How do we receive Ramadan?
- Categories: Fiqh of Fasting -
All praise is due to Allah alone, and prayers and peace of Allah
be upon the last Prophet, our prophet Muhammad, and all his family
and companions.
People's habits vary in
receiving the month of Ramadan and investing its times in their
preferred works and activities.
Some receive it with laziness,
unemployment, sleeping and negligence to the acts of
worship.
Some receive it with devoting
the time for watching TV.
Some receive it with staying
up late at night and devoting times for visits and going to the
markets, rests, parties … etc.
And some receive it with
excessive eating and drinking and exerting the efforts in this
aspect as if it were the month of eating and drinking, not the
month of fasting.
On the other hand; the
successful, whom Allah wanted the good for, and guided their
insight to see what is righteous, distinguishing it from the
falsehood; they receive the month of Ramadan with joy, delight,
happiness and gladness, because they see it as opportunity for
forgiving the sins and correcting errors. It is the month of
forgiveness, mercy, and freeing oneself from hellfire; the Prophet
(Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon him) used to give glad tidings
to his companions for the upcoming of Ramadan by saying: "Ramadan
has come to you, a blessed month, Allah ordained its fast upon you.
The gates of heavens are opened in this month, the gates of hell
are closed in it, and the giant devils are chained in it. In it,
there is a night better than one thousand month; the one who is
deprived from its good is surly deprived." [Reported by An-Nasa'y
and authenticated by Al-Albany]
Therefore; they knew the
benefits, rewards and fruits of this month to acquire such prizes
and grants in order not to feel remorse in the Day of Judgment and
say: {Alas! Would that I had sent forth (good deeds) for (this) my
life!} [Al-Fajr 89:24]
Transliteration:
Yaqoolu ya laytanee qaddamtu
lihayatee
Or say
{My Lord! Send me back, So
that I may do good in that which I have left behind!} [Al-Muminun
23: 99-100] and regret their negligence.
Transliteration:
rabbi irjiAAooni (99)
LaAAallee aAAmalu salihan feema taraktu
Hence those successful
intended to receive the month of Ramadan with the
following:
Repentance and
turning to Allah:
Repenting from sins is
obligatory at all times and in Ramadan the necessity of repentance
become more essential. Hence, the one that does not repent in
Ramadan; when will he repent?! And the one that does not turn to
Allah in Ramadan; when will he turn to Him?! Allah Almighty says:
{And all of you beg Allâh to forgive you all, O believers, that you
may be successful} [An-Nur 24:31]
Transliteration:
watooboo ila Allahi jameeAAan
ayyuha almuminoona laAAallakum tuflihoona
O you who delay repentance
till tomorrow, till when will you delay your repentance and turning
to Allah?!
You used to say 'I will repent
when I fast, and will turn to Allah when Ramadan comes' and now the
days of Ramadan are going away and you are still distant from your
Lord and escape from Him instead of escaping toward Him. You insist
to disobey Him, so how could you receive the angle of death in this
case of negligence and inattention?! How could you hope repentance
while you are walking in a different path?!
Allah Almighty is
Oft-forgiving for the sins; "He extends His mercy in the night for
the repentance of whomever committed sins in the day to forgive
him, and extends His mercy in the day for the repentance of
whomever committed sins in the night to forgive him." [Narrated by
Muslim]
« إن الله عز وجل يبسط يده
بالليل ، ليتوب مسيء النهار . ويبسط يده بالنهار ، ليتوب مسيء الليل .
حتى تطلع الشمس من مغربها» صحيح
مسلم
Moreover, He is happy because of the
repentance of those who repent and the regret of those who
disobeyed and committed sins. So, "He Almighty made a gate for
repentance in the west, its wide as forty years distance; He will
not close it till sun rises from the west according to the saying
of the Truthful Prayers and Peace be of Allah be upon him."
[Declared Hasan (good) by Al-Albani]
« إن من قبل المغرب لبابا
مسيرة عرضه أربعون عاما ، أو سبعون سنة ، فتحه الله عز وجل للتوبة يوم
خلق السماوات والأرض ، فلا يغلقه حتى تطلع الشمس منه» حسنه
الألباني
Hence, where are those who
want repentance and turning to their Lord?
