The

Chishti Nizami Habibi Soofie 

International Sufi Order

Pietermaritzburg

South Africa

786/92  

Ramadaan-Spiritual Preparation

Sura 2:Verse 183

Hasan al Basri (Radiallahu anhu) reports that whenever one hears Allah saying, " O' Believers!" one must pay close attention for the words alert one to a commandment one has to obey, or a prohibition one must not disobey. The noun Ramadaan and the verb Rumiddat is derived from the tri-consonantal root r-m-d that conveys the basic idea, of," being scorched, or intensely heated by the sun". According to Hadith, this blessed month has a scorching effect upon sins; i.e. it burns sins away. This month washes away sins from our spiritual bodies, and causes our ‘spiritual heart’ (qalb[1]) to experience a period of purification.

In a sermon delivered on the last day of Shabaan[2], the Holy Prophet (Salla'llahu'alaihi wa sallam) said,

1.      that Ramadaan contains a night that is better than a thousand months and

2.      the fast during this month is obligatory.

3.      to observe ‘night vigil’[3] is a voluntary practise.

4.      that a voluntary deed during this month is rewarded as fulfilling an obligation

5.      an obligatory duty fulfilled is rewarded seventy fold

6.       it is a month to exercise patiently endure and the reward for patience is paradise.

7.      it is the month to give charity and the month in which the sustenance of a true believer is increased.

8.      he who provides iftaar for a fasting person his sins will be forgiven and he will be saved from hell fire.

9.      that the beginning of the month is a mercy, the middle is forgiveness and the last part is deliverance from the fire of hell.

10.  that he who eases the burden of his workersin this month will be forgiven and freed from hell.

 Four practises should be cultivated during this month:

1.      Repeatedly testifying, "there is no god except Allah"

2.       begging Allah's forgiveness which will earn one Allah's good pleasure.

3.      imploring Allah to grant one paradise and

4.      taking refuge with Him from the fire of Hell.

He also said that the gates of paradise are open on the first night of Ramadaan[4] and will not be closed until the last day, whilst the gates of the fire of hell are closed and the devils are tied away. Every act of prostration in this month earns the reward of seventeen hundred good deeds. Seventy thousand angels beg forgiveness for a fasting person.

The nights of Ramadaan must be spent with Allah consciousness for it is said in a Hadith that Allah asks three times every night,

It is also stated that on each day of Ramadaan at the time after iftaar one million of Allah's servants are forgiven by Him although they were previously damned. On a Thursday night one million are delivered every hour and on the last day of Ramadaan an equal number of all previously saved during the month will be delivered from damnation.

Shaykh Abd al-Qadir Jilani (Rahmatullahi alaihi) says’ “the word Ramadaan is made up of five letters, raa, meem, dad. alif and nuun. The ra stands for ridwaanullah (Allah's good pleasure). meem stands for muhabatullah (love of Allah). The daad stands for damanullah (Allah's assurance of spiritual reward. The letter alif stands for ulfatullah (intimate affection and nearness to Allah). The final letter nuun stands for nurullah (the radiant light of Allah). This means that the month of Ramadaan is the month of considerate behaviour, the giving of assurance, the sharing of intimate affection, the shedding of light, the bestowal of benefits, and generous respect for the saints and righteous.”

May we spend our nights and day in the remembrance of Allah and his Beloved Rasul (Salla'llahu'alaihi wa sallam)

i. Soofi

17/12/98

27 Shabaan 1419.