#hadith reflections

As we move away from Ramadan, perhaps we've started to disengage from some nawafil (voluntarily) acts of worship. So let these amazing ahadith motivate us to guard our sunnah prayers:

🌺 𝟭. 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗮𝗿𝗱 (𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆) 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀.

Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam said: ❛The first thing for which a person will be brought to account on the Day of Judgment will be his prayer. If it’s complete, then the voluntary [prayers] will also be recorded for him [as an increase for him]. If it’s not [complete], then 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝘀: 𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘂𝗽 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀…❜ 【𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗻 𝗜𝗯𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗷𝗮𝗵 𝟭𝟰𝟮𝟲】

🌺 𝟮. 𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝗽𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝘀

Rasulullah ﷺ said: ❛Make frequent sujood [in prayers] before Allah, for you will not perform one sujood to Allah, but 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗯𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂.❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗺 𝟰𝟴𝟴】

🌺 𝟯. 𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗥𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘂𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 ﷺ

Rabi’ah ibn Ka’b radiya Allahu anhu said: ❛I used to stay overnight with Rasulullah and bring him water for wudoo and whatever he required. He ﷺ said to me: Ask [for anything you like]. 𝗜 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱: 𝗜 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗻 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵. 𝗛𝗲 ﷺ 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱: 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘂𝗷𝗼𝗼𝗱 [𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀] 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗹.❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗺 𝟰𝟴𝟵】

🌺 𝟰. 𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗸𝗵𝗮𝘆𝗿 / 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗵 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀

Rasulullah ﷺ said: ❛When any one of you observes prayer in the mosque, he should 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝘀 [𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵] 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲, 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗸𝗵𝗮𝘆𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲.❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗺 𝟳𝟳𝟴】

🌺 𝟱. 𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵

Rasulullah ﷺ said that Allah said: ❛…And the most beloved things with which My servant comes nearer to Me, is what I have enjoined upon him (i.e. obligatory deeds); 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗠𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗳𝗶𝗹 (𝗶.𝗲. 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀) 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗺…❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗮𝗹-𝗕𝘂𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶 𝟲𝟱𝟬𝟮】

So safeguard your nawafil prayers. Start with at least the 2 raka’aat before Fajr, then work our way up to the rest of the voluntary prayers. May Allah help us remain consistent in guarding our salaah, both the fard and the nawafil.

How is our Ramadan going so far? The excitement we had in the first week might slowly fizzle out as we reach the second week. So let this beautiful hadith get our spirits back on track, in shaa Allah

Talhah radiya Allahu anhu narrated a story about two men who became Muslims at the same time. The difference between them is that the first would strive much harder in khayr, fought for the sake of Allah and was martyred. The second man remained a year longer before he died a natural death.

One day, Talhah dreamt about them:

🌺 ❛𝗜 𝘀𝗮𝘄 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝘀𝗮𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺. 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗱 [𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗵] 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁; 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘆𝗿𝗲𝗱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱: 𝗚𝗼 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸, 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲.❜

The next morning, Talhah told the people about his dream, and they were amazed by it. How come the one who died a natural death entered Jannah first, instead of the martyr? This reached Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, and he explained:

🌺 ❛𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿? 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵-𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿? — 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵.❜ 【𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗻 𝗜𝗯𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗷𝗮𝗵 𝟯𝟵𝟮𝟱 | 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵】

Notice that Rasulullah ﷺ mentioned Ramadan in his explanation. Allah too has blessed us with another month of Ramadan.

Just one extra year, one extra Ramadan, can raise our rank in the Sight of Allah beyond our imagination. If we truly take advantage of this month with khayr, and if we strive to catch Laylatul-Qadr with imaan and ihtisaab, perhaps we too may exceed the rank of a shaheed, bi idhnillah. May Allah make us among the successful ones!

Here’s an extraordinary hadith that will motivate us to pray Tahajjud, in shaa Allah. Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam said:

🌺 ❛𝗔 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗺𝘆 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗮𝗳𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 (𝗶.𝗲. 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝘄𝘂𝗱𝘂).

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗺 (𝗶.𝗲. 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝘆𝘁𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗶𝗯𝗮𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗵). 𝗜𝗳 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀, 𝗮 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱. 𝗜𝗳 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲, 𝗮 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱. 𝗜𝗳 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗽𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱, 𝗮 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱. 𝗜𝗳 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝘁 [𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝘂𝗱𝘂], 𝗮 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱.

𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝗔𝗹𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗻: 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗲, 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗹, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗠𝗲. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗲, 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝘁.❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗜𝗯𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝗯𝗯𝗮𝗻 𝟮𝟲𝟭𝟵 | 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗯𝘆 𝗦𝗵. 𝗮𝗹-𝗔𝗿𝗻𝗮’𝘂𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗵𝘂𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵】

🌿 See how this hadith begins specifically about the one who literally fights himself to do wudu. Allah acknowledges that making wudu can be a struggle in those hours.

🌿 Then Allah orders the angels to look at the one making wudu as a sign of honouring him. Allah praises him in front of His angels.

🌿 And finally, Allah promises the one making wudu’ that He will fulfil whatever du’a, whatever request, whatever need that he asks of Him.

Did you realise that this person has not even started praying? Yet look at the honour and reward Allah gives him.

Allah, Al-Lateef, is aware of our weaknesses. He knows our struggles to fight off drowsiness when we want to wake up for Tahajjud. So Allah attaches great rewards behind our effort, to let us know that behind these struggles are extraordinary hasanaat and honour that He has stored just for us.

