In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum
Dear Friends
I pray that you are well.
It seems just yesterday we asked Allah to enable us to reach Ramadhan. Now that it has arrived, it is leaving us so soon. But do you feel any change other than perhaps being a few pounds lighter?
Fasting is a means to cleanse our body, purify our souls and bring us closer to the Lord Mighty and Majestic. If we do it right, following the ways of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the righteous people, we will benefit tremendously from fasting this Ramadhan.
If you haven't been fasting, you should start now. Fasting in the month of Ramadhan is one of the most important supports of Islam that we stand on. If you don't fast, you are throwing away one crucial support of the religion and you will eventually fall.
The Qur'an warns us to prepare for the next life.
Allah Almighty says,
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَآئِقَةُ ٱلْمَوْتِ ۖ ثُمَّ إِلَيْنَا تُرْجَعُونَ[Qur'an al-Ankabut 29:57]
Everyone shall taste the death. Then unto Us you shall be returned.
Death creeps into us with every breath we take. It is so real that it is as if it is present now. You might be praying and someone decided to shoot, killing you and many others; or you might be shopping in a bakery and a bomb exploded, killing you and many others; or you might be skiing and suddenly you are taken by an avalanche and you are nowhere to be found; or you might be walking on the sidewalk and a car suddenly swerved and fatally hit you, or you might be working in a farm and a drone "accidentally" strikes you; or you might be working in a high rise building and a plane crashes into it; or you might be on a cruise and the ship sinks, or you might be flying back from your vacation destination and the plane crashes, or simply you go to sleep one night and never woke up.
When Allah wants to take someone back, there is no warning.
Allah has allowed us to reach this blessed month of Ramadhan so we may taste the blessings of Ramadhan. So be thankful to Him that you are alive today so He may bring you closer to Him. We should then strive to increase our worship and good deeds during these remaining days of Ramadhan.
Don't let our today be the same as yesterday for we will lose out on the opportunity to be close to Him. We should consider each and every action we do today is our last. This is the key to a good ending.
It should be the desire of every Muslim to draw closer to the All Merciful. By drawing closer to Allah, we may gain His help and mercy in this life and the next.
Show mercy to Allah's creatures through good character, fulfill other's rights and do not wrong anybody.
Allah is merciful to those who are merciful. This is not a slogan. Life on this earth is replete with trials and tribulations (fitnah)--people killing innocent people, terrorism, tyranny, criminals, political crises, natural disasters, economic disasters, social crises, environmental problems, health problems, neighbor problems, children problems, in-law problems, marital problems, money problems, internet problems, and so on. Whether you are directly affected by it or not at the moment, don't think you are safe. Tribulation spreads like the waves of the sea.
It is related that Hudhayfa said that 'Umar said, "Does anyone amongst you remember what the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said about trial and tribulation (fitnah)?' Hudhayfa said, 'I heard him say, "The trial (fitnah) of a man in respect of his wife, wealth, children and neighbors is expiated by prayer, fasting and sadaqa." He said, 'I am not asking about that, but rather the tribulation which spreads like the waves of the sea." Hudhayfa said, "There is a closed door in front of it." He said, "Will it be broken down or opened?" He said, "It will be broken down." He said, "Then it will never be closed until the Day of Rising." We said to Masruq, "Ask him if 'Umar know what the door was?" He said, "Yes, as surely as night follows day."'"
Only with imam (faith) that we can bear the fitnah and difficulties in life. The strength of our iman determines how we cope and deal with problems and disasters when they appear in our backyard. Therefore, we have to nurture and protect our iman. Our iman is so precious that the shaytans (whether of the jinn or human) are jealous of us. Shaytan is always lurking to steal our precious iman from us.
Allah, out of His mercy, sent us protective spheres to protect our Iman. These are acts that Allah made obligatory upon us (e.g. prayer, zakat/charity, fasting, performing hajj, good treatment of parents, maintaining family ties, seeking sacred knowledge, abstaining from prohibited matters, etc.); the sunnah of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace (e.g. supererogatory prayers, zikr and glorification of Allah, sunnah fasting, calling upon Allah in du'a, reciting/listening to the Qur'an); and various propriety acts (e.g. being in wudu' constantly, observing our manners and points of etiquette, covering our nakedness even when alone, using miswak in wudu, keeping good company).
If they are absent then the shaytan can pierce into your heart and steal your imam. If they are present but weak, eventually the shaytan will be able to steal your iman, slowly but surely like the enemy army shelling a weak fortress.
So, it is not sufficient to leave your food and drink during the day, but to increase your acts of worship and good works in this blessed month with sincerity and excellence.
Remove bad habits. Pick one or two bad character traits or bad habits that you have and start changing it. Be kind to your parents and be generous to your family and guests. Don't harm the environment we live in. Be good to animals and plants.
When you hear all the injustices, killings, massacres that have been going on in Muslim countries, this should concern you a lot and you should do something to effect change. We cannot just be bystanders.
Allah Almighty says,
كُنتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ ٱلْمُنكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱللَّـهِ[Qur'an AleImran 3:110]
You are the best Ummah singled out for mankind: you enjoin what is right (ma'ruf), forbid what is wrong (munkar), and believe in Allah...
The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said,
If one of you sees something wrong, let him change it with his hand; if he cannot, then with his tongue; if he cannot, then with his heart and this is the weakest faith.
The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said that the du'a is the weapon of the believers. So, raise your hands and make du'a for our brethren, the weak and those who are suffering from injustices.
أَمَّن يُجِيبُ الْمُضْطَرَّ إِذَا دَعَاهُ وَيَكْشِفُ السُّوءَ وَيَجْعَلُكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ الْأَرْضِ ۗ أَإِلَـٰهٌ مَّعَ اللَّـهِ ۚ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ ﴿٦٢[Qur'an An-Naml 27:62]
Is He [not best] who responds to the desperate one when he calls upon Him and removes evil and makes you inheritors of the earth? ...
وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِي سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَاخِرِينَ ﴿٦٠[Qur'an Ghafir 40:60]
Your Lord has said, “Call Me, I will respond to you. Definitely those who show arrogance against worshipping Me shall enter Jahannam (Hell) with disgrace. (60)
Let us build a close relationship with Allah by making much du'a to Him. He loves it when His slave calls upon Him and it angers Him if His slave does not call upon Him.
May Allah grant us tawfiq and He alone gives success.
And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam
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