Welcome Ramadhan

Another year has come to welcome the blessed month of Ramadan and the countdown is on! How are you preparing to make this the most memorable and beneficial month of 2011?

Allah says in the Glorious Quran, “O you who believe, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may attain righteousness” [2:183]

Ramadan has come to lift us up out of the deep muddy waters we may be stuck in and deliver us from darkness to light. The Prophet (pbuh) has said that in this month, the gates of Paradise are open whilst the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are chained. It is a month of opportunity, a month of repentance, a month of worship and a month of remembrance. It is the month in which the Qu’ran was revealed, where the victory of the Muslims came about in the Battle of Badr and when Makkah was conquered by the Muslims allowing Islam to flourish.

With Ramadan fast approaching, the Muslim has an opportunity to cleanse his soul and start a new page in bettering himself. It is his chance to declare sincere repentance from all sins committed in order for him to be eligible for Allah's reward in the blessed month. We can view it as a detoxification of the inner self!

As young Muslims we should not let this opportunity pass but instead seize the moment with both hands. To make this a productive month, we should strive to do good by bettering ourselves in our prayers, as the rewards are heavily increased, and make more dua for yourself and others because the supplication of a fasting person is never rejected by Allah the Most Forgiving. Quran should also be recited more frequently and as the hours will be longer; it will give us more time to read, study and reflect on the greatest miracle given to mankind. Keep all your daily prayers upon their set time and try your utmost to pray during the night, as the Prophet (pbuh) said that he who prays the whole night prayer behind the Imam; it is as if he has prayed the whole night! Also try to do extra acts of worship such as giving in charity and keeping good manners, refraining from bad habits and being kind to others.

So, Ramadan is less than a week away and if you haven’t already, start to get in your ‘spiritual mode’ in time for its arrival and make this the best Ramadan yet!