Striving Post Ramadan - Shaykh Omar Sulaiman

Striving Post Ramadan

By Shaykh Omar Suleiman

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ، الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى رَسُولِهِ الْكَرِيمِ، وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا

The Prophet ﷺ tells us:

Whoever fasts the month of Ramadan with faith and with seeking the reward, Allah will forgive all of his previous sins. And then he told us ﷺ:

Whoever prays the night of Laylatul Qadr with iman and with ihtisab — once again, with faith and with accountability — غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ, that he will be forgiven for all of his previous sins.

The Post-Ramadan Dip

Dear brothers and sisters, as we enter into the post-Ramadan dip — this is the first Jumu'ah that we experience after this blessed month where we've had the opportunity to challenge ourselves, and to demonstrate to Allah our potential, to demonstrate to Allah what we are capable of, and to show ourselves that we can live without these sins. That we are able and capable of abandoning even things that are normally halal to us for long periods of the day. As we showed ourselves and we demonstrated that determination in the sight of Allah to be forgiven, as we clung to Allah and said:

Oh Allah, You are the one who loves to pardon. You are Al-'Afu. You love to forgive. You love to pardon. So forgive me and overlook my sins.

We now enter into this post-Ramadan dip, and I want you to think about many things post-Ramadan. A lot of people will say that after one of the odd nights, after having experienced that closeness to Allah, they'll wake up in the morning and say, "Tonight was Laylatul Qadr." And you ask them why, and they would say, "Because I felt it. I felt like it was Laylatul Qadr. I felt a closeness and a peace of mind and an ease and a tranquility in my heart that I have never felt before — it must have been Laylatul Qadr." And you're hearing that on the 23rd night, another person saying it on the 24th night, another on the 25th, the 26th, the 27th — "I know it was Laylatul Qadr because I felt it."

The truth is that it was not about whether it was Laylatul Qadr or not. What it really was about is the fact that you gave Allah a night from one of your nights — that you forsook your sleep in order to stand up and call upon Allah, that you made time for the Quran, that you made time for salah, that you actually made time for your religion and you cut out the distractions. And the feeling that you felt at night was not a feeling that is reserved only for people on the night of Laylatul Qadr. It is a feeling that is reserved for people that stand up and pray at night even outside of Ramadan. The feeling of tahajjud, the feeling of Qiyamul Layl, the feeling of having a conversation with Allah for hours of the night while other people are sleeping — that is an amazing feeling.

And it's not about Allah — it's about you, that you made that time. If you felt something about the Quran this month that you haven't felt at any other time, it's not that the Quran changed. It's that you changed. That you gave the Quran time. If you felt something in your salah, it's that you changed — you gave the salah time.

The Wisdom of Ramadan in the Quran

If you think about the ibadah of Ramadan from the wisdom of Allah — you know the term "Ramadan Muslims" — because people exert themselves in Ramadan like no other time of the year. This month of Ramadan is only referenced in the Quran in one ayah. The entire book of Allah — over 600 pages — and Ramadan only shows up once. Fasting is only mentioned briefly:

Fasting was prescribed upon you the way it was prescribed on those who came before you, so that you could gain taqwa — you could gain a sense of awareness and piety of Allah. Why? Because the end result of Ramadan is referenced throughout the Quran, and that is taqwa — that's piety and God-consciousness. You don't need Ramadan throughout the Quran to remind you about what Ramadan is to achieve in your life.

We don't do any special ibadat in Ramadan that are exclusive to Ramadan. Taraweeh is nothing but Qiyamul Layl in Ramadan. You don't read a different passage of the Quran in Ramadan. There isn't a special scripture. There isn't a special salah. Everything you do — your witr is the same. Your du'as that you make in Ramadan, you make outside of Ramadan. All it is, is that you are presenting yourself to Allah.

The Consistency of Allah's Attributes

Imam Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, rahimahullah, reflects on this point and he says that one of the beauties of the attributes of Allah is their consistency. Human beings are hot and cold. Human beings can change. The most benevolent human being in the world cannot be benevolent because he's having a bad day. The most merciful person — a mother — can lose it with her child at times. You might not be consistent in your attributes at times. But does Allah ever stop being Al-Rahman? He is merciful even in his punishments — in that his punishment never exceeds justice. Even if you are the worst of disbelievers, someone who disobeys Allah day and night, someone who would have the audacity to curse at the divine — Allah will not punish you for a moment more than you deserve to be punished.

