Ramadan and Convergence of the Ummah

Ramadan is a month of learning, a month of self reflection and contemplation, taking stock of one’s journey through life in the company of the Highest Order of universal society. It is the month for the commemoration and celebration of the Al Qur’an. It is surely a festival of taqwa.

All over the world, Muslims greet its coming with happiness, gladness and as if it were a long lost companion who has returned showering gifts. While at the month’s end, although parting with it saddens feelings, as if it was over too soon, Muslims feel a sense of achieving glowing success. Indeed at the end of Ramadan they experience joy and feel victorious. They overcome their own selves and desires to return to their true and natural God given state, their fitrah, pure in true worship and submission to Allah s.w.t.

Ramadan is indeed very special and tremendously invigorating for the Muslim community. Muslims await dearly for the arrival of the blessed month. Disputes may arise as when to begin, when to exactly start fasting, how to determine the awaited crescent, hilal, but this soon diminishes as people understand the importance of principles over the trivialities and by prioritising the major essentials of worship. The most important of all, is unity of brotherhood and purposeness.

Bazaars add to the colour and excitement as long as it is not excessive and distracting the purpose and consciousness of fasting. Businesses tend to strongly pick up but the booming Ramadan trade which thrives should be allowed to neither affect nor be an obstacle to performing worship. They do certainly cater to one’s self indulgence and hungry cravings of the day. The idea of turning it into some kind of tourism promotion, food festival or a cuisine fiesta is in bad taste and distorts the message of taqwa and God consciousness that Ramadan arouses in people.

Ramadan is a special and blessed month in honouring and venerating the anniversary of the message of tawhid, the start of the revelations, the nuzul al Qur’an. It is a grand celebration in its own unique Islamic way that the ummah is one, that the Qur’an is guidance from God Almighty, bringing proof of guidance and is the criterion between truth and falsehood, differentiating right from wrong.

The meaning of it all is tawhid – to invite all of mankind to sincerely and truly worship only Allah s.w.t. and that there is none other to be worshipped except Him. This is sincerity and purity of intention.

There was the story of the experience of a new convert to Islam who was starting her first ever fast during Ramadan. She was quite surprised to discover that Muslims really did fast meaning that they did abstain from food and drink for the whole day and it was not something made up. Fasting proves and motivates Muslims to show that sincerity and God consciousness – ikhlas and taqwa are qualities that are really quite attainable.

No matter what methods are used to tell the time for Ramadan activities, to signal its arrival, whether sirens, drum beats, cannon shots or just the call to prayers, adhan, the Muslim community communicates in all of these in their own special way. They become especially time-conscious during Ramadan.

The community wakes up earlier to early supper, sahur. By being awake early in the wee hours of the night, it enables them to engage in night vigil, qiam al layl, performing solat sunnat, reading the Qur’an, dhikr and doa, contemplating their deeds and efforts. The family is gathered together even in their tired and sleepy mode to have supper before dawn. Just by having sahur contains blessings and rewards beyond our comprehension. Muslims then work their day without food and water. They do not use fasting as a reason to shirk their duties or find something lighter to do. They try even to abstain from all acts deemed against the blessedness of Ramadan. They refrain from doing anything evil: being dishonest, telling lies, backbite, argue insensibly and at the most ideal level, to desist from even having a dark or bad thought in one’s heart or mind for those who aspire for a perfect fast. At dusk, they gather and celebrate daily together in breaking their fast, iftar. A short doa is recited to be thankful and grateful to Allah s.w.t. who enjoined fasting, provided them their boundless bounties and grace, rizq and made them Muslims. Then they pray Maghrib, a short rest and go on to perform Isya’ followed by solat tarawih. Whole families throng to line rows to fill the saf in the musalla and the masjid.

Children sometimes play and have plenty of fun in the musalla compound and grounds. It seems only in Ramadan where children are usually permitted to be out at night within their parents’ supervision. There seems to be a sense of security even at night. Like the anecdote which says, “Ramadan’s coming. Hey! Look who’s leaving”. It is said that the doors of heaven are opened wide while the doors of hell are closed shut and Satan is kept in chains. Some families even rule out TV for the whole month. This helps to create serenity and an appreciation of the calmness of the night and it enables them to work out doing something more useful for Ramadan.

Muslim communities which engage in iftar, tarawih, tadarrus and other shared activities are seen cheerful and vibrant with a sense of purpose in worship. A unison of cooperation and togetherness is seen unmatched by any other month. You can hear the rotational Qu’ran recitals, tadarrus participants humming and enchanting the hallways, echoing in the masjid, musalla and in Muslim homes. Late night and early morning payers lit up houses, nights are alive with remembrance and grace.

Ramadan is the month for virtue and charity. Rasulullah s.a.w. was so generous and exceptionally charitable in Ramadan that the companions described it as if it was like a fast and blustery wind blowing through. Offering iftar or breaking of fast to others especially the needy is considered as great as fasting. In times of dire needs and miserable conditions of some of Muslims worldwide, the ummah needs to be imbued with more generosity and abundant charity, encouraging it to be managed more effectively and be more organised. Zakat ul fitrah institutionalises a certain form of alms-giving to be obligatory– to help the poor, to share with them to help them celebrate together with the ummah.

