Introduction
Alhamdulillah… Infinite thanks and praises are due to the Almighty Allah. I send abundant peace and blessings upon Sayyidinā Muhammad, his household, his companions and all those who follow his guided path till end of time.
It has been a fruitful Ramadan, and we’re already bidding it a farewell. (It’s 25th Ramadan today, 2016.) These are some historical events that occurred in the month of Ramadan. There’re hundreds of historical events that had happened in Ramadan. But those presented here have direct impact on the heart of every Muslim, regardless of how great or minimal that impact could be.
This article comes as the fifth (and last) part of the “What We Need to Know About Ramadan” series. The first part discussed 10 Ramadan Essentials You Need to Know. The second discussed some 6 Practical Aspects of Ramadan, and the third presented some 6 Spiritual Aspects of Ramadan. The fourth presented some 10 Virtues of the Month of Ramadan. Feel free to share with us your reflections in the comments area.
Historical Events that Occurred in the Month of Ramadan
Historical events that occurred in the month of Ramadan are countless. Some occurred before the prescription for fasting in Ramadan was revealed. Some occurred during the life of the Prophet as a Prophet, ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam. And much of them occurred after his passing, ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam. In this article, I’m presenting 13 impactful historical events, which I believe will move your heart, in a way or another.
#1: The Beginning of Revelation to the Prophet
In the 10 Virtues of Ramadan, it’s indicated that the Qur’an was first descended from the Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ to the first Heaven on the night of Laylatul Qadr (Ramadan). The Qur’an was then sent down in parts upon the Prophet over the period of 23 years.
Perhaps, what is worth noting here is that the beginning of the said 23-year period was in Ramadan. The first 5 verses of Sūrah al-‘Alaq, which marked the first to be revealed to the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam in the Cave of ḤḤḤirā’ in Makkah were brought by Jibrīl ‘alayhi al-salām on the 17th of Ramadan.
I believe this is the greatest event history has ever recorded. Prophethood was bestowed upon the Leader of all Prophets and Messengers. The Master of the children of Adam ‘alayhi al-salām was sent to guide mankind.
#2: First Woman to Accept Islam Emerged
After prophethood was officially handed to The Prophet Muhammad, the first person to whom he hurried to inform was his life partner at that time. She was none but our mother Sayyidah Khadījah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā.
That marked the first Ramadan in the age of Islam. And a woman was there to be the first to embrace it and support it with her strength, possessions and influence.
In addition to being the first woman to accept Islam, Sayyidah Khadījah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā was also the first person to accept Islam. This means, a woman was the first to accept Islam (among men and women).
#3: The Passing of Khadijah and Abi Talib
In Ramadan, 10 years in the life of Islam (3 years before Hijrah), the Prophet and the Muslims were hit by one of their saddest moments; the passing of Abī Ṭālib and the passing of Khadījah bint Khuwaylid raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā. The two had been the strongest support and strength for the establishment of Islam.
They devoted their influence, wealth, as protection to support and assist the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and to ensure he achieved what he aimed for; spreading the message of Islam. Here, it’s worth indicating, that as much as we can evidently prove that Sayyidatunā Khadījah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā embraced Islam and had died as Muslimah, we have no evidence that Abu Tālib embraced Islam, nor did his pass on as a Muslim.
#4: The Battle of Badr
It was Ramadan, 2 years after Hijrah, when the famous Battle of Badr took place. This means, the Battle of Badr happened in the very year, when Muslims experienced fasting the month of Ramadan for the first time. The Muslim army consisted of only 313 fighters, whereby the troops of Abū Jahl and Abū Lahab (Quraysh) consisted of more than 1300 fighters.
The Battle of Badr, which specifically occurred on the 17th of Ramadan, was also the first fight the Muslims had to experience. The reason for its occurrence was to stop a convoy of Quraysh, which carried their trade goods from Lavant (present day Syria and its surrounding). These goods were made up of the wealth of the Muslim which were taken from them when they were forced out of their homes to migrate to Madinah.
#5: The Killing of Abu Jahl
Of those who have ever hurt the self of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam and have put in effort to destroy Islam, Abū Jahl is among the top of the list. The Battle of Badr could have been avoided, had Abū Jahl didn’t insist that Quraysh destroyed Muhammad and his followers.
