إِنَّ ناشِئَةَ اللَّيلِ هِيَ أَشَدُّ وَطئًا وَأَقوَمُ قيلًا

Surely the rising by night makes a deeper impression and sharpens words.

EXEGESIS

The word nāshiʾah is derived from n-sh-ʾ.‎‎^{‎‎‎[1]Amthal, 19/133.} This root is defined as the youth, the young, such as young plants and animals, the first hours of the night, to rise, to grow, to come into being, to create, to initiate, to cause to grow, to raise from the dead, and to glean information.‎‎^{‎‎‎[2]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.} The word nāshiʾah is considered to be either in the form of a feminine verbal noun like ʿāfiyah or ʿāqibah, or a feminine active participle. With regards to the former, the noun is understood to have the meaning of an occurrence, an incidence, or the formation, development, or rise of something. It is also understood to mean that which appears anew, or that which occurs for the first time.‎‎^{‎‎‎[3]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.} When this word is conjoined to al-layl (night) it would literally mean that which occurs or is initiated at night such as the hours of the night (spent in prayers), or events taking place during the night in consecutive sequence.‎‎^{‎‎‎[4]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937; Tibyan, 10/163.} Where the second interpretation is preferred, i.e. that this word is a feminine active participle, it is taken to refer to either the soul (nafs)‎‎^{‎‎‎[5]Al-Aṣfā fī al-Tafsīr al-Qurʾān, 2/1367; Tabrisi.J, 4/384.} of a person (which in Arabic takes the feminine gender), which raises itself from the bed (for worship at night), or it can refer to worship (ʿibādah)‎‎^{‎‎‎[6]Safi, 5/241.} performed at night. (The word ʿibādah is also a feminine noun in the Arabic language).

Hence when Ibn Abbas was asked about the rising by night (nāshiʾat al-layl), he is attributed to have replied: ‘According to the linguistic usage of the Ethiopians, when a man rose at night they said “he had risen” (nashʾa).’‎‎^{‎‎‎[7]Tabari, 29/81-82. Suyūṭī records a similar report and also credits ʿAbd-Allāh ibn Masʿūd to have given the same reply; see Suyuti, 4/278.} At another occasion, Ibn Abbas is attributed to have explained the third person singular perfect tense verb nashʾa to mean he rose (qāma).‎‎^{‎‎‎[8]Tabari, 29/81-82.}

The term waṭʾan, which is a verbal noun, originally meant the placing of the foot,‎‎^{‎‎‎[9]Amthal, 19/133.} thereby having the meaning of trampling, pressure, compulsion, force, and impression.‎‎^{‎‎‎[10]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 1032.}

Both Ṭabarī and Ṭūsī write that this noun is known to have been recited in two different ways: waṭʾan and wiṭāʾan;‎‎^{‎‎‎[11]Tabari, 29/82; Tibyan, 10/161.} The former recital would mean to tread something underfoot, to step, to walk, to trample underfoot, while the latter recital would mean to agree, to be in agreement with someone about something, assent, consent, conformity, congruence, and compatibility.^{‎‎‎[12]Tibyan, 10/161.} Ṭabarī then writes that both recitations are correct in meaning in the current context and well-known among the scholars, and a reciter who uses any of these two would be rewarded.‎‎^{‎‎‎[13]Tabari, 29/82.}

EXPOSITION

This verse continues with the theme of the previous cluster, i.e. the night vigil and the moral teachings obtainable in the intelligent and conscious reading of the Quran at night. This verse is actually in the form of evidence in respect of the encouragement mentioned in the previous verses and explains why the night is chosen for this vigil. Hence where the preceding verses command Stand vigil through the night … and recite the Quran in a measured tone, this verse explains why, saying Surely the rising by night makes a deeper impression and sharpens words.

Scholars have differed regarding the duration of the night, with some suggesting that this refers to the entire night,‎‎^{‎‎‎[14]Tabari, 29/81-82.} while others have said it refers to the period between the maghrib (after sunset) and ʿīshāʾ (evening) prayers,‎‎^{‎‎‎[15]Mudarrisi, 17/22.} or the period of night after the ʿīshāʾ prayers and the last hours of the night, when the night worshipper engages in the night prayers.‎‎^{‎‎‎[16]Tabari, 29/81-82.}

But the most plausible meaning for this phrase seems to be the last one, in light of the verse’s wordings and some traditions. Surely the rising by night would imply the period of night after sleep when a person rises up for the vigil.

