Ramadan Is The Month Of The Quran And Duaa And You Want To Prepare For It, in Arabic Ramaḍān, in Islam, the ninth month of the Muslim calendar and the holy month of fasting. It begins and ends with the appearance of the crescent moon. Because the Muslim calendar year is shorter than the Gregorian calendar year, Ramadan begins 10–12 days earlier each year, allowing it to fall in every season throughout a 33-year cycle.
If my Umma knew how vital this month of Ramadan is, they would wish and desire that the whole year is Ramadan. So Muhammad ﷺ told us that this is the month of the mercy of Allah ﷻ since this is the month of forgiveness, this is a month when we can return to Allah ﷻ.
And it is a month where Allah ﷻ protects people from Hellfire. But we must ask ourselves, how are we planning for this month? How will we welcome the month of Ramadan?
It’s narrated that Sahaba {RA} used to prepare six months in advance, six months in advance for the month of Ramadan because they truly understood how important this month for the Muslim and unfortunately you find, my brothers in Islam, that for many people today it has become something cultural, it has become something routine.
And we are missing the point and the essence of this holy month that Allah ﷻ has given you and me as an opportunity to return to him. We don’t spend the first week trying to overcome the fasting and the headaches and all of that and then spend the second week with some invitations. And then, last ten days, you find that the month of Ramadan has just slipped away and gone. This is not the preparation, my brothers in Islam.
We all want Allah ﷻ, we all want to change, Allah ﷻ says in Quran you’ll never change the state of a nation unless they start with a change that’s within themselves. The change begins with me. You find that the majority of the preparation that we do, my brothers in Islam, is not the one that will draw you
nearer to Allah ﷻ. Yet you find that most of the preparation that we do is stocking up the pantry in the fridge, Subhan Allah.
In fact, Allah ﷻ says in the Quran that Allah ﷻ has ordained and made fasting obligatory upon you. Not so that you can abstain from food or water, no, so that you may attain piety so that you can draw nearer to Allah ﷻ. That’s the true objective my brothers in Islam the Jurists mention [fasting of the eyes, fasting of the ears, fasting of the tongues, the hands. The feet].
What does it mean, the fasting of these bodily parts? To fast your eyes is to not look at anything which is disobeyed to Allah ﷻ Do not look at anything Haram. Fasting of ears, how many Muslim in the month of Ramadan listen to music say that this is passing the time. Fasting of our tongues, people backbiting, gossiping, slandering, cursing, reviling, swearing, and spreading of rumors, backbiting and gossiping increases in this month of Ramadan because some of us don’t understand the intent of Ramadan.
That’s you find a person may only gain hunger and thirst and fatigue. In this month of Ramadan because they’ve not understood the whole purpose of this month of Ramadan. Fasting of hands is not to touch anything Haram or to take anything Haram, Fasting of legs is not to walk to anyway Haram that many young Muslims begin to indulge in Haram.
These are all elements of fasting we need to develop, till eventually find out the person got difficulties in Allah ﷻ loves that individual will call out to Jibril that I love so-and-so till eventually that I become the eyes by which the believer sees, the hand which the believer uses to touches, the legs which the believer walks. What does it mean? The person who looks at that which pleases Allah ﷻ, only touches that pleases Allah ﷻ and only walks the ways that pleases Allah ﷻ and eventually the believer if he asks me, then I’ll give him. If you seek my protection, my refuge, I will protect him.
But imagine if you were prepared and planned to meet the month of Ramadan, wanting Allah ﷻ forgiveness, wanting to improve yourself as a Muslim wanted to get closer to Allah ﷻ. Ask yourself the question how could I get the best out of this month? one of my objectives, how can I make sure that I seize the opportunity that Allah ﷻ is presenting to me? Subhan Allah, you find something amazing about this month, Allah ﷻ says the month of Ramadan is the month that the Quran was sent down. When you look into these verses and analyze, you realize that Allah ﷻ when he first makes mention of the month of Ramadan, he associated with the Book of Allah. He makes an association with the Book of Allah before he makes an association with the month of Ramadan with fasting. This has a great lesson for us, a great lesson for me and you to realize that the month of Ramadan is not just about abstaining from food, it’s about connecting with the Book of Allah.
And this is one of the objectives and one of the plans that we must make. If you are unable to read the book of Allah, make a plan, do whatever you can do to make sure that you improve in your connectivity and your relationship with the book of Allah ﷻ, if you are able to read, it’s an opportunity for you to memorize. It’s an opportunity for you to read through a complete reading of the Quran.