With that, Abu Jahl managed to fuel the emotions of Quraysh and convince them for the occurrence of the battle for them to also save their pride in the eyes of the rest of Arab tribes.
While he was arrogantly commanding for the war, he didn’t know that he was about to perish in that very battle. (Just don’t confuse Abū Jahl with Abū Lahab.) Together with Abū Jahl, perished in the battle are the notorious Ummayyah ibn Khalaf and al-‘Āṣ ibn Hishām ibn al-Mughīrah and many others.
#6: The Conquest of Makkah (Fatḥ Makkah)
The conquest of Makkah or Fatḥ Makkah occurred in the eighth year of Hijrah, in the month of Ramadan. It was a historical event that changed the lines of events in the world until today. It’s reported that the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam and the companions entered Makkah on the 19th of Ramadan.
Muslims who were chased out of their homes (in Makkah) returned home, and Islam went back to continue spreading, at the place where it was first revealed. With the occurrence of Fatḥ Makkah, Ka‘bah was once again dedicated to what it was first built for; worshiping Allah alone. All idols that were setup inside the House were removed and demolished.
With Fatḥ Makkah, the state of Islam was strengthened, and all those who ganged up to displace Islam had to rethink, and many of them, eventually accepted Islam.
#7: Sayyidinā al-Hassan ibn Ali Was Born
On the 15th of Ramadan, three years after Hijra, Sayyidatunā Fāṭimah, the beloved daughter of our beloved Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam and the wife of Sayyidinā ‘Ali gave birth to Sayyidunā al-Hasan ibn ‘Ali, raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhum.
Sayyidunā al-Hasan was the first child of Sayyidinā ‘Ali and Fāṭimah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhumā. He is the one who saved the Ummah from an internal big war (fitnah) when he gave up power to Mu‘āwiyah ibn Abī Sufyān raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhumā. The latter incident also occurred in Ramadan.
An event related to this is the assassination of Sayyidinā ‘Ali raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu. It was after his assassination that leadership of the Ummah was transferred to al-Hasan, who, on his part gave it up, to Mu‘āwiyah.
#8: Sayyidatinā ‘Āishah Was Awarded with a Certificate of Modesty and Purity
In the month of Ramadan, five years after Hijrah, the entire Sūrah al-Nūr was descended to declare the modesty and the purity of Sayyidatinā Āishah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā. With that, she was cleared from any involvement in any immorality of any kind.
On their way back from the battle of Muraisī‘ (or Banī al-Muṣṭaliq), which occurred in the month of Sha‘bān, Sayyidah ‘Āishah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā was accidently left behind without any vehicle for her to return by herself. A man among the companions, who usually makes final checks in places of rest, to ensure nothing was left behind saw her.
Without uttering a word, and with no exchange of words, he lowered his camel for her to ride, and he then led her back to Madinah. Upon their arrival, the hypocrites of Madinah started spreading rumours accusing her of adultery. This continued for more than a month, and eventually a declaration of her innocence was brought down by Jibrīl ‘alayhi al-salām.
That served as one of the best award of certification in modesty and purity.
#9: Fāṭimah Raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā Passed On in Ramadan
On the 13th of Ramadan, 11 years after Hijra, in other words, six months after the passing of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam, the beloved daughter of the Prophet, Fāṭimah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā passed on. She was the only wife of Sayyidinā ‘Ali raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu at that time.
It’s reported that she was 16 years when she married Sayyidanā ‘Ali raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhu. And that was four months and a half after the battle of Badr. She left behind Sayyidunā al-Hasan, al-Husayn, Muḥsin and Ummu Kulthūm raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhum. She was the first in the Prophet’s household to pass on after his passing, ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
#10: Sayyidatunā ‘Āisha Raḍiya Allāhu ‘Anhā Passed On in Ramadan
On the 17th of Ramadan, 58H, the most loved wives of the Prophet to him, Sayyidatunā ‘Āishah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā passed on. Sayyidah ‘Āishah was the third woman the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam married.
