What is iʿtikāf? Why do Muslims spend the last ten nights of Ramadan in the masjid?
The Prophet ﷺ spent the last ten nights of every Ramadan in the masjid, cut off from everything except worship. The classical scholars preserved his exact practice — and one annual window each year to join him in it.
2 passages from 2 books in the library
The classical approach.
These passages are drawn from 2 books by Imam al-Ghazali and Ibn Battuta — part of the classical Sunni tradition that carries over a thousand years of reflection on the Qurʾān, the authentic Sunnah, and the consensus of the early community. Nothing below is a paraphrase. The words are the scholars' own, translated from the original Arabic manuscripts.
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
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"It is said that its sign is to leave the world as it is, not saying, I shall build a place for religious retreat, or I shall construct a mosque."
14th century · Tangier, Morocco
The Riḥlah — a 30-year, 75,000-mile journey across three continents, and the most important travel account of the pre-modern world.
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"Yet, God sent a fierce wind that destroyed his ships, causing him to retreat from his siege and make peace with its king."
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