4 Inspirations From Ramadan

All thanks and praises are due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. May His Peace and Blessings be upon our Holy Prophet, Habibi Muhammad, his family members, his companions and those who follow their path till the Day of Judgment.

In Ramadhan, everyone strives to fast in the days of the month as perfectly as possible and to carry out other righteous deeds as much as possible.

So, I thought of sharing with you some true inspirational stories, which set me moving during this fasting month. I either heard them from the persons involved directly, or heard them from people who have or had direct contact with them, I hope that they may refresh us and inspire us to work harder for the remaining days of Ramadhan and perhaps, they may motivate us to prepare well for the next Ramadhan, inhsa Allah.

Inspiration 1:

It was after taraweeh when I met a man, whom I have come to know for about three years now, waiting for a bus, at the bus stop. Coincidentally, we boarded the same bus. So, “This is a good opportunity for me to have a meaningful conversation throughout my trip, insha Allah”, I said to myself.

From the 30 minutes (or so) conversation we had, I understood that, he chose to come and perform his Taraweeh at Masjid Kampong Siglap (MKS), Singapore, because they perform 20 raka’aat at MKS, in which they recite one full ‘juz' a day, which will enable them to fully recite the Qur'an during Taraweeh, by the end of Ramadhan.

My friend believes (and I agree with him) that, the month of Ramadhan is such a great opportunity that a Muslim should seize any moment from it to perform Ramadhan-related ‘ibadahs as possible. In order to achieve that, he took one month off from his work. This is the eleventh year he took a month off from work, for the month of Ramadhan. Furthermore, he needs to take three different buses to reach the mosque.

Unless one has saved enough money to survive on his own, besides depending on Allah, subhanahu wata'aalaa, I, personally, do not encourage anyone to take a month off from his work because of Ramadhan. This is because every work one does with good intension is considered as ‘ibadah. However, I salute the man for his aspirations. No doubt, his sacrifice and determination clearly translate how much love he has for Ramadhan and also indicate how much love he possesses for Allah, subhanahu wata'aalaa.

Inspiration 2:

Another man, whom I knew for more than four years, mentioned in a discussion with him that he has promised himself to perform 20 raka'aat every night during this Ramadhan (2011). Therefore he ensures that he prays in a mosque that performs 20 raka'aat. This will help him set a new record, compared to his Ramadhan last year, when he had performed 8 raka’aat in some days. Also, it will motivate him to perform additional ibadahs next year, insha Allah, on top of performing 20 raka'aat every night of taraweeh.

He has made a promise upon himself that, insha Allah, his “this year” is going to be better than his “last year”, and his “next year” should be better than his “this year”. To the best of what I know, the man involved in this story never misses his subuh prayers in the mosque with jama'ah.

Inspiration 3:

Another man, whom I heard of, wanted to take one month off from his work, but his request was rejected by his employer. So to fulfil his Ramadhan ambition he worked during the month of Ramadhan but decided to distribute whatever money he made that month among the needy, for the sake of Allah, subhanahu wata'aalaa.

It takes a great courage for one to distribute his whole month salary, to the needy, for Allah’s Sake. No doubt, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, radhiya Allahu ‘anhu, gave his entire wealth, for Allah’s Sake, but no two wise Muslims, will disagree, that Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, radhiya Allahu ‘anhu, had greater faith in Allah, and thus, was very generous in His cause.

Inspiration 4:

I heard there was one Egyptian Hafiz by the name Shaikh Ali Ahmad Mahmoud Al-Minyawi. Shaikh Al-Miyawi used to lead taraweeh prayers in Masjid Al-Kaff Kampong Melayu (MAKM), Singapore. He would lead in 20 raka’aat for taraweeh and another 10 for ‘tahajjud in the last 10 nights of Ramadhan each year. To the surprise of those who worked closely with him, he was suffering from cancer. Yet, he kept it  secret and maintained his morale up at all times and led the taraweeh prayers 20 raka’aat or more, reciting one juz’ each night, alone. This continued for a couple of years.

Shaikh Al-Minyawi passed away a few years ago in the month of Shawwal in the late 1990s, after doing his level best in the month of Ramadhan.

After hearing these stories, I told myself, “What would be your excuse for escaping taraweeh and other night prayers?” “Would catching your favourite TV show (if there is any) be an acceptable reason for you to escape taraweeh, especially in a season which only the chosen ones are granted the opportunity to live and witness?”

These stories reminded me of one verse in the Qur’an, in Surah Al-Ahzab, 33:23, in which Allah says:

مِّنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُوا مَا عَاهَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ، فَمِنْهُم مَّن قَضَىٰ نَحْبَهُ وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَنتَظِرُ، وَمَا بَدَّلُوا تَبْدِيلاً

It means, “Among the believers are men who are true to that which they covenanted with Allah. Some of them have paid their vow by death (in battle), and some of them still are waiting; and they have not altered in the least.”

Let us ponder another verse in Surah Al-Ankabout, 69, in which Allah says:

وَالَّذِينَ جَاهَدُوا فِينَا لَنَهْدِيَنَّهُمْ سُبُلَنَا، وَإِنَّ اللَّـهَ لَمَعَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ.

It means, “As for those who strive in Us, We surely guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good.”

These stories also give us a true certified examples of the life of Rasulullah, salla Allahu ‘alaihi wasallam, who would tight up the wraparound of his pants during the month of Ramadhan, for better performance of ‘ibadahs and would wake up his family for night prayers.

Our annual guest (Ramadhan) has only 10 days left to stay amongst us. Once he departs, he will never return. Any Ramadhan you may live to witness will be a different Ramadhan which will carry a different name, for its arrival will be in a different year. That is, if you would be granted another chance to live, to witness it.

Before I sign off, if you have personal experience or have heard of any inspirational story that you would like to share to help motivate others, please share it with us, by commenting below, so we can motivate one another for the sake of Allah, subhanahu wata'aalaa.

Allah knows best.

Allahu Hafiz 🙂