And so when we wake up, fighting with our nafs to get out of bed to make wudu, be conscious of this honour and reward that await us.

Prophet Adam made du’a when he made the mistake of disobeying Allah.

Prophet Nuh made du’a when his people rejected him and was going to harm him.

Prophet Ya’qub made du’a when he was overwhelmed by grief that turned him blind.

Prophet Musa made du’a when he leaned under a shade, having escaped from Egypt with absolutely nothing.

Peace and blessings upon them all.

And Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam made du’a, praying on his two swollen feet at night, out of nothing but shukr to Allah.

We depend on Allah during our hard times and even on good times. There is not a moment where we do not need Allah in our lives. So even during your ease, make du’a to Allah with hope and tawakkul that He will bring about khayr in a manner that He knows is best for us. Rasulullah ﷺ said:

🌺 ❛𝗪𝗵𝗼𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗳, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝘁 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲.❜ 【𝗔𝘁-𝗧𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗵𝗶 𝟯𝟯𝟴𝟮 | 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗿】

Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam said:

🌺 ❛𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝗯𝗯 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗛𝗶𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗛𝗶𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝘀.❜ 【𝗔𝘁-𝗧𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗵𝗶 𝟯𝟲𝟬𝟰 | 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗿】

Ask Allah for the major things, and ask Him for the minor things. Nothing is too big for Him to give, and nothing is too insignificant to ask of Him.

In 3 separate ahadith, Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam said that whoever:

(𝟭) 𝗙𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗻, (𝟮) 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝗤𝗶𝘆𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗹-𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗻, (𝟯) 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹-𝗤𝗮𝗱𝗿, — 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗲 {𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗮𝗻} 𝗮𝗻𝗱 {𝗶𝗵𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗮𝗯}, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻. 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗮𝗹-𝗕𝘂𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶 𝟯𝟱, 𝟯𝟳, 𝟯𝟴】

What do these 2 terms mean?

🌿 𝗜𝗺𝗮𝗮𝗻 — 𝗜𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 (𝗶.𝗲. 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗤𝗶𝘆𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗹-𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗹, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹-𝗤𝗮𝗱𝗿) 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗵; 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗱𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 / 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.

🌿 𝗜𝗵𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗮𝗯 — 𝗜𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗛𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘂𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽. 𝗜𝗺𝗮𝗺 𝗜𝗯𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝗷𝗮𝗿 𝗿𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗵𝘂𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗵𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗮𝗯 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝗯𝗮𝗮𝗱𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀, 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲!

So if a person enters Ramadan with the mindset of “I just want to get this done and over with” — then this is not ihtisaab.

Ihtisaab is to have genuine hope in Allah’s rahmah and reward, that it motivates us towards doing ibaadat, that we actually enjoy filling our Ramadan with khayr. And Rasulullah ﷺ said that only with imaan and ihtisaab will we gain Allah’s forgiveness for all our past sins.

Please don’t be discouraged if we’ve entered Ramadan on the wrong foot. We can still correct our intention, in shaa Allah.

May Allah allow us to fully take advantage of this blessed month with imaan and ihtisaab, and accept from us.

The good we did yesterday doesn’t excuse the evil we do today.

The angel, Jibril, descended on Laylatul-Qadr and that night has passed. But Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala HIMSELF descends to the lowest heaven in the last third of every single night that He may answer our supplications. Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam said:

🌺 ❛𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗮𝗯𝗯 𝗔𝗹𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗺? 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗠𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗺? 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗺?❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗮𝗹-𝗕𝘂𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶 𝟭𝟭𝟰𝟱】

Remember that a believer’s ultimate goal is to be ibadur-Rahman, and not merely ibadur-Ramadan.

🌺 ❛𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗮𝗯𝗯 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 (𝗶.𝗲. 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵) 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝘆.❜ 【𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗵 𝗮𝗹-𝗛𝗶𝗷𝗿 𝟭𝟱:𝟵𝟵】

𝗘𝗶𝗱 𝗠𝘂𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗸! 𝗧𝗮𝗾𝗮𝗯𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵𝘂 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗮 𝘄𝗮 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗸𝘂𝗺.

I know Eid week is a busy time for most of us, when we tend to let go of many of the good deeds we practiced during Ramadan. But remember that all good things come to an end except Jannah, and the pursuit of Jannah doesn’t end in Ramadan.

So continue with the next good deeds. It doesn’t mean we have to pray long hours of Qiyamul-Layl into the night, but strive to maintain a doable level of consistency throughout the year. Rasulullah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam said:

🌺 ❛𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗳 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲.❜ 【𝗦𝗮𝗵𝗶𝗵 𝗮𝗹-𝗕𝘂𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶 𝟲𝟰𝟲𝟰】

2 raka’aat of Qiyamul-Layl just before Fajr, or 2 pages of Qur’an every day is indeed better than abandoning all the khayr we did. Our consistent good deeds, no matter how insignificant we think they are, can be THE most beloved deeds to Him. So keep on striving. Imam Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali rahimahullah said:

🌺 ❛𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝘂𝗽 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗱.❜ 【𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗮’𝗶𝗳 𝗮𝗹-𝗠𝗮’𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗳 𝘃.𝟭 𝗽.𝟲𝟰】

May Allah grant us steadfastness until we meet Him subhanahu wa ta’ala.