Bismillāh.
From the Forty Hadith on Rajab and Sha’bān
It has been reported by Qāsim b. Yahyā from his grandfather al-Hasan b. Rāshid, “Imam Ja‘far b. Muhammad (a) said: do not abandon the fasting of the 27th Day of Rajab, for it is the day on which the prophethood was bestowed upon Muhammad (s); and its reward is equivalent to [fasting for] sixty months for you.
Al-Faqīh 2:90; Wasā’il H. 13808
In another Hadīth it has been mentioned: Al-Rayyān b. al-Salt narrates that when Imam Abū Ja‘far II (al-Jawād) (a) was in Baghdad, he fasted in the middle of Rajab and on the 27th Day of Rajab, and so did his entire clan of [Banu] Hāshim.
Misbāh 2:814; Iqbāl 676; Wasā’il H. 10196
إِنَّا سَنُلْقِي عَلَيْكَ قَوْلاً ثَقِيلاً
Indeed, We shall cast upon you a weighty word.
Sūrat Al-Muzzammil No.73 Āyat 5
Surat al-Muzammil is one of the earliest surahs to be revealed to the Holy Prophet sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa-ālihi wasallam. When the Prophet (s) began his mission and invited the people of Makkah to Islam, they rejected his message. In response, Allah ‘azza wajall counsels his beloved Prophet in verses 1-4 of Sūrat al-Muzzammil, to pray in the night and to recite the Qur’an in a measured tone, as a means of strengthening his soul and his resolve.
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلْمُزَّمِّلُ. قُمِ ٱلَّيْلَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًۭا , نِّصْفَهُۥٓ أَوِ ٱنقُصْ مِنْهُ قَلِيلًا, أَوْ زِدْ عَلَيْهِ وَرَتِّلِ ٱلْقُرْءَانَ تَرْتِيلًا
O you wrapped ˹in your clothes, stand all night ˹in prayer˺ except a little, pray˺ half the night, or a little less, or a little more—and recite the Quran ˹properly˺ in a measured way. (Q73:1-4)
The purpose for this spiritual instruction was meant to strengthen him for the responsibility of receiving the Qur’an and conveying it to the people. Allah (swt) mentions this in today’s verse for reflection: Indeed, We shall cast upon you a weighty word.
The weightiness of the Quran was evident in the physical and emotional strain on the Prophet (s) during revelation. It has been reported that he would sometimes become semi-unconscious when receiving revelation. On one occasion, the Prophet (s) was asked how revelation came to him, and he replied: Sometimes it comes to me like the ringing of a bell, and that is the hardest upon me. Then it departs from me, and I have grasped what He has said. (Ibn Shahr ‘Āshūb, al-Manāqib,1:43).
It was only the Prophet (s) who could bear the responsibility of receiving the Quran, conveying its message, and enduring the immense challenges that accompanied it.
لَوْ أَنْزَلْنا هذَا الْقُرْآنَ عَلى جَبَلٍ لَرَأَيْتَهُ خاشِعاً مُتَصَدِّعاً مِنْ خَشْيَةِ اللهِ
Had We sent down this Qur’an upon a mountain, you would have seen it crumbled, split apart out of fear of Allah (Q59:21).
The Quran refers to itself as a weighty word. Although this description appears only once in the entire Quran, it is also used by the Prophet (s) to describe the Quran in the famous hadith of Thaqalayn. Weight is a property of physical objects. However, it can also be employed metaphorically for non-physical realities. For example, it may describe a burden upon the soul, or speech whose depth makes it challenging to fully grasp.
‘Allāmah Tabātabā’ī expounds upon the meaning of ‘Qawlan Thaqīlan’ in Tafsīr al-Mīzān. He defines two main reasons for a speech to be considered weighty:
1.The Content is Profound
A weighty speech contains concepts that are profound and normally difficult to grasp. For example, scientific or technical discussions are heavy upon the minds of a non-scientific audience. Similarly, discussions concerning the immaterial world, the soul (nafs) and the hereafter (ākhirah) are heavy upon the souls accustomed to the material world. The Quran teaches us realities that we did not know (Q16:78), and realities that we could have never known by ourselves (Q2:151).
2. The Instructions are Comprehensive
The weighty word also entails a comprehensive system of instructions, guiding individuals toward a structured set of rituals and practices that require consistent commitment. The Quran does not only call people towards a set of beliefs. It also guides towards a way of life that is in line with those beliefs. It is both a book of ta’līm (teaching) and tarbiyah (training).
We pray to the Almighty on this day of Mab’ath to enable us to be the followers and the upholders of his weighty word, the Holy Quran. We pray for peace and safety around the world through the Hastening of Imam Al-Mahdī ‘ajjalallāhu farajahu.
Sources: ‘Allāmah Muhammad Husayn Tabātabā’ī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān.