Maximising Your Ramadan - Shaykh Mustafa Abu Rayyan

Khutbah: Maximising Your Ramadan

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ نَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ وَصَفِيُّهُ مِنْ خَلْقِهِ وَخَلِيلُهُ أَرْسَلَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَى النَّاسِ كَافَّةً بَشِيرًا وَنَذِيرًا فَبَلَّغَ الرِّسَالَةَ وَأَدَّى الْأَمَانَةَ وَنَصَحَ الْأُمَّةَ وَتَرَكَنَا عَلَى الْمَحَجَّةِ الْبَيْضَاءِ لَيْلُهَا كَنَهَارِهَا لَا يَزِيغُ عَنْهَا إِلَّا هَالِكٌ فَصَلَوَاتُ اللَّهِ وَسَلَامُهُ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَأَصْحَابِهِ وَمَنِ اهْتَدَى بِهَدْيِهِ وَاسْتَنَّ بِسُنَّتِهِ وَدَعَا بِدَعْوَتِهِ إِلَى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ

أُحِيكُمْ وَنَفْسِي بِتَقْوَى اللَّهِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ مُحْسِنُونَ

My brothers and sisters, I start by praising Allah and sending blessings and salutations upon our beloved Messenger Muhammad ﷺ. I'm sure all of you here are aware of the great month that is approaching. It is very likely that tonight we will be praying Taraweeh, and if not, most definitely tomorrow we will be praying Taraweeh and the day after we will be fasting, insha'Allah.

It is that time of the year again, and how quickly do the years come by and go on. It is a blessing, it is a gift that you are here. Just like it is a gift and a blessing that you are in a masjid right now, that you are a believer, that this great month Ramadan is approaching.

May Allah make us among those that reach it in a high state of iman and health, and finish it, and be among those that benefit from Laylatul Qadr and all the khair and the blessings that are in this great month. What I want to share with you today, insha'Allah, is some advice as it relates to the month of Ramadan. How should we approach Ramadan? What should we hope to gain from it? And what can we tweak about our daily life? What can we change so that we can maximize the reward and the benefit in this month?

Preparing Yourself for Ramadan

Just like any great guest that is arriving, you prepare yourself for their arrival. If someone is coming to your home, you prepare your home for their arrival. Similarly, each one of us must prepare their soul and must prepare their mindset for Ramadan. It is an opportunity. It is an opportunity that you should not miss out on. It is an opportunity Allah blesses you with every single year. If you had the opportunity to fast and pray and make du'a and recite the Qur'an and worship Allah last Ramadan, then that is something that you should thank Allah for — and you should ask Allah to give you an even better Ramadan this year.

1. Rectify Your Intention

Ikhwani fillah, everything starts right here with your intentions. What are your intentions this Ramadan? What do you hope to gain from it? This is something only Allah can see — what your intentions are. Have you given it much thought? Is it just: Ramadan is coming, oh it's Ramadan again, let's buy the shopping, let's buy some dates, I guess I'm going to Taraweeh? Is this the mindset that you're approaching Ramadan in? Or do you have great intention this month? — I will improve this, I will do this better, I will read more Qur'an, I will try and get closer to Allah, I will do as best as I can this month.

Because, ikhwani fillah, there is a beautiful analogy that was made about Ramadan and Eid. Eid is when we celebrate the finishing of the month of Ramadan. Why are we happy? Because of all the ibadah and all of the khair and everything that we've done. Now, to ensure you do that, you have to have the intention from the beginning. You have to have a plan. What do you want to achieve this Ramadan? And how have you prepared for it?

Now it was Sha'ban that we should have been preparing ourselves for Ramadan. But now we are here — it literally might be tomorrow. And have you made plans? Have you rectified your intention? Have you thought about your sincerity to Allah? Do you feel excited, grateful, eager? Do you have an eagerness — alhamdulillah the shayateen are locked up, alhamdulillah the gates of Jannah are open, alhamdulillah we're going to gather for qiyam, alhamdulillah we're going to be fasting again, my whole day will be engaged in worship. This should be the feeling. There should be an eagerness within you.

And Allah sees what's in your heart. Allah looks at our hearts and our actions, like the Prophet ﷺ said.

