In the blessed month of Ramadan, we have come to the grand finale , The last ten days of Ramadan that are even more blessed than the rest of Ramadan. In its a night that Quran tells us is better than 1000 months ( months not days )
The messenger of ALLAH ( Peace be upon him ) said :
" There has come to you Ramadan, a blessed month which ALLAH has enjoined you to fast, during which the gates of heaven are open and the gate of hell are closed, and the rebellious devils are chained up. In it there is a night which is better than a thousand months, and whoever is deprived of its goodness is indeed deprived "
( Narrated by al-Nasa'i,2106: Ahmad, 8769. Classed as Sahih by Al-Albani in Sahih Al-Targheeb 999. )
So, in preparation of grand finale, here is checklist of some of the things that we can all do to make the remaining days of Ramadan work to our advantage.
Get In High Gear For The Next 10 Days and Nights :
Time is of the essence, Every moment count. Whatever you need to do for the next ten days to make the most in Ibada, Good Deeds, Reciting Quran, Dhikr, Making Dua etc., rewards are going to be multiplied. No one knew about the importance more than the Prophet (Saws) . Al-Bukhari and Muslims narrated from Ayesha ( May ALLAH be pleased with her ) that when the last ten days of Ramadan began, the Prophet ( Peace Be Upon Him ) would stay up at night, wake up his family and tie his lower garment tight. According to Ahmad and Muslim : He would strive hard in worship during the last ten nights of Ramadan as he did not do at other times.
Time is of the essence, Every moment count. Whatever you need to do for the next ten days to make the most in Ibada, Good Deeds, Reciting Quran, Dhikr, Making Dua etc., rewards are going to be multiplied. No one knew about the importance more than the Prophet (Saws) . Al-Bukhari and Muslims narrated from Ayesha ( May ALLAH be pleased with her ) that when the last ten days of Ramadan began, the Prophet ( Peace Be Upon Him ) would stay up at night, wake up his family and tie his lower garment tight. According to Ahmad and Muslim : He would strive hard in worship during the last ten nights of Ramadan as he did not do at other times.
Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurraya Said " When Ramadan would come, the messenger of ALLAH would say,
Verily, the month of Ramadan has come to you all. It is a blessed month, which ALLAH has obligated you all to fast. During it the gates of paradise are opened, the gates of hell are closed and the devils are shackled. " In it there is a night that is better than one thousand months. Whoever is deprived of its good, then he has truly been deprived "
An-Nasa'i recorded this same Hadith.
If we lose this opportunity, we get our next opportunity next year assuming we are still around and are in good health and shape to make use of it. Even if we are -- we have the past years, sins on our shoulders and life's normal trials and tribulations to face the coming year. So, there is no better time to ask ALLAH to make all that easier than now.
Get A Quran And Recite As Often As You Can :
A few lines on this post can't even come close to explaining the benefits and virtues of Quran. It is proven in the Sahih Sunnah that the Quran will intercede for those who read it at night, As Ahmad ( 6626 ) narrated from 'Abd-ALLAH ibn 'Amr that the messenger of ALLAH ( Peace be upon him ) said :
Fasting and the Quran intercede for a person on Day of resurrection. Fasting will say 'O Lord, i deprived him of his food and his desires during the day, So let me intercede for him. 'And the Quran will say ' I deprived him of him sleep at night so let me intercede for him, Then they will intercede.
( Narrated by Ahmad: Classes as Sahih by Al-Albani in Sahih-Al-Jamih, No-3882. )
Narrated Abu Mussa : The Prophet Said ,
The example of the believer who recites the Quran is that of a citron ( a citrus fruit ) which is good in taste and good in smell. And the believer who does not recite the Quran is like a date which has a good taste but no smell. And the example of an impious person who recites the Quran is that of Ar-Rihana ( an aromatic plant ) which smells good but bitter in taste. And the example of an impious person who does not recite the Quran is that of a colocynth which is bitter in taste and has no smell. ' (Book # 93 , Hadith # 649)As is stated in the Hadith narrated by 'Abd-ALLAH ibn 'Amr ibn 'Al-Aas (May ALLAH be pleased with both of them), in which the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said :
Whoever recites ten aayaats (verses) in qiyaam will not be recorded as one of the forgetful. Whoever recites hundred aayaats (verses) in qiyaam will be recorded as one of the devout, and whoever recites thousand aayaats (verses) in qiyaam will be recorded as one of the muqantreen (those who pile up good deeds)
( Reported by Abu Dawood and Ibn Hibban. It is a Hassan report, Sahih Al-Taghreeb, 635 )
If Your Sins Are Holding You To Move Forward, This Is The Time To Get Them Fogiven :
First the bad news, In Musnad Ahmad Its is narrated that Thawbaan said : The Messenger Of ALLAH (Saw) Said :
" A man is deprived of provision (Rizq) because of the sins he commits "
( Narrated by Ibn-e-Maajah,4022 Classes as Hassan by Al-Albani in Sahih Ibn-e-Maajah )
And now for the good news ..
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (May ALLAH be pleased with him) that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) Said :
" Whoever spends the night of Laylat Al Qadar in prayer out of faith and in the hope of reward, will be forgiven his previous sins "
What To Say On Laylat Al Qadar :
One of the best dua's that can be recited on Laylat-Al-Qadar is that which the Prophet (Peace be upon him) taught Ayesha (May ALLAH be pleased with her). It was narrated by Al-Tirmidhi, who classed is as Sahih, that
Ayesha said : '' O messenger of ALLAH ( Peace be upon with him ), If i know which night is Laylat-Al-Qadar, what should i say ? He said : '' Say : Allahumma Innaka 'afuwwun tuhibb al-afwa fa'fu anni ' ( O ALLAH You Are All Forgiving And You Love Forgiveness and Forgive Me )
Get In The Class Of Pious People :
ALLAH has described the pious as follows ( Interpretation of the meaning ):
" They used to sleep but little by night (invoking their Lord ALLAH) and praying with fear and hope. "
[Quran : Surah Adh-Dhariyat (17) ]
" And in this hours before dawn, they were (found) asking (ALLAH) for forgiveness. "
[Quran : Surah Adh-Dhariyat (18) ]
Finally .. :
Think of all that you need to ask ALLAH for and ask him now. If you haven't before, this is the time to connect with him and feel closer to him. And when you do during these last ten nights and days of this Ramadan, you would want to do this again and again - even after the month is over.
And finally when you are in state of prayers and worship, please open your heart for others as well and please do remember your brothers and sisters in your prayers. Remember what the Prophet said :
" The supplication that gets the quickest answer is the one made by one Muslim for another in his absence. "
Reported by Abu Dawood And Trimidhi
May we all make the most of the last ten nights and days of Ramadan.