"By Allah, if it was said to the people of the grave, 'make a wish!' they would wish for one day of Ramaḍān." - Ibn al-Jawzī (raḥimahullāh)
This book's aim is to make the best out of our Ramadan.
Today is the first day of Ramadan May Allah make it a blessed Ramadan.
The new moon of Ramadhan is special to Muslims. It announces the start of the holy month and the beginning of the blessings and mercy associated with Ramadhan. According to the Holy Prophet () whoever sees the new moon of Ramadhan should recite the following Du'a.
Allah is the Most Great. O Allah, bring us the new moon with security and Faith, with peace and in Islam, and in harmony with what our Lord loves and what pleases Him. Our Lord and your Lord is Allah.
Allaahu 'Akbar, Allaahumma 'ahillahu 'alayna bil'amni wal'eemaani, wassalaamati wal-'Islaami, wattawfeeqi limaa tuhibbu Rabbanaa wa tardhaa, Rabbunaa wa Rabbukallaahu.
At-Tirmithi 5/504, Ad-Darimi 1/336. See also Al-Albani, Sahih At-Tirmithi 3/157. __________________________________
Before you begin to plan for this Ramadan, sit down with yourself and reflect on how your previous year since last Ramadan went.
We want to make sure every Ramadan was better than the previous and to do that we need to first identify how the previous one went. Journaling comes in handy as it gives you access to exactly how your days played out. However, if you are not a journal-er, fret not. Simply think back to last Ramadan and jot down:
What you think went well What habits were you able to sustain throughout the year What you think did not go as well, Why do you think this happened Here is an example –
What went well: I prayed taraweeh every night
What habit was I able to sustain throughout the year: The 12 Sunnah salaahs
What didn’t go so well: I didn’t have as much khushoo in my prayers as I would have liked.
Why: I didn’t cut down on my social media use and so had the same level of khushoo outside Ramadan
Jot as many as you can think of, as all these reflections will help to shape a better Ramadan for this year. Make a goal for this Ramadan and try to achieve it.
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The Goals of Ramadan.
Ramadan is a gift upon us in order to devote, purify and gain rewards in multiples.
In order to prepare a plan which will help us to successfully complete this project, we have to be clear about its goals. These goals will provide the framework of a successful Ramaḍān. Everything we do in Ramaḍān should lead to the following goals.
1) Forgiveness for sins. Our beloved Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever observes the fasts of Ramadān with firm belief and hoping for reward, all of his previous sins will be forgiven” (Bukhārī).
2) Freedom from Hell. Deeply shudder at the possibility of being from the people of the Hell-fire; and then beg Allah to release you from the Hell-fire. Our beloved Prophet ﷺ said, Allah frees slaves from the Hell-fire every night.” (Tirmidhī)
3) Submitting to Allah. In our everyday lives, we are accustomed to giving in to our desires. If we feel like eating, we eat. If we feel like drinking, we drink. Through Ramaḍān, we should aim to train the nafs (inner self) to submit itself to Allah, and to comply with His commands.
4) Elevating the soul from its base desires (stomach and private parts). Aim for your fasting and Ramaḍān to remove the love of the world from your heart; and let your soul soar high above the ground, away from the body, and upwards towards its Creator and Originator.
5) Mercy. This Ramaḍān aim to be the recipient of Allah’s mercy and loving care.
6) Developing good character. Excellent character is an integral part of our dīn, and there is no better time to cultivate this than in Ramaḍān. Our beloved Prophet ﷺ said, “When one of you enters the morning in the state of fasting, he should neither use obscene language nor act ignorantly. If anyone insults him or argues with him, he should say: ‘I am fasting, I am fasting’” (Muslim).
7) Consistency. Ramaḍān is a bootcamp and a training programme to cultivate your heart, soul, morals and ultimately your life, so that the obedience of Allah becomes your lifestyle.
We should create a goal in our own to help us a better Muslim in this Ramadan, like the one below.
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Now, since you have make a list of your goals in ramadan. You can make habits you want to build even after Ramadan.
These are acts that you want to continue for the rest of the year. Ramadan is the perfect time to build new habits. It’s the New Year’s resolution time for the Muslim, and Allah gives us a month where the Shaytan are locked up to make it easier for us to set it in stone.
These habits can range from wanting to pray all 5 Salaah to more Dhikr or Sadaqah. But keep in mind 2 points when deciding what habits you want to build. Firstly, consider your why. Why do you want to build this habit, what is your intention?
This helps you stay motivated to stick with the habit. After that, we need a course of action for how you are going to achieve it. This means giving it a time in your day to implement it. Without assigning a time, it becomes very easy to overlook it. My favourite way of doing this is attaching it to an action that I’m already consistent with. This makes it a lot easier to build the habit.
For example:
Habit I want to build: Reciting 100 istighfar a day.
Why: Because the one who is constant in seeking forgiveness, Allah makes for him “a way out of every distress and a relief from every anxiety, and will provide sustenance for him from where he expects not.” (Riyad as-Salihin 1873)
Course of action: Recite 20 after every prayer.
A reminder to not try to become too ambitious with the number of habits you want to add. These are habits you want to keep past Ramadan, for life. Try to limit yourself to 2–3 and keep in mind the Hadith;
“the most beloved deed to Allah is the most regular and constant even if it were little.”
(Bukhari 6464)
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#Dayonechallenge.
Read the Tafsir of an ayaat.
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Taqabbal Allah minna wa minkum. May Allah accept from me and you.
