Felicitations to you on the advent of the blessed fasting month of Ramadhan during which we would be presenting to you exclusive programmes every day.
We start with the special supplication for the first day of this month:
“O Allah, make my fast on this day be like the fast of the (true) fasters, and let my devotions therein be as devotions of the (truly) devout! Awaken me in it from the slumber of the negligent and absolve me in it of my guilt, O God of all the worlds, and pardon me, O Forgiver of the guilty!”
The Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS), narrates that on the last day of Sha’ban, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) delivered a lengthy sermon in which he described the merits of the blessed month of Ramadhan. He said:
"O People! The month of Allah has come with its mercies, blessings and forgiveness. Allah has decreed this month the best of all months; its days the best of all days, its nights the best of all nights and its hours the best of all hours. It is the month in which He has invited you (to fast and pray); He has honoured you in it. Every breath you take in it has the reward of tasbih (or praise of Allah); your sleep is worship, your good deeds are accepted and your invocations answered. Therefore, you must invoke your Lord in right earnest with hearts that are free from sin and evil, and pray that Allah may help you to keep fasts, and to recite the Qur'an. Indeed, miserable is the one who is deprived of Allah's forgiveness in this great month. While fasting, visualize the hunger and thirst of the Day of Judgement. Give alms to the poor and the needy. Pay respect to your elders, have sympathy for your youngsters and be kind towards your relatives and kinsmen. Guard your tongue against unworthy words; your eyes from scenes not worth seeing (forbidden sights); and your ears from sounds that should not be heard. Be kind to orphans so that if your children were to become orphans they will also be treated with kindness. Do repent to Allah for your sins and supplicate with raised hands at the times of prayers as these are the best of times, during which Almighty Allah Looks at His servants with mercy; Answers if they supplicate; Responds if they call; Grants if they ask; and Accepts if they entreat.”
“O people! You have made your conscience the slave of your desires. Make it free, by invoking Him for forgiveness. Your back is breaking under the heavy load of your sins; so prostrate before Him for long intervals and make it lighter. Do understand fully well that Allah has promised in the Name of His Majesty and Honour that He will not take to task such people who perform the prayers and the prostrations, and that He will guard their bodies against the fire of hell on the Day of Judgement.
“O people! If anybody from amongst you arranges for the iftar (food for ending of fast after sunset) of any believers, then Allah will give the reward as if he/she had set free a slave, and He will forgive previous sins.”
When the audience asked: "But everybody amongst us does not have the means to do so,” the Prophet replied: “Keep yourself away from the fire of hell (by providing iftar), though it may consist of only half a date or even some water, if you have nothing else.”
The Prophet, in continuation of his sermon, said:
“O people! Anybody who in this month cultivates good manners will walk over the siraat (the bridge leading to Paradise via the rim of hell) on the day when feet will tend to slip. Anybody who in this month may take light work from servants, Allah will make easy his/her accounting, and anybody who does not annoy others in it, Allah will keep him/her safe from His wrath on the Day of Judgement. Whoever respects and treats an orphan with kindness in it, Allah shall look at him/her with kindness on that Day. Anyone who treats well kinsfolk in it, Allah will bestow His Mercy on him/her on the Day of Judgement, while anybody who maltreats kinsfolk in it, Allah will deprive him/her of His Mercy. Whoever offers recommended prayers in it, Allah will save him/her from hell; and whoever observes in it obligatory acts of worship, the reward will be sevenfold for such acts compared to other months. Whoever repeatedly recites salawat (blessings) on me in it Allah will keep the scales of good deeds heavy (on Judgement Day) whilst the scales of others would be tending to lightness. In this month whoever recites an ayah of the Qur'an, the reward will be that of reciting the whole Qur'an in other months.
“O people! The gates of Paradise remain open in this month, do pray to your Lord that they may not be closed for you; while the gates of hell are closed, do pray to your Lord that they may never be opened for you. Satans have been handcuffed, so invoke your Lord not to let them dominate you."
Imam Ali (AS) says: I asked: "O Messenger of Allah, what are the best deeds in this month?" The Prophet replied: "O Aba’l-Hasan, the best of deeds in this month is to be far from what Allah has forbidden."
Ramadhan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. It is the best month in the sight of God. It is the month of exceptional opportunities; opportunities for supplication at dawn and dusk; opportunities for the growth of piety in the soul; opportunities for polishing the spirit; getting in communion with the ayahs of the holy Qur'an; opportunities for avoiding sins and moving toward God; opportunities for good temperament and tolerance with others and sympathy with the poor and the needy.
The elder grandson of the Prophet of Islam, Imam Hassan Mujtaba (AS), said, "God has ordained the month of Ramadhan as a field of contest for His creatures so that, through His obedience, they vie with each other for His pleasure."
The Messenger of God and the infallible Imams of his progeny mentioned many hadiths on the status of the month of Ramadhan. The Prophet said, "The doors of heaven are opened on the first night of Ramadhan and they are not closed till the last day of the month."
He warns in another hadith, "Miserable is he whose sins are not forgiven during this month."
Expurgation of the heart from moral impurities is the requisite for enjoying the special mercy and forgiveness of God.
Unfortunate are those who remain negligent of the Divine Call and the showers of mercy and forgiveness; while the conscientious realize that they should make the best use of this opportunity. The Prophet of Islam and the infallible Imams have expressed guidelines for the best use of the blessed days of Ramadhan. These guidelines are divided in four parts: supplications, recitation of the holy Qur'an, zikr (or remembrance of God) and the recommended prayers. These choicest servants of God have bequeathed to us special supplications to be recited at dawn, after the obligatory prayers, at night and during day. These supplications are full of moral concepts and lead man to the source of light and cognizance.
Recitation of the holy Qur'an has a very special significance in Ramadhan. According to the narrations, recitation of one ayah in this month has the reward of recitation of the entire Qur'an in other months. A hadith reads, "Everything has a spring and the spring of the Qur'an is the month of Ramadhan."
The true believers prepare themselves for Ramadhan from the preceding months of Rajab and Sha’ban. They try to detach themselves from worldly trivialities in their quest for attaining the proximity of God Almighty.
Before we bid you farewell today, here is the supplication for Hajj that is highly recommended for recitation after the daily obligatory ritual prayers:
“O Allah, favour me with pilgrimage to Your sacred House, during this and every year that You keep me alive in circumstances of ease, welfare and ample means, and do not deprive me from being present in those noble places and sacred shrines, and (do not deny me) the ziyarah of the tomb of Your Prophet, may Your blessings be upon him and his progeny, and suffice me with regard to all my needs in the world and the Hereafter!
“O Allah, I beseech You, with regard to the definite, inevitable and irrevocable matters that You ordain and decree on the Night of Ordainment, to write me among those pilgrims of Your sacred House whose Hajj is graced with acceptance, whose sacy is appreciated, and who are forgiven their sins and absolved of their misdeeds! Appoint for me, in what You decree and ordain, a long life [spent in obedience to You] and expand my provision and redeem my trusts and debts. Amen! O Lord of all the worlds!”
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