Gathering for Night Vigil on Blessed Nights

Question

May one keep night vigil in the mosques in search of the night of mid-Sha‘ban (Laylat al-Bara’a) and Laylat al-Qadr and out of zeal for them? Please answer in the light of the following hadith: [ar]عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ ﵁ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ: رُبَّ صَائِمٍ لَيْسَ لَهُ مِنْ صِيَامِهِ إِلَّا الْجُوعُ، وَرُبَّ قَائِمٍ لَيْسَ لَهُ مِنْ قِيَامِهِ إِلَّا السَّهَرُ[/ar] “It is narrated from Abu Hurayra ﵁: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: ‘Many a fasting person gets nothing from his fast but hunger, and many a one…

Answer

Gathering in the mosques in search of the night of mid-Sha‘ban and Laylat al-Qadr and for worship [on them] is makruh and bid‘a (innovation in religion); “Maraqi al-Falah” states this explicitly. The explanation of the hadith is this: whoever fasts but does not intend reward from Allah, or does not keep himself from sins — lying, ghiba (backbiting)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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