Amnesty International has condemned the ongoing violence against Muslims in the Central African Republic (CAR), saying Muslims face religious persecution in the country.

A report released on Friday cited evidence that the anti-Balaka militants force the Muslims in the western CAR to hide their religion or convert to Christianity.

“We have to hide, do it quickly, and do it by ourselves,” said a trader in Sangha-Mbaere Prefecture, adding that it is effectively impossible to pray in the face of incessant threats by the Christian militia.

Tens of thousands of Muslims have fled the CAR over the past two years as the anti-Balaka rebels keep committing widespread human rights abuses against them. The violence began when a coalition of Seleka rebels ousted long-time President Francois Bozize in 2013.

The Amnesty report, entitled “Erased identity: Muslims in ethnically cleansed areas of the Central African Republic,” said the refugees who have returned to areas in western CAR are exposed to constant threats from the Christian militia to abandon their religion.

“Having forced tens of thousands of Muslims to flee western CAR, anti-Balaka militias are now repressing the religious identity of the hundreds of Muslims who remained or who have returned,” said Amnesty’s Senior Crisis Response Adviser Joanne Mariner.

The report said attacks against Muslims and forbidding them from practicing their religious happens in areas not supported by the United Nations peacekeeping mandate, calling for renewed efforts for the protection of the Muslims who are under threat.

It also said more should be done to bring back those Muslims who have escaped violence.

“Many of the tens of thousands of Muslim refugees who were expelled from the country in 2014 would one day like to return home, but are waiting until they can do so in a safe and sustainable manner,” said the report.

Since January 2014, the CAR has been run by a transitional government. Presidential and parliamentary elections in the country are scheduled for October 18.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) says it would take to the UN Security Council (UNSC) the case of a recent terrorist attack that killed a Palestinian infant and severely injured other family members in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The Authority issued a statement on Friday, saying it would raise "the crimes and terrorism of [Israeli] settlers against the Palestinian people" with the Security Council.

The Palestinian baby boy was burnt to death in the early hours of Friday, when Israeli settlers, wearing black balaclavas, smashed a window and threw a Molotov cocktail into the parents’ bedroom while they were asleep in their house in the West Bank village of Duma, south of Nablus.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has held the Israeli regime responsible for the attack, has also ordered Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki to file a lawsuit with the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the horrific incident, denouncing the “war crimes and crimes against humanity committed each day by Israelis against the Palestinian people.”

The UNSC has released a statement, saying its members "expressed profound outrage and condemned in the strongest terms the vicious terrorist attack."

The US State Department has labeled the arson a "terrible and vicious terrorist attack" and EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini's office has called the attack a "cold-blooded killing."

The systematization of Sunni theology in the tenth century was done in reaction to the emergence of heterodox schismatic groups in previous centuries, particularly Mu'tazilah. The founder of Ash'ariyyah, Abu al-Hasan (873-935), was formerly a Mu'tazilite. He wrote a number of important books which became the foundation of Ash'arite theology such as the Kitab al-Ibanah (The Book of Elucidations) and also an extensive work on the views of various Islamic schools and sects called Maqalat al-Islamiyyin (Doctrines of the Muslims).

Another major figure in the development of Ash'arite theology was the Sufi theologian and jurist al-Ghazzali (1058-1111). Through al-Ghazzali and other prominent theologians - such as Al-Baqillani (d.1013), al-Baghdadi (d.1038), al-Djuwayni (d.1085) and al-Shahrastani (d.1153) - Ashariyyah spread throughout the Sunni Islamic world. It is now dominant in Iraq, Syria, Egypt and Northwest Africa, and has a strong presence in Central Asia and Anatolia and to a lesser extent in India and Pakistan.

Ash'ariyyah theology represents a reaction against the extreme rationalism of the Mu'tazilah. It holds that human reason should fall under the authority of divine revelation. Human reason is incapable of discerning good and evil; the goodness or evil of a particular action depends upon God's declaring it to be so. Humanity can only acquire religious truths through revelation.

A second aspect of Ash'ariyyah theology concerned the nature of the divine attributes. Contrary to the Mu'tazilites, who understood Qur'anic references to God's physical attributes metaphorically, Ash'ari theology argued for the veracity of these attributes while rejecting all crudely anthropomorphic conceptions of God.

