Friday, August 25, 2006

The Upcoming of the Blessed Month of Ramadhan

Post 2

In the previous post we mentioned the merits of Ramadhan. After acknowledging the merits of this blessed month it is vital that we prepare for this month and ensure that we are ready when this month dawns upon us. However, in order to be able to prepare for this month it is primarily essential to understand its purpose; for only after understanding the purpose of this month will we understand our aims and prepare accordingly.

The Purpose of Ramadhan

The month of Ramadhan is not like any other month; its purpose is to rid man of those habits which he has accumulated throughout the rest of the year. It is a month that prepares man for the remaining eleven months by teaching him discipline and self control. Thus, Allah has made some acts which are beloved to man, like eating, drinking and fulfilling one's desires, Haraam. If man can control these desires in this month, which are usually permissible for him, then he can surely control himself from other desires which are not permissible throughout the remaining months.

This blessed month has been sent by Allah to His bondsmen so that can create a connection and draw closer to Allah by reaping the many rewards that lie in this month. A person who has been given the opportunity to be present in this month can take this as a sign that Allah Ta’ala has given him another opportunity to draw closer to Him and earn His paradise through worship in this month.

In this month we will be given many opportunities, as mentioned above to reform ourselves and seek forgiveness for our bad sins. This is a month of reformation and self reflection, where a believer can ponder of over spirituality and piety and bring a change for the better. The Prophet of Allah صلي الله عليه و سلم has clearly stated:

مَنْ لَمْ يَدَعْ قَوْلَ الزُّورِ وَالْعَمَلَ بِهِ فَلَيْسَ لِلَّهِ حَاجَةٌ فِي أَنْ يَدَعَ طَعَامَهُ وَشَرَابَهُ

“Whoever does not give up lying and evil actions, then Allah is not in need of his leaving his food and drink"

[Saheeh al-Bukhari]

It is clear from this Hadeeth which has been narrated on the authority of Hadrhat Abu Huraira رضي الله عنه that Allah is not in need of any person to leave his food or drink. Allah is far from needs and desires. However, it is the mercy of Allah that He wants each and every person to leave those things which will lead him to the hellfire and by controlling one’s desires throughout this month it is hoped that one will be able to control himself throughout the following months also.

For those who can relate, we can look at the month of Ramadhan like an MOT test. It is vital to be on form during this test. Once the test is over then we should be at a standard where we can continue through the following months. Indeed, there will be repairs and faults in between, but these will be minor and can be dealt with on the spot.

May Allah Ta’ala make us successful in this test, for the one who is unsuccessful in this test may not be given an opportunity for a re-test.

ان جبرئيل عرض لي فقال بعد من ادرك رمضان فلم يغفر له قلت آمين

"Jibreel came to me and said, 'Whoever reaches the month of Ramadan and does not have his sins forgiven and so enters the Fire, then may Allah distance him, say ameen" So I said "Ameen"

[Mustadrak al-Haakim]

In summary, the month of Ramadhan has been made so that mankind can take benefit of the merits and blessings contained within to change themselves for the better and by doing so create a bond with Allah that will continue throughout the eleven remaining months.

It is a month within which Allah has instructed us to place more emphasis on actions regarding our Deen (religion) as opposed to our daily routine and emphasis on worldly matters.

Insha Allah in the next post, an effort will be made to discuss the methods we should carry out to prepare ourselves for this unique month. We have now one month remaining before the arrival of this blessed month, and therefore it seems necessary to post more than twice a week in an effort to cover all the topics and necessary rulings before the commencement of this month. Insha Allah, I will be making an effort to post as much as three times a week in order to cover these topics. I pray that information comes in use and aids the readers in preparing for the month of Ramadhan.

As a reminder, please commit the following Du’a to memory and make a habit of reciting it daily until the day of Ramdhan.

اللهم بارك لنا في رجب وشعبان وبلغنا رمضان

"O Allah, make the months of Rajab and Sha’ban blessed for us, and let us reach the month of Ramadhan”.

[Musnad-e-Ahmed]

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Assalamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh,

Aameen to the Dua's.

Jazak'Allah Khair for these beneficial posts on the purpose of Ramadhan. They are serving as a good preparation for the approaching blessed month.

May Allah reward you with the best of both worlds and grant you ease in writing these posts, Aameen...

Wasalaamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh

mujahidah an nafs said...

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah,

Jazakallahu khair for the beneficial posts. May Allah Ta'ala bless you with good helatha nd bless us all with the glad tidings of the blessed month of Ramadhan. Ameen.

Duas Humbly Reequested

Wassalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah

Zain said...

As Salaamu Alaykum,

Sister Sajeda

Jazakallah for the comments and the words of encouragements.

Ameen to the Du'as. Insha Allah, future posts should be posted soon on this blog.

Sister Mujahidah

Jazakallah for the comments and Ameen to the Du'as. May Allah also reward you for the posts you produce on your blogs. Masha Allah, they are very beneficial. May Allah accept the efforts. Aameen.

Please do remember me in your humble Du'as.

Wasalaam

Anonymous said...

salaam alaikum
jazakh allah for the information. \inshallah it will come in handy