Sincerity in
all deeds:
I will say it to you from the
very beginning; if you did not be sincere, you should not exhaust
yourself, because the deed is not accepted without sincerity. Allah
Almighty says: {So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let
him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the
worship of his Lord} [Al-Kahf 18:110]
Transliteration:
faman kana yarjoo liqaa
rabbihi falyaAAmal AAamalan salihan wala yushrik biAAibadati
rabbihi ahadan
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) stated that Allah the Most Glory and
exaltation to him: "I am the One, One Who does not stand in need of
a partner. If anyone does anything in which he associates anyone
else with Me, I shall abandon him with one whom he associates with
Allah." [Reported by Muslim]
Fasting is one of the greatest
acts of worship that trains the Muslim to be sincere, because the
one who fasts, none knows of his fast but Allah Almighty;
especially if it was in a month other than Ramadan. Even in
Ramadan, if the person wanted to break his fast and pretend
fasting, he could; however, he preserves his fasting well and does
not break it. The Muslim does this as sincerity to Allah Almighty
and for seeking His proximity and satisfaction. That is why Allah
has concealed the reward of fasting and made it known for Him
alone, as the fasting of the person is known for himself alone; the
Most Generous gives nothing but much, He Almighty said in the Qudsi
Hadeeth: "Every act of the son of Adam is for him except fasting.
It is done for My sake, and I will give the reward for it." [Agreed
upon]
Following the
Sunnah of the Prophet (Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon
him):
For the
acceptance of a deed, two basic conditions must be
fulfilled:
The intentions while doing the
deed must be totally for the sake of Allah only without any
show-off or to gain any praise or fame.
Such a deed must be performed
in accordance with the Sunnah of Allah's messenger prayers and
peace of Allah be upon him.
The above mentioned verse
contains references to these two conditions; His saying: {So
whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work
righteousness} refers to the importance of performing the deed in
accordance with the Sunnah, and His saying: {and associate none as
a partner in the worship of his Lord} [Al-Kahf 18:110] refers to
sincerity.
Transliteration:wala yushrik biAAibadati rabbihi
ahadan
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) articulated everything about fasting. He
articulated the time of fasting and the time of breaking it;
moreover, he articulated its obligations, conditions, Sunnan,
etiquettes, merits and fruits. He also articulated the things that
nullify the fast, the things that do not affect it, and the excuses
that give the person permission of not fasting and so
on.
Patience:
Ramadan is the month of
patience where the person abstains from his customs and the things
that he used to eat, drink or do to satisfy his physical and
emotional needs (e.g. sexual intercourse with wife) in obedience to
Allah Almighty and seeking closeness to Him.
Patience is one of the hardest
things to the oneself; that is why patience is half of the faith
and its reward is the greatest as Allah Almighty says: {Only those
who are patient shall receive their reward in full, without
reckoning} [Az-Zumar 39:10]
Transliteration:innama yuwaffa alssabiroona ajrahum
bighayri hisabin
Patience is
divided into three subdivisions:
First:
patience to perform the acts
of worship.
Second:
patience to not commit
sins.
Third:
patience during Ibtilaa
(trial) and not complaining the Lord because of it.
Every person should adhere to
one of these three. Also, there are reasons for patience, and they
are;
First:
Loving Allah
Almighty.
Second:
Fearing Allah.
Third:
one self's honor and
purity.
Fourth:
Short hope for worldly
affairs.
Fifth:
Not having excessiveness in
food, drink, cloth, having sexual intercourse (with wife) and
interacting with people.
Sixth:
Shyness from Allah
Almighty.
Seventh:
observing and preserving the
grants of Allah and His beneficence upon the servant.
Eighth:
knowing the disgrace and the
ugliness of a sin.
Ninth:
acknowledge the evil
consequences of sinning and what it entails.
Tenth:
acknowledge the good
consequences of obedience and what it entails.
Eleventh:
firmness of the tree of belief
in the heart.