Thirdly, contrary to Mu'tazilah theology, Ash'ariyyah taught that the Qur'an was eternal and, therefore, uncreated. Human actions, however, are entirely dependent upon God's providing the means and power to act. This teaching had the purpose of preserving the doctrine of divine omnipotence, but gradually led to the formation of a deterministic outlook.

Along with the Maturidiyyah School of theology, Ashariyyah remains the dominant source of theology in the Sunni world. The majority of those who follow the Malikite jurisprudential madhhab, which is comprised of 13% of worldwide Sunni Muslims, and some 75% of those who follow the Shafi'ite jurisprudential madhhab, which constitutes some 33% of worldwide Sunni Muslims, and a very small proportion of those who follow the Hanafite and Hanbalite jurisprudential madhhabs follow the Ash'arite school of theology.

Iran has underlined the need for respecting the sovereignty of nations in the fight against terrorism.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham on Saturday reaffirmed Iran’s opposition to all forms of terrorism and extremism, saying any acts of tolerance toward terrorism and Takfiri violence will further encourage terrorists to commit inhumane crimes.

The Iranian official, however, said the campaign against terror should not undercut the national sovereignty of countries.

“Any type of campaign against terrorism must respect the basic principles of international law, especially the national sovereignty of governments, and undoubtedly any acts that would undermine the national sovereignty of countries can, in fact, embolden terrorist groups in committing bestial crimes,” Afkham said.

She also said terrorism will not be uprooted unless terrorists were weaned off financial aid and arms supply.

The Iranian official made the comments against the backdrop of airstrikes conducted by the Turkish military against targets controlled by the Takfiri ISIL terrorists inside Syria as well as locations of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq.

Turkey’s attacks against the ISIL and PKK positions come in the wake of deadly violence in Turkey over the past week.

On July 20, at least 32 people were killed in a bomb attack in the Turkish town of Suruc, near the southern border with Syria. Turkish authorities blamed ISIL for the bombing.

Two days later, two Turkish policemen were killed in southeastern Turkey close to the Syrian border, with the PKK claiming responsibility for the attack. The militant group said it sought revenge for the Suruc attack.

Another policeman was also killed in the majority Kurdish city of Diyarbakir the next day.
 

Most Americans are fed with conflicts and wars and they want their government to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue, says a journalist and anti-war activist in Virginia.

“The latest polls… show that about two-thirds of the US public is in favor of a deal with Iran,” Phil Wilayto, an editor at Virginia Defender Newspaper, told Press TV on Friday.

After more than two weeks of marathon talks, Iran and the P5+1 group of countries - the US, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany – announced the conclusion of nuclear negotiations in the Austrian capital, Vienna, on July 14.

“This whole struggle between the US government and Iran has gone on for so long that people are becoming immune to the propaganda of their own government that Iran poses a terrible threat. They are tired of war, they are sick of war, and they would feel more comfortable if they felt that there is resolution to the tensions between the two countries,” Wilayto stated.
“What we have been trying to point out in our newspaper, the Virginia Defender, and through our work with the United National Antiwar Coalition, is that: 1) there is no evidence, whatsoever, that Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons, and 2) Supreme Leader [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] has declared nuclear weapons to be against Islam, because they are weapons of mass destruction that kill the innocent as well as the aggressor,” he added.

“So the argument that Iran is trying to develop a nuclear weapon has always been a false one, just giving the US government and other Western governments an excuse to impose sanctions, because Iran represents a threat to their achieving hegemony in the region as a whole, the oil-rich region,” the analyst continued.

“You know that if the main export of the region were cucumbers, there would be no tensions at all.  It’s because it has oil, and the world runs on oil, and whoever controls the oil, can control the world,” he noted.

Wilayto made the remarks when asked to comment on US Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio’s assertion that the negotiated nuclear agreement with Iran would not survive beyond the term of President Barack Obama.

The activist said Rubio is “absolutely right”.

