How do we end our Ramadan?
Posted: 07 Aug 2013 05:00 AM PDT
 Originally published in August 2011. We thank Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (exalted is He) who has blessed us with witnessing yet another Ramadan! The Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) said that actions are judged by their ending [Bukhari]. So while many of us have started preparing for Eid, we should also make sure that we end this blessed month in a great way. Tawbah: Repentance We end this month by returning to Allah (swt) in a state of humility and repentance. We seek forgiveness of Allah (swt) and repent to Him because we acknowledge that our deeds are deficient, and we acknowledge that we have wronged ourselves and others. Repenting to Allah (swt) is a reminder that Allah is the One who guided us to righteous deeds, and we do not know if He will accept them from us. Allah (swt) teaches us in the Qur’an that when we end a deed, we end it with seeking forgiveness. We seek forgiveness after finishing our prayers and after we end a gathering just as Allah (swt) told the Prophet ﷺ to seek forgiveness and to repent after the Opening of Makkah. We are taught to repeat the du`a’ of the last 10 nights: “O Allah, You Alone are the One who Pardons, and You Alone love to Pardon, so pardon me.” This du`a’ embodies one of the goals of Ramadan, to be forgiven and to start anew. Pardoning, or ‘afw, means to wipe the slate clean. We end this month by turning back to Allah (swt) and asking Him to wipe our slates clean. Shukr: Gratitude We end this month in a state of gratitude to Allah (swt). Allah (swt) says: 
“[…] to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which he has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful,” (Qur’an 2:185).
We thank Allah (swt) for all that He has given us during this month. He blessed us to be among those who worshiped Him and He gave us the health and ability to fast, to pray, and to increase in our good deeds. We thank Him for giving us the opportunity to grow and come closer to Him. We thank Him for the innumerable gifts – the ones we often forget because we are accustomed to their presence in our lives.Gratitude is a trait of the believers that is highlighted throughout the Qur’an and the tradition of the Prophet ﷺ. We even see that when the believers enter Paradise, they say:  “[…] ‘Praise to Allah, who has guided us to this; and we would never have been guided if Allah had not guided us.’ […]” (Qur’an 7:43).Takbeer: Proclaiming the Greatness of Allah We end this month by declaring the Greatness of Allah (swt) for what He has guided us to. Allah (swt) says:  “[…] to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which he has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful,” (Qur’an 2:185).We make takbeer from the night of Eid until the Eid prayer by saying: Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar Allah is Greater, Allah is Greater La ilaaha il Allah, Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar Allah is Greater, Allah is the Greater wa Lillahil Hamd We repeat this throughout the night and day, reminding ourselves that Allah (swt) is Greater than everything else, that He is Perfect, Flawless and deserving of all Praise for having guided us to finish Ramadan. Shaykh ibn Uthaymeen (rahimahu allah, may Allah have mercy on him) says: “What is more beautiful than seeing the people declare the greatness of Allah (swt) and His Magnificence in every area and place, filling the horizon with Allahu Akbar (Allah is Greater than everything), Alhamdulillah ( Intention to Change We end this month with the intention to continue fasting, praying and doing good. Ramadan is a month of change that is meant to give us a spiritual cleansing that will last us the whole year. The virtues of fasting and praying do not end after we celebrate Eid; rather, Eid should be the beginning of a new chapter for us to continue doing the habits we started in Ramadan. We can continue reading the Qur’an, fasting Mondays and Thursdays, or the White Days (the 13th-15th of each lunar month), and we can pray the night prayers every night (or once a week). We’ve tasted the sweetness of standing during the night; we’ve tasted the sweetness of raising our hands to Allah (swt) in supplication; we’ve tasted the sweetness of breaking our fast after a long day; we’ve tasted the sweetness of giving charity. Continuing these habits after Ramadan may be difficult, but now you know that you can do it. The sacrifices we’ve made during this month to take full advantage of it have shown us that developing good habits and a strong spiritual relationship with Allah (swt) is not out of our reach. We’ve done it, so now can we continue it? One of the great past scholars, ibn Rajab (ra) says: “Be cautious of returning to enslavement after having been freed.” So we ask Allah (swt), the One who guided us to worship Him in Ramadan, to help us continue in our worship and good deeds. Remember that Ramadan has left us but the One who created this month will never leave. He is Living and His reward is Everlasting.     |
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Posted: 06 Aug 2013 05:00 AM PDT
