09-20-2008, 12:19 PM
The key to a fruitful Ramadan I find, is the three Ps! Planning, preparation and patience.
<b>Planning:</b> that's the thinking everything through and visualising what every day is going to be like. What is the routine going to be like, when is iftar, suhoor, kids' bedtime and how can I best coordinate them all. Which acts of worship do I really want to do this Ramadan, every day and when can I incorporate them into my day. What things do I need to change in the next month and leave out of my routine. Having a calendar with the whole month-to-view is really helpful Ma sha Allah. Make du'a for a fruitful Ramadan.
<b>Preparation:</b> cooking early (even the night before), having things prepared beforehand as much as possible, make for a smooth Ramadan. Also, studying what Ramadan is all about and how the early and best generations of Muslims would be in Ramadan, all remind us what an opportunity Ramadan truly is. This year I went on the AlKauthar course on the Fiqh of fasting and it has really affected the way I mentally prepared for Ramadan, ma sha Allah.
<b>Patience:</b> then the rest is about patiently getting on with what we have to do and being patient when things are not as we planned, but then being pro-active and making the most of any issues that arise.
One of the things that the instructor told us in the Ramadan course was:
<b>"Turn your 'Aadah</b> عادة
<b>into 'Ibaadah</b> عبادة "
In other words, turn the things that you ordinarily do, day to day, into acts of worship, by having lofty intentions and goals for even the most mundane acts! Yes, even the ironing! Why do you iron? So that your family can wear clothes that look smart, so that they feel good and are good ambassadors for Islam, whenever people see you out and about, so that your husband who has the most rights upon you will feel good and be able to work confidently. Because Allah has made your husband's rights so important...think about why you are doing things throughout the day, as you do them and turn them into 'Ibaadah!
May Allah give you a blessed Ramadan.
By the way, did you know that Imam Malik would close all of his Hadeeth books during Ramadan and concentrate on the Qur'an? Other scholars would complete reciting the Qur'an every few days in Ramadan and our beloved Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam would recite the whole Qur'an to Jibreel during Ramadan? And twice in his last Ramadan.
It's doable! Just read a few pages after every salah and don't go to sleep till you've finished reading one Juz' of Qur'an and you will be able to recite the whole Qur'an during Ramadan insha Allah....you can do it....just remember: plan, prepare and patiently persevere!
'Umar's (radi Allahu Anhu) Definition of TaqwaAllah tells us in the Qur'an that fasting was prescribed upon us as it was prescribed for those before us, so that we may attain Taqwa.
'Umar bin al-Khattab's definition of Taqwa:
خَلِّ الذنوبَ صغيرَها و كبيرَها ذاكَ التُّقى
واصْنَع كَماشٍ فوقَ أرضِ الشّوكِ يَحْذَرُ ما يَرَى
لا تَحْقِرَنّ صغيرةً إنّ الجِبالَ منَ الحَصىThe meaning as I make it is:
Abandon sins - small ones and big: that is Taqwa...
And be like a person walking one a land of thorns, cautious of what he sees...
Don't belittle the small sins, Indeed mountains are made up of small stones....
written by a sister
