Before
the Sand Slips Away
By Muhammad Al-Shareef
---------------------------
"Hasn't there come upon man a period of time when they
were nothing remembered?" (Insaan 76/1)
Imagine
that you are on the beach. You are four years old. The camp
leader has told you that you have five minutes to build a
great castle. "Quickly," your three year old Ameer
tells you, "the sand here is too soft. Run closer to
the water and get better sand!"
Off
you run and grab, with your tiny hands, as much sand as you
can hold. But, as you run back, plop, plop, plop, you feel
the sand slipping through your fingers. You can do nothing
about it. In your haste, all the sand has slipped away. Bang.
The competition is over. This is the analogy of our lives.
This is the analogy of our time in Ramadan.
For
many living in Western countries, Ramadan is passed daily
with 9 to 5 jobs or school - nights where we may or may not
go for Taraaweeh. A peak at the TV (may Allah protect us)
and the night is over. Back to work where all around us people
are eating and drinking from crystal water fountains. Blink.
Ramadan is over.
The
question of the hour is: how do we take full advantage of
this gift of Allah? This is our topic, before the sands of
Ramadan slip away.
How
many years have we been fasting Ramadan? 10 or 15 or 40 years?
Are we 10 or 15 or 40 times better? Or, does it seem like
we have arrived back at the drawing board every time Ramadan
comes around? All acts of worship are for our own benefit!
Don't do it and harm befalls you, which is the way life was
programmed.
Ramadan
is no small matter. It is one of the pillars of this Deen
of Islam - without it one's Islam would not be complete. In
this month, Rasul Allah - sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam - would
intensify his worship of Allah ta'ala. In doing so, he laid
the foundation for his Ummah after him to emulate.
Ibn
AlQayyim - rahimahullaah - wrote: "From his blessed guidance
- sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam - in Ramadan is that he used
to intensify and diversify his actions of worship. So, for
example, Jibreel used to rehearse the Qur'an with him during
the nights of Ramadan. When Jibreel would visit him, he would
intensify the amount of Sadaqah that he would give. He was
the most generous out of all people - sal Allaahu alayhi wa
sallam – and Ramadan was the time when he was most generous.
In Ramadan, he would fill his time with Sadaqah, treating
people kindly, reciting Qur'an, performing Salaah, remembering
Allah, and performing I'tikaaf." - Zaad AlMa'aad
Observers
described the way Allah's Messenger- sal Allaahu alayhi wa
sallam - gave like Ar-Reeh AlMursalah, like the blessed wind.
Why? The blessed wind, as they knew it, was a wind that brought
coolness to everyone - no one was denied its blessing. The
blessed wind, additionally, was not lazy in bringing its goodness
to the people. It would come swiftly to all. This is how Rasul
Allah - sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam - was described, and
this is how our service to humanity should be: swift and encompassing.
Bi idhnillah.
There
are ten ideas to help make the most of Ramadan - before it
slips through our hands. We will continue with them in the
next newsletter Insha Allah! |