 During this blessed month of Ramadan, quite a few calamities befell our community: a runaway teenager (who returned home safely, alhamdulilLah, praise be to God), a near-fatal car accident caused by an intoxicated driver and two emergency surgeries, all of which happened within the first 20 days of Ramadan. In discussing the wave of trials, friends around me were baffled by the number of calamities in the month where one seeks the Mercy of Allah, subhanahu wa ta`ala (Exhalted is He), through heightened worship. I remember sharing the same sentiment but answering the question of:“Why are so many difficult tests occurring in Ramadan?” to the effect of, “Allah is Merciful and we are blessed to have these trials in this month of Ramadan.”I know now that I did not fully understand or appreciate the true meaning of my response. Allah (swt) knows best, but perhaps I too, was to be tested so that I could begin to appreciate Allah’s infinite Mercy. Just a few days ago I was feeling peculiarly nonspiritual in the morning. By evening I would say, I probably felt the closest to Allah than I did the entire month. That afternoon, my children and I were swimming in the community pool where 3 lifeguards watched over the large toddler pool that fed into a larger, deeper pool. My children and I were together the entire time, except for a few minutes when my older children were playing in the deeper pool while I was playing with my younger children. After a short time, I noticed my youngest son, who was not wearing a flotation device, was not around. I scanned the rest of the toddler pool searching for my son. Not finding him, my eyes turned to where my older two were playing; I did not see him. In a calm, yet surreal manner, I began wading through the toddler pool to my older kids and when I turned the corner, I saw my older daughter struggling to lift my son above the surface of the water. As my daughter passed his water laden body to me I was thankful to see that he was conscious and breathing. I yelled for help as I put my son over the side of the pool. After vomiting a lot of water several times, everyone was thrilled to hear him say that he wanted to go home. He looked good, we went home. Within an hour, my youngest son, who usually never sleeps in the afternoon, became very subdued and began to cough. I was concerned, but not wanting to overreact, I just continued to monitor him. I wasn’t sure how to read his behavior. Shortly after, my son began to breathe with difficulty making a low gasping sound with every breath. I took my son to the hospital, forgetting that my nearest facility did not have emergency services. AlhamdulilLah, within minutes the nurse called 911 and via ambulance my son was taken to the nearest hospital with a pediatric intensive care unit. From the firemen, to the paramedics, to the nurses in the emergency room, the message was the same. For the benefit of our readers, I wanted to share this brief message as it can save lives. Anytime a child falls in the pool, even if he did not become fully submerged, you should immediately go to the hospital for observation. In short, if a little bit of fluid gets in the lungs, or even if not, within 24 hours the lungs can continue to absorb water from the body ultimately leading to death if gone untreated. This is called “dry drowning.” It turned out that my son did have fluid in the lungs. AlhamdulilLah, after 24 hours of oxygen treatments, breathing medications, antibiotics and watching “The Lion King” 3 times (at my son’s request), he was released in good health. Subhan’Allah, so many lessons (spiritual, practical, etc.) were learned that night in the ICU. At the same time, my most humble iftar (meal to break fast) and suhoor (meal before fasting begins) were experienced in the ICU. My best taraweeh and tahajjud prayers (extra nightly prayers) in the whole month of Ramadan, was performed in a cramped space between my son’s hospital bed and my visitor’s chair. And that night was my most concentrated reading and reflection on Surat Ya-Seen (surah 36 in the Qu’ran). I was grateful for the opportunity to get closer to Allah (swt) after feeling so “off” just earlier in the day. To go back and reflect on “why so many difficult tests occur in Ramadan?” It is simple, Allah (swt) in his infinite Mercy, loves us so much, he gives us opportunities for increased dhikr (remembrance), prayer, dua (wishes), shukr (thankfulness), Qu’ran recitation and reflection, and contemplation through these trials. And what a better time to perform all of these good deeds than in the blessed month of Ramadan, where the reward for good deeds are multiplied several fold? Below are just a few of the benefits of being tested, especially in Ramadan, for the tested, for family and friends of the tested, and for the entire community. The one who is directly tested has the potential for several rewards during his trial:
“How wonderful is the affair of the believer, for his affairs are all good, and this applies to no one but the believer. If something good happens to him, he is thankful for it and that is good for him. If something bad happens to him, he bears it with patience and that is good for him.” (Narrated by Muslim, 2999) |
How do we end our Ramadan?
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