If the servant observed these reasons and emphasized on them; they will be the best support for
him in having patience during performing the acts of worship and
avoiding sins, especially in this month that we should exert
greater effort for worshipping Allah and avoiding the sins in
it.
Caring for
time and investing it in the acts of worship:
Time is very precious; what
passes does not return, till the Day of Judgment. Moreover, it is
the subject of success or loss and the subject of safety or
destruction.
Among the obligatory and
mandatory acts of worship in Ramadan are;
First:
Fasting its days.
Allah almighty says: {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
Saum (fasts) that month, and whoever is ill or on a journey, the
same number [of days which one did not observe Saum (fasts) must be
made up] from other days} [Al-Baqarah 2:185]
Transliteration:
faman shahida minkumu
alshshahra falyasumhu waman kana mareedan aw AAala safarin
faAAiddatun min ayyamin okhara
And the Prophet (Prayers and
Peace of Allah be upon him) says: "He who observed the fast of
Ramadan with faith and seeking reward (from Allah), all his
previous sins would be forgiven." [Agreed upon]
Second:
Praying at the night
(Taraweeh; special supererogatory night Prayer in Ramadan
associated with 'Isha' prayer)
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) says: "He who observed prayer on the nights
of Ramadan with faith and seeking reward (from Allah), all his
previous sins would be forgiven." [Agreed upon]
Third:
Reciting the Holy
Quran
Ramadan is the month of the
Holy Quran; Allah Almighty says: {The month of Ramadan in which was
revealed the Qur'ân, a guidance for mankind and clear proofs for
the guidance and the criterion (between right and wrong)}
[Al-Baqarah 2:185]
Transliteration:
Shahru ramadana allathee
onzila feehi alquranu hudan lilnnasi wabayyinatin mina alhuda
waalfurqani
Jibreel (peace of Allah be
upon him) used to review the Holy Quran with the Prophet (Prayers
and Peace of Allah be upon him) in Ramadan. Therefore, the
righteous forefathers used to devote time for the Holy Quran in
Ramadan; they used to recite it in the prayer and in other
times.
Az-Zuhry used
to say at the coming of Ramadan: "It is the time of reciting the Holy
Qur'an and providing the food."
Fourth:
Providing food for fast break
for whoever is fasting
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) says: "Whoever provides breakfast for a
fasting person, will have reward equal to him without having the
reward of the fasting person diminished in any aspect." [Declared
authentic by Al-Albani]
Fifth:
Generosity
The Messenger of Allah
(Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon him) was the most generous of
mankind, and he was more generous in Ramadan. [Agreed
upon]
Sixth:
Performing 'Umra in Ramadan
(The lesser pilgrimage)
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) said to a woman from 'Ansar who wasn't able
to perform Hajj with them: "When Ramdan cames, perform Umra, for
Umra in Ramadan equals Hajj (pilgrimage)" [Agreed upon and this
narration is for Muslim]
Seventh:
I'tikaf (seclusion for worship
in the Masjid)
I'tikaf is in the last ten
days of Ramadan. 'Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated
that The Prophet (Prayers and Peace of Allah be upon him) used to
practice I'tikaf in the last ten days of Ramadan till his death,
then his wives practiced I'tikaf after him. [Reported by Al-Bukhari
and Muslim]
Eighth:
Pursue Lailat-ul- Qadr (the
night of decree) and observing prayer on it:
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) says: "He who observed prayer on Lailat-ul-
Qadr with faith and seeking reward (from Allah), all his previous
sins would be forgiven" [Agreed upon]
Lailat-ul- Qadr is in the last
ten nights of Ramadan.
Doing your job
in the best manner and perfecting it:
Allah almighty says:
{certainly We shall not make the reward of anyone who does his
(righteous) deeds in the most perfect manner to be lost} [Surat
Al-Kahf: 30]
Transliteration:
inna la nudeeAAu ajra man
ahsana AAamalan
And He almighty says: {verily,
Allâh wastes not the reward of the good-doers} [Hud
11:115]
Transliteration:
fainna Allaha la yudeeAAu ajra
almuhsineena
We say this because some
people (may Allah guide them) took fasting as an excuse for
neglecting people's affairs and not caring for their prescribed
works; then if you argued one of them to fulfill some affair, he
would say "Is not it sufficient that I am fasting?" It seems as if
fasting calls for laziness, neglecting people's affairs, and
punishing them. Actually, fasting is totally against that; it calls
for vim, being beneficent towards people and making things easy for
them.
