Category: Ramadan
Advices on Ramadan
Making the Best in Ramadan
By Shaikh M. Ibrahim Memon
The Holy month of Ramadan is a great opportunity for all believers to reestablish their relationship with Almighty Allah . During this month, Allah opens the doors of guidance, mercy, and forgiveness and showers His blessings on mankind. Blessed are those who avail this opportunity and work hard to obtain the pleasure of Allah .
Following are some points to remember that may help us have a better Ramadan:
Sahoor: Rasulullah said, “Allah sends blessings on those who eat Sahoor (meal before Fajr) and the angels pray for them.” (Ibn Habban) We should never miss Sahoor as it is blessed food and a Sunnah of the Prophet .
Salat Al-Taraweeh: Perform twenty raka’ah of Taraweeh every night.
Salat Al-Tahajud: Other than Taraweeh, perform some raka’ah of Tahajud prayer.
Dua: After Tahajud, spend some time making Dua for yourself, your family, the community, and the whole Muslim Ummah. This is extremely needed and very few do it. Every person in the family should engage in Dua and prayers in the darkness of the night and in isolation. Cry before Allah for forgiveness and for all of your needs.
Also wake up your children and teach them how to make Dua to Allah . Teach them how to cry before Allah , for those who do not cry before Allah will have to cry before people like themselves.
Crying and begging to Allah attracts His Mercy. Rasulullah encouraged his followers to cry when making Dua.
Salah in the Masjid: Try your best to perform every Salah in the Masjid with congregation (jama’ah)
Perform the additional following ibadah:
1. Recite Istighfaar 100 times a day (i.e. Astaghfirallah)
2. Send blessing on Rasulullah 100 times a day
3. Tasbeehaat 100 times a day (i.e. Subhanallah Wal-Hamdulillah wala Illaha Illallah Wallahu Akbar)
4. Recite at least one Juz of the Qur’an every day
Avoid all kinds of sins: Rasulullah said, “Many of those who fast get nothing out of it except hunger” (Nasa’ee) Advising his wife, once Rasulullah said, “O Aishah, refrain from even the minor sins because Allah will question you about them also.” (Ibn Majah)
Do not become angry: Avoid all quarrels, fights, and arguments which may lead you to anger.
Use only Halal food bought by Halal earnings. Avoid all doubtful items.
Reduce the amount of:
1. Eating
2. Sleeping
3. Talking
Unfortunately, it is very common in many Masajid to sit and chat after iftaar. This time should be used for Nawafil prayers, recitation of the Holy Qur’an, Tasbeeh, and Dua. Masjid is the House of Allah . It must be given its due respect. Disrespecting the house of Allah is disrespect to Allah .
Raising the voice or talking of worldly matters in the Masjid is forbidden. It is the responsibility of every Muslim to maintain the order, silence, respect, and cleanliness in the Masjid.
May Allah bless and guide all of us.
Value Ramadan
Very good reminder of valuing time!
May Allah give us Barakah in time & the ability to value our most precious asset
Via: Shaykh Abdul Raheem
Why Religious Fasting Could Be Good for Your Brain
By Andrea Useem | September 17, 2008
http://pokedandprodded.health.com
Ramadan is in its third week now, and the required dawn-to-dusk fasting often feels like a daily mini–marathon. By late afternoon, hunger and thirst have sucked me dry, leaving me sleepy, slow-minded, and sometimes short-tempered.
I know that the purpose of fasting is spiritual—God will reward us in the next life—but in this lifetime, fasting sometimes makes me an ineffective, irritable person. So I was excited to learn that Harvard psychiatrist John Ratey, MD, had spoken at a recent Renaissance Weekend event about how caloric restriction can improve brain function.
I emailed Dr. Ratey to find out if those benefits might extend to religious fasting, and he sent me a 2006 paper on the brain functioning of men during the Ramadan fast. The researchers studied a small group of healthy men during and after the holy month, looking at their brain activity via functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). They concluded that “all individual results showed consistent and significant increase of activity in the motor cortex during fasting.”
Other research shows similar results
That research builds on the work of other scientists, including Mark Mattson, PhD, who heads a neuroscience lab at the NIH’s National Institute on Aging. Mattson has done important research on how dietary restrictions can significantly protect the brain from degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
In a 2003 article, Mattson and others reported that rats who were deprived of food every other day, or restricted to a diet at 30% to 50% of normal calorie levels, showed not only decreased heart rates and blood pressure, but also “younger” brains, with “numerous age-related changes in gene expression.”
Mattson and his colleagues also shared data from research on humans, which shows that populations with higher caloric intakes—such as the United States and Europe—have a greater prevalence of Alzheimer’s than do populations that eat less—such as China and Japan. The authors speculate that humans may have adapted to conditions of feast and famine; the stress of having little food, they write, “may induce changes in gene expression that result in adaptive changes in cellular metabolism and the increased ability of the organism to reduce stress.”
