Making the Most of Ramadhan
By KHURRAM MURAD
Foreword
The holy month of #Ramadhan is one of the great blessings of Allah which
He has bestowed upon mankind. In this month we were bestowed with the
Prophethood of Muhammad (pbuh). Qur’an was revealed for us in this
month – as the book of guidance, the criterion of right and wrong, the light
to illuminate our path, a blessing, and a remedy to all problems. In this
month, the ‘decisive day’ of the battle of Badr came so that “he who was to
perish should perish through a clear proof, and who was to survive might
survive through a clear proof.” The ‘day of victory’ also occurred during this
month when without shedding a drop of blood the keys of Makkah were
handed over to the Muslims – the city of #Makkah that is the centre of
gravity of life in the world, the land of House of Allah, the witness of
Prophet Ibrahim’s (upon him be peace) loyalty and submission to Allah, and
the place where Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) mission
originated.
The secret of life and glory of #Muslim Ummah lies in the struggle for the
realisation of the mission of Muhammad (pbuh): the struggle to win hearts,
the struggle for civilizational dominance, and, along with this, the struggle
against the ‘self’ for total success and attainment of piety (#taqwah) – piety
at both individual and collective levels. Piety in personal life is achieved
through #prayers at night, supplications at dawn and repentance for sins; in
public life, it is contained in truthfulness, honesty, trust, justice, bravery,
brotherhood and respect for all human rights. Ramadhan shows the path of
knowledge and practice for the achievement of all this.
Before the advent of Ramadhan, Prophet #Muhammad (pbuh) used to
prepare his companions for obtaining maximum benefit from the treasures
of this month. In the hope of following in the prophet’s footsteps, so that
my name is also registered among his followers, a few years ago I had
delivered a lecture on welcoming Ramadhan. As is usually happens with
me, I gave it the form of a booklet. (It is also available in cassette form).
I have explained in this booklet that the piety that is required to obtain
guidance from #Qur’an and follow it is achieved through fasting and
standing for prayers at night. I have also enumerated ten ways to get
maximum benefit from the great month of Ramadhan. I have tried to give
some easy-to-follow tips for common man, under each head.
May #Allah accept this humble effort of mine, may not take me to task for
anything wrong by me, save me from being among those who “profess
what they do not practice.” I do not aim at winning accolades from my
readers, rather my objective is to please Allah, that He may accept my
endeavour – for which your practice and prayers in my favour are a great
means. If you find this booklet helpful, I request you to pray to Allah that
He may end my life in the state of Faith (Iman) and His Mercy may envelop
me!
Khurram Murad
Lahore, 15 Shaban 1414 / 28 January 1994
1. Ramadhan, Qur’an, and Piety
Why Ramadhan is so great a month
The secret of Ramadhan’s greatness
Why Fasting and Prayers in Ramadhan?
Things to do
1. Intention (Niyah) and Resolve (Iradah)
3. Avoiding disobedience to Allah
6. ‘Zikr’ (Remembering Allah) and ‘Dua’ (supplication)
7. The Blessed Night and Etikaf
