Keep the spirit of Ramadhaan alive all year

As we enter upon the month of Shawaal, let us not leave off the many
acts of worship we performed during the blessed month of Ramadhaan.
Ramadhaan, for most of us, was a time of renewal and reestablishment
of our commitment to Allaah and His religion.
We fasted, gave charity, read the Quran and performed the night
prayer. We avoided gossip, slander and every evil that would
invalidate our fasting. But now that Ramadhaan is over, the majority
of us, unfortunately, willput the Quran back on the shelves, will
suspend fasting untilnext year and will abandon the night prayer. This
is not the way it should be, because all of these acts of worship
carry rewards and are of benefit to us throughout the year, in
addition to the fact that there is no divine prescription limiting
them to Ramadhaan.
The Quran
It's sad, but true, that many of ushave fallen into the bad habit of
only reciting the Quran during the month of Ramadhaan. By doing this,
we cheat ourselves out of the abundant blessings that come from
reading the words of Allaah. Reading the Quran is the best way to
remember Allaah, it is a protection from the Satan and in it are cures
for what ails us. For Allaah says (what means):"O mankind, there has
come to you a protection from your Lord and a healing for what is in
your hearts and for those who believe,a guidance and a mercy."[Quran;
10:57]
The Messenger of Allaahsaid:"Whoever reads a letter of the Book of
Allaah (Quran) shall have a good deed (recorded for him orher) and
every good deed is increased a ten-fold (reward). I do not say that
Alif Laam Meem isone letter, but rather Alif is a letter, Laam is a
letter and Meem is a letter."[At-Tirmithi]
The Quran is also the best way fora servant to draw closer to his or
her Lord. Khabbaab Ibn Al-Aratsaid to a man: "Draw closer to Allaah as
much asyou can, andremember that you can do so by no means more
pleasing to Him than by His own Words (i.e. the Quran)."
The Night Prayer
Many of us passed the nights of the month of Ramadhaan, especially the
last ten, standing in prayer before Allaah. Just because Ramadhaan is
over, doesnot mean that Allaah does not see us now if we stand in the
night prayer. Allaah Says (what means):"Surely your Lord knows (O
Muhammad) that you stand (inprayer) two thirds of the night, or half
of it, or a third of it..."[Quran; 73:20]
The Messenger of Allaahsaid:"The best prayer, after the obligatory
prayer, is the night prayer."[Muslim]
The night prayer carries with it many blessings. For example,
Al-Hassanwas asked: "How is it that those who stay up at night have
the most attractive faces?" Hereplied, "Because they are on intimate
terms with The Merciful, and He adorns themwith some of His light."
And for those of us who feel that standing in the night prayer will
leave us tired and unable to go about our daily tasks in the morning,
we should consider the following words of Allaah's Prophet.
Hesaid:"When any of you sleeps, Satan ties three knots at the back of
his head. On each knot he repeats and exhalesthe following words, 'The
night islong, so stay asleep.' If you wake up and remember Allaah, one
knot is undone and if you perform ablution the second knot is undone
and if you pray, the third knot is undone, and youget up in the
morning full of energy and with a clear heart. Otherwise, you will get
up feelinglazy and with a muddled heart."[Al-Bukhaari]
Fasting
The Prophetsaid: "Whoever fasts a day in the way of Allaah, Allaah
will place between him and the Fire a trench like that between the
heavens and the earth." [At-Tirmithi]
Likewise, fasting wipes away the evils that arise out of person's
wealth, family or neighbor. Huthayfah Ibn Al-Yamaannarrated that the
Messenger of Allaahsaid:"The evils caused for a man through his
family, wealth and neighbor are expiated by prayer, fasting and
charity."[Al-Bukhaari]
The Prophetexplained to us that fasting protects us from our unlawful
desires, shields us from the hell fire and draws us closer to Allaah
and His Paradise. Healso encouraged us to fast at least three days
each month. The best days for this optional fastingare Mondays and
Thursdays, or the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth days of the
lunar month.
Charity
Allaah has blessed most of us to live relatively comfortable lives.
But there are Muslims all over theworld that find great difficulty in
attaining the most basic necessities of life. During Ramadhaan most of
us give in charity, but we forget to do so for the rest of the year.
Giving charity is of greater benefit to theone who gives it, than to
the one who receives it. It is a means of purifying our wealth,
increasing our faith and attaining righteousness. Allaah Says (what
means):"It is not righteousness that you turn your faces towards the
East or West, but it is righteousness to believe in Allaah, and the
Last Day, and the angels, and the Books, and the prophets and gives
wealth, in spite of love for it,to the kinsfolk,the orphans, the
needy, and to the wayfarer..."[Quran; 2:177]
Giving in charity also allows us to express our faith. To truly taste
the sweetness of faith, we must want for our brothers and sisterswhat
we want for ourselves. For the Prophetsaid:"None of you will have
faith until he likes for his (Muslim) brother what he likes for
himself."[Al-Bukhaari]
Clearly, fasting, praying during the night, reading the Book of Allaah
and giving charity should not be relegated to Ramadhaan alone. These
good deeds, and others like staying away from gossip and slander, are
all things we should do all the time. By keeping the spirit of
Ramadhaan alive throughout the year, we cansafeguard our religion and
will beable to seize many opportunities to earn the mercy and
blessings of Allaah.