11 Suggested Activities for the Last Ten Days of Ramadan

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

1. Make a big effort to increase all your religious activities for the last 10 days, such as extra prayers and more Dhikr.

2. Keep reciting this special dua:

Allahumma innaka 'affuwwun tuhibbul 'afwa fa'fu 'anni

O Allah, You are indeed Forgiving and You love to forgive, so forgive me.

3. Make Tawbah (sincere repentance).

4. Evaluate yourself and see how you could be a better person.

5. Make long and sincere duas.

6. Spend quality time with your family.

7. Try to finish the Quran and read the dua for the completion of Quran recitation.

8. Spend some time in Itikaaf. 

If you cannot fulfil the Sunnah of sitting in Itikaaf for 10 days then you can sit in seclusion for any length of time with the sole purpose of drawing closer to Allah and you will, insha Allah, be rewarded accordingly.

9. Try to minimise the time you spend on worldly matters. You could try not watching TV, listening to music or surfing the internet for this short period of time and this will all help you in drawing closer to Allah.

10. Try to memorise some of the shorter Surahs in the 30th Juz which you can recite in your salah.

11. Read and learn some hadith and try to practice these in your daily life.

May Allah give us all the ability to do our best in these last few blessed days - Ameen!

Wasalaam!

2 Weeks Before Ramadan: "Increase Your Efforts and Allocating Zakaat and Sadaqah Week"

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

1. Spend more time than you already are reading and understanding the Quran.

2. Focus even more on your Salah.

3. Increase the number of Rakat you pray for Qiyam ul Layl and tahajjud.

4. Increase the amount of time you are spending on tasbeeh and Istighfar.

5. Allocate your zakat if you are due to pay it.

6. Allocate the amount you want to pay for sadaqah in Ramadan and set it aside. As you do so, make an effort to read about the plight of those less fortunate than ourselves. This will have the two fold effect of making you grateful for what you have and wanting to do more for charity.

Wasalaam!

The First Ten Days of Dhul Hijjah

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Dhul Hijjah is the last month of the Islamic calendar. Allah is so Merciful to us and He has given us so many opportunities in this year for extra reward:

·       The blessed month of Muharram

·       The night and day of the 15^th Shaban

·       The whole month of Ramadan

·       The night of Laylatul Qadr

·       The happiness of Eid ul Fitr

·       The six fasts of Shawwal

All these days and months are a blessing from Allah to help the neglectful ones to wake up to reality, and to give them more reward.

No matter how many times we forget about Allah and we love the world more than Him, Allah wants to remind us that there’s always a chance to make up for the loss of the past. There’s always a chance to get more reward.

But it is only the people who are wise that will take this chance! They are the ones who will secure a higher place in Paradise for themselves. On the other hand, if we decide to sit back and do nothing, then it’s only us that will suffer in the ultimate end.

What are the blessings of this great month of Dhul Hijjah, and how we can gain more reward in it?

·       The first ten days of Dhul Hijjah are amongst the best days of the year. A hadith says, that the Prophet (saw) said, “On no day is the worship of Allah more beloved to Him than during the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah. The fast of each of these days is equal to the fast of the whole year, and the worship of each of these nights is equal to the worship of Laylatul Qadr”. (Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah)

·       That means that if we fast on these 9 days before Eid day, we will be promised the reward of 9 years of fasting. Laylatul Qadr has the reward of more than a thousand months of worship! Even if we spend just a little part of these nights in worship – we will gain so much reward inshallah!

·       Look at the mercy of Allah – He offers us such a great reward for such a small sacrifice – the days are getting shorter and it will be easier to fast.

·       The Prophet (saw) said: “On no other days are good deeds more liked by Allah than on these ten days”.

·       We should increase our zikr of Allah in these days. Recite Subhanallah, Alhamdulillah, La ilaha illallah, Allahu akbar as much as you can. We can do this in all states – working, walking, cooking, lying down etc.

The Day of Arafah

This is one of the most special days from these ten days – Yaum al Arafah – it falls on the day before Eid. This is when the Hajis spend most of the day at Arafah, and when they leave there, they can be sure that Allah has forgiven all their sins.

When the Prophet (saw) was asked about the fast of this day, he said: “It compensates for the minor sins of the previous year and the forth coming year”. (Muslim)

The Prophet (saw) also said, “Apart from the day of the Battle of Badr, there is no day on which Shaytan is seen to be more humiliated, more rejected, more depressed and more infuriated, than on the Day of Arafah, and indeed all this is only because of witnessing the abundance of mercy descending on that day, and Allah’s forgiveness of the great sins of His servants.” (Mishkat)

The Prophet (saw) said, “There is no day in which Allah sets free more souls from the fire of Hell than on the Day of Arafah; and on that day, Allah draws near to the earth, and by way of exhibiting his pride, remarks to the angels, “What is the desire of these servants of mine?” (Muslim)

So, whether we are sat on the plains of Arafah or sat in our very own homes, if we ask, Allah will give. Ask for the goodness of this world, but more importantly, the goodness of the Hereafter.

