The Sacred Month Of Rajab And Preparing For Ramadan

The Blessed Month of Rajab and Preparing for Ramadan

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.

Allahumma Salli ala Sayyidina wa Mawlana Muhammad wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa salam.

Amma ba'd. A'udhu billahi min ash-shaytan ir-rajim. Bismillah ir-rahman ir-rahim.

(Reported by al-Bayhaqi in Shu'ab al-Iman)

Allah's Continuous Mercy and the Beauty of His System

Alhamdulillah. It is a great blessing of Allah that He has given us the tawfiq and the ability to attend this blessed gathering, to attend this blessed day of Jumu'ah. We as human beings, we as Allah's servants, we make mistakes all the time. We have faults, we have mistakes, we possibly commit sins — and Allah knows that. And this is what is beautiful about Allah's system and Allah's nizam, that He gives His servants and His ibad chances over and over.

Allah mentions:

Don't ever be hopeless of the mercy of Allah, because then you will be destroyed. Part of our belief is to know this — that Allah is always there, Allah is always giving us chances. And this beautiful system of Allah: if you look at it, the whole week we might not be doing the right things, we might not be coming to the masjid for salah, we might not read the Qur'an — but when Friday comes, if we do this, as the Prophet ﷺ mentions, one Friday is kaffara until the next Friday. Allah forgives us for the whole week. So look at how beautiful this is, how beautiful a system Allah made — that He is giving His servants chances over and over.

It's a beautiful thing because the whole week we might not be doing the right things, we might not be fulfilling the haq of Allah, we might not be fulfilling the Sunnah properly of the Prophet ﷺ, but once Friday comes and we do one thing, Allah doubles the reward. This is who Allah is — al-Ghafur, al-Rahim.

Rajab: A Sacred Month and a Gateway to Ramadan

Now, this is talking about the day of Jumu'ah, but Allah does this throughout the year. Right now, in the month that we are in, is the month of Rajab. One very special event happened in this month during the Prophet ﷺ's time — which is Isra' and Mi'raj. So this is a very special month.

As I was mentioning, how beautiful the system of Allah is — look, Allah makes four months very special from the year, and Rajab is one of them. Then upcoming is Sha'ban, then Ramadan, then the month of Hajj. So these are special months in the eyes of Allah.

Now in this world, in this dunya, we have different plans for different things. We have a job, we're working for a company — our boss, our manager, they're setting up a calendar and a plan for us. They're setting up a plan for us, and we ourselves have to set a schedule for our daily week, for the rest of the month. We have to set that schedule in order to be prepared. But now, if you look at the system — Allah already set this up for us. All we have to do is do it.

Allah starts off and He says that Rajab is a special month. Ramadan is coming up — we should start preparing for Ramadan from right now, from this month of Rajab. We should only worry about doing good deeds, doing as many good deeds as we can. Because if we don't start doing that right now, and if we wait till Ramadan, all we're going to be doing is fasting — we're just going to be staying hungry but getting no reward. Why? Because we're not prepared.

If someone wants to race without preparation, he's not going to be able to. He can't just go on the field and race. Someone wants to play basketball without stretching — he's going to get cramps, he's not going to be able to do it. Similarly, for Allah, we have to do the same thing for this deen. We have to have that in our minds: "Oh, the whole year I was lacking in reciting Quran. Ramadan is coming up. Allah gave us these chances. Rajab is here. Let me start. Let me start reading a page every day. Let me increase — read another half page." And slowly, slowly, Ramadan will come and we'll probably be able to read half a juz every single day, we'll probably be able to read one juz — why? Because we prepared from before.

Now Allah has put barakah in our time and He made it easier for us. And why is Allah doing this? I mentioned in the beginning — why? It's for our ease. He knows that we have a job, we have a family. Allah knows this, and Allah knows that His servant might not have time, but He says: "Let me give him these specific occasions, these special days, these special events where he can make up for it all." This is who Allah is, this is what Allah is doing for us — and we just have to take advantage.

We can't let it go, because if we let it go then we are doomed. If we can't take these four months out of twelve, if we can't take these months, then we are done. How many more chances is Allah going to give us? We have to take these months and these special days to our advantage. Our worry should only be for the akhirah. Our worry should only be for this deen. It should only be for Allah and for how to follow the Prophet's ﷺ Sunnah.