“The agreement between the five countries [sic] and the Islamic Republic of Iran is not a treaty that has to be voted on by the US Congress; it’s an agreement that the president can implement on his own over the objections of Congress,” he said.

“So one result is that some sanctions could be lifted, because they were imposed by a presidential decree and other sanctions or the majority that the US has imposed, were imposed by the US Congress, and they will not be lifted unless Congress agrees to,” said the journalist.
Most Republicans oppose the nuclear agreement with Iran, but they need a two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress to override a possible presidential veto, and to reach that threshold, Republicans need Democratic support.

The White House has launched a sales pitch to the Republican-controlled Congress, which 60 days to vote to either approve or disapprove of it.

The United Nations has warned that some 500,000 Palestinian children may be kept out of school due to limited funding from donor countries.

​Schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) will not be able to reopen in the autumn due to a shortage of USD 100 million unless the international community donates the amount to the UN agency, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov said on Thursday.

He added that the donors' contribution could avert a "serious risk" by allowing "UNRWA schools, which educate 500,000 children throughout the Middle East," to open.

Lack of the funding "will have grave implications for Palestine refugee children in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, and for the stability and security of a region already in turmoil," Mladenov told the UN Security Council.

According to UNRWA, over 1.5 million Palestinians - almost a third of the registered Palestinian refugees - live in 58 recognized refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the besieged Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.

UNRWA is currently facing its biggest funding crisis since it was set up in 1949.

Mutazili Theology

The term Mu'tazilah derives from the Arabic al-mu'tazilah, which means the one who separated. It was applied to the school established in Iraq by Wasil b. 'Ata, a student of the distinguished scholar Hasn al-Basri.

At the time of the rise of the 'Abbasids in 750 the Mu'tazilites began to become prominent in the Islamic world. In the 9th century the 'Abbasid caliph, al-Ma'mun, raised Mu'tazilah doctrine to the status of the state creed. Openly supported by the caliphate, the Mu'tazilites became increasingly intolerant and began to persecute their opponents. On one occasion the eminent Sunni scholar and founder of one of the four orthodox jurisprudential schools, Ahmad b. Hanbal (d.855), was subjected to flogging and imprisonment for his refusal to subscribe to the Mu'tazilite doctrine that the Qur'an was created in time.

In fact, the Mu'tazilite school of theology emerged out of the question raised by the Kharijites whether works are integral to faith or independent of faith. On the question of the relationship between faith and works, the Mu'tazilites adopted the position that someone who commits a grave sin without repenting occupies a middle state between being a Muslim and not being a Muslim.

A second doctrine concerned the nature of God. God is pure Essence and, therefore, without eternal attributes such as hands. Passages in the Qur'an that ascribe human or physical properties to God are to be regarded as metaphorical rather than literal. The Mu'tazilites argued that the Qur'an was created and not eternal. The basis of this doctrine was the claim that the eternal coexistence of the Qur'an beside Allah gave the impression of another god beside Allah.

In this theology human acts are free and, therefore, people are entirely responsible for their decisions and actions. Divine predestination is incompatible with God's justice and human responsibility. God, however, must of necessity act justly; it follows from this that the promises of reward that God has made in the Qur'an to righteous people and the punishments he had issued to evildoers must be carried out by him on the day of judgment.

Mu'tazilites are generally seen as responsible for the incorporation of Greek philosophical thought into Islamic theology. This is particularly apparent in their belief that knowledge of God can be acquired through reason as well as revelation.

The Mu'tazilites' power gradually began to wane. They lost the support of the caliphs and by the 10th century the Sunni majority opposition to Mu'tazilah found a spokesman in Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari, who himself had previously been a Mu'tazilite. Al-Ash'ari's new school of theology and the school of Abu Mansur al-Maturidi provided the new basis of orthodox Islamic theology, leading to the complete disappearance of the Mu'tazile movement.

18/07/2015
The following is the full text of the speech delivered on July 18, 2015 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with government officials and the ambassadors of Islamic countries in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The meeting was held on the occasion of Eid ul-Fitr.

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings upon our Master and Prophet, Ab-al-Qassem Al-Mustafa Muhammad, upon his pure, immaculate and infallible household - especially the one remaining with Allah on earth - and upon his chosen companions.

