Calendar

The blessing of time

Our Beloved Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), when stating the importance of time, used the following statement: “There are two blessings that many people are deceived into losing: health and free time” (Bukhari, Riqaq, 1). As this hadith reminds us what a great gift time is, at the same time, it emphasizes that it can be  irreversibly wasted unless one learns to truly appreciate it. 

Being aware of time and using it as a fortune for eternal life is the responsibility of all Muslims. Unfortunately, we can forget this responsibility and be deceived by the transient pleasures of this world; we end up wasting our time in ways that only deepen our obliviousness and cause us to devolve into complacency in our failure to uphold what truly matters. We need an awakening, a remembrance, a good shake to get us out of this fugue state, get a grip on ourselves, and return to our essence. We desire to find an opportunity or occasion to turn from our mistakes and turn our faces towards the horizons of eternity. For such a refreshing beginning, Allah Almighty has bestowed upon us some blessed occasions, special times to remember the sense of servanthood and turn to our Rabb. Praise be to Allah, who created time and rules over it and brought us together with these precious times of year again. We are approaching the season of recomposition, recovery, and life, the three holy months...

Towards the Blessed Three Months

The three holy months are a period of spiritual, mental, and physical refreshment and recovery for Muslims. Its value is high. When the month of Rajab entered, Our Beloved Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) prayed as follows:

“O Allah, make Rajab and Shaban blessed for us and bring us to Ramadan.” (Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, I, 259)

The months of Rajab, Shaban, and Ramadan, which are honored with the blessed prayers of the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), are the perfect times. The Islamic ummah finds itself, and Muslims make stronger their spiritual construction in these times. Divine mercy and overflowing blessings fill the hearts of Muslims with peace and tranquility. The air of mercy that surrounds and embraces all Muslims, young and old alike, as if purifying the whole society, shakes off the dust of the sins gathered throughout the year.

The following statement of our Beloved Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) emphasizes the importance attributed to these months:

“Rajab is the month of Allah, Shaban is my month, and Ramadan is the month of my Ummah.” 

The month of Rajab and its two holy nights: Raghaib and Mi’raj

The month of Rajab is the seventh month of the lunar calendar and the beginning of the three months. This blessed month, which will begin on February 2 this year, is one of the months called "haram months."

Our Beloved Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said about the month of Rajab:

“Ask Allah Almighty for forgiveness a lot in the month of Rajab. This is because Allah has servants whom He freed from Jahannam at every time of the month of Rajab. There are such mansions in Jannah that only those who fast in the month of Rajab will enter them.” (Daylami)

“Allah Almighty multiplies goodness in the month of Rajab. Whoever fasts for one day in this month will receive rewards as if he had fasted for a year. The gates of Jahannam are closed for those who fast for seven days. Eight gates of Jannah will be opened to those who fast for eight days. Whoever fasts for ten days, Allah will give what he wants. A herald calls to the one who fasts for fifteen days; 'Your past sins are forgiven.' Allah Almighty put Nuh (alayhissalam) on the ship in the month of Rajab. He also fasted in the month of Rajab and ordered his companions to fast.” (Tabarani)

There are two blessed nights in Rajab. One of them is Raghaib and the other is the night of Miraj. The night of Raghaib is on Thursday, February 3, and the night of Miraj is on Sunday, February 27.

“Raghaib” means the gifting or granting of that which is desired. This night, in which worship, obedience, and good deeds are rewarded by Allah in abundance because at the same time it lands on a Friday, it is a double celebration for Muslims.

Our Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) informed us that the prayers made on the night of Raghaib will not be rejected. Therefore, on this first blessed night of the three holy months, we should seek forgiveness from the Almighty, and hope for the bestowal of blessings and honors. This night is the night of hope, trust, and expectation.

The next blessed night in the holy months, after the night of Raghaib, is the night of Mi’raj. It is the night in which Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) performed the miracle known as al-Isra (The Night Journey) and traveled from Masjid al-Haram in Makkah to Masjid al-Aqsa in Al-Quds. From there, he ascended—hence the name Mi’raj for the night and the miracle itself—through heavens beyond imagination to ultimately meet with Allah the Almighty. The Isra, or the part of this journey taking place between Makkah and Al-Quds, is mentioned in the Qur’an with the following ayah:

“Exalted is He who took His Servant [i.e., Prophet Muḥammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam)] by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing.” (Al-Isra, 1)

On that night, Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) bestowed three gifts. Our Beloved Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) brought these gifts to his ummah when he returned from this blessed meeting: praying salah five times a day, the last two ayahs of the surah Al-Baqarah, and the glad tidings that those of his ummah who do not commit shirk against Allah will eventually enter Jannah even if they face punishment in the afterlife.

We hope that the three holy months will bring great khayr to the Islamic world. We hope to benefit from the blessings and grace that Almighty Allah will send down upon mankind.

To truly appreciate these blessed times

There are certain goals we can pursue and make into our objective during this season of mercy to spend the blessed three months with blessings and truly experience the spiritual atmosphere:

• We should take care to perform our salahsin congregation.
• If we have qada prayers, we should perform them, otherwise, we should focus on nafilah prayers as much as we can.
• We should try to start and keep up the Sunnah fasts.
• We should read the Qur’an a lot, try to understand it and contemplate on it if possible.
• By reviewing our duties as a servant of Allah, we must address our weaknesses and mistakes. We should take advantage of these blessed nights to save ourselves from the sins that we have made into habits.
• We should take the opportunity for the forgiveness of our sins in the blessed three months and frequently ask for forgiveness with sincerity.
• We should get closer with our relatives, neighbors, and friends.
• We should extend our helping hand to the poor and give significant alms in proportion to our budget.