The Muslim in Ramadaan
Q: What should we say to the
Muslims on the occasion of the beginning of Ramadaan?.
A:
Praise be to Allaah.
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], {شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِي أُنزِلَ فِيهِ
الْقُرْآنُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَاتٍ مِّنَ الْهُدَىٰ
وَالْفُرْقَانِ ۚ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ ۖ
وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ
أُخَرَ ۗ يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ
الْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ
مَا هَدَاكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ}, Transliteration:
Shahru Ramađāna Al-Ladhī 'Unzila Fīhi Al-Qur'ānu Hudáan
Lilnnāsi Wa Bayyinātin Mina Al-Hudá Wa Al-Furqāni Faman
Shahida Minkumu Ash-Shahra Falyaşumhu Wa Man Kāna Marīđāan 'Aw
`Alá Safarin Fa`iddatun Min 'Ayyāmin 'Ukhara Yurīdu
Allāhu Bikumu Al-Yusra Wa Lā Yurīdu Bikumu Al-`Usra Wa Litukmilū
Al-`Iddata Wa Litukabbirū Allāha `Alá Mā Hadākum Wa
La`allakum Tashkurūna.
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.
Time passes quickly:
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].
{وَسَارِعُوا إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَةٍ مِّن
رَّبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا السَّمَاوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ
لِلْمُتَّقِينَ ﴿١٣٣﴾ الَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ فِي
السَّرَّاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ وَالْعَافِينَ
عَنِ النَّاسِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ
﴿١٣٤﴾ وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً
أَوْ ظَلَمُوا أَنفُسَهُمْ ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا
لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَن يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَلَمْ
يُصِرُّوا عَلَىٰ مَا فَعَلُوا وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ
﴿١٣٥﴾ أُولَٰئِكَ جَزَاؤُهُم مَّغْفِرَةٌ مِّن
رَّبِّهِمْ وَجَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِن تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ
فِيهَا ۚ وَنِعْمَ أَجْرُ الْعَامِلِينَ}, Transliteration: Wa
Sāri`ū 'Ilá Maghfiratin Min Rabbikum Wa Jannatin `Arđuhā
As-Samāwātu Wa Al-'Arđu 'U`iddat Lilmuttaqīna, Al-Ladhīna Yunfiqūna
Fī As-Sarrā'i Wa Ađ-Đarrā'i Wa Al-Kāžimīna Al-Ghayža Wa Al-`Āfīna
`Ani An-Nāsi Wa Allāhu Yuĥibbu Al-Muĥsinīna, Wa Al-Ladhīna 'Idhā
Fa`alū Fāĥishatan 'Aw Žalamū 'Anfusahum Dhakarū Allāha Fāstaghfarū
Lidhunūbihim Wa Man Yaghfiru Adh-Dhunūba 'Illā Allāhu Wa Lam
Yuşirrū `Alá Mā Fa`alū Wa Hum Ya`lamūna, 'Ūlā'ika
Jazā'uuhum Maghfiratun Min Rabbihim Wa Jannātun Tajrī Min Taĥtihā
Al-'Anhāru Khālidīna Fīhā Wa Ni`ma 'Ajru Al-`Āmilīna.
"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], {قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا
عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِن رَّحْمَةِ اللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ
اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ
الرَّحِيمُ}, Transliteration: Qul Yā `Ibādī Al-Ladhīna
'Asrafū `Alá 'Anfusihim Lā Taqnaţū Min Raĥmati Allāhi
'Inna Allāha Yaghfiru Adh-Dhunūba Jamī`āan 'Innahu Huwa Al-Ghafūru
Ar-Raĥīmu.
"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], {وَمَن
يَعْمَلْ سُوءًا أَوْ يَظْلِمْ نَفْسَهُ ثُمَّ يَسْتَغْفِرِ اللَّهَ
يَجِدِ اللَّهَ غَفُورًا رَّحِيمًا}, Transliteration: Wa Man
Ya`mal Sū'āan 'Aw Yažlim Nafsahu Thumma Yastaghfiri Allāha Yajidi
Allāha Ghafūrāan Raĥīmāan.
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].
{إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ فِي لَيْلَةِ
الْقَدْرِ ﴿١﴾ وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا لَيْلَةُ
الْقَدْرِ ﴿٢﴾ لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنْ
أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ ﴿٣﴾ تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ
وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ
﴿٤﴾ سَلَامٌ هِيَ حَتَّىٰ مَطْلَعِ
الْفَجْرِ}, Transliteration: 'Innā 'Anzalnāhu Fī Laylati
Al-Qadri, Wa Mā 'Adrāka Mā Laylatu Al-Qadri, Laylatu Al-Qadri
Khayrun Min 'Alfi Shahrin, Tanazzalu Al-Malā'ikatu Wa Ar-Rūĥu Fīhā
Bi'idhni Rabbihim Min Kulli 'Amrin, Salāmun Hiya Ĥattá
Maţla`i Al-Fajri.
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], {شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِي أُنزِلَ فِيهِ
الْقُرْآنُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَاتٍ مِّنَ الْهُدَىٰ
وَالْفُرْقَانِ}, Transliteration: Shahru Ramađāna Al-Ladhī
'Unzila Fīhi Al-Qur'ānu Hudáan Lilnnāsi Wa Bayyinātin
Mina Al-Hudá Wa Al-Furqāni.
"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], {إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ فِي
لَيْلَةٍ مُّبَارَكَةٍ ۚ إِنَّا كُنَّا مُنذِرِينَ
﴿٣﴾ فِيهَا يُفْرَقُ كُلُّ أَمْرٍ حَكِيمٍ
﴿٤﴾ أَمْرًا مِّنْ عِندِنَا ۚ إِنَّا كُنَّا
مُرْسِلِينَ}, Transliteration: 'Innā 'Anzalnāhu Fī Laylatin
Mubārakatin 'Innā Kunnā Mundhirīna, Fīhā Yufraqu Kullu 'Amrin
Ĥakīmin, 'Amrāan Min `Indinā 'Innā Kunnā Mursilīna.
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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