Ṭabrisī records that ʿUbayd ibn ʿUmayr asked ʿĀʾishah: ‘If a man were to stand vigil at the beginning of the night, would you consider it to fall within the purview of this verse and that he had stood vigil as the verse says the rising by night?” She replied: ‘No, the rising by night is to get up and stand vigil after having had gone to sleep, or it means the worship that takes place at night when you raise yourself [from sleep/the bed].’‎‎^{‎‎‎[17]Tabrisi.J, 4/384.}

Ṭabrisī also records that the two Imams, al-Bāqir (a) and al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘It is to rise up in the last hours of the night until the time of the night prayer.’‎‎^{‎‎‎[18]Tibyan, 10/163; Tabrisi, 10/570.} And Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) explained this verse to mean: ‘The rising up of a person from his bed, desiring none but God.’‎‎^{‎‎‎[19]Tabrisi, 10/570.}

The middle portion of this verse has been said to possess two readings as mentioned previously: waṭʾan and wiṭāʾan. The former recital would mean to tread something underfoot, to step, to walk, to trample underfoot, while the latter recital would mean to agree, to be in agreement with someone about something, assent, consent, conformity, congruence, and compatibility.^{‎‎‎[20]Tibyan, 10/161.} Therefore, if the former recitation of waṭʾan is adopted then this means that the night vigil is most intense, durable, enduring, and lasting in its effects than a vigil practiced during daytime, and has a more intense and lasting impact on the heart.‎‎^{‎‎‎[21]Tabari, 29/82.} This is because the night is the time when the daily economic bustle is suspended; it is peaceful and therefore appropriate for thought, reflection, and the training of the soul. The power of thinking, reflection, thought, and reasoning in it is more possible and feasible to occur.‎‎^{‎‎‎[22]Tibyan, 10/163.} It can also mean that the rising at night is most burdensome for the human being in contrast to the rising at daytime because the night is the time for peace and rest.^{‎‎‎[23]Tabrisi, 10/566, 570.} Rāzī records a tradition attributed to the Prophet that says: ‘The best of worship is the most difficult one.’^{‎‎‎[24]Razi, 30/686.}

On the other hand, if the alternative reading of wiṭāʾan is adopted then it means that the rising at night is most appropriate for hearing and seeing and in conformity with it. The tongue, the hearing, and the heart of the worshipper are most in accord with each other and in a most congenial state to conform to understanding and thought, as the heart is devoid of worldly pressures and tensions.^{‎‎‎[25]Tabrisi, 10/570.} The heart is most compatible and in sync with what the tongue is reciting or most in line with the requirements of humbleness and sincerity.‎‎^{‎‎‎[26]Tabrisi.J, 4/384.}

The verse then finished by mentioning that the night sharpens words (aqwamu qīla). The word aqwamu, which is in the superlative, means most precise^{‎‎‎[27]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 785.} and reliable, most pertinent and apt, most sound, accurate, and correct,‎‎^{‎‎‎[28]Tibyan, 10/163.} while the word qīla means speech and refers to the remembrance of God and the recitation of the Quran.^{‎‎‎[29]Amthal, 19/133.}

Therefore, the entire verse means that the rising up at night for various worshipful acts but especially for the recitation of the Quran, irrespective of that being in the ritual prayer or outside of it, has a most profound and lasting effect on the heart and mind. This is the time of the day when the mind, the heart, and the ears, in particular the inner eye and ear of a person, are most in conformity with the tongue as it recites the Quran, and is when the recital is at its most perfect and accurate as the mind and heart are devoid of the anxieties, worries, and the pre-occupations of daytime. This is the reason why the night is chosen as the most suitable time for the vigil and recitation of the Quran.