Although this research is relatively new, with many questions left unanswered, the authors conclude that “it seems a safe bet that if people would incorporate a spartan approach to food intake into their lifestyles, this would greatly reduce the incidence of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and stroke.” (Of course, how this recommendation translates for individual people remains almost a complete unknown; consult with your own doctor before restricting your diet in dramatic ways.)
But here’s the hard part: Although we know eating too much leads to all sorts of health problems, “it has proven very difficult to successfully implement prolonged dietary-restriction regimens,” reports Mattson and his team. Information and doctor’s orders are rarely enough motivation.
This last observation gave me hope, because it seemed the authors were overlooking the role of religion; it can inspire people in ways information or experts don’t. Would I be undergoing this rigorous month of fasting unless I believed strongly it was the right thing for me to do? Probably not. And the same goes for millions of Muslims around the world.
And many other religions include fasting or dietary restrictions as part of their religious observances. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or Mormons, for example, fast one Sunday a month. The Orthodox Church in America notes five separate fasting seasons on its website, in addition to individual fast days; during some of these fasts, all food is restricted, and during other fasts, only certain foods are off-limits. Some Roman Catholics abstain from meat on Fridays, and all do during Lent. Many types of Buddhist monks abide by a code that prohibits eating after noon each day.
Science may only now be discovering that some of these religious practices, both ancient and modern, offer nourishment not just for the soul, but for the body as well.
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The Wonderful Status of I’tikaaf
by Hazrat Muhammad Farouq Sahib
Fulfil one’s I’tikaaf in such a Masjid wherein the five daily Salaah is offered. A Masjid in terms of the Shariah. By means of this act Allah Ta’ala has granted us solitude while in a gathering. What more can be said!
Two Haj and two Umrah, by means of a single days I’tikaaf, how far is one removed from Jahannum? A distance of five hundred years. Brothers! What we all desire and need is to be distanced from Jahannum and closeness to paradise.
Another amazing point is the fact that one who is waiting for Salaah is granted the rewards of being in Salaah. It is as if the person forming the intention for I’tikaaf has begun Salaah on the eve of the twentieth of Ramadaan and remains engaged in this Salaah for a full ten days and nights, till the sighting of the crescent for Eid after which he turns for Salaam and completes his Salaah. While fast asleep, he is in Salaah! While wide a wake, he is in Salaah! While eating, he is in Salaah! While drinking, he is in Salaah! At every instant during his stay in the Masjid he is in Salaah. At times this is actually so while at other times he is allegorically so. We beseech Allah Ta’ala to grant us the abundant Taufeeq for these actions to be performed during Ramadaan and that He make them easy for us and assist us therein.
O Allah! We are weak and helpless. We are assailed by different forms of illnesses. O Allah! Provide us with Your assistance from the unseen whereby we can imbibe all these aspects within us. Let us engage in the abundant recitation of the Quraan as in the case of Hazrat Raipuri who gave up all his correspondence as well as meeting people and was either occupied in fasting or recitation of the Quraan. This cycle continued over and over every day of the entire month. We beseech Allah Ta’ala to grant such devotion to us as well, along with I’tikaaf during the last ten days.
O Allah! Grant abundant Taufeeq to us as well as to our children and the other members of our household. O Allah! Grant us the Taufeeq to spend Ramadaan in keeping with the Sunnah as discussed. Grant us the Taufeeq to spend Ramadaan in the shadows of Your accepted servants, Ameen.
Source: Darul Uloom Al-Islamiyya , Port Elizabeth South Africa
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Ramadhan 24 Hour programme
Hereunder we suggest a 24-hour programme for the month of Ramadhan. It is an example of spending our time correctly. The programme starts from Maghrib till Maghrib the following day.
Read: “O You who are Great in Bounties, forgive me”, as many times as possible before Iftar.
Make du’a 5 to 10 minutes before Iftar. The du’a of a fasting person is readily accepted at this time.
Make Iftar quickly. Thereafter perform Maghrib (for men with Jamat and for women at home).
After Maghrib perform 6 to 20 Rakats Awwâbîn Namaz.
Read Surah Tabarak after Maghrib. The benefit of it is that it will save us from the punishment of the grave.
Read Surah Waqiyah. The virtue of it is that it will save one from poverty.
Have supper quickly. Our suggestion is that due to the long days, have a rest for 15 – 20 minutes before Esha, so that one may be fresh for Taraweeh and Esha salâh.
Prepare for Esha before the Esha Azan and proceed for Esha and Taraweeh Salat. Return home immediately after Tarawih or after any Deeni programme in the Masjid. Do not waste time talking and discussing political and business issues.
