Making the Most of Ramadan - Shaykh Mukhtar ash-Shinqitee
Making The Most Of Ramadan
Shaykh Mukhtar Shinqitee
We ask Allah the great, Lord of the noble throne to bless us in what remains of this noble month. We ask Him that He does not make us leave this month except with deliverance from the fire, and with mercy and forgiveness for the past. And from what I advise for the brothers is the taqwa of Allah ‘azza wa jall. And whoever brings himself to have a good intention, then Allah will help him to do good. And whoever’s intention was aimed at obedience and righteousness, Allah will strengthen his determination. And He will correct him and give him ability and guidance.
Allah mentions,
If Allah knows [any] good in your hearts, He will give you [something] better [8:70]
For indeed, Allah تعالى has chosen the hearts for observing. So the first of what I advise is to rectify your innermost intentions for the remainder of this good month and to intend from the depths of your heart to work hard during its remaining hours and moments in the worship of Allah, seeking His pleasure.
Secondly encouraging us to emulate the conduct of the messenger of Allah ﷺ making good use of what is left of this month. And the best types of worship is the frequent recitation of the Quran. So glad tidings, and again, glad tidings for the one whom Allah inspires to love and recite the Quran much. And if you wish that Allah would bless you in the remainder of this month, rather, to bless you in what remains of your life, then bond strongly with the Book of Allah.
Indeed, this Qur'an guides to that which is most suitable (17:9)
So glad tidings, and again, glad tidings, for the one whom Allah makes the spring of his heart and the light of his breast and the dispeller of his worry. And the relief from his sadness and grief and his driver and leader to His pleasure and jannah. Glad tidings for the slave who take the Book of Allah so he recites it standing and sitting. He recites it during the night – seeking closeness to Allah by it and hoping for the mercy of Allah, pausing at its verses, and humbling oneself at its exhortations, reflecting on its verses – and thus reciting it a true recitation. So of the best things a slave can be advised with – to be plentiful in the recitation of the Quran. So if you are plentiful as regards reciting the Quran, Allah will rectify your heart. For indeed, Allah has mentioned:
Indeed there has come to you (O mankind), an admonition from your Lord, and a healing for the hearts (10:57)
So if your heart is healed, and Allah makes the Quran your intimate companion, for then your chest will expand and be willing to perform good deeds and your hearts will find tranquility in the remembrance of Allah and in His obedience. And you will busy yourself in pursuit of Allah’s pleasure. And the salaf were not successful by anything other than their bond with the Book of Allah. Look at the best amongst you in righteousness – you will find him with the Book of Allah night and day. The Quran is the key to all goodness and the key to all righteousness because a person’s righteousness is gathered in his heart.
Indeed, there is a morsel of flesh in the body, if it is sound, then the whole body will be sound, and if it becomes corrupt, then the whole body will be corrupt, indeed it is the heart. (Bukhari)
And the heart cannot be rectified except through the Book of Allah and this heart can never be rectified except through the Words of Allah. So the best advice if you want that Allah blesses you in Ramadan is to read much of the Book of Allah. And try that 3 nights do not pass except that you have completed the Book of Allah. And that you complete its recitation with reflection and meaning – and by feeling remorse over yourself and humbling yourself and remembering what is between you and the Book of Allah of deficiency, so that you rectify it and your faults so that you can cover them, and your weaknesses so that you can fortify them. So when you read the Book of Allah, feel that Allah is ordering you and prohibiting you and admonishing you. So if someone is with the Quran (like this) during the night and day, he will be blessed in this month – rather, he will be blessed for his entire life. And so we find some people, once Ramadan passes, they take the Quran with them, and how many happy ones gave the Quran its due so they became blessed and the Quran became their intimate companion thereafter. So they do not cease in its recitation and reflecting on its verses and listening to it, they feel that all happiness is in the Book of Allah.
Shaykh ul-Islam (Ibn Taymiyyah) near his last days would cry and anguish over every moment that he had not spent with the Book of Allah. The Quran is abundant goodness. And you will not find in it the stories of the salaf, except that they were strongly attached with the Book of Allah, in the night prayers and in its recitation throughout the day. Some of them said, “I accompanied Abdur Rahman ibn al Qasim (one of the students of Imam Malik) from Makkah to Madinah. By Allah! He did not cease to recite the Quran.”