Connect with the book of Allah. This is how the relationship starts, my brothers in Islam. Muhammad ﷺ told us something amazing about the benefit of the Book of Allah and the month of Ramadan. He says the fasting will come on the day of judgment and the Quran will come on the day of judgment. He says, Oh Allah i prevented this person from his food and from his water, please make me his intercession, make me his intercession, so the Quran will come and say Oh Allah I have made this person I have prevented him from sleeping at night because he stayed up reading the book of Allah, make me his intercession. So, you have the Quran and the fasting fighting who will intercede for you on the day of judgment, Allah ﷻ would allow both of these the Koran and the fasting to intercede for you on the day of judgment. My brothers in Islam start from now, if you start from now, you will find that by the time the month of Ramadan is there you are tasting the beauty of it.
And this book of a Allah ﷻ, my brothers in Islam, it’s a means of guidance. And we all need the words of Allah ﷻ, that Book of Allah ﷻ is a means of therapy and Allah ﷻ is presented us with an amazing opportunity. the messenger of Allah ﷺ told us in the Hadith « whosoever fasts in the month of Ramadan Allah ﷻ will forgive his previous sins.
And another issue, he says « whosoever stands up in prayer in the month of Ramadan, Allah ﷻ will forgive his sins» from now start practicing the Nawafel prayers. Imagine praying twelve Rakaat of sunna every single day that Muhammad ﷺ promised that for the person that does this, Allah ﷻ will give him a palace. We all know about the Sunna of tarawih, my brothers in Islam, to come in a congregation and build that relationship with the book of a Allah ﷻ in our prayer and unfortunately we find many people today, they seek out the shortest possible opportunity to pray tarawih. They actually compete to perform Tarawih quickly and go back home first. The Sahaba {RA} used to achieve long qyam prayer and one of the things that you find also, my brothers in Islam, that many people leave very quickly, they can pray a couple of rakaa’t and leave, and Muhammad ﷺ told us that whosoever completes the prayer with the imam, Allah ﷻ will give him the reward for night praying, for the entirety of the night praying, if you stay and remain until the imam finishes.
What an amazing opportunity, my brothers in Islam; the month of Ramadan is the month of Duaa’, it’s an amazing opportunity for us to call and supplicate to Allah ﷻ. A man comes to the prophet Muhammad ﷺ and then he says, Oh ﷺ , is Allah ﷻ farther away to call him or is he close that we could just call upon to him? So Allah ﷻ brings down Quran ana sais «if my slave asks you about me, tell them that I am close»، I am here to accept the call, I need to answer that Duaa’, the Duaa’ and the supplication of the person that is fasting is answered and Subhan Allah, Allah ﷻ presents us with an amazing opportunity in the month of Ramadan that before you break your fast, there is a golden opportunity where Allah ﷻ will answer your Duaa’, but you find majority of people today, my brothers in Islam, they are so excited about the food that they forget and they missed the golden opportunity that Allah ﷻ had made available for them.
Allah ﷻ is telling; ask me whatever it is that you want and your duaa’ and supplication will be answered, don’t miss the opportunity, in fact, from now start planning, whether it’s for yourself , whether it’s for your Deen whether it’s for your finances, whether it’s for your family, whether that Allah ﷻ allows you to be one of the memorized of the Quran whether it’s about becoming righteous, whether it’s about financial abilities, whether you want Allah ﷻof guarantee you Jannah, whether you care about the Umma, if you truly care about the Umma and the all the oppression that’s happening around the world, this is your opportunity, my brother in Islam, this is the opportunity to call upon Allah ﷻ and call him beg him. Wallahe, it’s something worthy of discussion with your family, with your spouse, what Duaa’ are we going to make this month of Ramadan?
Muhammad ﷺ told us in the Hadith says «wake up for that predawn meal because in that meal before Fajr prayer , there is amazing blessing for you»
A lot of people say today, i don’t need to wake up. In fact, you find some of the scientist say even if you have a young breastfeeding child, wake them up at that time and give them a few suckles, because in these few suckles there is a blessing of baraka for them. What an amazing opportunity. Let’s plan that with our family from now. My brothers in Islam, one of the sooner that has been forgotten in our day and time is the son of i’tikaaf ، Muhammad ﷺ never missed this Sunna. In fact, Aisha {RA} she narrates and says that when the last ten nights of Ramadan would come, he ﷺ would stand up in pray, he would perform i’tikaf que, he would not go home, he would stay in the Masjid. He would stay in the Masjid and perform long qyam, long salah and he would wake his family up.
He would become more serious in the last ten nights. And of course, there is nothing more greater than finding the night of Laylat Al~Qadr in that last ten nights. And one of the best ways that you can guarantee, my brother in Islam, is to make sure that you are performing I’tikaf in the last ten nights. Make a plan from now. Imagine knowing that you covered all the last ten nights and you’ve guaranteed yourself Laylt Al~qadr and Allah ﷻ is telling us that worship in this night is equivalent to what? It is better than 1000 months of worship and not miss on the reward that Allah ﷻ has up for grabs for us.
Because by Allah no one has a guarantee that we will see another Ramadan, no one has that guarantee. How many people were with us last year?
