Today, I was sitting down during my break and thought to myself, am I ready for Ramadan?
I love Ramadan; I love my religion; I love my beliefs and, it is part of me. I love Allah (The Most High). I love all the Prophets (may Allah have peace upon them all). How can I make Ramadan the best of the best after making the intention, clarity and motivation? The next task to think, about is how we seek forgiveness and repentance from the Almighty? The month of Ramadan has three sets of days according to a hadith: the first ten days are Mercy (Rahmah), the subsequent ten days are forgiveness (maghfirah) and; the last ten days, the protection from the Hellfire. Each of us is either in a similar or different state, but never the SAME degree in our relationship with Allah (The Most High). We are not free from sin. If we were all the same - we will be accountable as a whole ummah than becoming accountable individually on the Day of Judgement. We all yearn to strengthen our relationship with Allah (The Most High). We all yearn to better ourselves. We all yearn for His forgiveness and repentance. We should all realise is that we are ALL the servants of Allah (The Most High) regardless of who we are. We as human beings tend to either do or say something intentionally or unintentionally, so what do we do? Think about what Ramadan will include? Closing of the doors of Hellfire (Jahannum), chaining the devils, opening the doors of Jannah, disciplining ourselves (Nafs), praying, reading the Quran, understanding the perspective of those who have nothing to eat or drink, opportunities to help and maximise our good acts as much as possible by starting from home with our families. This is followed by our friends and our communities and more importantly is seeking forgiveness and repentance. What is the difference between forgiveness and repentance? Forgiveness is defined as recognising our faults and asking Allah (The Most High) for His forgiveness. Repentance is the turning action from our faults, returning to Allah (The Most High) and not repeating it. How do you know when an act or saying is wrong? It is when it affects your heart. Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) said: “Virtue is to have good morals, sin is what pricks your heart and when you dislike that people come to know about it.” [Hadith, Muslim, 2553] According to scholars, our sins are divided into two major and minor sins based upon the Quran (Book of Allah) and Sunnah (Sayings of the Prophet peace be upon him). Major sins have been provided as a warning of punishment in the Quran and Sunnah [Islam Q and A]. Hasan Al-Basri has narrated the following: “Every deed concerning which Allah, may He be exalted, warned the doer of Hell is a major sin.” So how can we practically seek forgiveness and repentance? The time and action. 1) Speak to Allah – there is no special time but in the Quran, Allah (The Highest) states: “They arise from [their] beds; they supplicate their Lord in fear and aspiration, and from what We have provided them, they spend.” [Quran, Surah Al-Sajdah (The Prostation), 32:16] Aspire and have hope in His Mercy. In another verse in the Quran, Allah (The Most High) states: “And your Lord says, "Call upon Me; I will respond to you." Indeed, those who disdain My worship will enter Hell [rendered] contemptible.” [Quran, Surah Ghafir (The Forgiver), 40:60] Do not wait for Ramadan to seek forgiveness but start now with the intention of not repeating it by acknowledging the error, regretting the error, apologising and an action plan of not repeating it. Another practical way is to make dua (supplication) where many duas are found in the Quran and hadiths such as the followings: Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: Whoever repeats: “Subhan-Allahi wa bihamdihi” (Glorified is Allah and praised is He) One hundred times a day, his sins will be obliterated even if they are equal to the extent of the foam of the ocean.'' [Hadith, Al-Bukhari and Muslim]. According to a commentary, this is about minor sins (Riyad us Saliheen, 1410) So what about the major sins? If anyone has done a major sin, then still do not lose hope in the mercy of Allah (The Most High). Amongst the 99 names of Allah (The Most High), is the Acceptor of Repentance (Al-Tawwab) and the Most Merciful (Al-Raheem). “Except for those who repent and correct themselves and make evident [what they concealed]. Those - I will accept their repentance, and I am the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.” [Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah (The Cow) 2:160] So keep believing my dear brothers and sisters and do not lose hope in the mercy of Allah (The Most High). I will end this week’s article with this beautiful dua (supplication) “O Allah, You are my Lord, none has the right to be worshipped except You, You created me and I am Your servant and I abide by Your covenant and promise as best I can, I take refuge in You from the evil of which I have committed. I acknowledge Your favour upon me and I acknowledge my sin, so forgive me, for verily none can forgive sin except You.” [Hadith, Al Bukhari 7/150]
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AuthorThe AFT team have organized a series of weekly inspiration, every Wednesday to help motivate and prepare you for this amazing moment we all yearn for. ArchivesCategories |