I would like to congratulate you dear brothers and sisters who are present here, particularly the honorable officials and guests - the honorable ambassadors of Islamic countries - on the auspicious Eid ul-Fitr. Also, I congratulate all the people of Iran and all Muslims throughout the world on this Eid.

As we read in this dua - "He Who made this day into an Eid for Muslims" [from the qunut of Eid ul-Fitr prayers] - I hope that Allah the Exalted will turn this day into an Eid for all Muslims, but unfortunately, this is not the case today.

Today, the world of Islam is facing many problems. Islam has placed great emphasis on the unity, unanimity and brotherhood of Muslims. We can hold fast by the rope that Allah stretches out individually, but Islam does not advise this: "And hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah stretches out for you" [The Holy Quran, 3: 103]. All of us should hold fast by this rope together. We should be together. Despite all this emphasis, today we Muslims do not unfortunately obey this command of Islam. And as you can witness, this is the result. I want to ask all Muslims - particularly ulama, intellectuals, officials, politicians and outstanding personalities in all Islamic countries - to see the treacherous hands of the enemies of the Islamic Ummah in this discord. This discord is not a natural one, rather it is imposed on and suggested to us. Muslims can naturally live together. Experience has shown that when the enemy's temptations, deception and malevolence do not enter the arena, they can live together. We have seen this in our own country. We have seen this in Iraq and other Islamic countries.

They inject this discord into the world of Islam. Why do they do so? It is because the interests of superpowers lie in it. They do not want the Islamic Ummah to be united. They do not want this great power to arise in the horizons of global powers. They do not want this. If the Islamic Ummah were united and if it relied on its common points, it would undoubtedly become a unique power in the firmament of global politics. Considering its large population, underground resources and provisions, and natural and human sources of wealth and considering the countries that are located in this sensitive area of the world, if we became united, such a phenomenon would dominate the world. They do not want this to happen. They have planted the Zionist regime in the region so that they can create discord and busy regional countries with themselves.

Nations resisted the Zionist regime and they did not surrender to them. You should pay attention to this point. During the 10 years when the Zionist regime increased its materialistic power on a daily basis with the assistance and support of England and later on America, some weak governments and vicious individuals in Muslim governments were drawn to the Zionists. Many Muslim governments and some politicians in the world of Islam - including the former sinister regime in our country and some others - established close relations with the Zionists. This was while the Zionists were usurpers, transgressors and murderers.

They had imperialist desires and they used to chant the slogan of "From the Nile to the Euphrates." These governments and individuals completely ignored our enmities towards the Zionists. However, nations did not do so. The feeling of hatred of usurping Zionism and the Zionist government continued to be present in their hearts. So, they did not follow their governments in this regard. Well, this was a heavy blow for the governments which were dependent on America and which were the close friends of the Zionist regime.

Therefore, they thought about destroying this feeling in peoples and dissuading them from fighting against the Zionists. What did they do to further their goal? They waged these domestic wars: the wars between Shia and Sunni. These criminal organizations - including al-Qaida, DAESH and the like - were created with the purpose of pitting us against one another and making nations confront each other. This is the transgressing and treacherous hand of the enemy.

Some Americans have confessed in their own memoirs [including Hillary Clinton's memoirs] that they have played a role in creating, developing and establishing DAESH and today too, they are supporting them. Now, a coalition against DAESH has been formed. Of course, I do not believe that there is a real coalition against DAESH. Now, let us assume that there is some organization against this group, but is DAESH the only terrorist group? Different groups with different names and with windfall wealth at their disposal are working around Islamic countries. They are promoting terrorism, causing explosions and killing innocent people on the street and in markets, squares, mosques and other such places. They have busied peoples with themselves. They have busied Shia against Sunni and Sunni against Shia.

On the one hand, they train some people from the first side to be extremist, vulgar and violent and they give them money to do such things and on the other hand, they train some individuals from the second side to do the same so that they can pit them against each other. Each of these extremist groups is followed by a significant number of people. What is better than this for the Zionists? What is better than this for the Zionist regime? We should awaken and understand what is happening in the region.

