Eid-ul-Fitr: A Day of Harvest

A great blessed month has just left us; a month which each of us has no guarantee of seeing next year. All we can still hope is that Allah (twt) answers our prayers and supplications and accepts all our acts of worship (Ibaadat) and sacrifices made throughout the past month and grant us the promised rewards. Alhamdulillah (Praise be to Allah), the holy month of Ramadan has allowed Muslims to meet together, to converge en masse to the mosques, and besides they have committed themselves to fasting for the sake of Allah. Thus, the mosque found for the space of a month, its life and beauty.

How to explain this phenomenon? What could be the explanation for this behaviour if it is not faith (Iman in Allah) the driving force behind it all! Indeed, who is that Muslim who does not know the grandeur, splendour and importance of this month? The Muslim knows that any negligence would lead to his own loss as the chief of all angels, Hazrat Jibreel (as) has cursed the person who has foregone this opportunity to get divine forgiveness. The head of all prophets (as), the “Amin” (Worthy of Trust) Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) said “Ameen” to this curse.

If the faith of the Muslim enables him to have high regard for this month, so where does his Iman (faith) disappear when the new moon of Shawwal appears (for the Eid), and when he deserts the house of Allah? If he knows the blessings of Allah (twt) that are included in the holy month of Ramadan, he must also know the blessings that are included in Salat (Namaz). If he is aware of the serious consequences of his carelessness during Ramadan, he should probably be also aware of the negative consequences resulting from the abandonment of Salat. Why then this carelessness, indifference towards this great Ibaadat which the Namaz is?

'Eid' in the Times of a 'Khalifatullah'

THE TWO FESTIVALS OF MUSLIMS

We Muslims belonging to the spiritual family of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) and Islam have two festivals, two days of celebrations which Allah (twt) has given us as moments of joy and as a token of His love and satisfaction to the sacrifices we happily do for His sake, as per the fulfilment of His divine commandments. These two moments of joys are the Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha.

The Eid-ul-Fitr comes after the blessed month of Ramadan, the month of fasting for the sake of Allah with the intention to reap the harvest of Allah’s proximity and belonging to Him heart and soul. As for the Eid-ul-Adha, it is what is known as the greater Eid, the greater celebration as it concludes the Hajj rites and commemorates the great sacrifice of the Patriarch and Prophet of Allah, Ibrahim (as) and his devoted son Prophet Ismail (as).

By the grace of Allah, after a month of Ramadan, we are to celebrate the Eid-ul-Fitr, Insha-Allah, tomorrow. This Eid (Joy) is of the essence of Allah and reflects the devotion of the faster who sacrificed himself and his way of life for a whole (lunar) month just for the sake of Allah, as fasting during this blessed month has as reward Allah Himself.

THE SUNNAT ALLAH CONCERNING THE ADVENT OF DIVINE ELECTS

And by the grace of Almighty Allah, Allah has enabled us (Ahmadi Muslims) to be born Muslims and also belonging to the spiritual family and identity of the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) who came more than 100 years ago with a rise of a new century to bring people from darkness into light.

It is Sunnat Allah (the blessed practice of our Lord Almighty, Allah) that whenever the original divine message is in danger of extinction, that is, when people have deviated from the right path and has taken their own souls as prisoners and cast them in the dungeon of unfaith, then Allah, merciful as ever, before seizing them with His mighty punishment, chooses to send to them, time after time, era after era someone from Him to bring back the pristine message of Islam, the pristine divine message.

It is a reality which existed since the dawn of time and which the Quran highlights that those in power try to manipulate the mass so that the people listen to what the corrupted divines have to say instead of the true Messengers of Allah who come to the world with the Ruh-il-Quddus (Holy Spirit) to warn mankind and to give good news of the approval and pleasure of Allah when those who come forward embrace the divine light which is offered to them.

If the teachings of Islam as a whole were being manipulated by the so-called divines and scholars so much so that Allah saw the need to send the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), then do you think that now the people in the Jamaat of the Promised Messiah (as) shall remain as devoted and pure as when the Ruh-il-Quddus was still descending on the Promised Messiah (as) when he was yet alive?