And He is Al-Halim — He is forbearing — in that even as people curse Him day and night, even as people disbelieve in Him and disobey Him, Allah withholds His anger, withholds His punishment:

And He continues to call them to forgiveness and mercy, even as they are disobeying Him. But His attributes don't change. His names don't change. He is Allah in Ramadan. He is Allah outside of Ramadan. He is Al-Rahman in Ramadan. He is Al-Rahman outside of Ramadan.

In the hadith where the Prophet ﷺ mentions:

That when Ramadan comes the gates of paradise open and the gates of hellfire shut and the devils are put away — there is nothing about a change with Allah. The only thing is, just as the Messenger ﷺ was always generous — note the hadith, not only was he:

Like a blowing wind — an indiscriminate wind — in Ramadan, and not generous outside of Ramadan. The hadith mentions he was always generous ﷺ, but in Ramadan it was only further amplified. Meaning, just when you thought he couldn't get more generous, he intensified his generosity ﷺ. If you met the Prophet ﷺ in Sha'ban, you would say, "This is the peak of generosity, the epitome of charity." But then you saw him in Ramadan and you didn't even realize there was a greater limit.

The rahma of Allah on the most random day of the year — on a day when you are at the lowest point in your life — is beyond your comprehension, beyond your imagination, not decreased in the minimum. But in Ramadan it is only further amplified and intensified to a point that you did not even know could exist. And as much as we've experienced the rahma of Allah in this life, we've only experienced 1% of it — even less. We still have so much more to see. Allah will surprise us with His mercy on the Day of Judgment, by showing us just how Rahim He is — how exceedingly compassionate He is.

We ask Allah to make us among those that meet His mercy on the Day of Judgment rather than His 'adl — rather than His justice on the Day of Judgment.

The point is, dear brothers and sisters — He's the same Allah. The attributes are the same. The names are the same. The ahadith about Allah extending His hand — in a way that befits Him in His essence and His attributes, in a way that befits Him — inviting people to tawbah, inviting people to mercy, that happens every single night — not just Laylatul Qadr. The Quran is beautiful every single day — not just in Ramadan when we decide to take it off of the bookshelf.

Are You Presenting Yourself to Allah?

What's the point I'm trying to make here, more than anything else? Are you presenting yourself to Allah outside of Ramadan? Because He hasn't changed. Are you still seeking His forgiveness? Because He didn't stop forgiving. Are you still reading the book of Allah? Because it didn't stop being the book of Allah. Are you still making an effort to at least hold on to your fara'id?

The most beloved of actions to Allah are the prayers on time. Are you still making an effort to pray on time? To add a little bit more of your nawafil, of your sunan — your voluntary prayers? Are you still availing yourself of those opportunities and that which has been presented to you? Or are you back immersed in your distractions?

The New Muslim and the Shahada

Dear brothers and sisters, I want you to think about that person that takes shahada for the first time. SubhanAllah, one of the most powerful things I've ever witnessed in my life — I was giving shahada to a person in the masjid, and that person was crying, as is normal. Many times people, as they're accepting Islam, they are crying, because they realize the weight of that statement. And as that person was crying, there was an elderly sister that started to cry as well. And SubhanAllah, when I spoke to that sister afterwards, she said: "The reason why I'm crying is that I've been saying la ilaha illallah muhammadun rasulullah for over 60 years, and never once did it bring me to tears. Never once did I recite the shahada, the kalima, and it brought me to tears. This person is reciting it for the first time in their life and they're crying, so I'm crying — not over the shahada — I'm crying over the fact that I've never cried over the shahada."

Why? Because when that person took shahada, they presented themselves to that shahada. They presented themselves to Allah. They cleared the way for that shahada to penetrate the heart.

Do they not contemplate the Quran? Or do they have locks on their hearts? You are placing the filters and the locks. Allah did not put that lock there. You chose to block it out by your actions. Did you present yourself to it?

Salman al-Farisi and the Pursuit of the Prophet

When you think about Salman al-Farisi, radiyallahu ta'ala 'anhu — that moment when he saw the Prophet ﷺ and when he realized he was the messenger of Allah:

"I threw myself on him and I was just bawling in tears in the presence of the Messenger ﷺ." Why? Because Salman's life was a build-up to that moment. Though he had not met the Prophet ﷺ his entire life, his entire life was a build-up to that meeting. We too should be building up to that meeting. When you see the Prophet ﷺ on the Day of Judgment, will you present yourself to him like Salman, radiyallahu ta'ala 'anhu, whose entire life was in pursuit of the Messenger ﷺ? How will you feel when you see the Prophet ﷺ for the first time? How will he feel about you?

He didn't change ﷺ. He was who he was. Allah has not changed. He is who He is. But are you making time for those acts of worship? Are you clearing the distractions away, putting them to the side and giving them time?