The salaf were with the Quran. And one of them, when he would depart for the marketplaces, and by Allah I have come across people whilst they are going to their workplaces, you can hear them reciting the Book of Allah. And when the night approaches one of them, you hear the Book of Allah from their homes. So you find one of them living in poverty, in a state of grief and hardship that only Allah knows. They say, “By Allah! It does not matter.” I know a people who live in hardship but you find them the happiest of people with the Book of Allah. He (Allah) enriched them from poverty, and gave them security from fear. And He clothed them the clothing of well-being, so you find them the farthest from trials of desires and doubts and dangers. So the best advice, for the good of your religion and worldly life and hereafter, standing firm with this Book of Allah
And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. (3:103)
So holding fast to the Book of Allah, and being close, and to love this Quran, and feeling that it is the Speech of Allah and that nothing is more beloved to Allah or more honourable with Allah than it.
The salaf have agreed that the Quran is the best and most honourable of all the heavenly revealed books due to its excellence and nobility and high standing. And some of its verses were revealed (as) treasures from beneath the throne. And that is a great grace and goodness Allah has preferred this ummah with. So the truly happy and assisted one who wishes that Allah blesses him in his Ramadan and in his life, he holds fast to the Book of Allah. Look at any steadfast and righteous youngster – someone holding fast to his religion and Allah’s obedience. You will not find him except that he is close to the Book of Allah, reciting it, reflecting upon it, humbling himself with it, and loving to hear it. And he does not cease in reciting it and hearing it until he reaches happiness. And this is the state of the people of Quran.
So one should recite the Quran abundantly, and realize the excellence of this Book and realize this great favour Allah has granted this ummah, the Book which, [This is] a Book whose verses are perfected and then presented in detail from [one who is] Wise and Acquainted. (11:1)
Secondly, a desire that one should, in this month, have between him and his Lord a hidden charity of feeding the hungry or clothing the naked, or relieving someone’s distress. Some scholars said that Allah made Ramadan so that the rich may remember the poor, and that the strong remember the weak, and the healthy remember the sick.
So we check the affairs of others, and some show goodness to others. So let there be for you this noble month, some hidden charity. Let your fasting, as your hunger and thirst intensifies, remind you of the distressed one, and let it remind you of the hungry, the widow and the orphan, so that you curb the tears of the orphan, and mend the hearts of the widows and needy, seeking the immense reward of Allah.
Fear the fire, even by giving half a date.
For goodness remains and is never forgotten. People have passed away, yet their good deeds have remained. People have died, yet they are alive amongst the people with good remembrance. So let your deeds this month increase you in kindness. So, like you have corrected yourself with the Quran, likewise, rectify the condition of others with a good deed or charity. And if you cannot yourself, then intercede with someone who is able to do so. So use your position which Allah has granted you in a righteous manner and so you cause happiness to enter the homes of the Muslims.
So excellent is what you did, for indeed, the one who looks after widows and orphans is like the fasting person who never breaks his fast and the praying person who never stops praying (Bukhari)
And this difficulty and pain of fasting, and also the joy of this act of worship, then also, the relieving of the distressed and widows equals all of that in rewards. Now you are aware of the value of this fasting and you have tasted the sweetness of this worship, know then, that you should also relieve the distress of widows and orphans, or at least by your intercession of someone who is able to help.
Likewise, similar to this, is the paying off of debts and relieving the problems of the grief-stricken. If you know of any relative with debts, or a neighbour, and you are able to intercede with someone who can help – especially now in this month when the souls are eager to do good, so seek reward from Allah in the paying off of debt. So if you know your brother is debt-ridden and is in distress or he has a need, then intercede on his behalf, for intercession in such matters is great, especially in this noble month, causing happiness and joy to enter upon the homes and families of the Muslims by relieving the debt of the household and relieving their calamities. So this is what is to be sought from Allah. Some of the predecessors would prefer assisting the grief stricken to i’tikaf in the last ten nights. So they would leave their places of i’tikaf in order to help the distressed ones. Because this is of the best matters by which the scale is made heavy with Allah. For how many widows who are in extremely straitened circumstances, not having a relative who may help, nor a friend or loved one, so you turn to her difficulty and relieve her distress. So if you assisted her night or day, and caused her to be joyful by your charity, or giving food, and then left her whilst she is making goodly supplication for you, asking Allah all goodness for you, for indeed Allah will never waste such a supplication!
Even a dog, when a prostitute from Bani Israeel passed by it, and it was eating the earth from extreme thirst, so she descended the well and gave it water with her shoe, so Allah thanked her for it! in other words, the dog was not able to thank her, so it supplicated to Allah to thank her for her kindness. So Allah forgave her sins! So if that is the case (with a dog), then how about the supplication of a Muslimah who is widowed? Or she could be a woman put to trial, but Allah keeps her chaste through your good deed. ~*~*~*~