Ramadan between two images

In The Name of Allah the Most Merciful, the Most Gracious

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings of Allah be upon the most Honorable of all Prophets and Messengers.

People in Ramadan are in various types, they differ greatly. Anyway, they are mostly either wasteful and negligent or striving and keen. Perhaps we should stop by both images and mention some of their attributes.

The first image:

When people hear that Ramadan is close, they rejoice and regard its coming as auspicious. Why is all that joy? It is the delight of worship… the delight of the intimate discourse with Allah… the delight of fasting. They are fully aware that Ramadan is the month of the Quran, so they recite it without being bored. They know that it is the month of repentance and forgiveness, so they stop to call themselves to account for their deeds, and ask for forgiveness; they return back, repent and do not become arrogant. They do not admire their deeds; they do not postpone or procrastinate. They know that they are delinquent and sinners… Perhaps there are sins and ordeals that they did not count for, there are errors and slips they forgot but Allah did not {Allâh has kept account of it, while they have forgotten it.} [Al-Mujaadila 58:6]
 

Transliteration: ahsahu Allahu wanasoohu

There are some acts of disobediences which they performed and considered as small sins but were recorded in a book that leaves no sin whether small or big {And the Book (one's Record) will be placed (in the right hand for a believer in the Oneness of Allah, and in the left hand for a disbeliever in the Oneness of Allah), and you will see the Mujrimun (criminals, polytheists, sinners, etc.), fearful of that which is (recorded) therein. They will say: "Woe to us! What sort of Book is this that leaves neither a small thing nor a big thing, but has recorded it with numbers!" And they will find all that they did, placed before them, and your Lord treats no one with injustice.} [Al-Kahf 18:49]
 

Tranlsiteration: WawudiAAa alkitabu fatara almujrimeena mushfiqeena mimma feehi wayaqooloona ya waylatana ma lihatha alkitabi la yughadiru sagheeratan wala kabeeratan illa ahsaha wawajadoo ma AAamiloo hadiran wala yathlimu rabbuka ahadan

Yes, they call themselves to account for their deeds. Every time they hear someone giving advice or preaching to remind people, they take it that they are meant by this speech. They always call themselves to account and ask for forgiveness. The example in this is the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who has said: "O people, repent to Allah and seek His forgiveness. Verily, I seek repentance from Him a hundred times a day." [Reported by Muslim]
 

They know that Ramadan is the month of giving away and charity. So, they spend money in charity more than once a day, once for a charitable organization, another for breaking the fast of a Muslim. They spend over and over again all day and at the time of every prayer, using their money for good things.

These are chances and prizes. The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has said: "Whoever gives away food for breaking the fast of a Muslim, will have an equivalent reward, however, the reward of the fasting man will not be reduced a bit." [Narrated by At-Tirmidhi and authenticated by Al-Albani]
 

They totally realize that it is the month of fasting, the month of prayer and of approaching to Allah, so they would not miss the Tarâwîh prayers or the late night prayers for whatever reason. They know the Hadith reported by At-Tirmidhi: "If the man prays with the Imam till he leaves, a night in prayers and remembering Allah will be written for him." [Authenticated by Al-Albani]
 

They contemplate about this multiplied reward, and wonder how could some people neglect or miss it… Allah is the greatest; these are not compensated for golden chances. However, if they were earthly matters, most people would have rushed for them and come from every direction. Glory be to Allah, could negligence reach so far! This is the month of Ramadan, the month of repentance, the month where devils are fettered, the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hellfire are closed… the month of salvation from Hellfire… the month of hard work and worship… the month of heroic actions and sacrifices... it is the month where there is a night better than a thousand months (worshipping Allah in that night is better than worshipping Him a thousand months)… so they are not seen but reciting the Book of Allah, spending in the way of Allah, praying to Allah, submitting to Him, realizing the meaning of fasting… their tongues are fasting from saying prohibited words… their eyes are fasting from seeing prohibited things… and all their senses are fasting from prohibited things.

This is an image we see. Praise be to Allah, these are the people of the bright image who exploited every merit and attribute of Ramadan, and every moment of their times.

These are the people whom Allah has bestowed His pertinence and appositeness upon them, Allah took them for his obedience. We ask Allah to accept our deeds and theirs.

The other image

This is a much seen image, May Allah help us. I will mention some of their conditions. They vary in their negligence from low to high...

1. Some work hard in the beginning of Ramadan. You see them reciting the Quran, and praying. Days later, they start losing their enthusiasm, till they quit what they used to do in the early days of Ramadan.

2. Some of them do not even feel Ramadan. They only know that they cannot eat or drink from dawn till sunset, and then it is over. So, they are in a strange bizarre state. They spend the night watching prohibited things, hanging around in markets, or playing and gossiping till the call to dawn prayer. Then, they sleep till noon, they perform prayers or they do not, and complete sleeping till the afternoon. Some keep sleeping till sunset, and then wake up to eat and drink. They start breaking their fast by watching the prohibited; they have lost their minds by sleeping much.

3. Some of them are in a very saddening state. You may not know about them, so I will tell you some things about their condition. They go with their family to the Sacred Mosque in Mecca to perform 'Umra (Lesser Pilgrimage), and stay there most of the month. The father spends most of his time in the Mosque, so does the mother; but where are the children? Their father knows nothing about them but that they are home and they bring him breakfast at sunset. Except for that, he knows nothing about them. I will tell you what they do to spend their time. They stay late at night, hang around in markets. The son goes out by himself or with some companions. So, you may see groups of young men, looking for troubles with anyone. One would say bad words; others would wink, slander and hurt the slaves of Allah in the markets. They try to make improper advances to girls. Some of them are looking up to watch the windows of apartments, and Allah only knows what is behind these windows. They remain in such a state till dawn. There is no need for telling more of this painful situation.

If you ask about their day; it is a continuous sleep. They waste their prayers despite the fact that they are beside the House of Allah. As for the girls, they do not differ much, without going into further details.

The question is: who is responsible for these children?
Is it the neglecting father, or the wasting mother?
It is a question which needs an answer. And the answer is left for you.

This is an image of a painful reality of a group of our youth. It happens in the month of Ramadan, the month of worship. Do not be surprised if you are told that crimes increase in Ramadan more than in the remaining months. The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has said: "Verily some fasting men would get only hunger and thirst out of their fasting, and some standing men for prayers would get only alertness out of their standing at night." [Reported by Imam Ahmad, and Al-Albani said: Sahih due to supporting narrations]
 

Finally: O beloved ones: we must fear Allah concerning ourselves and our children. We must accept the truth; we should not seek excuses for ourselves or evade the truth…

I ask Allah the Most High, the Most Great to guide the stray Muslims; and to forgive and pardon us and them. I ask Him to accept our fasting and standing, Allah is the Guardian and the Able to do this.

Peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.

Ibn Khuzayma House
Nawwâf ibn 'Ubaid Ar-Ra'wajî

Revised to agree with authentic hadith

Translated by Wathakker.info website