Ramadan Message

Dear Brother and Sister in Islam,

Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuh.

Once again the month of Blessings: Rahmah, Maghfirah and freedom from the hellfire is here. The month of Ramadan has come when Muslims are faced with enormous difficulties at home and abroad. This is the time to turn your face from all worldly powers towards Allah Almighty. This is the time of true tawakkul (reliance on Allah) that the Ramadan can help you achieve. Please read the following advice taken from the Quran and Sunnah and try to practice as
much as possible.

The Virtue of Ramadan
This is the only month mentioned in the Quran by name. The Prophet (SAW) said: “When Ramadan begins,
the gates of Paradise are opened, the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are chained”. A Hadith Al-Qudsi narrates that “every good deed of the son of Adam is rewarded from ten to seven hundred times, but Allah says: ‘Except for fasting, for it is for Me and I Myself will give exclusive rewards for it because he leaves his
food and desires for My sake’.

Prophet (SAW) said: “Whoever fasts during Ramadan with sincere belief (iman) and with the hope of receiving rewards from Allah (ihtisab), then Allah will forgive his previous sins.” The Prophet (SAW) also said that “whoever reaches the month of Ramadan and does not have their sins forgiven, and so enters the Hell-fire, then may Allah distance him”.

“There is a gate in Paradise called Al-Rayyan. On the Day of Judgement it will say: ‘Where are those who fasted?’ When the last fasting person has entered through the gate, it will be closed.” Fasting is also a protection from Hell-fire as the Prophet said: “No servant fasts a day in the path of Allah except that Allah, the Most High, removes the Fire of Hell, a distance of seventy years away form his face.”

Sawm: Fasting

We must make sure that we take full benefit from the month of Ramadan. The most important of all righteous deed is fasting. This must be done in the prophetic way.
A person should fast with the whole body and not just the stomach. One should keep ones eyes, ears, tongue, hands, feet and other limbs of the body from committing sins.

A fasting person should particularly abstain from vain talk, lying, backbiting, swearing or using bad language, harming or insulting anyone, gazing at unlawful things and being argumentative. One should also control oneself so that one does not react to provocation as the Prophet said: “Fasting is not only abstaining from eating and drinking, but also includes abstaining from vain and obscene talk. So if someone insults you or wrongs you in any way say: ‘I am fasting, I am fasting.’

“Whoever does not refrain from lying and dishonesty, then Allah has no need for him to give up his food and drink”. He also said: “ There are many among you who fast and yet gain nothing from it except hunger and thirst, and there are many among you who stay up to pray at night and yet gain nothing except sleeplessness.”

Ramadan is an ideal opportunity for character building and it is a month of harvesting good deeds through self-improvement. A day in a fasting person’s life should be very different from the day when he is not fasting.

Recitation of the Quran

“Ramadan is the month in which the Quran was sent down as a guidance for mankind and as a clear Criterion to judge between the right and wrong. So whoever is present in this month must fast”. The first revelation of the Quran took place in one of the odd nights of the last ten days of Ramadan, known as Laylatul Qadr. Hence the Quran is intimately connected with Ramadan and fasting.

Hence it is strongly enjoined on Muslims to be deeply immersed with the Quran during Ramadan and it is recommended to finish reading or at least listening to the whole Quran during the Tarawih prayers in Ramadan.

The Prophet (SAW) said: “Fasting and the Quran will intercede for a person on the Day of Judgement. Fasting will say: ‘O Lord! I prevented him from food and desires so let me intercede for him’. The Quran will say: ‘I deprived him from sleep at night so let me intercede for him’. So they will both intercede”.

Sadaqah: Charity

Ramadan is the month of spending and during this month the Prophet distributed charity like the ‘blowing wind’. Ibn Abbas says that “the Messenger of Allah was the most generous of people and he used to be most generous in Ramadan.” Of course, Muslims have to give Zakat Al- Fitr at the end of Ramadan to the poor and needy. Therefore, please give a portion of your zakah to the welfare fund of IFE and collect from others for this fund. Also collect funds for local projects.

May Allah give us tawfiq to remain fully active in Ibadah in the month of Ramadan. Ameen.