Ramadan: Allah's Abundant Mercy And Facilitation For Believers

Ramadan: Becoming Receptacles of Allah's Mercy and Generosity

My dear respected brothers and elders, mothers and sisters, alhamdulillah, thumma alhamdulillah, it is a great blessing of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has allowed us to come to the masjid. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has allowed us to be in the masjid prostrating in front of Him and benefiting from this wonderful month of Ramadan. This is, subhanAllah, a manifestation of Allah's sifat, Allah being ar-Rahman and ar-Rahim.

Allah's Rahman: Mercy Manifest in Time

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala describes Himself time and time again, every day, to all of us. In every salat, in every rakat, it is ar-Rahman and ar-Rahim. The manifestation of Allah's Rahman — Him being ar-Rahman — happens in different ways.

The way it manifests on time itself is that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allots different values of barakah to different pockets of time. The month of Ramadan is the best example of that. So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala chose the month of Ramadan from amongst all the months to give that barakah to it.

It is very theological that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is making this month special. Why? Because He wants to facilitate and increase the tawfiq — the ability — for the Muslim to get closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala puts His special attention, His Rahman, on time itself.

That is why you have different times which have different barakah in them — the time after Fajr, the time after Asr, the time on the day of Jumu'ah, the time of Ramadan. What is that? That Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's Rahman, His attention, the focus of His Rahman, is on time. And the manifestation happens in these different ways.

And then along with that, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gives even more by giving Ramadan another sifah — and that is the revelation of the Qur'an, which is the kalam of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, which makes it even more powerful.

This time that we have, especially the time of the month of Ramadan, it is so valuable that I don't think there is any word in the dictionary of all the languages in the world that can describe the value of the time in every moment and the fraction of a second of the month of Ramadan. It is phenomenal. But we have to engage with that time — how? Like the Prophet ﷺ engaged with that time.

Divine Facilitation in Ramadan

The manifestation of Allah's Rahman happens on everything in khalq — everything in creation, be it human or otherwise, from time itself as we see. So the manifestation of Allah's Rahman on human beings is how? That Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gives them the tawfiq to benefit and engage in those activities which will take them closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

And to facilitate that in the month of Ramadan, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala opens all the doors of Jannah. So the gravitational pull which attracts the person and gives them more tawfiq is increased in the month of Ramadan. What is that? That is divine facilitation — divine facilitation for you and me to be able to do more good deeds, to engage more with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

So Allah is interrupting the normal sequencing of the months and changing the whole idea of how things are outside the month of Ramadan. Allah is closing all the doors of Jahannam. Why? So the gravitational pull which attracts a person towards sin and vice is decreased.

And this manifestation specifically happens on Muslims. Why? Because the second part of Allah's name, which comes along together all the time — Rahman, ar-Rahim — that Rahim, that mercy specific to the believers. So the manifestation of that can be seen by the believers, because it is for the believers when believers engage with that sifah of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in the way the Prophet ﷺ engaged with it.

And if you don't, you will not see that. Then the month of Ramadan will just become a month of festivities. It will become a month of food. SubhanAllah, at least people should have lost weight. At least you should have burned calories if not sins. We don't burn sins and we don't burn calories. Allah help us.

But coming back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's manifestation of His Rahman on different things — on human beings, it is the ability to do good deeds, and the ability to benefit from Allah's facilitation of those good deeds for us. So when people ask the question, "How many less rakats of taraweeh can I do in Ramadan?" — you've lost the point, my brother. Ramadan is supposed to be a month in which you do more ibadah, not less. The Sahaba never asked the question, "How can we do less, O Prophet of Allah?" They always asked, "How can we do more?"

The Prophet's Example: Ajwad al-Nas

So the Prophet ﷺ is showing that through his example to the Sahaba. The Prophet ﷺ is being described by the Sahaba. And this is a very important example here for us, living in a beautiful place like Chicago, which has a sharafat — and that sharafat doesn't come from all the restaurants on Lombard or Roosevelt. No, it takes away from the sharafat. Where does the sharafat come from? The sharafat comes from the manifestation of Allah's Rahman on a Muslim polity — in terms of ilm, in terms of amal, in terms of masajid, in terms of madaris, in terms of ulama in that community.

Let's go back to Medina, 1,400 years ago, and what happened. Was the manifestation of Allah's Rahman on the ummah political in the beginning? No, it wasn't. When it first started, the first ability that the ummah was given in Medina was the spiritual abilities — they were given Ramadan, they were given hajj, and they were given all the ahkam which would bring them closer to Allah.

So the Prophet ﷺ is being described in the month of Ramadan by the Sahaba, who are very observant. So how can we? We should be observant of the ulama and see their actions. And may Allah make the ulama such that their actions lead others to do good deeds, insha'Allah. Ameen, ya Rabb.

The Sahaba are describing the Prophet ﷺ, saying:

Now, to contextualize this — the Sahaba are describing the Prophet ﷺ as the most generous amongst the Arabs. So it was in the DNA of the Arab, coming from Ibrahim ﷺ all the way, that generosity was part and parcel of their being. That's how Allah blessed them. There are many reasons that Allah chose the Arabs for, for the Qur'an to be given there. It is not haphazard — it is very chosen.

Allah chooses. He chose the people of the Arabs. One of the things that the ulama mention is that they had the quality of generosity — generosity was in their being.

Redefining Generosity and Sadaqah

So the Prophet ﷺ is being described as the most generous — أَجْوَد — an ism al-tafdhil. For those of you who know what ism al-tafdhil is, they didn't say he was جَوَّادٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ — they said أَجْوَدُ النَّاسِ. And the beautiful thing the Sahaba did here is they used the word جَوَّاد — someone who gives without asking. جَوَّاد is someone who gives without asking. You never have to ask, and they just give.

So the Prophet ﷺ was أَجْوَدُ النَّاسِ — He gave without asking, and he was giving amongst those who are known as the ones who give the most. But then he shifted and redefined what it means to give. He redefined what it means to save. He redefined what sadaqah itself means for the Sahaba.

He said: when you give in the path of Allah, it is not just about giving money. It is not merely secular and material in nature. It is about giving and engaging with good deeds — attracting the nur of Allah to the world, to the community, to the family, to the society, to the Muslim polity in which you live. That is going to happen not just by wealth. It is going to happen with good deeds, first and foremost.

So the Prophet ﷺ being أَجْوَدُ النَّاسِ, even though he was a person with little means, was not just about the material giving — it was about his spiritual giving. That he used to give spiritually in every which way possible. That is why in the hadith the Prophet ﷺ said that smiling is sadaqah, helping your neighbor is sadaqah, taking care of your parents is sadaqah, saying SubhanAllah is sadaqah. Why? He is redefining how you think of charity itself. The charity is not just material — it is also spiritual in nature.

So we have to, subhanAllah, think in those manners. When he was told about saving — "I saved this piece of meat for you and I gave the rest" — he said, "No, let's redefine it. What you gave is what you saved. And what you left is what you consumed." So he shifted the focus from this dunya to the akhira. Think long-term. What is your real savings? What is your real investment?

The Blessed Community: Masajid, Madaris, and Ilm

And how do we look at Allah's manifestation of His rahmah at a particular place? SubhanAllah, the most beautiful thing that I really think we are blessed with in this community is that you drive down this road and you see beautiful masajid, madaris, ulama. That is Allah's rahmah and His focus on Chicago. May Allah make it more sharif. Ameen, ya Rabb.

But the problem is, it is intertwined with human actions. So Allah will facilitate for you to do good deeds. Allah will facilitate for you to be part of this divine intervention. But are you going to keep that up, or are you going to lose it?

Allah facilitated this for Muslim polities across history. Look at what Baghdad used to be before Muslims — but when Allah's rahmah came over there, it became what it became. Look at Andalusia, Muslim Spain. Look at India. Look at anywhere else. When Allah's rahmah shifted — but that shifting of Allah's rahmah, that divine intervention, was not without human intervention along with it. So the humans also have to partake in that divine plan of Allah.

So the Prophet ﷺ taking part in the divine plan of Allah and His rahmah in the month of Ramadan is by doing more good deeds — by giving in every which way possible. In fact, the Sahaba went even further:

So the Prophet ﷺ was more generous than the wind that brings rain, in the month of Ramadan, when he used to meet Jibreel ﷺ. Allahu Akbar. What's the similitude? Why is it being compared to the wind that brings rain? The wind that brings rain is unrestricted. It doesn't differentiate between the salih and the talih. It doesn't differentiate between a human and otherwise. It doesn't differentiate between a Muslim and otherwise. It gives to anyone and everyone.

So Allah is showing to us that we should use this month of Ramadan as a means to attract Allah's divine guidance to the community of this world — not just Muslims, but everyone else.

