In the Name of Allah, The Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Quranic verses and prophetic hadiths about early sleep:
In fact, Allah’s Book, the Holy Quran, and Prophetic Sunna reiterate the importance of early sleep and early rise. To this effect, Allah, Most Gracious, says,
“And We have made your sleep as a rest.”
[LXXVIII; 9]
He, All-Mighty, also says,
“Perform the Salat (Prayer) from midday till the darkness of the night, and reauthor the Quran in the early dawn. Verily, the recitation of the Quran in the early dawn is ever witnessed (attended by the angels).”
[XVII; 78]
To the same effect, Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), says,
“O Allah! Bless the earliness of my people!”
[Narrated by At-Tirmithi (1212), Abu Dawood (2606), Ibn Majah (2236) on authority of Sakhr Al-Ghamidi]
He, (PBUH), also says,
“The two Rak’as of the Dawn Prayer are better than the whole present world and (all) the things therein.”
[Narrated by Muslim (725), At-Tirmithi (416), An-Nasa’i in As-Sunan Al-Kubra (1452) and Ahmad (26330) on authority of ‘A’ishah]
Abdullah Bin Mas’oud said:
“Allah’s Messenger forbade us from staying awake after the Late-Evening Prayer.”
[Narrated by Ibn Majah (703)]
However, in his book of Prophetic Hadith Al-Boukhari holds that it is permissible to stay awake after the Late-Evening Prayer only for seeking knowledge, otherwise it is impermissible, as confirmed by Prophetic Sunna and Tradition whereby Muslims are forbidden to gather together after the Late-Evening Prayer except for seeking knowledge. In other words, Allah’s Messenger, (PBUH), bids us to go to bed early and to get up early;
The meaning of the verse and the facts in it:
Allah, Praised and Exalted, says,
“…and reauthor the Quran in the early dawn,”
i.e. the Quranic Verses that are reauthord in the Dawn Prayer, Verily, the recitation of the Quran in the early dawn is ever witnessed (attended by the angels).”
First fact:
Scientists confirm that the highest rate of Ozone in the Earth’s atmosphere is at dawn; and then it gradually decreases until sunrise when it is minimized. This gas, Ozone, has a very useful effect on the human nervous system, and it activates mental and physical work. Hence, those who stay in bed late after sunrise feel exhausted during the rest of the day.
Second fact:
The rate of ultraviolet rays is higher at sunrise than when the sun has risen to the middle of the sky. Ultraviolet rays are responsible for making Vitamin D, which, in turn, is responsible for precipitation of Calcium in bones. In other words, remaining asleep after sunrise causes fragility and weakness of bones.
Third fact:
Early rise prevents prolonged sleep. Sleep for eight straight hours minimizes energy of the body and pulse-beat, and it causes blood to run slowly along blood vessels. This causes fatty substances to precipitate on the inner walls of blood vessels, which makes them narrow and sometimes causes angina pectoris. Getting up early to perform the Dawn Prayer prevents prolonged sleep. If necessary, sleep can be divided into two periods: before and after sunrise.
Fourth fact:
In the human body there is a substance that enhances energy of the whole body, increases metabolism therein, and multiplies the rate of sugar in blood. This substance, called Cortisone, reaches its highest rate at dawn (22 degrees) and then drops down to (7 degrees) after that.
To wrap up, the above-mentioned are some of the facts that verify Allah’s Book, the Holy Quran, and Prophetic Sunna and Tradition.
Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Creations