Forgiveness,
tolerance and good manners:
The Prophet (Prayers and Peace
of Allah be upon him) says: "When any one of you is fasting on a
day, he should neither have sexual intercourse, nor raise his voice
(shouting); or if anyone reviles him or tries to quarrel with him
he should say: I am a fasting person." [Agreed upon]
Therefore, we should abide to
the etiquettes of Islam in this month and other months; we should
observe our duties toward our Lord, Prophet Muhammad (Prayers and
Peace of Allah be upon him), and Muslim brothers. Also, we should
acquire our rights gently and kindly to achieve piousness, which is
the main reason of fasting; Allah Almighty says: {O you who
believe! Observing As-Saum (the fasting) is prescribed for you as
it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become
Al-Muttaqûn} [Al-Baqarah 2:183]
Transliteration:
kutiba AAalaykumu alssiyamu
kama kutiba AAala allatheena min qablikum laAAallakum
tattaqoona
Fasting should
involve the following:
·Prevent the stomach (holding
appetite) and the private parts from fulfilling their
desires.
·Preventing eye, tongue, leg, ear and
other organs from committing sins.
·Keeping the heart away from the mean
desires and the ideas that might take it away from Allah Almighty.
Also, preventing it from caring for anything other than
Allah.
Judging one's
self:
Allah almighty says: {O you
who believe! Fear Allâh and keep your duty to Him. And let every
person look to what he has sent forth for the morrow, and fear
Allâh. Verily, Allâh is All-Aware of what you do. And be not like
those who forgot Allâh (i.e. became disobedient to Allâh), and He
caused them to forget their ownselves, (let them to forget to do
righteous deeds)} [Al-Hashr 59:18-19]
Transliteration:
Ya ayyuha allatheena amanoo
ittaqoo Allaha waltanthur nafsun ma qaddamat lighadin waittaqoo
Allaha inna Allaha khabeerun bima taAAmaloona (18) Wala takoonoo
kaallatheena nasoo Allaha faansahum anfusahum
Omar bin
Al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Hold yourselves for account before
you are being accounted, because it is easier for you in account
tomorrow to account yourselves today."
Accounting the
self is before and after the work:
Before work, it is accounted
for the intention and fulfilling the action according to the
Sunnah.
After work,
there are three kinds of accounting oneself:
First:
Accounting it for shortage in
observing the right of Allah during performing an act of
worship.
There are six
rights for Allah in the acts of worship:
1.Sincerity in observing the
act.
2.Giving advice for the sake of
Allah.
3.Performing it in accordance with the
Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (Prayers and Peace of Allah be
upon him).
4.Observing the event of beneficence
in it.
5.Observing the favor of Allah in the
act.
6.Observing shortage in
acts.
Second:
to account himself for every
act, where its negligence was better than its doing.
Third:
to account himself for every
permissible act he did not do.
Did he perform this act for
the sake of Allah and the hereafter? If yes, he will be successful.
On the other hand, if he sought, by the act, the worldly life; he
would lose this success and will not be winner.
By this way we receive
Ramadan, live it, feel happy because of it, and utilize it. On the
other hand, if we did not do that, it would be as the prophet
(prayers and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "There might be a
fasting person receives nothing from his fasting but hunger and
thirst, and there might be a person prays at night but receives
nothing from his prayer but be awake." [Reported by Ahmed and
authenticated by Al-Albany]
We ask Allah Almighty to
accept from us the righteous deeds and not to return us as losers.
Our last invocation is: Al-Hamdu Lillâhi Rabb-il-'lamîn [All the
praise and thanks is due to Allah, Lord of Realms (mankind, jinn
and all that exists)].
"How Do We
Receive Ramadan" booklet
Compiled by
the department of researches in Al-Watan House
Translated by
Wathakker.net website