Gardens of the Righteous: Class 9 The Garden of Ramadan - Part 1 25 th May 2014 26 Rajab, 1435 A.H.
The Garden of Ramadan The Garden of Ramadan: Part 1 In today s class we will study about welcoming the month of Ramadan. It is a blessing of Allah to remember Ramadan. Though we have studied the same Ayat and Hadith about Ramadan before, we need to refresh the information. The Prophet SAW said the faith can get ruined / old and we need to renew it. Allah has said in the Quran that the reminder benefits the believers. Once the Prophet SAW saw his companions sitting in the Masjid. He asked them Why are you sitting in the Masjid? His companions replied We are sitting together to remind each other of Islam (Quran and hadith) and to remember the faith that Allah bestowed on us. The Prophet SAW asked them if that was the only reason they were sitting together. The Companions replied Yes, this is the only reason we are sitting together. The Prophet SAW then said to them that he did not ask them to accuse them but he asked them because the Angel Jibreel came to him and told him that Allah is talking about their magnificence and boasting about them in front of the angels. PAGE 1
The Companions of the Prophet would think about Ramadan for 11 months in the year. For 6 months after the Ramadan they would ask Allah to accept their worship in the Ramadan that has passed. And for 5 months before the next Ramadan they would ask Allah to make them to live to reach the upcoming Ramadan. Therefore we need to increase our faith before Ramadan in order to benefit from Ramadan. Welcoming Ramadan How will we welcome the month of Ramadan? We need to have the spiritual and mental preparation before any physical or tangible preparation to welcome Ramadan. One part of the preparation is to feel happy for the month of Ramadan. Happiness can be a worship or a sin, depends on what makes us happy. If someone is happy because he thinks he is better than everyone else then this is a sin of arrogance. If one is happy with the favors of Allah then it is a reward. Allah said in the Quran that let the believer be happy and rejoice for Allah. Our hearts should be full of joy to welcome the month of Ramadan. We will be rewarded for the happiness that our heart feels for Ramadan. PAGE 2
Allah wants us to be His slave therefore even our feelings should be for Allah. We need to have a one to one relationship with Allah. We are living for one Master. We are making ourselves closer to Allah even when we feel the excitement for Ramadan. We get a reward when we are happy for the sake of Allah. It is a blessing from Allah when He prolongs our lives and makes us reach Ramadan. At the time of the Prophet SAW there were two people who did similar deeds but one died before Ramadan and other one died after Ramadan. The Prophet SAW said the one who died after Ramadan has a higher position in the Hereafter than the one who died before Ramadan. This is due to the deeds he did in Ramadan. It is true that death is not in our hands but there is something called hope. When we know this Hadith we need to have the hope to live for many more Ramadan s. Then even if we do not live to reach Ramadan, we will still get the reward for our intention. Fasting 1. Fasting is one pillar of Islam: The main thing we do in Ramadan is to fast in the month of Ramadan. The Prophet SAW said that fasting in the month of Ramadan is one pillar of Islam. PAGE 3
2. Faith is a Pre- requisite to Fasting: Allah says in Surah Al Baqarah that He has commanded the believers to fast. This tells us that before we fast we need to focus on our faith. Thus for 11 months we need to focus on increasing our faith. Without faith we cannot get the virtues of fasting. Fasting in Ramadan is one of the pillars of Islam but the pre- requisite is the faith. Why do we need the faith as a pre- requisite before fasting the month of Ramadan? This is so that we come to the month of Ramadan with a high faith. We don t want the level of our worship to go down as the days pass in Ramadan. Infact every day in Ramadan should be better than the previous day. 3. Fasting is not New in Islam: We are told that Allah prescribed fasting upon the Muslims as He prescribed it for the nations before. Every divine religion that Allah sent, He prescribed fasting for them. Key points about fasting Ø Fasting was prescribed in stages: Initially Allah commanded the people to fast in steps. The first fast was for one day and then it was gradually increased in stages to fasting for one month from dawn to sunset. Ø First day of Ramadan: We follow the lunar calendar for the start of the month of Ramadan instead of the solar calendar. There are several advantages to this. v It shows submission to Allah. We are slaves of Allah and He will show us when the moon will come to indicate the start of Ramadan. v The lunar calendar is 10 days less than the solar calendar. Therefore every year Ramadan will be 10 days earlier as compared to the previous PAGE 4
