Imam Muhyi-ud-Din Al-Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim
Muslims all round the world are commanded by God Almighty to fast the month of Ramadan. Ramadan is such a blessed month wherein the very first verses of the Holy Quran – the Holy words of Allah – were revealed to Muhammad (pbuh) through the Chief of all angels, Jibreel (Gabriel). Those first revelations have the power even today to make the true believer tremble with awe and love. Its very evocation brings about solace and happiness for the believer at the divine boon received in that blessed moment in time.
Twenty-nine or thirty days of blessings: yet, those days hold therein a concealed night, wrapped in the mystery of divine knowledge, to deliver to those who successfully attain and receive it, the blessings of a lifetime. The Night of Decree (Layla-tul-Qadr) as this night is called is like the most precious of pearls, more precious than any treasure in this world. It is the gateway to such divine blessings which can erase a sincere person’s sins and make him pure like a newborn babe.
Through our limited knowledge of religion, through the knowledge passed on down the lanes of time, we have heard of the Divine Mercy and Forgiveness. Through the advent of Islam and the perfection of the Divine Laws through it, God Almighty has granted those who want to accede to Him and to wash away their fears, weaknesses and sins such a mighty blessing that can assure for them such degrees of His Mercy – unheard of before Islam – which can bring them to purity, and it gives them at the same time the ability to redirect their lives to the accomplishment of good, and to abandon every kind of evil.
Ramadan is that month wherein an intense training for the reform of the self is expected from each believer. Only the sincere thrives and gets its fruits. It demands sacrifices which the true believer gladly does, all for the sake of Allah (God Almighty). It has the ability to reinforce the spiritual willpower of the believers, and if they (whether male or female) were beforehand weak and wobbly in their faith, then Ramadan provides them with the time and means to correct their imperfections and to strive to perfection in faith, and to attain to Divine Love.
Ramadan culminates in Eid-ul-Fitr, such a day which is ordained to be that of rejoice and where fasting is forbidden. It is a day where the sincere faster gets to become closer to Allah by attaining the goal, that is, after fulfilling every demand of Ramadan as per the Divine Commandments. It grants the believer the opportunity for thanksgiving to Allah by praying to Him early in the morning and clothing himself in his best clean clothes so that he may not only greet His Lord in His exclusive meeting with Him (in prayer) but also to meet his brethren (brothers and sisters and even children) and to pour down his heartfelt prayers upon them. The invocation of blessings on one another is very important on that day. It invites to God’s Mercy on one’s own soul. The believer who thinks about others and strives to increase his good deeds – done with the best intentions – is that one who is granted nearness to his Creator. The more a believer does good, the more he accumulates exclusive divine points which assures for himself Paradise. And what is Paradise? It is that place of everlasting peace and tranquillity, of freedom and untiring prayer which increases the inner beauty of each and every soul which has the blessed opportunity to enter therein. There is only good and purity for them under the merciful gaze of their Lord. Paradise is that reward which all believers strive to acquire, and the higher the degree of spirituality they attain to, the closer they get to Allah.
I wish to all my sincere Muslim brothers, sisters and children all the perfect blessings of Ramadan, Layla-tul-Qadr and Eid-ul-Fitr. In these times of afflictions for the innocent Muslims who are suffering in the world, especially those in Palestine, and all those who are bereft of their rights to be Muslims, I invoke Allah’s everlasting blessings, mercy and forgiveness on them. May Allah grant them high stations in His Paradise, and may their sufferings end, and may the Divine Justice overtake this world and save all the innocent lives suffering for His Cause. Insha-Allah, Ameen.
Ramadan, Layla-Tul Qadr & Eid Mubarak!
Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam