A2Youth.com - The Youth's Islamic Resource

Ramadan, My Dear Guest, I'm Sorry

Yaser Birjas

category: Ramadan

source: Muslimmatters.org

reads: 11963

... continued from Page 1

We ask Allah to accept from us the little, regardless of how much it was, of what we offered from acts of worship during this blessed month of Ramadan.

6. My dear guest, I'll keep in touch

Our guest is now taking his ride, and his departure becomes inevitable; we start running after him hoping for one final glance from him. He turns the window down and waves to us gracefully saying with a loud reminder: "Don't forget about me." "Never," we vow, "Keep in touch, and write back," he says and we answer back, "of course we will." Then as we start slowing down we reiterate to ourselves the pledge we have just given to our guest, that we will never forget about him and we shall keep in touch, we build loyalty to our guest and our friend, the month of Ramadan.

How can we keep loyal to Ramadan? And how can we stay in touch with him?

Obviously, Ramadan and the reminisces of Ramadan should remain in our hearts. Then we keep loyal to him and in touch with him, by keeping our deeds, which we had established with him, continuous. Because of this blessed guest, we were able to establish a new way of life, a life of regular fasting, night prayers, recitation of the Qur'an and other Ramadan deeds. Moreover, as loyal friends of Ramadan, even long after his departure, we shall keep in touch with him by keeping alive what we have learned from him. We sure love Ramadan.

Aisha may Allah be pleased with her narrated the Messenger of Allah said: "The most beloved deeds to Allah, are the continuous ones even if they were little." Once the Messenger of Allah establishes an act of worship, he used to maintain it continuously. Therefore, follow the example of your beloved Messenger and keep in touch with Ramadan. Continue the good work; continue fasting.

7. My dear guest, thank you for coming

In a final moment of showing our gratitude to our beloved guest and how much we were honored with his presence, we raise our voices with thanks and praises, with shukr and takbeer to Allah. Allah subhanahu wa ta'aala says: "He wants you to complete the prescribed period and to glorify Him (in takbeer) in that He has guided you, and perchance you shall be grateful." (al-Baqara 2:185).

Moreover, as our guest leaves, we return to our inner homes, and then in a moment of contemplation, immediately we go and check on him and act as if he was still there. We could not wait long to display our loyalty to him and our love for him, therefore, we followed his example and fasted six days of Shawwal right after Eid day.

Abu Ayyoub al-Ansaari may Allah be pleased with him narrated the Messenger of Allah said: "Whoever fasts Ramadan and then followed it with six days of Shawwal, it would be counted for him as if he had fasted the whole year." (Muslim) We do not want to stop thinking of him and from that point onward, we will keep in touch and join his fans club, club Ar-Rayyan.

8. My dear guest, I'm sorry I forgot

It has been awhile since our guest left, we thought we will never forget about him, unfortunately we were wrong. Soon as he came out of sight, our hearts changed on us and changed on him. We're no longer entertained by his presence which always worked for us as a frequent reminder. As time passed by, the vow of loyalty we had given him faded away, and life chores took the best of our hearts. We forgot about Ramadan and we forgot the dear lessons of Ramadan. We went back to the old bad habits we had prior to his graceful visit. Naturally, the prolonged separation caused a great damage to our connection with Ramadan. My dear guest, my dear Ramadan, I'm sorry that I forgot.

As Ramadan announces his departure, it is hard to believe that this blessed season has ended. Never lose hope from the mercy of Allah, celebrate the end of Ramadan with another act of worship, with Istighfaar and do not forget to pay your Zakat-ul-Fitr. Make your concluding act with Ramadan perfect, pray Eid on time with perfect, halal style. Celebrate the departure of Ramadan with takbeer, dhikr and du'a, you definitely need your deeds be accepted. Stay in touch with Ramadan, continue the good work and start with the sequel event of the six days of Shawwal. Finally, keep the beautiful memories of Ramadan; they will always come handy and will always be a source of inspiration. Ramadan, my dear guest, may Allah forgive me. For seeing you departing so quickly, I will always be sorry.

Yaser Birjas

The night of 27th of Ramadan 1429 H.