant day.

That is a brief explanation of the Day of Arafah and its virtues. Do you understand? If you have any questions, please feel free to ask!

I believe that's enough for this article. May it be beneficial! Ameen!

See you in the next article!