The Morning Person

by Nabila Zaman

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (peace be upon him) said, “Allah made the early hours blessed for my Ummah.”

— Ahmed

I was once a morning person.

Every day at a time when the rest of the world were a few hours into their sleep, I would wake up and get up from bed within a few seconds. I would then make wudhu before returning to my room to pray the night prayer and read Qur’an. There would usually be a considerable amount of time before Fajr so you would find me doing my homework/revising/reading until Fajr. Sleep was nowhere near as exciting as these moments and a little nap before I had to get ready for school was more than sufficient.

I understood everything I studied and with time I started to build a relationship with the Qur’an where I would not be able to leave it. My concentration and focus were on point in everything that I did and I enjoyed an immense vigour and energy in learning that I have not felt since.

Regrettably, it is something I have lost gradually over the past few years and I crave its return more than anything. Therefore, having previously experienced the barakah (blessings) of the mornings, I can truly say that success does lie in the mornings, and I pray that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala (exalted is He) allows myself and others to seize this remarkable treasure of time from now onwards.

“Whoever prays the Fajr prayer, he or she is then under Allah’s protection. So beware, O son or daughter of Adam, that Allah does not call you to account for being absent from His protection for any reason.”

— Muslim

No wonder there is something very special about this time in the morning. To be under the guard of The One who created us and the very world we live in is indeed an extraordinary endowment. Imagine having the protection of the most powerful being that has ever existed for the rest of the day, every day. Is it not worth winning the battle of the bed for this?

Some of the greatest people in history seized these very hours, which is why they managed to achieve exponentially more than we are able to using the same 24 hours in each day. This portion of time is what allows us to train ourselves, prepare our minds, our hearts, our characters ready to take on the rest of the world and the rest of the day. It is a time were we reconnect with our mission and our purpose. We meet with God to begin our days and we are no longer lost like the man without a mission, wandering aimlessly throughout the day.

It is prime time. Contrary to popular belief it is a time where we possess our highest levels of focus, willpower and energy; we unlock these treasures only when we know how to seize this gift from Allah (swt), and what a gift it is. What better way is there to start our days than by meeting with God? What better way is there than by receiving His Protection? Fajr sets the tone for the day. The word itself means dawn in Arabic and is derived from the root word infijar, to ’burst forth’. This denotes the sunlight erupting into the darkness of the night at that time of morning,illuminating the world, replacing darkness with light, clarity and vitality. Likewise, this time of day replaces the darkness in our hearts with light, clarity, and vitality.

And you know what is really amazing about this gift?

It is offered to us every single day.

Every single day we are being given the chance to change our spiritual architecture for the better. We can start each day equipped with a psychological edge and incredible mental confidence that carries through for the next 24 hours. It’s like a kaleidoscope. This barakah from Allah (swt) is like a kaleidoscope, a chain reaction. Once we are able to overcome the struggle within ourselves in the morning, it then opens more and more doors to success. Once seizing the morning becomes hardwired into our minds, it then becomes easier to incorporate other facets of discipline into our lives.

And that is how Allah (swt) guides the believers. We walk towards Him and He runs towards us. He gives and gives and gives.

The question is, will we take it?

We have awoken, and all of creation has awoken, for Allah, Lord of all the Worlds. Allah, I ask You for the best the day has to offer, victory, support, light, blessings and guidance; and I seek refuge in You from the evil in it, and the evil to come after it. Ameen.