The policies of arrogant powers in the region are treacherous policies: clearly treacherous. In Iraq, the policy of arrogant powers is to overthrow the government that is based on election, majority and democracy. They are after this. They want to weaken and create obstacles for it so that it cannot work. They want to pit Shia and Sunni in Iraq against each other. We have seen Iraq before these events. Shia and Sunni used to live together and marry each other, but today, they have to stand up and pull guns against each other. And their ultimate goal is to disintegrate Iraq, but our policy is the exact opposite of theirs. We believe that the election-based government of Iraq should be strengthened. We believe that those who are creating domestic discord should be confronted and resisted and that the territorial integrity of Iraq should be preserved. This policy is the exact opposite of the policy of arrogance in Iraq.

In Syria, the policy of arrogance is to overthrow - at any price - the government that is known for its resistance against Zionism, but our policy is against theirs. Of course, we believe that those who should make the decisions in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Bahrain, Lebanon and all other countries are the people of these countries. We and other people do not have the right to make decisions, from outside, about the fate of countries. It is they themselves who should be making the decisions. This is what we believe. The policy of arrogance towards Syria is to decide - from outside - the fate of this government and these people who are known for their firm and determined resistance against the Zionists. Both the current and former presidents of Syria stood up against the fake Zionist regime in an outspoken way.

We say that a government whose slogan, goal and intention is to resist the Zionists is valuable for the world of Islam. We have no personal interest in Syria or Iraq, rather we are thinking about the world of Islam and the Islamic Ummah. Our positions and the positions of arrogance are at such opposite poles.

In Lebanon, the Zionist regime had occupied an important part of that country for many years. Arrogance - headed by America - took the path of silence on this matter: one that was accompanied by approval and satisfaction. Later on, a religious and self-sacrificing group emerged in that country to resist them. The most noble national defense forces are the Lebanese Resistance and Hezbollah of Lebanon. They are the noblest groups in the world that have engaged in national resistance and national defense. We know few resistance groups in the world that are so moral, religious, self-sacrificing and successful. This is while they are the target of many assassination attempts and they have been accused of terrorism.

Is Hezbollah a terrorist group? Is the great force in charge of the national defense of Lebanon a terrorist group? Is this terrorism? So, were the resistance groups that you Europeans and others are proud of and that stood firm in the name of defending their country - for example, the groups that emerged in France and other countries - terrorist groups? Is a force that is standing firm against aggressors and arrogant agents and that is sacrificing itself a terrorist force? This is while they firmly shake hands with the child-killing, oppressive and criminal Zionist regime as their eternal brother and friend. This is their policy.

The reason why we defend the Lebanese Resistance is that it is a resistance group - in the real sense of the word - against the enemies. It is a resistance group, one that is courageous, self-sacrificing and resistant. If it had not been for this group, Israel - that had advanced towards Saida and even farther towards Beirut - would have occupied Beirut today and no Lebanon would have remained. It is this resistance group that has prevented them from doing so. This is while the Americans - these honest and truthful American politicians - refer to them as terrorists and they call Iran "a supporter of terrorism" because of its support for these groups.

But it is you who are the defenders of terrorism! It is you who have created DAESH. It is you who train terrorists. It is you who take the vicious and terrorist Zionists under your wings. It is you who defend terrorism. You should be put on trial because of supporting and assisting terrorism. The same thing holds true for Yemen, Bahrain and other countries.

Does the former president of Yemen - who resigned at the most sensitive time with the purpose of creating a political vacuum and who fled the country wearing women's clothes - have legitimacy? Does such a president have the right to ask another country to attack his country and kill the people? It is about four months - three-plus months - now that they are striking Yemen. Which places are they striking? They are striking mosques, hospitals, cities and houses and they are killing innocent people and children, but what is their crime?

America is supporting such groups. Today, I said in the Eid ul-Fitr sermons that they are making a mistake in the present time. They are speaking about their past mistakes such as the one made on the 28th of Mordad. They say that they have made certain mistakes. Yes, you have made very grave mistakes, but in the present time too, you are making a mistake. You are shaking hands with the most dictatorial regimes and all of you are eating from the same bowl [Persian expression meaning that two individuals are collaborating ].