So ikhwani fillah, have good intention. Work on your niyyah. Ahmad ibn Hanbal used to say to his son: "Oh my son, have good intention always." Sometimes you might not reach what you intended. You might be thinking, I will finish the whole Qur'an this month, and you might not. But have that intention — I will read more Qur'an than I ever have. Have that intention. I will give more charity than I did before. Have that intention. And insha'Allah you will do it. And even if you don't, Allah is the Most Merciful — He will reward you for your intention.

I will not miss a day of Taraweeh unless something urgent happens. If I can't make it to the masjid, I will pray at home. Have these intentions, ikhwani fillah.

He said: "Have good intentions and good aims. For as long as that's what's happening in your heart, you are upon goodness."

2. Make Sincere Tawbah

How should we receive and prepare for Ramadan, ikhwani fillah? With tawbah and repentance. Repent to Allah from your previous sins. Your sins are a barrier to so much good. It is our sins that stop us from doing so much khair. And one of the ways Allah punishes His servants that are sinful is by removing from them the desire to do goodness. If you're struggling to pray, if you're struggling to give sadaqah, if you're struggling to control your tongue, if you're struggling with sin — then it is the sins that you've committed that have led you there. So make tawbah to Allah. Right now repent to Allah, do not delay it. The ulema would say: delaying repentance is within itself a sin. And you want to start Ramadan fresh, having humbled yourself in front of Allah, having sought forgiveness from Him.

Nabi Suleiman, when he made du'a to Allah to grant him a great dominion and great power — and we know what Allah gave Prophet Suleiman — he first said:

Before he asked Allah for the dominion and the power over man and jinn, he first said: "Oh my Lord, forgive my sins." Because it is sins that stop you from receiving the blessings from Allah. And what greater blessing is there than Ramadan? What greater blessing is there than Laylatul Qadr? So ikhwani fillah, my second advice is to make sincere repentance to Allah.

3. Make Du'a to Allah for Tawfiq

Thirdly, ikhwani fillah, know the following fact: wallahi, you will not be able to pray, to be sincere, to make du'a, to fast, or do any goodness without Allah making it easy for you — without Allah giving you the hidayah and the guidance. So make du'a to Allah.

The Prophet ﷺ taught Mu'adh ibn Jabal to say the following words:

(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 1522; Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 22119)

"Oh Allah, help me and aid me in remembering You. Oh Allah, help me and aid me in being grateful to You. Oh Allah, help me and aid me in worshipping You correctly."

Ask Allah to help you. Make du'a to Allah: Oh Allah, allow this Ramadan to be a blessed one for me. Oh Allah, make the qiyam easy for me. Oh Allah, make the fast easy for me. Oh Allah, remove from me sin. Make this du'a, ikhwani fillah.

And remember, even in our salah — the Fatiha that we read in every single prayer — we say:

"You alone we worship" — and that includes your fast and your qiyam and everything — "and You alone we ask for help." So make lots of du'a, and let your du'a be one where you're asking Allah to grant you the tawfiq to do as much worship as possible.

What Ibadah to Focus On in Ramadan

Ikhwani fillah, what ibadah should you be focusing on in this month? And this, ikhwani fillah, is known as fiqh al-ibadat — to understand, and fiqh al-ujur — to understand where the reward lies. What should I prioritize? What should my focus be?

Obligations Before Recommendations

One of the things that we notice often, ikhwani fillah, is people attend Taraweeh but they miss Isha. So you come late for Isha, but you come to Taraweeh because you're planning: I'm going to pray Taraweeh tonight. Ikhwani fillah, Isha is obligatory, and Taraweeh is not. And take this as an example for all the other things that we are doing: do your obligations first. If you have zakah to pay, then sadaqah should come next. If you have your obligatory prayers that you are delaying, then what is the point of coming to Taraweeh? What is the point of staying up for Qiyam if you're not going to get up for Fajr? What is the point of the mosques being filled during Taraweeh, but for Fajr there are two rows?

This is something, ikhwani fillah, we have to rectify. Allah loves it more when you get closer to Him through the obligations than when you get closer to Him through the recommended acts of worship. Like Allah says in the Hadith al-Qudsi: there is nothing more beloved to Me that My servant does than that which I have made obligatory upon him.

So keep prioritizing, ikhwani fillah, and do not neglect those things that are wajib upon you for those things that Allah has made recommended and sunnah. That's not to say don't come to Taraweeh — but it is to say, don't allow the recommended acts to overshadow the things that are wajib upon you.