We should keep our qadha fasts before these nafl fasts. Speak to Allah, and tell Him with a sincere heart that if you didn't have qadha fasts, you would most definitely be keeping these nafl fasts. Pray that He gives you the same reward, inshallah.

May Allah give us all the ability to make the most of these blessed days - Ameen!

Wasalaam!

The Month of Shawwal

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

When Ramadan ends, the month of Shawwal begins – on Eid ul Fitr day! When Shawwal begins, our test begins. We have just spent a whole month boosting our Imaan - it is up to us now to continue performing these good deeds throughout the rest of the year.

The scholars say that the sign of acceptance of good deeds in Ramadan is that we remain firm and regular on our good actions after this month is over – our connection with Allah should be stronger than ever!

We should ask ourselves: does Allah deserve to obeyed properly only in this one month? Does Allah deserve to be worshipped properly only in this one month? He looks after us during the rest of the 11 months so we owe Him at least this much.

Some Advice to help maintain an Islamic lifestyle after Ramadan

·       Keep up with the recital of the Quran. Keep your target small but consistent. A Hadith says that the most beloved deed to Allah are the regular ones, even if they amount to little in quantity. Why are the Muslims in such troubles today? Because they have left the greatest gift of Allah, and so they have lost the help of Allah.

·       Keep listening to Islamic lectures online etc – these are very beneficial and will give your Imaan a boost!

·       Study Islam and increase your knowledge about your religion and the Shariah. Try and learn the simple rulings, improve your tajweed or read the life story and sayings of the Prophet (saw). The more we learn about our religion, the more we will begin to recognise our creator and realise what He expects from us. This will help us to do things which please Allah and keep away from those things that anger Him.

·       Finally, the most important, regular 5 times Salah and to make dua at least once a day! Salah when performed 5 times a day will prevent you from almost every major sin: Indeed the prayer wards off indecency and lewdness (Surah Ankabut).

Stay firm on salah in times of happiness and fear, day and night, when free and when busy.

With salah comes dua! What can be said of the person who makes dua to Allah 5 times a day after each salah? You will find that all your worries and troubles will be gradually eased. You will become happy and content for you will come to appreciate and see that Allah does everything in His own time, according to his own wisdom and always does things which are best for us!

There is a saying: When Allah answers your dua straight away, it is because He is testing your faith. When Allah does not answer your dua straight away, it is because He is testing your patience. When Allah does not answer your dua at all, it is because He has something better for you. Those who happily leave everything in Allah’s hand will see Allah’s hand in everything.

Remember, regardless of your past, your mistakes and your ignorance, it’s a new start for all. If the likes of Hazrat Umar (ra) were transformed from the strongest of enemies to the 2^nd greatest companion, and was buried next to the Prophet (saw), then there is hope for us all. As long as we are willing to take advantage of Allah’s mercy by repenting over the past and making firm good intentions for the future.

A verse in the Quran reads in Surah Nisaa Verse 147:

What would Allah do with your punishment if you are grateful and believe? And ever is Allah Appreciative and Knowing.

This verse shows us that the way to Allah is simple - we must be grateful to Him and believe in Him. This means that we should act upon all His commands and follow the way of His beloved - the Prophet Muhammad (saw).

Six Fasts of Shawwal

Shawwal is the first of the 3 months named Ashur – ul – Hajj – the months of Hajj. We should try and keep 6 optional/nafl fasts in this month.

“Whoever completes the fasts of Ramadan, then adds to them the fast of six days in the month of Shawwal, it will carry the reward of fasting the whole year” (Muslim)

How does this work? Ramadan was 30 fasts, if we add the 6 fasts of Shawwal that is 36. Every good deed in Islam is multiplied by 10 and 36 multiplied by 10 is 360. There are 365 days in a year but fasting on 5 of these days is forbidden so that equals to 360!

In the Hadith, it mentions that anyone who does this always it’s as though he has fasted his entire life!

It’s better to keep any qadha fasts of this Ramadan first, then these six fasts. The six fasts do not have to kept straight away but in any order – as long as they are in Shawwal.

May Allah accept all our worship during Ramadan, and give us the ability to carry on worshipping Him properly throughout the rest of the year - Ameen!

Wasalaam!