You American politicians speak and make judgments in a completely unfair manner. You do so even when it comes to clear truths. One really wonders how shameless they are! They have friendly and brotherly relations with the governments that do not even allow their people to hear the name of elections. They sign a brotherhood pact with such governments. In some of these countries, if someone speaks about elections on the street, they will be put in prison and their fate will be uncertain. This is while they say that the Islamic Republic - that has had 30-plus elections during the past 36 years - is dictatorial. Are such people trustworthy? This is why we say that these people cannot be trusted.

They cannot be trusted. These are not people from whose mouths honest words come out. There is no honesty in them. Even on the issue of the difficult test that Mr. President referred to - both he and other officials really made great efforts on this path - they constantly and repeatedly behaved in a dishonest manner throughout all this period. Of course, our officials fortunately confronted them. In some cases, they behaved towards them in a really revolutionary way and they have achieved some results. We will see what will happen in the future.

The world of Islam has one single prescription today and that is unity. This prescription exists in all Islamic countries. Nations should be united. The Iranian nation should be united. No division and discord should emerge out of nuclear, non-nuclear and other such events. It should not be the case that each group says different things. A task is being carried out for which there are certain officials. They are pursuing the matter and by Allah's favor, they will be able to identify and pursue what constitutes national interests. There should not be any division among the people because this is what the enemy wants. If someone is following the foreigners' propaganda, radios, television networks and the websites that are developing and publishing various writings on a daily basis with the purpose of creating division among the people, you should not allow them to create division. Instead, you should preserve unity and stay together.

Power should grow from the inside. Collective and social piety is like individual piety. In the case of the latter - the purpose of fasting is to achieve piety and the month of fasting is the month of achieving piety - when you achieve piety, you become immune just like the person who has received vaccine and who has thus immunized themselves. Even if they go to a microbe-contaminated environment, it will not affect them. Piety is like this. It does not allow the surrounding environment to influence you. At least, it does not allow you to be influenced easily. Individual piety is like this.

The same is true of national piety. If a people strengthen themselves from the inside, if they strengthen their science, their industry, their faith and their culture, then outside forces will not be able to influence them. This is a prescription that all of us should act on today. The world of Islam should act on it as well.

Dear God, You Yourself help us identify and take the path of guidance.

Greetings be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings

The day immediately following the end of the holy month of Ramadan is called Eid Fitr. In other words, it falls on the first day of Shawwal Al-Mukarram. It is one of the greatest Islamic festivals.

Eid Fitr is the Day of Thanksgiving to Allah, for giving His servants the opportunity to fast and to worship Him in the month of Ramadan. On this Day, Muslims leave their jobs, wear clean clothes, offer special Eid Prayers, and after prayers go to visit one another and take part in festivities. Small children wear beautiful new clothes, and are very busy enjoying the festival. Their angelic faces beam with joy.

Islam wants that all Muslims, whether rich or poor, should enjoy Eid. It has, therefore, commanded all the well-to-do people to pay the Zakat-e-Fitr. This Zakat-e-Fitr is paid on the very day of Eid Fitr.

Zakat-e-Fitr is the right of the poor and the needy, and can be spent for those purposes only, for which Zakat, payable on property, is expendable. This includes helping the deserving people and building hospitals, bridges, schools, etc. It would be better if the Zakat-e-Fitr paid by all the people, is collected in one place and spent after proper planning, so that the condition of a good number of needy persons may improve.

What is Laylatul Qadr?

In surah Al-Qadr Allah clearly states:

"Surely We revealed it (the Holy Quran) on the grand night. And what will make you comprehend what the grand night. The grand night is better than a thousand months. The angels and Gabriel descend in it by the permission of their Lord for every affair, Peace! It is till the break of the morning." Holy Quran (97:1-5)

Allah (SWT) is inviting all the believers for a Divine feast; the invitation which has been brought by the messengers. Allah is the host, his most favorite angels are the servants and the believers are the guests. The table is spread with Divine blessings containing all sorts of rewards and favors. Though the eyes cannot see them nor the ears hear them not the human hearts imagine them, yet the bounties are all kept in readiness to be awarded to the guests in accordance to his/her actions.

