Surah Al-Furqan, Ayah 64

Attributes of the Servants of the Most Gracious

These are the attributes of the believing servants of Allah,

الَّذِينَ يَمْشُونَ عَلَى الاٌّرْضِ هَوْناً

(those who walk on the earth Hawna,) meaning that they walk with dignity and humility, not with arrogance and pride. This is like the Ayah:

وَلاَ تَمْشِ فِى الاٌّرْضِ مَرَحًا

(And walk not on the earth with conceit and arrogance...) (17:37). So these people do not walk with conceit or arrogance or pride. This does not mean that they should walk like sick people, making a show of their humility, for the leader of the sons of Adam (the Prophet) used to walk as if he was coming downhill, and as if the earth were folded up beneath him. What is meant here by Hawn is serenity and dignity, as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

The Fourth Characteristic

وَالَّذِينَ يَبِيتُونَ لِرَ‌بِّهِمْ سُجَّدًا وَقِيَامًا (and those who pass the night prostrating and standing before their Lord, - 25:64). Special mention of night worship is made here firstly, because this time being a time of rest, requires extra effort, and secondly because it rules out the possibility of showing one's worship to others. The idea is to express that they spend their day and night in submission before Allah during the day by teaching and spreading religious tenets and struggling in the way of Allah and at night by praying before Him. The sayings of the Holy Prophet ﷺ have extolled the night prayers (تَھَجّد). Tirmidhi has reported on the authority of Sayyidna Abu 'Umamah ؓ that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said, "Remain steadfast to your night prayers as this has been the practice of all righteous people before your time, and this will bring you closer to Allah Ta’ ala and will expiate the evils and keep you away from sins". (Mazhari)

Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ has said that one who has offered two or more Rak'ats after 'Isha' prayers is also covered by the verse. (Mazhari from Bayhaqi and Sayyidna ` Uthman ؓ is reported to have observed that the Holy Prophet ﷺ has said that one who has offered his ` Isha' prayer with congregation would be regarded as having worshipped half the night and the one who has offered Fajr prayer with congregation would be regarded as having offered the other half of the night in prayers. (Ahmed and Muslim from Mazhari)

Among the numerous phenomena of our solar system is the constant revolution of the earth around the sun. Its revolution has a fixed orbit and is completed in one year. Due to the elliptical shape of its orbit and the sun not being at its exact centre, the different seasons occur. Besides its revolution, the earth rotates on its axis and this is completed in twenty-four hours. This rotation is the cause of day and night. In the vastness of space, the revolution and rotation of the earth with extreme precision and their being greatly subservient to human beings’ interests, are the most wonderful of happenings. One who ponders over these blessings will be overwhelmed with feelings of gratitude to God.