The Prayer Center of Orland Park

Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Do you know who is bankrupt?” They answered, “The one without money or goods is bankrupt.” The Prophet said, “Verily, the bankrupt of my nation is the one who comes on the Day of Resurrection with prayers, fasting, and charity, but also with insults, slander, consuming wealth, shedding blood, and beating others. The ones whom he had oppressed will each be given compensation from his good deeds. If his good deeds run out before justice is fulfilled, then the sins of the oppressed will be cast upon him and he will be thrown into the Hellfire.”

In this Hadith, you can see that all the deeds that a person presents to Allah on the Day of Judgment are liable to be used as a compensation to people he had wronged in this life. Interestingly, fasting is exempted from that! The prophet (SAAW) said in a holy Hadith that Allah (SW) said: “Every deed of the son of Adam is for him except fasting; it is for Me, and I shall reward for it.” One of the meanings of this Hadith is that it will not be used to compensate people as Hasanat for injustices against them.  Another meaning is that fasting is a secret act of worship to Allah, and anyone who does it proves he or she is a true believer. A third meaning is that generally, from a historical perspective, no other deities were worshipped through fasting, only God was worshipped through fasting. Throughout history, people were performing prayers to their gods, giving donations or offering sacrifices, but rarely did people fast for the sake of this idol or that.

Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “When the month of Ramadan begins, the gates of heaven are opened, and the gates of Hellfire are closed, and the devils are chained.”

From this Hadith, people think that the main reason behind the decreased number of evil acts by humans is only the inability of devils to whisper because they are chained. While such a concept is true that Allah (SW) is the One who masters all of that, but at the same time people sometimes fail to acknowledge the difference in their own choices. During Ramadan, Muslims busy themselves fasting and donating and doing good deeds, and they are less likely to be focusing on doing bad deeds. In other words, when we as people choose to act on good deeds (by the Will of Allah SW), indeed less time and thought and effort will be spent on evil things, with or without the whispers of devils.

Ibn Umar reported: Whenever the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, saw the new crescent moon, he would say, “Allah is the greatest! O Allah bring it over us with safety and faith, peace and Islam, and guidance to what our Lord loves and is pleased with. Our Lord and your Lord is Allah.”

In this Hadith, the words of Dua said by the prophet (SAAW) demonstrated the relationship of Muslims with the world around them. Scholars say the Quran is the dictated Book of Allah and the world is the visual Book of Allah. When people look at all that Allah (SW) has created, they see His Power (SW) demonstrated in a way that leaves no space but to rush to prayers and Duas. In this Dua of the prophet (SAAW), praise to Allah (Allah Akbar) was followed by a call for blessings, faith, safety, submission and a path of guidance to what God loves. When someone sees the crescent of the moon created by God, a sign of beginning an act of worship to please God, you can see the harmony between nature and the human beings, joined in submission to Allah.

Hope and positive thoughts are always the foundation of believers contemplating God’s creations.

We hope and pray that this Ramadan comes upon us with safety and blessings and that the COVID-19 pandemic is vanished from this world. Our hearts are filled with the joy of Ramadan blessings and the sadness of empty mosques. May Allah protect us, shower us with mercy and forgiveness, and keep our hope alive to return to our mosques and normal life again. Ameen.

Ramadan Mubarak to you all.

By Sh Kifah Mustapha

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