Saturday 28 June 2014

FIFA – Fasting Is For ALLAH!

Alhamdulillah, Allah Ta’ala has once again blessed us with the beautiful month of Ramadhan. Like a little child, who while opening a present, can’t contain her excitement any longer, I shriek in delight that Ramadhan has finally arrived! Another chance for us to increase our balances in His bank of rewards!

Ramadhan...

Ramadhan is not the month of pies and buffet here and there…Before it arrives, we busy ourselves in preparing for its arrival. But, the way we prepare for its arrival is by preparing food. No doubt, food is important, but is it worth it to spend so much of time and energy in preparing food that we forsake this greatest opportunity to show our obedience and love towards our Creator, Allah! What are we doing? Will we just overlook the numerous blessings that Allah has bestowed on us in this month? Will we really let this wonderful gift slip right through our fingers?

Do we know what is waiting for us? Every good deed that we do in this month is far more virtuous than the good deeds done in any other month. Our rewards will be multiplied by 10 up to 700 times. It’s so easy isn’t it? Ramadhan nights is the crown of all nights. Its darkness is precious, its hours are purest. The Prophet (sallallahu a’laihi wasallam) said: “The best prayer after obligatory solah is the night prayer.” Every night, doors of acceptance are opened from the heavens. Ask Allah Ta’ala for His bounties and mercy for this month is the month of rahmah. The weakest person is the one who cannot supplicate to Allah Ta’ala.

Fasting reforms the hearts, encourages commendable deeds and prevents one from any corrupt deeds. It removes sins and increases rewards. The Prophet (sallallahu a’laihi wasallam) said: “When Ramadhan comes, gates of heavens are opened, gates of hell are closed and Shaitaans are chained.”

Fasting also reminds us of the condition of the poor and destitute who suffer the pain of hunger and thirst throughout the year. It removes the gap between the poor and the rich for everyone is fasting, seeking the forgiveness of his Lord, abstains from eating and drinking, and breaking the fast at the same time.

One simple thing we can do is that when we fast, we fast only for the pleasure of Allah Ta’ala and hope for its reward, for this will be the means of forgiveness for our sins.
To feed a fasting person during Iftaar time has a great virtue. We will gain the same reward as the other fasting person merely by providing him with a piece of date or a sip of water so that he can break his fast.

We should try to spend the last 10 nights or even one or two nights in I’tikaaf (time spent alone in a masjid or room in our house with sole intention to worship Allah) and also increase our Ibadah during these days so that we will be kept away from Jahannam by the distance of 3 trenches. Or for just 1 day of I’tikaaf we can get the reward of two Hajj and two Umrahs. How tremendous is the reward! Allahu Akbar!

Nights of Ramadhan are blessed ones. It contains one night which is the king of all nights. It is LAILATUL QADR. A night which is better than a 1000 months. Whoever stays awake and stand in prayer on that night faithfully and hoping for reward, all his past sins will be forgiven.

Well sisters of faith! Use the opportunity of these few blessed days in increasing our good deeds, let’s not spend them in idle talks and other things that will snatch away our precious times for Ibadah.  Say NO to back biting! These things will be decrease the   reward of our fasting. Will we live on to see the next Ramadhan? We don’t know...So let’s increase our investments for Akhirah now! May Allah Ta’ala grant us all the ability and strength to do every good deed, Ameen!

prepared by:    Binti Abdul Malek - 3rd year student