Money: Spend Prudently

Money is not easy to obtain, especially if we mean the lawful source of money. Certainly, the acquisition of wealth requires great efforts. “One must work to earn his bread” is a phrase we hear very often. 

Allah, the Regulator of all that is in this world and in heaven has commanded us in His Blessed Book:

“It is He Who has made the earth manageable for you, so walk through its tracts and enjoy of the Sustenance which He furnishes: but unto Him is the Resurrection.” (67: 16).

Allah is the Lord of immense grace, and all that is in heaven and on earth belongs to Him. Therefore, man must know that although he is the actor of his efforts, but all that which is in his hand really belongs to Allah. Allah is He Who has power over everything he is and everything he owns. Certainly man is not the true owner of the property/wealth which is in his hands. Allah exposes this fact very clearly in His Glorious Book: “And give them of the wealth of Allah which He has given you.” (24: 34). 

If this is the case, man must be very careful about how he spends his wealth. The Quran, best guide for humanity gives him better guidance about it. “Those who when they spend, are neither extravagant nor niggardly, but they hold a just balance between the two.” (25: 68). The believer should not be an extravagant spender and on the other hand, he/she must not also be stingy. He must hold firm to a just position between the two, practicing the middle way.

Wealth is without a doubt a great trial, or even a great temptation. When a person accumulates money, he tends to make unnecessary expenses. Like the one who buys what he wants as and when he pleases without even reaping the benefit of this money/expenditure in any way. Otherwise he tries to have the money multiplied through illicit means or thrown in gambling without taking into account the great lost that awaits him both in this world and in the hereafter. Or he may spend this money in vain pursuits (reaping no benefit whatsoever) such as alcoholic drinks, cigarettes, giant screens (home cinemas), etc.

'Value Your Life'

Neither the existence of man nor his presence on earth is due to chance and without purpose. Its creation is a divine decree for specific purposes. Undoubtedly, and without exaggeration, he is the only creature whom the Supreme Creator, Allah has preferred to others.

“And We have certainly honoured the children of Adam and carried them on the land and sea and provided for them of the good things, and conferred on them special favours, above a great part of Our creation.” (17: 71).

His superiority over other creatures occurs in different ways: Allah granted him free will, and he has a spirit that allows him to distinguish good from evil. He has also a soul which has been created by Allah and which He has breathed into him to make him human, and holder of some divine attributes.

True Piety: Being Mindful of God

RIGHTEOUSNESS & SUBMISSION TO ALLAH

 

Who is a Mumin (Muslim)? How to become a good Muslim? These are questions which Allah answered in several of the verses of the Quran and which are also found in the Hadiths of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). Allah says in the Quran:

Righteousness (Devotion to Allah) is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, 

but (true) righteousness is (in) one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveller, those who ask (for help), and for freeing slaves; 

(and who) establishes prayer and gives Zakah; (those who) fulfil their promise when they promise; and (those who) are patient in poverty and hardship and during battle. 

Those are the ones who have been true, and it is those who are the righteous/God-fearing. (2: 178)

Righteousness which comes from the heart and which is a vital instrument to obtain true piety (Taqwa) is found in obedience to Allah in all the commandments which He has established for His male and female servants on earth. Be them men or women, young or old, all have duties towards Allah, such duties which they have to respect so that they may become true servants of Allah.

The Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) has said:

“How wonderful is the situation of the believer, for all his affairs are good. If something good happens to him, he gives thanks for it and that is good for him; if something bad happens to him, he bears it with patience, and that is good for him. This does not apply to anyone but the believer.” (Muslim)

But I have to mention also that there are stages in the types of believers, like Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) expounds to us: “A strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than a weak believer”.

Despite the fact that a believer remains a believer as he believes in Allah and all that which He has prescribed, but not all believers 100 % succeed in establishing/put into practice all that which Allah has ordained him to do. There are even some who go on to lose their faith while believing that they were doing a good deed while they were on the contrary attracting the displeasure of Allah upon them. There are some who do good deeds, partly for the eyes of Allah, and partly for the eyes of people (ostentation). Therefore, this finally annuls the deed because of the weakness displayed in the fulfilment of that good deed.

