273 In al-shaf‘ prayer it is recommended to recite al-Na>s...

273 In al-shaf‘ prayer it is recommended to recite al-Na>s [after al-H{amd] in the first rak‘ah, and al-Falaq in the second. In the al-witr prayer, which is one rak‘ah, it is recommended to recite [after al-H{amd] al-Tawh}eed three times and then al- Na>s and al-Falaq, and then go for Qunut. 274 i.e. one may read al-Tawh}eed [once after al-H{amd] in all [eleven rak‘ah of the night prayer]. 275 The minors should be prayed for on top of the forty adult individuals. Ed.

It is recommended to say three hundred times al-‘Afw, and if one wanted to say them conjointly then it should be pronounced al- ‘Afwa al-‘Afwa . . .

The virtues and merit of the night prayer Allah Almighty revealed to Moses, “Rise up in the darkness of the night, and make your grave a garden of the gardens of Paradise”.276 Amir al-Mo’mineen said, “The rising of the night gives health to the body”.277 Imam S{a>diq said, “the prayer of the night beautifies the face, beautifies manners, freshens up the breath, increases sustenance, pays the debt, repels sorrows, and strengthens the sight”.278 Imam S{a>diq also said, “he says lies who claims he performs the night prayers while he goes hungry [during the day], for the prayer of night guarantees the sustenance of the day”.279 On Childbirth and Childbearing The first matter It is recommended to wash the newborn when it is born, and to recite the adhan in its right ear and the iqa>mah in its left, to do tah}nik, which is to apply water of the Fura>t (the Euphrates) to the upper inside of its mouth280, and to name him on the seventh day.

It is recommended to shave the infant’s head on this day and to give to charity the hair’s weight in gold or silver. If he is not 276 Mostadrak al-Wasa’el, vol.6, p331 277 Wasa’el al-Shi‘ah, vol.8, p150, Mostadrak al-Wasa’el, vol.3, p281 278 Wasa’el al-Shi‘ah, vol.8, p152 279 Wasa’el al-Shi‘ah, vol.8, p158 280 Or with the turbah of Imam Hussain peace be upon him. Tahdheeb al-Ah}ka>m, vol.6, p74. shaved on the seventh day it is no longer mustah}ab.

It is also recommended on the seventh day to do aqeeqah using a sheep or a camel – the bigger the better. It is recommended that the midwife is given the entire leg, and if no midwife was involved, the mother is given the share of the midwife and she gives them to whomever she wishes. If the midwife was a Jewess who does not eat the Muslim meat, she is given one-quarter of the price of the sheep.