On returning home, read Surah Sajdah. Thereafter spend a few minutes with the family and try to sleep as early as possible allowing one to arise at 3.00 a.m. for Tahajjud salâh.
Read Tasbeeh-e-Fatimi before sleeping.
Perform at least 4,8, or 12 rakâts Tahajjud salah, thereafter read the first kalima 100 times and then make du’a before partaking of Sehri.
Immediately after Sehri proceed to the Masjid for Fajr Salâh. After Fajr recite the Quran till Ishraq time.
Perform 2 or 4 Rakats Ishraq. The benefit is that your daily work will become easy and you will attain the reward of an accepted Haj. After Ishraq rest before going to work. People who are self employed should take advantage of this rest and also give their employees this opportunity.
At work or at one’s business, one should keep one’s tongue moist with Zikr eg. Kalimah Tayyibah, Istighfar and Durood Shareef. Those who are bay’t to a Sheikh should complete their prescribed Zikr.
Try to be early for Zohar Namaz so that one could read the Qur,an immediately after one has read the 4 Sunnat-e-Muakkadah before the Jamat Namaz. If possible try to read Qur’an after Zohar Namaz as well, depending on how long one’s lunch break is.
After completing Asar Namaz, read Durood Shareef at least 100 times and Istighfar 100 times. Thereafter spend the balance of the time reciting Qur’an till Iftar time, not forgetting the du’a before Iftar.
Published by Villa Liza Madrasah, Actonville, BENONI
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Dua for Suhur
When beginning the fast – Suhur (sehri)
بِصَوْمِ غَدٍ نَوَيْتُ مِنْ شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ
I intend to keep the fast for tomorrow in the month of Ramadan.
Transliteration:
Bi-sawmi ghadin nawaytu min shahri ramadan
There is no special Du’aa to begin the fast. You can make the Niyyat in your own language e.g. O Allah I am fasting tomorrow for you. So make it easy for me and accept it from me. The du’aa provided here is an example.
Niyyat means the intention of heart and one eats sehri with the intention of fasting. Then eating sehri is tantamount to intention. There is no need of intention in words separately but if one reads the said du’aa in sehri then it is lawful and better. [Darul Ifta, Darul Uloom Deoband, India]
The 1400 Year History of Taraweeh Salaah
Amongst the special Ibaadah of the month of Ramadhaan are the fasts and the Taraweeh salaah. The information below will be dedicated to the history of the number of Rakaahs of Taraweeh that have always been performed in the two holy Harams.
The Taraweeh Salaah During the Time of Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم)
Saheeh Muslim reports a hadith from Hadhrat Aaisha (رضى الله عنها) that when (during Ramadhaan) Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) once performed the Taraweeh salaah in the Masjidun Nabawi, the Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم followed him in the salaah. When Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) again performed the salaah the following night, an even larger congregation followed him. It was then either on the third or fourth night that Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) did not come to the Masjid for the Taraweeh salaah. Explaining his reason the following morning, Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said to the Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم, “I noticed your fervour and did not come to the Masjid to perform the Salaah fearing that this Taraweeh salaah should become compulsory for you.” 1
It is therefore evident that Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) performed the Taraweeh salaah in congregation at least twice or thrice in his lifetime. Imaam Ibn Taymiyyah رحمة الله and Allaama Showkaani رحمة الله have both mentioned that a study of Ahadeeth regarding Taraweeh reveals that Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) never specified the number of rakaahs for Taraweeh.
During the Period of Hadhrat Abu Bakr (رضى الله تعالى عنه)
During this period, the Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم meticulously performed the Taraweeh salaah individually or in small congregations.
During the Period of Hadhrat Umar (رضى الله تعالى عنه)
During his Khilaafah, the second Khalifah Hadhrat Umar Faarooq (رضى الله تعالى عنه) combined all the small congregations into one because of the possibility of the Taraweeh salaah becoming Fardh no longer existed. With the approval of all the Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم, twenty rakaahs Taraweeh salaah was performed every night of Ramadhaan after the Isha salaah, followed by three Rakaahs Witr salaah. 2
There are many people nowadays who perform the Taraweeh salaah with Jamaah throughout Ramadhaan because it was carried out during the time of hadrat Umar (رضى الله تعالى عنه) with the consent of all the Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم. However, these people object to the number of Rakaahs. If they keep the following Hadith in mind, their objection will Inshaa Allah be removed.
Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, “I advise you fear Allah, to listen and to obey (your leaders) even though your leader be an Abyssinian slave because those of you who live after me shall see great disputes. It is therefore compulsory for you to adhere to my practices and to the practice of the righteous and rightly guided successors (Khulafaa Raashideen). Hold fast to these practices and bite on them with your molars.” 3
In this Hadith Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) has emphasised to his Ummah that it is imperative for them to emulate his practices as well as the practices of the Khulafaa Raashideen. When Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) has instructed the following of the practices of his Khulafaa, how can their practices be labelled as Bidah? How can one promote forsaking something that Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) empathetically wanted done? How can there be scope to oppose something that the Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم unanimously agreed upon?