Verily, someone, especially someone who says that he is Muslim, who says that he believes in Allah and all that which Allah has told him to believe (i.e., belief in Allah, His angels, prophets, divine books, destiny and the rewards and punishments of the afterlife) shall not succeed in anything if he does not submit to the will of Allah. The devotion which he says he has (towards Allah) shall become useless if he does not follow that devotion/righteousness with sincerity of the heart.

'Ruh-il-Quddus' and 'Laila-tul-Qadr'

“The month of Ramadan (is that month) in which the Quran was revealed as guidance for mankind, clear proofs of right guidance, and criterion (for distinguishing right and wrong). So whoever of you witnesses this month, let him fast it.” (2: 186)

The Quran is the living miracle revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and is the perfect Word of Allah (twa). It explains to us where we come from and where we are going to, and leads us to the path of eternal bliss, that is, paradise, but it also warns us at the same time of hell and all paths which culminate to hell. It is a means of education, inspiration, physical, mental and spiritual healing, yet the sad reality is that as we continue to preserve the text, we have lost the meaning and injunctions, due to our poor understanding.

There is no means of deliverance in this Ummah, unless we return to the Book of Allah. Indeed the Quran may be guidance for humanity, but not all those who read it are guided, for such guidance has been preserved for selected individuals (the Muttaqeen, that is, the God-fearing and those who guard themselves against evil) who wish to sincerely tread upon this enlightened path of ultimate guidance. Not only does the meaning of the Quran inspire people from all over the world, the words alone bear a magnetic force and have the ability to move people, who may not know a word of Arabic.

The Quran, revealed in the mother tongue of the best of mankind, our beloved prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), and mother of all tongues has stood the test of time for more than fourteen centuries and verily no other scripture can boast of such an achievement. Rivers change their courses, kingdoms rise and fall, languages become extinct along with its people and new ones are developed, but not the Quran. Of course this preservation is due to the divine promise made in the Quran itself, and verily Allah has enabled this miraculous preservation through the love, devotion and care that generations of Muslim showed towards the Quran but most importantly Allah accomplishes this task through raising from time to time His chosen people, the messengers and reformers of Islam to uphold the sanctity of the Quran and to expound it to others.

I'tikaaf and 'Laila-tul-Qadr'

Ramadan: Supplications to Allah

Du’a is an act of worship which also acts as one of the most important and powerful weapons of a believer in this world. Du’a can help a person defend himself from any type of evil, be humble knowing that he is weak and vulnerable without Allah’s help and thus get closer to Allah (swt). A believer knows that without Allah he is nothing, and to accede to peace from every and any direction, he needs to equip himself with such spiritual weapon which shall grant him access to the Lord of the Worlds, and Ultimate Protector of mankind, so that this weapon, i.e. Du’a becomes effective as and when he uses it in his everyday life. As we are living the blessed days of the Holy month of Ramadhan, it is good to know that du’a can be of a great avail to us, and we Muslims should make use of this spiritual weapon and means for peace to accede to the stages of honour and pleasure which Allah grants to those who seek him through prayer and supplications.

Allah (swt) says in the Holy Quran, right after the verse of the prescription of fasting in Ramadhan:

“And when My servants ask you, (Oh Prophet), concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them obey Me and believe in Me that they may be (rightly) guided.” (2: 187)

When we take into account the place this verse occupies in the Holy Quran, we will find that it is between the verses concerning fasting. This alone brings on the importance of Du’a when fasting, as fasting holds a very great importance and significance in Islam.

Abu Said narrates from the prophet (pbuh) that: “No Muslim supplicates to Allah with a Du’a that does not involve sin or cutting the relations of the womb (i.e. the blood/family relations), but Allah will grant him one of the three things. He will either hasten the response to his supplication, save it for him until the Hereafter, or would turn an equivalent amount of evil away from him.” 

They (the companions) said, “What if we were to recite more (Du’a).” 

He said, “There is more with Allah.” (Ahmad)