Worrying for the Akhirah — Allah Takes Care of the Dunya

In a hadith, the Prophet ﷺ mentions:

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 257)

That the Prophet ﷺ is mentioning that whoever only worries about the akhirah — his worry is only the akhirah — Allah will take care of his dunya. Yes, we have things to do. We have a job to do, we have a family to take care of — yes, that's there. But we shouldn't be running behind the dunya. We should be running behind the akhirah, and then Allah will put barakah in whatever we are doing, and we will have a much easier life — because Allah is taking care of that part — as long as we are fulfilling His haq and properly following the Prophet's ﷺ Sunnah. There will be nothing to worry about.

What is our worry? Our worry is: how much salary are we getting? Are our children eating? Yes, we have to do that, we have to do this. But just remember that the main goal is for us to enter Jannah. That's our main goal. Once we have that in our minds, everything else will be easy.

The Sacred Months and Good Deeds

So these special couple of months are sacred, they are special. So much so that the scholars mention that in these months, one good action — one good deed you do — it doubles, it triples. As we know in Ramadan it is way more than that. But similarly we have to be aware that if we do any bad deeds, Allah might give us double the sin. So these months are very special.

Starting right now, starting in this month of Rajab — obviously in this month there is nothing specific about fasting or anything — but what we do know is that we should do as many good deeds as we can, whether that is fasting, whether that is reading more Quran, reading more nawafil. This will help us later on — not only for the akhirah, but Ramadan is coming up, it will help us there. It will be easier for us to pray Taraweeh. Taraweeh is 20 rakat. Imagine: the whole year we are not doing any nafl — how is it going to be possible for us to stand up for 20 rakats in one day? It will get easier if we start now. Read more nafl, start doing Tahajjud — then it becomes easier. This is the setup Allah has given us, and all we have to do is look at the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ and try our best to follow it.

The Night Worship of the Believers

The Sahabah, radiyallahu anhum — how good were their deeds? Allah mentions:

That they — the believers, the mu'mineen — in some commentary, the mufassireen mentioned that it is talking about the Sahabah, radiyallahu anhum, and the Prophet ﷺ. How good were their deeds? Allah mentions about their ibadah at night — that they used to stay up and they used to pray to Allah. They used to pray Tahajjud. And the reason Allah is mentioning night specifically is: because these specific believers — once someone is getting up at night, he is only getting up for Allah. Who else is he getting up for? The whole world is sleeping, his family is sleeping, and he gets up — why? It can only be for one reason: it is because of his ikhlas towards Allah, his ikhlas towards this deen. That is why these are the qualities of the Sahabah, radiyallahu anhum. This is what they used to do, and because of that they used to have barakah in their lives and in their wealth.

Allah is mentioning about how they used to spend — neither did they spend too much on useless things, nor were they so tight-fisted that they don't give sadaqah at all. No — they used to be moderate. That is why they had barakah.

In these couple of months, we should give more sadaqah, we should read more nawafil, read more Quran. It will help us — it will put barakah in our lives. Allah doesn't need us. We need Allah. So look at what He is doing for us — He is making it easy for us. As I mentioned, the whole year Allah is saying: "Yes, probably he didn't have time, probably he has a family to take care of — but now these couple of months I'm giving, so I can forgive him for the whole year." SubhanAllah. How beautiful is this nizam, how beautiful is this setup of Allah!

The Most Beloved Deeds to Allah

One more beautiful thing before I close — the Prophet ﷺ mentions:

The most beloved deed to Allah is the most consistent one, even if it is a little. So these months should be such that we try to do deeds, and we should try to do as much as we can and be consistent with it. Why? Because we're not doing it only for these four months — Rajab, Sha'ban, Ramadan, and the month of Hajj. No, no — this is for our whole life. So if we build a habit right now and are consistent with it, you'll see that we can do this every single day, every month. That's when we'll have barakah.

Yes, Allah is giving us chances — but it doesn't just mean we do it in these months. No, Allah is telling us: use these months. He's giving us motivation — we get double the reward, triple the reward. Use these months, but use it for the rest of your life. SubhanAllah.