Ṣayyidah ‘Āishah the daughter of Sayyidinā Abī Bakr raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhumā was the most popular among all the wives of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam. She was also the most learned woman of her time. When the companions doubted about any ruling in Islam, the best who could give them a certain response used to be Sayyidah ‘Āishah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā. To the effect that some scholars are of the opinion that a quarter of the teachings of Islam were narrated by Sayyidah ‘Āishah raḍiya Allāhu ‘anhā.
299 from the Ṣaḥābah and Tābi‘īn is the number of those who had the privilege to receive ḥadīth and to learn from Sayyidah ‘Āishah raḍiya Allāhu ‘ahnā.
#11: Imām al-Bukhārī Passed on in Ramadan
On the 30th of Ramadan, 256H, Imām al-Bukhārī passed on, at the age of 62 years. Famous with his Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (al-Jāmi‘al-Ṣaḥīḥ), Muḥammad ibn Ismā‘īl ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Mughīrah al-Bukhārī was born in Shawwal, 194H in a town called Bukhārā (located in the present day Afghanistan), to a family of knowledge and piety.
Imām al-Bukhārī was gifted with a very sharp memory, which enabled him to memorize 100,000 authentic ḥadīth and another 200,000 unauthentic ones. He devoted his life in preserving the Sunnah of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam. To the extent that a man once saw the Prophet in his dream and the Prophet was walking with Imām al-Bukhārī behind him. Whenever the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam lifted his noble feet, Imām al-Bukhārī stepped in the spot where the Prophet just lifted his noble feet.
Imām al-Bukhārī authored several books, the most famous of which is commonly called Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī. Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī collected the most authentic ḥadīth of the Prophet, to the best of his knowledge. Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī is referred to as the most authentic book after the Qur’an.
Imām al-Bukhārī was buried on the day of Eid, after Ẓuhr prayers.
#12: Imām ibn Mājah Passed on in Ramadan
On the 22nd of Ramadan, 273H, Imām Ibn Mājah, a compiler of one of the most recognized ḥadīth collections also passed on. He was 64.
Famously known as Ibn Mājah, Abū ‘Abdullāh Muḥammad ibn Yazīd ibn ‘Abdullāh al-Rab‘ī al-Qazvīnī, was born in 209H to a Persian family in Qazvin (Iran).
He’s the author of the famous Sunan ibn Mājah, a collection of hadīth which is widely considered to be the sixth of the six recognized collection of ḥadīth (al-Kutub al-Sittah) of the Sunnah of the Prophet ṣallā Allāhu ‘alayhi wa sllam. His Sunan consists of 4341 aḥādīth in 37 books.
#13: Imām ibn al-Jawzī Passed on in Ramadan
On the 12th Ramadan 597H, Imām ibn al-Jawzī passed on. It was between Maghrib and Ishā’. Imām ibn al-Jawzī is an Islamic scholar, who mastered many sciences. He was very passionate about preaching and spiritual reformation, and his preaches were attended by people from all walks of life, including the khalīfah (of his time), high profile statesmen, politicians, businessmen and laymen.
Known as Abū al-Faraj, Imām Abdul-Raḥmān ibn ‘Ali ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Jawzī was born in Baghdad, 510H. His father died when he was three years old. His paternal uncles guarded him, and provided him with the education he needed, which led him to where he reached.
It’s reported that Imām ibn al-Jawzī authored about 300 books. The most popular ones include Ṣifah al-Ṣafwah, Ṣayd al-Khāṭir, and Talbīs Iblīs.
Conclusion
This article discussed some 13 historical events that occurred in the month of Ramadan. It’s important for the Muslim to be informed of all of them, as they have direct or indirect impacts on every Muslim. Certainly, there’re more historical events which length constrain allows us not to include them in this piece.
This is the final part of the ‘What We Need to Know About Ramadan’ series. If you have read them and have benefitted from them, no matter how little, feel free to tell me what you think. You can do so by commenting in the comments area below, or by dropping my an email, via the Contact Page. To receive updates from GSalam.Net delivered right to your inbox, click here.
Allah knows best.
Allahu Hafiz 🙂
salam you forgot to mention martyrdom of mola ali a.s held on 21 ramzan