My dear respected brothers and sisters! We just bade farewell to the sacred month of Ramadan. May Allah (SWT) bless us with many more months of Ramadan. While bidding farewell to Ramadan, let us not bid farewell to all the good deeds done during the blessed month of Ramadan. Let not the spirit of Ramadan leave us. The objective of Ramadan is to attain taqwa or the conscious awareness of Allah (SWT).
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
“O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may be conscious of Allah.” (al-Baqarah, 2:183).
God-consciousness protects us from engaging in activities that are harmful to us. Unlike other core Islamic rituals, Ramadan creates a unique environment and religious spirit within Muslim communities for a whole month. We prepare ourselves to welcome the month, and when it comes, most of us fast and become extra observant of our religion. We try not to miss the salah which some of us may disregard in other times. We become more charitable. We recite the Qur’an more, and most of us perform the tarawih prayers at night. In the last ten days of Ramadan, we are anxious to seek the Laylat ul-Qadr. Ramadan also unites us and brings us closer as a community.
During Ramadan, we fasted for Allah (SWT). We fasted to show our love and obedience to Allah (SWT). We fasted not just with our stomachs, but also with our ears, eyes, tongue and heart. We tried to avoid everything that would displease Allah. We fasted so that Allah (SWT) would count us amongst His obedient, beloved servants.
Now that Ramadan is over we should have cultivated a heightened sense of taqwa. It’scrucially important that we do not slip back into undesirable habits that we might have had before Ramadan. We have to try hard to prolong this state of closeness to Allah (SWT).
Alhamdulillah, for one whole month we managed to control our ego that inclines us towards evil. We tried to restrain our anger and tried to get rid of arrogance, showing-off, stinginess, and other diseases of the spiritual heart. Numerous times, the Qur’an alludes to the spiritual heart. Describing the Day of Judgment, it says,
يَوْمَ لَا يَنْفَعُ مَالٌ وَلَا بَنُونَ () إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ
“It is the Day when neither wealth nor children can benefit anyone except one who comes to Allah with a sound heart.” (ash-Shu’ara’ 26:88-89). Elsewhere it says,
مَنْ خَشِيَ الرَّحْمَنَ بِالْغَيْبِ وَجَاءَ بِقَلْبٍ مُنِيبٍ() ادْخُلُوهَا بِسَلَامٍ ذَلِكَ يَوْمُ الْخُلُودِ
“The one who feared the All-Merciful in the unseen and came with a heart turned to devotion. So enter it in peace. This is the Day of everlasting Life.”(Qaf 50:33-34)
Let’s continue to cultivate taqwa, by trying to be God-conscious in everything we do. In one hadith, the Prophet (SAW) said,
وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ أَحَبَّ الْعَمَلِ إِلَى اللَّهِ أَدْوَمُهُ وَإِنْ قَلَّ
“And bear this in mind that the deed loved most by Allah is one which is done constantly even though it is small.”
Let us not belittle even the smallest good action. Small good actions repeated often, grow into good habits, and good habits cultivate good character. A good character produces the sound heart that will benefit on the Day of Judgment.
It is a demand on us that we take the life of this world seriously. Fasting in Ramadan is prescribed on us to mould our character so that we acquire the lofty qualities that are needed to bring inner peace of mind and to enhance our ability to serve others. Allah (SWT) expects from us that as His vicegerents on earth, we race with each other and compete for righteousness, and not for lowly mundane things such as power, greed and lust.
If our external change in behavior and daily routine in Ramadan does not bring inner change, we must ask whether our fasting has really been accepted by Allah (SWT). Unfortunately, for some Muslims, indulgence begins right on the day of Eid celebration and for others it gradually creeps in their life, and dilutes the spirit which they acquired through fasting. It is crucial that we employ the powerful tool of muhasaba, or self-monitoring to assess our deeds, inside and outside Ramadan. This is achieved by being honest with ourselves. Honest self-criticism is an important way to purify our souls. Purification of the soul leads to success.
قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن زَكَّاهَا وَقَدْ خَابَ مَن دَسَّاهَا
“Truly he has succeeded who purifies it (i.e. the soul). And truly, he has failed who corrupts it.” (al-Shams, 91:9-10)
It is essential that we step back from our busy lives and shield ourselves from an artificially created virtual world dictated by materialism and consumerism. It is important that we discover our worth as human beings and use the gift of time to stay away from loss. Let us re-dedicate our lives to the cause of humanity, which is the best way to demonstrate our love of Allah (SWT). Let us resolve that our energies are directed towards strengthening a society based on mutual respect, brotherly love, and universal understanding.
It is true that there is a lot of anti-Islamic propaganda today, but we should be thankful to Allah (SWT) that there are still a very large number of people who have goodwill towards us and who want to know more about our faith. Let us build on this trust. Let us use whatever freedom we have and whatever opportunities we find to help others to know us and to know about the universal values of Islam.
On his arrival at Madinah from Makkah during hijrah, the Prophet Muhammad’s first speech summed up a Muslim’s life. He set out a full mission statement for us, in these simple words:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ أَفْشُوا السَّلاَمَ وَأَطْعِمُوا الطَّعَامَ وَصِلُوا الأَرْحَامَ وَصَلُّوا بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّاسُ نِيَامٌ تَدْخُلُوا الْجَنَّةَ بِسَلاَمٍ
“O people, spread peace, feed the poor, keep your family ties, pray during the night when people are sleeping and you will enter paradise with peace.”
Allah will always care for us as long as we care for His creation. We can and we must help our brothers and sisters in Islam, as well as our brothers and sisters in humanity. Let us support charities. Let us also help local groups who are feeding the hungry and homeless, as well as those who build bridges of understanding between Muslims and non-Muslims.
أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ المُسْلِمينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتْ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهْ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين
My dear brothers and sisters! Let us try our best to keep the spirit of Ramadan alive among us. Let us strengthen our bond with our Creator and with each other. Let us be more united. Let us become more and more committed to righteousness in our own lives, in the lives of our families, and in the society in which we live.
Allah (SWT) has guided us to the noble deen of Islam, and without His guidance we would not have been guided. The one who is guided in this life to the straight path will also be guided in the hereafter to the straight path that leads to paradise. The Qur’an tells us that the believers while entering paradise will say:
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي هَدَانَا لِهَٰذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لِنَهْتَدِيَ لَوْلَا أَنْ هَدَانَا اللَّهُ
“Praise be to Allah who has guided us to this! We would not have been guided, had Allah not guided us.” (AL-A’raf, 7:43). May Allah (SWT) make us all among the residents of paradise; ameen.
May Allah (SWT) protect us, our families, our communities, and our societies. May He keep us on the right path, and guide us to live in peace, and spread the message of peace and justice in the world. May He bless this land and its people, and the entire humanity. Ameen Ya Rabb al-‘Aalameen.