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. The Prophet said: ‘Carry out supererogatory prayers during the period of heedlessness and inattention even if it is two quick and easy units of prayers. This will grant you the place of dignity and peace which is paradise. And the period of heedlessness and inattention is between maghrib and ʿīshāʾ.’‎‎^{‎‎‎[30]Fiqh al-Qurʾān fī Sharḥ Āyāt al-Qurʾān, 1/171.}
2. Imam al-Sajjād (a) was seen praying a prayer between maghrib and ʿīshāʾ. He was asked about it and he replied: ‘These two are from the nāshiʾah.’‎‎^{‎‎‎[31]Mizan, 20/73; Fiqh al-Qurʾān fī Sharḥ Āyāt al-Qurʾān, 1/171; Zamakhshari, 4/638.}

3. Uṣūl al-Kāfī‎‎^{‎‎‎[32]Kafi, 3/468-469, h. 6.} contains a tradition that says: ‘This verse refers to two units of prayers after sunset, whereby in the first unit, after al-Fātiḥah is recited, the first ten verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah, and verses 54 and 56 of Sūrat al-Aʿrāf, and verses 163 and 164 of Sūrat al-Baqarah, and Sūrat al-Ikhlāṣ fifteen times [are all recited]. Then in the second unit, after al-Fātiḥah the verses of the Throne, and the last verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah from verse 284 till the end of the surah [i.e. till verse 286], and then Sūrat al-Ikhlāṣ fifteen times [are all recited]. Then beseech whatever you desire. And whoever practices this constantly will have the reward of 600,000 pilgrimages for every prayer.’

Note: The import and significance of these traditions, which seem to go contrary to the earlier traditions, may yet be appreciated if we recall the earlier discussion, where it was argued that this surah and the first few verses of it do not seem to call for the night prayers in particular but rather to a whole host of night-time worship, including the night prayers and especially the recitation of the Quran. It was also observed specifically that the night vigil called for in this surah is granted an extensive time period, from two-thirds of the night, to a half, and a third of it. Hence the two units of ritual prayer mentioned in the earlier traditions to be performed at the beginning of the night may not seem strange or out of place in the current context. The earlier traditions may seem even more acceptable in light of some of the lexical meanings suggested for the term nāshiʾah, which are: the first hours of the night,‎‎^{‎‎‎[33]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.} an occurrence, an incidence or the formation, development, or rise of something, that which appears anew, or that which occurs for the first time.‎‎^{‎‎‎[34]Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.} All these meanings can very well accommodate the prayers described in the three earlier traditions, to be performed during the first hours of the night.

[1] Amthal, 19/133.
[2] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.
[3] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.
[4] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937; Tibyan, 10/163.
[5] Al-Aṣfā fī al-Tafsīr al-Qurʾān, 2/1367; Tabrisi.J, 4/384.
[6] Al-Aṣfā fī al-Tafsīr al-Qurʾān, 2/1367.
[7] Tabari, 29/81-82. Suyūṭī records a similar report and also credits ʿAbd-Allāh ibn Masʿūd to have given the same reply; see Suyuti, 4/278.
[8] Tabari, 29/81-82.
[9] Amthal, 19/133.
[10] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 1032.
[11] Tabari, 29/82; Tibyan, 10/161.
[12] Tibyan, 10/161.
[13] Tabari, 29/82.
[14] Tabari, 29/81-82.
[15] Mudarrisi, 17/22.
[16] Tabari, 29/81-82.
[17] Tabrisi.J, 4/384.
[18] Tibyan, 10/163; Tabrisi, 10/570.
[19] Tabrisi, 10/570.
[20] Tibyan, 10/161.
[21] Tabari, 29/82.
[22] Tibyan, 10/163.
[23] Tabrisi, 10/566, 570.
[24] Razi, 30/686.
[25] Tabrisi, 10/570.
[26] Tabrisi.J, 4/384.
[27] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 785.
[28] Tibyan, 10/163.
[29] Amthal, 19/133.
[30] Fiqh al-Qurʾān fī Sharḥ Āyāt al-Qurʾān, 1/171.
[31] Mizan, 20/73; Fiqh al-Qurʾān fī Sharḥ Āyāt al-Qurʾān, 1/171; Zamakhshari, 4/638.
[32] Kafi, 3/468-469, h. 6.
[33] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.
[34] Arabic-English Dictionary of Qur’anic Usage, p. 937.