The Month of Qur'an

Ikhwani fillah, the ibadah you should focus on — number one — is the Qur'an. This is the month of Qur'an. When Allah describes Ramadan, Allah says:

It is the month of Ramadan in which the Qur'an was revealed. It is the month of Qur'an. SubhanAllah. And it is not only the Qur'an that was revealed in this month. The Torah was revealed in Ramadan. Like the Prophet ﷺ said in a hadith that is in Ibn Hibban and narrated also by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, where he said that the scriptures of Ibrahim were revealed on the first day of Ramadan, and the Torah was revealed on the sixth day of Ramadan, and the Injil was revealed on the thirteenth day of Ramadan, and the Qur'an was revealed on the twenty-fourth day — which is the twenty-fifth night.

(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 16984; Sahih Ibn Hibban, Hadith 1793)

So it shows you — Allah chose this month to be the month where His scriptures and books were revealed. So pay attention to the Qur'an. Have a daily portion that you read. Don't let the Qur'an be neglected in this month. Listen to it, read it, practice it, learn it, read it with your children and your families. This is the month of Qur'an, ikhwani fillah, and treat it as such.

The Month of Qiyam

It is also the month of standing in prayer and Qiyam. The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2008; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 759)

Whoever stands in prayer in Ramadan with faith and expecting the reward from Allah, all of his previous sins will be forgiven.

The Month of Charity

This is also the month of charity, the month of sadaqah. So plan — and add to your plan — that you will give more charity this month, ikhwani fillah. Give, give, for Allah spends on those who give. Give, for sadaqah extinguishes your sins like water extinguishes fire. Give because the Prophet ﷺ was the most generous in the month of Ramadan. So ikhwani fillah, add that to the things that you want to do this Ramadan: you're going to give more charity, you're going to read more Qur'an, you're going to stand in prayer.

The Month of Du'a

Ikhwani fillah, this is also the month of du'a. Every single issue you want to raise with Allah, every single du'a you want to make — and the greatest thing we're asking Allah is guidance, is Jannah, is to be saved from the Hellfire — raise your hands often, make du'a often, keep asking Allah, for indeed the fasting person's du'a is not rejected. Ikhwani fillah, focus on these things, plan your Ramadan, rectify your intention.

وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ مِنْ كُلِّ ذَنْبٍ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ إِنَّهُ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ

Second Khutbah

الحمد لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله

Ikhwani fillah, one of the things that has become a custom for us as Muslims is that whenever the first days of Ramadan are approaching, we are distracted with everything but Ramadan. Right now, you will find traffic jams everywhere, people are shopping — and it is natural, I'm not telling you to not shop — people are shopping and thinking about what they're going to have for their first night of Iftar, and it's about food, and what kind of different meals are we going to cook, and this, that, or the other. Don't let that distract you. Don't let that distract you. Don't let your families be distracted by that. Remember that the priority is ibadah and worship. Remember that.

There are a few times in the month of Ramadan that people are distracted: when they are shopping for Eid, and when they're shopping at the start of Ramadan. And I'm not saying don't do that. But what I am saying is: the one who is so focused on their Eid shopping that they are too tired to do worship on the last ten nights — they have lost out. Similarly, ikhwani fillah, you want to start your Ramadan with momentum. You want to start your Ramadan with good momentum, being engaged in ibadah. So please — tell your families, your wives, your children, your daughters — that this is about ibadah. And your home should be livened up with worship, with the recitation of the Qur'an, with the hearing of the Qur'an.

Ensure that the people that you are responsible for are not too distracted caring for the home — so much so that they are distracted from the things that they should be busy with. And also be mindful, ikhwani fillah, to help and aid your family members as it relates to what's happening in the home and the prepping and everything, because they shouldn't be so exhausted that they fall asleep and lose out on the great nights of Ramadan.

Ikhwani fillah, remember that goodness is multiplied. Remember the adab of the fasting person. Remember to be upon exemplary character. Remember to change. Remember that it should be known that it's Ramadan — your children, your friends, your family, your coworkers, everyone should realize the difference. This month is special — treat it as such.

And ask Allah to forgive our sins. And ask Allah to allow us to reach this Ramadan healthy and with great iman. Ask Allah to accept our fasting from us, to accept our Qiyam from us, to give us the tawfiq and the hidayah. Ask Allah to forgive our sins — all of our sins.

صَلُّوا عَلَى نَبِيِّكُمْ كَمَا أَمَرَكُمُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى حَيْثُ قَالَ:

وَآخِرُ دَعْوَانَا أَنِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ — وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