Simulating Ramadan After Ramadan

What would be the advice after Ramadan? How much of Ramadan can you simulate outside of Ramadan? You'll never make it Ramadan. Your six days of Shawwal are a mercy from Allah, because it gives you an opportunity to somewhat simulate that Ramadan. Create — and don't just fast your six days of Shawwal. Make sure that you pray Qiyamul Layl those nights too. Simulate your taraweeh again. Enjoy reading the Quran that day. If you're reading a juz a day in Ramadan, then on the six days of Shawwal, read a juz for those days as well. Do the things in those days that you were doing in Ramadan. Recreate as much as you can that Ramadan feeling.

Because that Ramadan feeling is not meant to be a high that comes and goes. It's meant to be an opportunity to open yourself — to present yourself to Allah — so that you understand that this is a lifestyle. Tahajjud is a lifestyle. Prayer is a lifestyle. Holding yourself back with taqwa, with piety, from things that are not good for you is a lifestyle. That's not a monthly thing. That's a lifestyle. And when you taste the beauty of that lifestyle, you will not want to go back to something that is going to take you away from Allah.

But Allah has never changed. Allah has not restricted Himself from us outside of the month of Ramadan. Allah's mercy — the doors to His mercy are not shut. The doors to His Jannah are not shut. They are still open.

It Is Never Too Late for Tawbah

SubhanAllah — you could have lived your entire life disobeying Allah. You may have wasted this Ramadan. You may not have observed the last 10 nights the way that you wanted to. You may not have shed a tear. You may not have actually presented yourself to those ibadat. And then, on one random night in Shawwal, you make tawbah to Allah for the way that your Ramadan went — and Allah in His mercy accepts everything that came before:

Allah changes all of your wrongdoings — your sins — into good deeds. That one moment of regret, meaningful regret — "Ya Allah, I didn't make the most out of the month of Ramadan, but I need Your mercy" — and Allah sees that one moment of regret in you and gives it all to you. Is it really beyond His mercy? Is it really beyond His rahma? Is it really beyond His forgiveness to give you the entire month of Ramadan for one moment of regret afterwards?

If it was, then how do you make sense of Laylatul Qadr, where for one night Allah is willing to give you a lifetime? So why would Allah not be willing to give you a month for a moment — for a day of showing that regret, of showing that willingness to come back to Him?

And as Ka'b, radiyallahu ta'ala 'anhu, said: if you want to know if your Ramadan is accepted — the person who, on the day of Eid, makes that commitment that he will not return back to his acts of disobedience — Allah will accept his Ramadan and Allah will enter him into Jannah without even asking him about his deeds. But if you said to yourself after Ramadan is over, "I'm back to all of those deeds, I'm going right back to that disobedience," then Allah would return the Ramadan back to you — mardood — completely rejected.

We're post-Ramadan now. We made mistakes in Ramadan. We will continue to make mistakes after Ramadan. Present yourself to Allah. Show Allah that you are in need of His mercy. Just one night of the week, simulate your taraweeh. Six days of the month, simulate your Ramadan. Read half of the amount of Quran you read in Ramadan — but don't stop making time for the actions that were blessed in Ramadan and continue to be blessed after Ramadan.

The Story of the Old Man and Tawbah

SubhanAllah — I'll leave you with this beautiful athar from Yunus ibn Ubaid, rahimahullah ta'ala. He says: there was an old man who wanted to make tawbah to Allah, wanted to return to Allah. But he looked in the mirror, he saw the gray hairs, and he said to himself — as he saw the gray in his hair and in his beard — "How could Allah accept me? I've got an entire lifetime of turning away from Him, an entire lifetime of disobeying Him." And he says that he saw a dream that night, and SubhanAllah, it was said to him as he was in that dream:

"Has anyone ever come to our door and been turned away? Has anyone ever approached Allah and been told no? Has anyone ever said astaghfirullah — I seek Your forgiveness, Ya Allah — sincerely, and Allah said, 'I do not accept your repentance'? Has anyone ever said sincerely to Allah, 'Guide me to the straight path, O Turner of Hearts, make my heart firm on Your religion,' and Allah turned him away? No."

If you come to Me with a hand span, I come to you with an arm span. And if you come to Me with an arm span, I come to you with both of your arms spread out. If you come to Me walking, I will come to you running. That's your Lord. Show Allah baby steps and see what happens. Don't belittle your baby steps — in Ramadan or outside of Ramadan.

Allah tells us in the Quran:

Those who strive in Our path — We will open to them ways of goodness, many paths of goodness that all bring them to Allah.

