Absolute Justice, Kindness and Kinship — Page 225
— Part II 220 each prayer owe their presence to them. Talking of the voluntary prayers the Holy Prophet sa once observed: 'There is one among them which stands out above all; that is the prayer which is offered in the thick of night after waking from a deep sleep. ' 33 Obviously, this extraordinary effort will only be made by a person who enjoys an exceptionally close relationship with God. We do not need to discuss this in greater detail here, but everyone can realise that this prayer belongs to the realm of I t a ’i Dhil-Qurb a. The Quran specifically highlights the exceptional quality of the Tahajjud prayer in the following verse: Their sides separate from their beds; and they call upon their Lord in fear and hope, and spend out of what We have bestowed on them. (S u rah al-Sajdah; Ch. 32: V. 17) The following verse of Surah Ban i Isr a ’ i l specifically promises the Holy Prophet sa the greatest station of nearness to Allah which exceeds the ordinary concept of I t a ’i Dhil-Qurb a :