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Praise be to Allaah.
Time passes
quickly
Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
“The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the
Qur’aan, a guidance for mankind and clear proofs for the guidance and the
criterion (between right and wrong). So whoever of you sights (the crescent on
the first night of) the month (of Ramadan i.e. is present at his home), he must
observe Sawm (fasts) that month, and whoever is ill or on a journey, the same
number [of days which one did not observe Sawm (fasts) must be made up] from
other days. Allaah intends for you ease, and He does not want to make things
difficult for you. (He wants that you) must complete the same number (of days),
and that you must magnify Allaah [i.e. to say Takbeer (Allaahu Akbar: Allaah is
the Most Great)] for having guided you so that you may be grateful to Him.”
[al-Baqarah
2:185]
This blessed
month is a great opportunity for goodness, barakah (blessing), worship and
obedience towards Allaah.
It is a great
month, a noble season, a month in which hasanaat (rewards for good deeds) are
multiplied and in which committing sayi’aat (bad deeds) is more serious than at
other times. The gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are shut,
and the sinners’ repentance to Allaah is accepted. It is a month whose beginning
is mercy, its middle is forgiveness and its end is redemption from the
Fire.
So give thanks
to Him for the season of goodness and blessing that He has bestowed upon you,
and for the means of bounty and various kinds of great blessings for which He
has singled you out. Make the most of this blessed time by filling it with acts
of worship and forsaking haraam things, so that you may attain a good life in
this world and happiness after death.
For the sincere
believer, every month is an occasion for worship and his whole life is spent in
obeying Allaah, but in the month of Ramadaan he has even more motives to do good
and his heart is even more focused on worship, and he turns even more to his
Lord. By His grace, our generous Lord bestows His bounty upon the fasting
believers and multiplies the reward for them on this blessed occasion, so He
gives abundantly and rewards generously for righteous deeds.
Days pass so
quickly, as if they were mere moments. We welcomed Ramadaan, then we bade it
farewell, and only a short period of time passed and we are welcoming Ramadaan
again. So we should hasten to do good deeds in this month and strive to fill it
with that which Allaah is pleased with and with that which will help us on the
Day when we meet Him.
How can we
prepare for Ramadaan?
We can prepare
for Ramadaan by taking stock of ourselves and recognizing our shortcomings in
living up to the Shahaadatayn, or our shortcoming in fulfilling our duties, or
our shortcomings in not keeping away from the desires and doubts that we may
have fallen into…
We should set
ourselves straight so that in Ramadaan we will have a higher degree of faith.
For faith increases and decreases. It increases through obedience to Allaah and
it decreases through disobedience and sin. The first act of obedience that a
person should achieve is that of being a true slave of Allaah and believing that
there is none that is rightfully worshipped except Allaah, so he directs all
kinds of worship to Allaah and does not associate anyone else in worship with
Him. Each of us should realize that whatever has befallen him could not have
missed him, and whatever missed him could not have befallen him, and that
everything happens by the will and decree of Allaah.
We should avoid
everything that could undermine our commitment to the Shahaadatayn. This means
keeping away from bid’ah (innovations) and things that have been introduced into
the religion. We should also follow the principle of al-walaa’ wa’l-bara’
(loyalty and friendship vs. disavowal and enmity), by taking the believers as
our friends and by regarding the kaafirs and hypocrites as enemies, and we
should rejoice when the Muslims gain a victory over their enemies. We should
follow the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
and his companions and adhere to the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) and the way of the Rightly-Guided Khulafa’ who came after
him. We should love the Sunnah and love those who adhere to it and defend it, in
whatever country they are and whatever colour or nationality they are.
After that we
should take stock of ourselves and recognize our shortcomings in doing acts of
worship such as praying in congregation, remembering Allaah (dhikr), paying
attention to the rights of neighbours, relatives and the Muslims, spreading the
greeting of salaam, enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, urging
one another to follow the truth and be patient and steadfast in doing so, being
patient in avoiding evil actions and in doing good deeds, and accepting the
decree of Allaah with patience.
Then we should
take stock of ourselves and our sins and our following whims and desires. We
should stop ourselves from persisting in that, whether the sin is great or
small, whether it is a sin of the eye, by looking at that which Allaah has
forbidden; or by listening to music; or by walking to things of which Allaah
does not approve; or by using one's hands to srike in a manner with which Allaah
is not pleased; or by consuming things that Allaah has forbidden such as riba
(usury) and bribes, or any other means of consuming people’s wealth
unlawfully.
We should
never forget that Allaah stretches forth His hand during the day to accept the
repentance of those who sinned at night, and He stretches forth His hand at
night to accept the repentance of those who sinned during the day. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
“And march
forth in the way (which leads to) forgiveness from your Lord, and for Paradise
as wide as the heavens and the earth, prepared for Al-Muttaqoon (the pious).
Those who spend (in Allaah’s Cause) in prosperity and in
adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men; verily, Allaah loves
Al-Muhsinoon (the good‑doers).
And those who,
when they have committed Faahishah (illegal sexual intercourse) or wronged
themselves with evil, remember Allaah and ask forgiveness for their sins; — and
none can forgive sins but Allaah — and do not persist in what (wrong) they have
done, while they know.