year. This way Ramadan will go around the whole year (Solar calendar). If one fasts for 36 years it is as if he fasted every day of the year. v Allah wants us to fast during different climates and weather, long days and short days. So we will experience fasting in different conditions. This tells us we can refrain from eating and drinking for Allah in long days as well as short days. v We can see the lunar calendar by the eye. No one can stop the moon from coming out. By looking at the moon we can tell the start of the new month. For the solar calendar we have no means to find the start of the new month without knowing the date. Dua of the Crescent Allah makes the crescent moon to appear and it is a sign of the greatness of Allah. We make Dua to Allah when we look at the crescent at start of the month and ask Allah to make the month a blessed month. PAGE 5
The Dua to be said at the appearance of the crescent (new moon) is the following: 1. O Allah. Make this month appear to us with security and with faith. 2. We want this month to start with freedom from any harm and with Submission to Allah. 3. My lord is Allah and the lord of the Crescent is also Allah. 4. A crescent full of goodness and full of guidance. Hadith of the Prophet The Prophet SAW tells us to start the month of Ramadan when we see the Crescent and to finish the month of Ramadan when we see the Crescent (Starting of Eid). And if it is cloudy and we are unable to see the crescent then we should complete 30 days of Shaaban and then start the month of Ramadan. PAGE 6
What about fasting in Shaaban? The Garden of Ramadan: Part 1 v The Prophet SAW said to not fast after the 15 th Shaaban. If one is not doing voluntary fasts throughout the year then he should not fast after the 15 th of Shaaban, as it is disliked to fast 15 days before Ramadan. v The Prophet SAW said to not fast for one or two days before Ramadan as it is haram/forbidden to fast one or two days before Ramadan The above instructions are beneficial for us as we are able to gather our energy before Ramadan Ramadan The Garden of Blessings Ramadan is a garden of blessing. It is because of the virtues of the month of Ramadan that it has a lot of blessings. We need to know that Ramadan is a blessed month. This means we are getting extra rewards. On normal days we get rewarded for our deeds but we have more reward for any good deeds done in Ramadan. PAGE 7
Hadith of the Prophet Before the coming of the month of Ramadan the Prophet SAW used to give the Companions glad tidings for the month of Ramadan. In Ramadan we find blessings from day one. Even our time is blessed and we are able to do more things within a short time. Due to the blessing of Ramadan any worship we do is very easy as compared to other months. Why is it so easy and so motivating to fast in Ramadan? Allah made it obligatory on us to fast as it is the best time for us to have a connection between us and Allah. Allah wants us to get the best reward so we must avail the opportunity. All the obligations in Islam are good for us. Allah chooses for us how many times we will pray, which month we will fast etc. PAGE 8
Why is Ramadan so blessed? On the first day of Ramadan, Allah will change the universe for us. Although we cannot see it with our eyes we can feel it. The following changes take place in the blessed month of Ramadan Ø All Gates of Paradise are Open v Paradise has eight gates and all the eight gates of Paradise are open. v The feeling of ease we have is because the doors of paradise are open. It is as if Paradise is inviting us to do good so we go to Paradise Ø All Gates of Hellfire are closed v There are seven gates of Hell and all of them are closed. Ø The Devils will be chained v In the month of Ramadan we see our reality as the devils are chained so we do not have any whispers from the Shaitaan. v The devils only give ideas and make the sins attractive and beautiful but it is up to us to take or not take his advise. v In Ramadan as the devils are chained we only have to fight ourselves to be better because we want to be upgraded. Ø There is one Night better than 1000 months Layl ul Qadr v In the month of Ramadan in which if we establish the night prayer and make dua than it is better than 83 years of worship (1000 months equal 83 years). v This is the Night of Decree. to be contd PAGE 9