Laylatul Qadr is a blessed night because the Almighty brings down during it goodness, bliss, and forgiveness for His servants. It is a feast which has come with a message that shows one the way to achieve happiness in both the worlds. Laylatul Qadr is a feast for the spirit, a feast of worship and prayers.

What do we therefore have to remind ourselves about Laylatul Qadr?

We have to remind ourselves about Laylatul Qadr that is:

A unique once in a year opportunity to do a life time's worth of activity.
A once in a year occasion for influencing our future destiny - "QADR" - Taqdeer.
Full of long lasting blessings.
The night of unsurpassed grandeur when the absolute Grand God revealed the Grand Quran through the Grand Wahy - Jibreel into the heart of the Grand Prophet Mohammad (saw).
The night when the whole multitude of angels and the Great Spirit (Ruh) descend on earth, greeting and praying for the believers and conveying messages to the Imam of age.
How to prepare oneself for The Night of Power (Laylatul Qadr)?

(I) Preparing Mentally

Strive to keep Allah (SWT) at the fore of one's mind the whole night long.
All the Ibadah (worship) done should be recited in the state of being completely awake, aware, conscious, and with a live heart. If one feels that one will not be able to concentrate then start reciting from now "We are from Allah and towards Him is our return." - Holy Quran (2:156) for it is considered as a tragedy if one can not in this night receive the divine grace in supplications. "Their prayers ascend upwards and reaches Allah (SWT), their words are accepted, and Allah (SWT) loves to listen to their prayers the way a mother likes her own child."
Is not it shameful that the prayers which ascend upwards should be recited from the tip of the tongue, while the heart and soul remain occupied in worldly affairs?

Many a times, one feels that one cannot 'properly' perform a certain Ibadah and so decided to forgo it. One should not do listen to this 'waswas' instead, one should perform it and more, for acceptance lies in the Hand of the Mercy of Allah (SWT).

(II) Preparing Physically

For worshipping in this night a suitable place, dress, and perfume should be arranged in advance (comfortable dress which does not distract us).
Paying alms during this night - to the people who really deserve financial support.
Follow the translation of the Duas in order to understand what you are reciting for lutf is only got when one knows what one is reciting.
(III) Preparing Spiritually

Increase ones eagerness for receiving the promised bounties and blessings.
Select worships and deeds which are more in harmony with one's mood.
When one stands for prayer, or any other Ibadah, to briefly spare a moment to think about the wisdom of that action/its meaning etc for e.g. Why am I standing towards Makkah? To realize that when I stand on my two feet, it indicates my hope and fear about the acceptance of my worship.
Resorting (Tawassul) to Ahlul Bayt (as) - With persistence, supplicating in a polite and soft manner, with words and content arousing their sympathies, should beseech them for bestowing upon us the grace of being vigilant during this night.
Crying and Shedding Tears: that during these nights ones fear, humility, tears, crying, anguish and lamentation be increased as much as possible. The Learned Scholar Hajj Mirza Javad Agha Maliki Tabrizi (ra) in his book (Suluk-i Arifan) Spiritual Journey of the Mystics tell us that One of the best method is that one should tie ones hands around ones neck; should pour dirt upon ones head; should place ones head against a wall; sometimes one should stand and sometimes one should cry; should imagine oneself at the scene of Judgment Day; and the way sinners are rebuked with harshness, then one should imagine and be scared least Allah (the Glorious, the Exalted) orders: "Lay hold on him, then put a chain on him, then cast him into the burning fire, then thrust him into a chain the length of which is seventy cubits." - Holy Quran (69:30-32)
Then one should cry: "O' Thou are the most compassionate, and Thou Who are the shelter of unsheltered ones!" "Where is Your vast blessing? Where is Your infinite forgiveness? Where are Your love and benevolence?" Ask for forgiveness of past sins in the most appealing manner with a promise to try never to return to the sins again - a TAWBA in every sense of the word Present ones requests before the Almighty Allah with full hope that they will be answered.

Prophet Mohammad (saw) when asked what one should invoke Allah during these nights, said: "Ask for your safety (here and in the hereafter)".