Short Takes
Welcome, Holy Month
Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam
Within the next few hours the Subcontinent will enter the holy month of Ramadan. A sizeable part of the world has already entered it.
A certain calm has descended on the earth, including the regions where it will begin in the next few hours. God’s grace and blessings are visible everywhere as more and more Muslim men, women and children are busy praying, reciting from the holy Quran and doing acts of piety.
This is the month associated with the revelation of the Quran, the Book of Guidance for all humanity for all time to come. Reading from the Quran and recital of its verses in salat and outside it has a special significance, and like all good deeds done in the month, it earns manifold more merit compared to other months.
Blessed are those who are alive in the month as it contains a night Lailat-al-Qadr (the night of power), which the Quran says, is “better than a thousand months”, which is a longer period than a single lifetime. Naturally, prayer in that night is more valuable than praying for a lifetime.
In fact, each and every moment of the month is loaded with significance. It is also the time for training of the mind, body and soul for living life as Allah wants it, to prepare ourselves for life hereafter.
Control of the senses, control over hunger and thirst, and control over our entire range of behaviour is part of the training this month brings. It is also a time where our sense of sympathy for the weak, the poor, the hungry and thirsty is heightened. Being hungry and thirsty all day we know what it means being without food and water for the poor.
The Quran says that fast of Ramadan (and all other acts of piety in the month) are meant to make Muslims pious and God-fearing.
Among the landmarks of this month is the date of Islam’s crucial battle of survival at Badr, which Muslims won with the help of Allah.
We are blessed to be alive in this month when Allah forgives the sins of millions of believers and guides them on the right path. It is the month of asking Allah’s forgiveness and hoping for His bounties. Let us all avail of this great opportunity. Let us welcome the holy month.
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