For such, the
reward is forgiveness from their Lord, and Gardens with rivers flowing
underneath (Paradise), wherein they shall abide forever. How excellent is this
reward for the doers (who do righteous deeds according to Allaah’s Orders)”
[Aal ‘Imraan
3:133-136]
“Say: “O
‘Ibaadi (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil
deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of Allaah, verily, Allaah forgives all
sins. Truly, He is Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”
[al-Zumar
39:53]
“And whoever
does evil or wrongs himself but afterwards seeks Allaah’s forgiveness, he will
find Allaah Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”
[al-Nisa’
4:110]
By taking
stock, repenting and seeking forgiveness, this is how we should welcome
Ramadaan. “The smart man is the one who takes stock of himself and strives to do
that which will benefit him after death, and the helpless one is the one who
follows his own whims and desires and engages in wishful thinking, (assuming
that Allaah will forgive him regardless of what he does and that he does not
need to strive to good deeds).”
The month of
Ramadaan is the month of great gains and profits. The smart trader is the one
who makes the most of special occasions to increase his profits. So make the
most of this month by doing lots of acts of worship, praying a great deal,
reading Qur’aan, forgiving people, being kind to others and giving charity to
the poor.
In the month
of Ramadaan the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are shut. The
devils are put in chains and a caller cries out each night, O seeker of good,
proceed, O seeker of evil, desist.
So, O slaves of
Allaah, be among the people of good, following the path of your righteous
forebears who were guided by the Sunnah of your Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him), so that we may end Ramadaan with our sins forgiven and our
righteous deeds accepted.
We should note
that the month of Ramadaan is the best of months.
Ibn al-Qayyim
said:
Another of example of that – i.e., of the
differentiation between the things that Allaah has created – is the fact that
the month of Ramadaan is superior to all other months, and the last ten nights
are superior to the other nights.”
Zaad al-Ma’aad,
1/56
This month is
superior to others in four things:
1 – In it there
is the best night of the year, which is Laylat al-Qadr. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
“Verily, We
have sent it (this Qur’aan) down in the Night of Al‑Qadr (Decree).
And what will
make you know what the Night of Al‑Qadr (Decree) is?
The Night of
Al‑Qadr (Decree) is better than a thousand months (i.e. worshipping Allaah in
that night is better than worshipping Him a thousand months, i.e. 83 years and 4
months).
Therein descend
the angels and the Rooh [Jibreel (Gabriel)] by Allaah’s Permission with all
Decrees,
(All that
night), there is peace (and goodness from Allaah to His believing slaves) until
the appearance of dawn”
[al-Qadar
97:1-5]
So worship on
this night is better than worshipping for a thousand months.
2 – In this month was revealed the best of
Books to the best of the Prophets (peace be upon them). Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
“The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur’aan, a
guidance for mankind and clear proofs for the guidance and the criterion
(between right and wrong)”
[al-Baqarah 2:185]
“We sent it (this Qur’aan) down on a blessed
night [(i.e. the Night of Al‑Qadr) in the month of Ramadan — the 9th month of
the Islamic calendar]. Verily, We are ever warning [mankind that Our Torment
will reach those who disbelieve in Our Oneness of Lordship and in Our Oneness of
worship].
Therein (that night) is decreed every matter of
ordainments.
As a Command (or this Qur’aan or the Decree of
every matter) from Us. Verily, We are ever sending (the Messengers)”
[al-Dukhaan 44:3-5]
It was narrated
by Ahmad and by al-Tabaraani in al-Mu’jam al-Kabeer that Waathilah ibn al-Asqa’
(may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The Scriptures of Ibraaheem were sent
down on the first of the month of Ramadaan. The Tawraat was sent down on the
sixth of Ramadaan. The Injeel was sent down on the thirteenth of Ramadaan. The
Zaboor was sent down on the eighteenth of Ramadaan, and the Qur’aan was sent
down on the twenty-fourth of Ramadaan.
Classed as
hasan by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 1575.
2 – In this month the gates of Paradise are
opened and the gates of Hell are shut, and the devils are chained up.
It was narrated
from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “When Ramadan comes, the gates
of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are closed, and the devils are put
in chains.” (Agreed upon).
Al-Nasaa’i
narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: “When Ramadaan comes, the gates of mercy are opened
and the gates of Hell are shut, and the devils are put in chains.”
Classed as
saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami’, 471.
Al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Maajah and Ibn Khuzaymah
narrated in one report: “When the first night of the month of Ramadaan comes,
the devils and rebellious jinn are chained up and the gates of Hell are closed,
and not one gate of it is opened. The gates of Paradise are opened and not one
gate of it is closed. And a caller cries out: ‘O seeker of good, proceed; O
seeker of evil, desist. And Allaah has those whom He redeems from the Fire, and
that happens every night.”
Classed as
hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami’, 759.
If it is asked, how come we see many evil
actions and sins committed in Ramadaan, for if the devils are chained up that
would not happen?
The answer is
that evil actions become less for those who observe the conditions and etiquette
of fasting;
or that the
ones who are chained up are some of the devils – namely the rebellious ones –
not all of them;
or that what is
meant is that evil is reduced in Ramadaan, which is a proven fact. If evil
happens at this time, it is still less than at other times. Even if all of them
(the devils) are chained up, that does not necessarily mean that no evil or sin
will happen, because there are other causes of that besides the devils, such as
evil souls, bad habits and the devils among mankind. Al-Fath, 4/145
4 – There are many kinds of worship in
Ramadaan, some of which are not done at other times, such as fasting, praying
qiyaam, feeding the poor, i’tikaaf, sadaqah, and reading Qur’aan.
I ask Allaah,
the Exalted, the Almighty, to help us all to do that and to help us to fast and
pray qiyaam, and to do acts of worship and to avoid doing evil. Praise be to
Allaah, the Lord of the Worlds.
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