Ramadhan - Month of intense spiritual training

Almighty Allah has granted Ramadhan a special status among other months.  Ramadhan is the month in which the Holy Quran was revealed.  At the end of Sha’abaan, the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) gave a very detailed sermon on welcoming Ramadhan.  In this sermon, the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) described the excellence of Ramadhan, the obligation of fasting, the virtues of Taraweeh, and the superiority of Shab Qadr and instructed the Companions to be patient, sympathetic, empathetic and to be gentle with their subordinates.  The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:  O people!  A great month has come on you.  It is a month of blessings.  It is such a month that there is a night in it, which is better than 1000 months.  Almighty Allah has declared fasts as Obligatory and the worship of the night as Supererogatory.  The person who observes a supererogatory act in this month is like the one who observes an obligatory act in other months.  The person who observes an obligatory act in this month is like the one who observes 70 obligatory acts in other months.  And it is the month of patience (Sabr) and the reward of patience is paradise and it is the month of caring for others.  This is such a month in which the sustenance (Rizq) of a believer is increased.

 

These are the words of Mufti Syed Ziauddin Naqshbandi, Professor, Islamic Law, Jamia Nizamia, Founder-Director, Abul Hasanaat Islamic Research Center at the weekly lecture at Masjid Abul Hasanaat organized under the aegis of AHIRC.

 

The revered Mufti said that the human self takes one towards sins and the soul turns us to good and virtue.  Too much of eating and sex promote desires of the flesh and fasting weakens the self and the desires.  To strengthen the soul, the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) ordered Taraweeh.  So that simultaneously the desires are weakened through fasting and the soul is also strengthened through Taraweeh and the recitation of the Holy Quran.

 

There is a Hadith in Sunan Nasai and Sunan Ibn Majah that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:  Almighty Allah has obligated the fasts of Ramadhan for you and I have decree the Taraweeh as a Sunnah.  Thus, the person who fasts and offers Taraweeh with all sincerity will be cleansed of sins the way he (or she) was (pure of sins) when born.

 

The revered Mufti said that Taraweeh should be offered for the whole month and one shouldn’t offer Taraweeh for 3 days or 10 days and then stop.  Apart from fasting and Taraweeh, recitation of the Holy Quran in Ramadhan is also a Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).  There is a Hadith in Sahih Bukhari that in Ramadhan, the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would complete a recitation of the Holy Quran along with Jibreel (May peace be upon him).

 

        Apart from this, observing ‘Itikaaf (seclusion) is also a Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).  In the earlier years, the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) observed ‘Itikaaf for 1 month, then He would observe ‘Itikaaf for the last 10 days every year.

 

Some people think that Zakaat can be given only in Ramadhan.  The revered Mufti clarified this that when a year passes on wealth which meets the prescribed criterion of Zakaat, Zakaat becomes Compulsory.  If a year is completed before Ramadhan, then Zakaat becomes obligatory before Ramadhan itself.  However, if someone wants to give Zakaat in advance during Ramadhan, there is no harm in it.

 

        The revered Mufti said that in Ramadhan one should take care to offer all 5 Salaat with congregation in a mosque.  Some people offer Salaat in the houses and go to sleep right after the pre-dawn meal and some people go for shopping at the time of Salaat Ul ‘Asr.  In Ramadhan especially, we should take care that these things don’t happen.  Apart from the 5 obligatory prayers, one should also try to offer other supererogatory Salaat like Salaat Ul Chaasht, Salaat Ul Awwabeen and Salaat Ul Tahajjud.  We should also help poor people as much as we can.  Especially the poor people of the family should be helped.  We should make things easier for our subordinates.  We should profusely recite the Kalima (La Ilaha….) and Istighfaar and seek paradise and protection against hell.

 

The revered Mufti said that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has emphasized reducing the burden of slaves (i.e. subordinates) in this month.  The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said:  Whoever reduces the burden of a subordinate in this month, Almighty Allah will pardon that person and free him (or her) from hell.

 

The session ended with Salaam and Dua.  Maulana Hafiz Afsaruddin Qadri, Kamil Ul Hadith, Jamia Nizamia, presented a Na’at and Maulana Hafiz Syed Ahmed Ghouri, Teacher, Jamia Nizamia, led the proceedings.