This practice of the righteous Khalifah Hadhrat Umar (رضى الله تعالى عنه) falls perfectly within the purport of this Hadith. Therefore one should perform twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh salaah in congregation every night of Ramadhaan after the Isha salaah. This is then followed by three Rakaahs of Witr salaah.
During the period of Hadhrat Uthmaan (رضى الله تعالى عنه)
The third righteous khalifah Hadhrat Uthmaan (رضى الله تعالى عنه) also continued the practice of twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh salaah in congregation, followed by the three Rakaahs of Witr salaah. 4
During the period of Hadhrat Ali (رضى الله تعالى عنه)
The fourth righteous khalifah Hadhrat Ali (رضى الله تعالى عنه) also continued the practice of twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh salaah in congregation, followed by the three Rakaahs of Witr salaah. 5
The Taraweeh salaah in the Masjid Haraam in Makkah
The famous book of Ahadeeth Jaami Tirmidhi states that according to the majority of scholars, the number of Rakaahs in the Taraweeh salaah is twenty, as reported from Hadhrat Umar رضى الله تعالى عنه, Hadhrat Ali رضى الله تعالى عنه and other Sahabah رضى الله تعالى عنهم. This is also the opinion of Hadhrat Sufyan Thowri رحمة الله and Hadhrat Abdullah ibn Mubaarak رحمة الله. Hadhrat Imaam Shafiee رحمة الله says, “I have seen the learned scholars of Makkah perform twenty Rakaahs of Taraweeh salaah.” 6
In his famous book Kitaabul Umm (vol 1 page 142), Imaam Shaafiee رحمة الله says that twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh salaah is reported from Hadhrat Umar رضى الله تعالى عنه and the learned scholars of Makkah also perform twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh with three Rakaahs Witr.
In the third century A.H., the famous historian of Makkah Muhammad bin Ishaaq Faakihi documented that during the month of Ramadhaan it was the practice of the people of Makkah to sit five periods of Taraweeh (rest periods between every four Rakaahs of the Taraweeh salaah. This denotes that they performed twenty Rakaahs of salaah.) 7
It is therefore evident twenty Rakaahs of Taraweeh salaah has been performed in the Masjid Haraam of Makkah for the past fourteen hundred years. Throughout, this period, there has never been a single night when only Rakaahs have been performed.
Taraweeh salaah in the Masjidun Nabawi صلى الله عليه وسلم
The renowned Saudi scholar and Mufassir Sheikh Atiyya Saalim رحمة الله who was a Sheikhul Hadeeth, judge and lecturer in the Masjidun Nabawi صلى الله عليه وسلم wrote a book in Arabic entitled “The history of the Taraweeh salaah in the Masjidun Nabawi صلى الله عليه وسلم for more than a thousand years.” In this book[8], he conclusively proves from historical evidence that twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh salaah has been performed in the Masjidun Nabawi صلى الله عليه وسلم for the past fourteen centuries. He adds further that even after the establishment of the Saudi rule, both the Harams in Makkah and Madinah have twenty Rakaahs of Taraweeh salaah with three witr. 9
The heart-rending and beautiful Taraweeh salaah in both the Harams is broadcast live throughout both on radio and television.
A fourteen century old practice
Twenty Rakaahs Taraweeh salaah is being performed from the first century of Islaam up to this fifteenth century.
Source: The Historyof Makkah Mukarramah
by Dr Muhammad Ilyas Abdul Ghani
References
1 – Muslim – The Chapter concerning encouragement for performing the Taraweeh salaah.
2 – Mu’atta Maalik, as quoted in Nasbur Ra’yah
3 – Tirmidhi – Hadith 6272. The hadith is classified Hasan Saheeh and even Albaani has verified its authenticity [see Mishkaat annotated by him (Vol. 1 pg. 28)]
4 – Sunan Kubra of Bayhaqi – Chapter concerning the number of Rakaahs during the nights of Ramadhaan.
5 – Sunan Kubra of Bayhaqi – Chapter concerning the number of Rakaahs during the nights of Ramadhaan.
6 – Tirmidhi
7 – Akhbaar Makkah by Faakihi (Vol.2 Pg. 156,157)
8 – Pgs. 41-58
9 – Pg. 65
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Ramadan Checklist
Ramadan Mubarak to you all for whenever you commence this blessed month.
If you want to download a simple Ramadan Checklist please click the link below.
Feel free to leave your comments and suggestions on how to improve the checklist, jazakallah.
Please remember me in your duas.
Wasalam
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