The Grave Speaks: What Kind of Receptacle Will You Be?

And I'll finish with this: when a person goes into their grave, the grave speaks back. And if it's a good person, the grave says, "I was waiting for you." Why? Because "I wanted to welcome you." And on the other hand, the creation of this dunya — the khalq, be they the birds, the ants, the fishes in the oceans — they are sad. Why? Because the one who used to attract Allah's rahmah has now left this world. Allahu Akbar.

And on the other hand, when somebody becomes the receptacle of attracting Allah's ghadab — may Allah protect us and preserve us and not make us from amongst them, ameen ya Rabb — when they go to the grave, it says, "I was waiting for you so I could capture you." And everyone else in the world says, "Alhamdulillah" — they take a sigh of relief.

Why? Because you either become a receptacle of Allah's nur through your actions, through your givings, through your ibadah, through your akhlaq, and through your very being — or you become a receptacle of ghadab, a receptacle of zulmah. May Allah save us from becoming like that.

So may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala guide us, may Allah protect us, may Allah inspire us, may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to benefit from what He has given to us in the form of these beautiful masajid, madaris, ilm, and ulama. And may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to become facilitators of Allah's mercy and become a part and parcel of that divine plan of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, so that this community can go from the spiritual grounding it has right now to even further, and it will guide humanity all across the globe, insha'Allah.

Wa akhiru da'awana min alhamdulillah.

Appeal: Support Masjid Uthman

Brothers, insha'Allah, we will have a special request. As I mentioned, subhanAllah, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala blesses a community through His mercy and compassion by blessing that community with masajid and madaris and ilm and ulama and the recitation of Qur'an. And the more of that in a community, the better. Every corner, when you go to a Muslim country, a Muslim polity — it is not like the Romans. You don't see coliseums and that kind of buildings. What do you see? What's the horizon filled with? Minarets. The horizon is filled with masajid, and adhan, and tilawatul Qur'an, and ilm and ulama. That was the beauty of a Muslim polity, a Muslim community. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala bless Chicago to be like that. Ameen ya Rabb.

Alhamdulillah, with Allah's tawfiq, it is becoming like that — but we have to keep it like that, insha'Allah. Masjid Uthman is right around close to you, a few minutes away. Alhamdulillah, we have almost 700–800 students in all of our programs. It will be the first year anniversary of the masjid opening — tomorrow, insha'Allah.

So insha'Allah, we need your help. We need more people from the community. First and foremost, we need your help by making du'a — du'a in your five salats, du'a in your tahajjud and adhkar: "Ya Allah, help this masjid become successful. Ya Allah, help this madrasa become successful." Ameen ya Rabb.

And secondly, we need your support — whatever you can give. As I said, Allah has His attention focused. Now can we be a part of Allah's plan through our human agency, by partaking in that insha'Allah, through our sadaqat?

Can I have a few brothers who can make intention to be from amongst those who can pledge insha'Allah to give $5,000 over the course of this coming year insha'Allah, to help relieve the debt of the masjid — of this institute that is in your neighborhood, insha'Allah?

As I said, the Prophet ﷺ had immense generosity in the month of Ramadan — and outside the month of Ramadan as well. So this is your masjid, this is your community, so we need your support insha'Allah.

If there's anyone here — whether brothers or sisters — you can visit the table on your way out insha'Allah. But if there's anyone here sitting in the crowd who can make intention to be from amongst the founding members, from the foundation of that insha'Allah, by pledging — it is not a large amount. If you divide it across the year, across your families, it is about $500 a month or less.

And the Prophet ﷺ said:

Whatever you can give — it's never about the amount, it is the intention with which you give. No matter how small the amount is, you can give half a date or a date pit. But the barakah of the intention is in that, if it is sincere. It is for the pleasure of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

So whatever you can give, insha'Allah, make your intentions and visit the table, or visit the website mazroosman.org and donate, insha'Allah. If not a thousand, then five hundred dollars. Two hundred and fifty dollars. Whatever you can, insha'Allah. Please make your intentions, insha'Allah.

Please help this community, this Chicago, become more sharif. And it only becomes more sharif with you helping the masajid — less than the restaurants, less than the coffee shops.

I don't want to take more time away from your sunan. So please make your sincere du'as for us in your salah, in your tahajjud, in your qiyam. And please visit our table. Do whatever you can — it doesn't matter how small it is, but do it for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, to help this wonderful masjid and this community, insha'Allah.