Du'a

May Allah connect our hearts to Him. May Allah make us worshipers of the Lord of Ramadan — not Ramadan itself. May Allah allow the good that we did in Ramadan to continue after Ramadan. May Allah forgive us for the shortcomings before, during, and after Ramadan. May Allah allow us to completely disconnect from all that disconnects our hearts from Him, and to connect to everything that connects us to Him. May Allah bestow upon us His love, and may Allah make beloved to us those who are beloved to Him, and may Allah place in us the love of every deed that brings us closer to His love. Allahumma ameen.

May Allah accept. Jazakum Allahu khayran.

أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

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Announcements

Brothers, let us stand up and perform our sunnah salah. Before we start our sunnah, let us ensure that we fill up all the gaps. The sisters as well — if we can make the rows, there is still the usual crowd coming in, so we need to accommodate them as well. Fill up every spot and then begin our sunnah salah.

Please pass the donation boxes before the khutbah begins. Donate generously towards the running expenses of the house of Allah on the blessed day of Jumu'ah, where your good deeds are being watched by Allah — and every dollar will go a long way on the day when we will be presented in front of Allah. Jazakum Allah khayran.

Secondly, we would like to extend a warm welcome to Shaykh Omar Suleiman for coming here today out of his very busy schedule. He is attending the ISNA Conference and will be giving 8 lectures there. That is taking place at the Rosemont Convention Center — you can attend his lectures as well as other scholars' lectures at the ISNA Convention in Rosemont starting today.

Additionally, as many youth are here and many new faces amongst the brothers and sisters — we would like to extend a very warm welcome to all of you for coming to Masjid Darussalam today. We hope that this begins a long relationship with those new brothers and sisters who have come here for Salatul Jumu'ah.

We have many programs for the youth specifically. One of them, building off of what Shaykh Omar mentioned — so much spirituality was created just last Thursday or Friday. Our Fajr salah had a line all the way to the back in the lobby; we had 13–14 rows here — it was like a Jumu'ah crowd for Fajr. That is the barakah of Ramadan. But of course, after Ramadan it is really difficult to keep even a portion of that. Schools are starting in September — if we don't do something productive between now and September, that spirituality we gained in Ramadan unfortunately will be lost before we get to college.

From amongst the many programs that Chicago offers, one is the Darussalam Summer Arabic Intensive — for boys and girls. This is the 10th year this program is being offered. It is a 4-week program from July 17th to August 12th. You will get an opportunity to sit in the house of Allah here with fellow brothers and sisters from across the country, sit with scholars, be able to ask your questions and get them answered, learn Arabic, connect with the Quran, play ball, have fun, go camping, and a whole bunch of other activities. That summer intensive starts July 17th, and we have booths on both the brothers' side and the sisters' side with alumni you can go up and ask questions.

Additionally, we have our flagship one-year Islamic Studies and Arabic Immersion program — the Tanweer Intensive — starting on that same date, July 17th. For those of you who have a gap year or want to create a gap year to connect yourself with the Quran — this Ramadan you may not have understood the Quran as much as you would want to — well, this is that amazing opportunity to connect yourself with the book of Allah. If you're not sure if you can commit to 10 months, do the 1 month first, and if you enjoy it, you can do the remaining 9 months — or otherwise go back charged up and ready for school.

Beyond that, we will have Team Fajr — this is a new initiative here at Darussalam for the youth. Every Saturday morning we will be inviting the youth — the brothers — to join, pray Salatul Fajr together, have a great breakfast, have a khatira and dars, and then play basketball together. The first meet is tomorrow at 4:45 AM. If the adults are saying, "We don't play basketball, we play cricket" — you can bring your cricket bats as well. If you want to play soccer or anything else, the main thing is we want to bring the Fajr crowd back here. So that starts tomorrow at 4:45 AM.

Lastly, for those of us who are working adults and don't have time for a month-long or year-long program, but want to study the deen based off of the spirituality created in Ramadan — we have our Tafheem Weekend Academy, which begins at the end of August. It is a Saturday morning or Sunday morning class based on your availability. Details are available at the booth as well as on our website.

If you want to listen to Shaykh Omar's khutbah again or want to share it, you can go to our YouTube channel — it is already there.

We hope Allah allows all of us to love each other for His sake — the way He has gathered us here today — and gather us once again, many times in this world, and then under His throne on the Day of Judgment. May Allah reward Shaykh Omar abundantly from our community. Please share your appreciation for him taking the time to come here today after Salatul Jumu'ah. Jazakumullah khayran. Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.