Hundreds of thousands of Muslim worshippers gathered late on Wednesday to attend prayers at the Grand Holy Mosque in Mecca to mark the 27th night of the Holy fasting month of Ramadan, believed to likely be Laylat al-Qadr.
Laylat al-Qadr, or Night of Power, is celebrated in Islam as the anniversary of the day on which some of the most important verses in the Quran were revealed to the Prophet Mohammed. The exact day upon which it falls is not known, but the prophet said it falls on an odd-numbered night during the last 10 days of Ramadan.
The reward of every act of worship conducted during Laylat al-Qadr is counted as more than one thousand months of performing it.
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Worshippers typically perform Taraweek prayers after Isha prayers every night during Ramadan.
Many of the faithful choose to also perform Qiyam al-Lail prayers, which translates to “standing during the night” and is a night vigil prayer that starts after midnight and ends before dawn and Fajr prayers.