The Du'a of the Prophet ﷺ and the Meaning of Barakah

In these months, the Prophet ﷺ used to make a special du'a:

The Prophet ﷺ used to make du'a for barakah. And who are we? We need the most barakah! Without barakah — a millionaire, a billionaire is nothing without barakah. A married couple is nothing without barakah. Barakah is needed — it is needed. You can have millions of dollars but if there's no barakah, that person won't be content.

The Prophet ﷺ says that being rich is not having a lot of wealth — rather, being rich is contentment of the soul. And how will we be content? When we have barakah in our wealth and in our lives. Because without Allah's barakah, nothing will be solved. Without Allah's barakah, nothing will help us.

That is why there is a special du'a the Prophet ﷺ teaches us — when a couple gets married, we make du'a for barakah. Why? Because once there is barakah, everything will be easy. A person with a lesser amount of wealth, but who has barakah in his wealth and his life, will be way more happier than a person who is a millionaire. That is how powerful Allah's barakah is. And that is why the Prophet ﷺ is making this du'a:

"Time is limited, Ya Allah — give us barakah, make it easier for us, and reward us." Wa ballighna Ramadan — the Prophet ﷺ is mentioning: "Give us the ability to reach Ramadan." But there is a deeper meaning to this — that "Ya Allah, if we don't reach that month, we are preparing from now — please reward us for that month also, if we don't make it." SubhanAllah. This is the Prophet's ﷺ teaching. This is what Allah set up for us — all we have to do is take advantage.

So may Allah give us the ability to fulfill the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. May Allah give us the ability to take these months to our advantage, and then apply whatever we do in these months for our whole lives.

Wa akhiru da'wana anil-hamdu lillahi rabbil 'alamin. Subhanallah wa bihamdihi, subhanallah il-'azim. Astaghfirullah.

Announcements

Please pass the donation boxes from left to right and please donate generously. The Prophet ﷺ says charity given during the day of Jumu'ah is greater in reward than any other day, so please donate generously.

Tafheem Weekend Islamic Studies

Enrollment is open at masjiddeas.org/tafheem. The spring semester begins January 11th. New this semester: sisters-only classes by female instructors. Classes will be on-site from 10:00 AM to 1:20 PM. The Tafheem Weekend Islamic Studies program is designed for adult learners who wish to formally study the Islamic Sciences under qualified instructors but are unable to do so on a full-time basis. The flexible schedule allows students to take classes on either Saturdays, Sundays, or both.

Ta'aleem Online Islamic Studies

Enrollment is open for both brothers and sisters. Spring semester begins January 6th, Monday to Friday, three and a half hours of daily study. Visit the Darussalam website for more information.

New Lecture Series for Sisters — Life of the Prophet ﷺ

Darussalam is very excited to share a new lecture series exclusively for sisters of all ages to delve into the life of our most beloved Prophet ﷺ. The talks will inshallah begin immediately after Dhuhr Jama'at at 1:30 PM, followed by dhikr and du'a. Light refreshments will be served at the end. Please share and join with your family and friends. The date for this will be January 12th, and it will continue on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month, from 1:30 PM to 3:15 PM.

No-Tech Retreat — Unplugged: Connecting with the Creator

Please save the date: February 8th and 9th. You can register on the Darussalam website.

ICW Programs

Please join ICW programs today and tomorrow. Today, Friday at 6:00 PM: Quran Insights with Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan and Sheikh Ibrahim Bakir. Tomorrow, Saturday at 6:00 PM: Quran Night with Sheikh Siraj Wahhaj, Sheikh Mohammed Jibreel, and Sheikh Ahmed Al-Sardari.

Carriers of Light Islamic School Annual Fundraiser

Please join the Carriers of Light Islamic School for their annual fundraiser on January 25th at 6:00 PM at Shalimar.

Weekly Programs

Team Fajr will be tomorrow after Fajr Salah. Fajr Iqamah is at 6:15 AM. Tuesday Tafsir will resume from January 14th. The weekly Urdu Seerah program takes place every Thursday after Isha Salah. Sisters' Thursday Tafsir will also continue inshallah.

Du'a Requests

Please make du'a for Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and all of the Muslim Ummah and everyone who is in need. Also, a special du'a request for Dr. Yaqub Putawala, who will have surgery on January 16th inshallah — please make du'a that Allah makes it easy for him. Also, sister Sayida Mahmood is in critical condition and is on a ventilator — please make du'a that Allah makes it easier for her inshallah.