Tafseer of Man · Al-Insaan · 76:25
And mention the name of your Lord [in prayer] morning and evening
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
His statement: وَمِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَاسْجُدْ لَهُ ("And in the night, prostrate yourself before Him") means: and prostrate yourself before Him at night in your prayer (ṣalāh), and glorify Him for a long night — that is to say: during the greater part of the night, as the Exalted, praised be His praise, has said: قُمِ اللَّيْلَ إِلا قَلِيلا * نِصْفَهُ أَوِ انْقُصْ مِنْهُ قَلِيلا * أَوْ زِدْ عَلَيْهِ ("Stand up in the night, except for a little * half of it, or diminish from it a little * or add to it").
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the exegetes (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His statement: وَمِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَاسْجُدْ لَهُ وَسَبِّحْهُ لَيْلا طَوِيلا ("And in the night, prostrate yourself before Him and glorify Him for a long night"): by this are meant the prayer (ṣalāh) and the glorification (tasbīḥ).
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said, concerning His statement: وَاذْكُرِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلا ("And remember the name of your Lord in the morning and the evening"), he said: "bukratan" (in the morning): that is the morning prayer (ṣalāt al-ṣubḥ), and "aṣīlan" (in the evening): that is the noon prayer (ṣalāt al-ẓuhr), the evening hour.
And concerning His statement: وَمِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَاسْجُدْ لَهُ وَسَبِّحْهُ لَيْلا طَوِيلا ("And in the night, prostrate yourself before Him and glorify Him for a long night"), he said: This was the first thing that was made obligatory. And he recited: يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُزَّمِّلُ * قُمِ اللَّيْلَ إِلا قَلِيلا * نِصْفَهُ ("O you who are enwrapped * stand up in the night, except for a little * half of it"), and then he said: إِنَّ رَبَّكَ يَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ تَقُومُ أَدْنَى مِنْ ثُلُثَيِ اللَّيْلِ وَنِصْفَهُ وَثُلُثَهُ ("Indeed, your Lord knows that you stand up nearly two-thirds of the night, and half of it, and a third of it…") up to His statement: فَاقْرَءُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ ("So recite what is easy from the Qurʾān…") to the end of the verse. Then he said: This was abrogated (muḥiya) for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and for the people, and He made it a voluntary act (nāfila), saying: وَمِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَتَهَجَّدْ بِهِ نَافِلَةً لَكَ ("And in a part of the night, keep vigil with it in prayer as a voluntary deed for you"). He said: thus He made it a voluntary act.