Sayyid Qutb writes on laylatul qadr, describing the Night of Power as the night which marked the beginning of the revelation of the Qur’an to Muhammad s.a.w., an event unparalleled in the history of mankind. The revelations and the assigning of the message to the Prophet s.a.w. is the greatest and most precious of events. The angels descend, led by Jibril by their Lord’s permission to fill the space between heaven and earth in such a glorious and splendid celebration, vividly portrayed in the surah al qadr. Humanity out of ignorance and misfortune may overlook the value and importance of laylatul qadr. When humanity ignores this, it loses the happiest and most beautiful sign of grace which Allah has bestowed upon it. Muslims are commanded not to forget or neglect this event. Rasulullah s.a.w. has thought them how easy and enjoyable it is to commemorate that night by being in devotion with pure motive of faith.

In the Qur’an, following the verse concerning fasting and Ramadan, Allah s.w.t. mentions how close He is to believers: Indeed it is a lofty declaration from the Most Highest the Most Exalted. Allah s.w.t. is close to them and Allah grants them their prayers to Him when they supplicate Him. And so they must submit to His commands. Fasting and worship in Ramadan brings Muslims much closer to God Almighty.

We see the convergence of the Zionists, their allies, benefactors and other extremists as adversaries to Islam and threatening our existence and well being as a peace loving world community. For young Muslims, the Qur’an is ample and perfectly equipped to withstand any test or tribulation of time. The Qur’an remains steadfast in combating mischief and corruption even when society abdicates its moral authority. The young shall neither be fooled nor intimidated by onslaughts of apostasy, blasphemy, superstition, subtle propaganda or mind control. Through the Qur’an, the Sunnah and learning from their respected scholars, they can see through the errors and deception of liberalism, secularism and rehashed orientalism.

It is hoped that this Ramadan becomes a convergence of the ummah to regain its true and proper position as the middle and upright community enjoining good, forbidding evil and inviting all towards belief.

Reference:
Animah Ferrar, Islam, Worldview and Way of Life
B Aisha Lemu, Islamic Aqidah and Fiqh
Hanafi Muhammad, 40 Fadhilat Puasa Ramadan
Ismail R Faruqi, The Cultural Atlas of Islam
Muhammad Ali Dannawi, Madrasah Ramadan, Penerokaan dan Hukum Hakam
Mustafa Masyhur, Bekalan di dalam Perjalanan Da’wah
Sayyid Qutb, In the Shade of the Qur’an.

25 September 2006

The Sanctuary called Ramadan

Ramadan brings us back from the mundane and the ordinary ritualistic life, a respite, a ‘meaningful rest’ from the hectic materialism, away from worldly affairs. It is an escape and a spiritual retreat but without actually leaving or shunning the world. Everyday life goes on except that worldly pleasures and selfish desires are curtailed conscientiously. Self discipline suddenly then becomes a normal way of life. There seems to be a surge, a rejuvenation of sincerity, patience, compassion and resolve.

How can this be so? For one thing, the evil Syaitan, our arch enemy is actually or metaphorically out of the picture, being restrained from bothering mankind for the rest of the sacred month. Then, there are blessings which grace forgiveness, multiple and abundant increase in rewards for good deeds and performance of ibadah, conflagration of awareness, self reflection and internal motivation as well as the feeling of community togetherness in a unison of faith and piety to Allah almighty.

Ramadan is a religious sanctuary, a spiritual haven, without having to migrate or to travel far away. We need not leave our troubles behind. No, instead, it is Ramadan which replenishes our soul, our inner self, our natural being, our fitrah –our inherent and innate nature - to come back stronger than ever in faith, in character and in good deeds. With faith, with taqwa, with much stronger will power, boosting our inner strengths, we shall overcome our concerns and anxieties. By fasting and observing all the enjoined activities, the obligatory and the supererogatory; our nafs, our self returns to a more purified state. Fasting imbues in us, trains us, disciplines us to be spiritually enlightened throughout night and day, to be in constant awareness, in deep remembrance, contemplating, reflecting, accumulating good deeds, rewards and achieving the ultimate goal of taqwa, the highest form of God consciousness.

Yes, we do indeed face tribulations, personally and as a nation, as an ummah. We are assailed from all sides in all manners of aggression be it in the form of raw power, aggression and brute strength, be it in the form of social and economic encroachment, depravity or strangulation, and the subtle invasion of our hearts and minds, trying to conquer our thoughts. It needs strong faith, resilience and mujahaddah – strive and struggle in upholding to Islam’s principles and sustaining the ummah’s integrity. One of the lessons and wisdom of Ramadan is to make Muslims feel the misery of the poor and to reflect and act upon them, to be grateful to Allah s.w.t. for His benevolence and to use what is granted to us in His service and to help others in need. We remember the sufferings of the Palestinians starving from Gaza to the tormented cries for help and salvation from the incarcerated in Guantanamo. Fasting brings about such realization and awakens us to the bitter fact and binds our togetherness in facing the challenges in front of us.

Ramadan wakes us up, reminds us of the momentous Night of Power – laylatul qadr, where the highest truth was revealed to our noble and cherished Prophet, Muhammad, our beloved, our leader, our guide, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him – s.a.w. The al Qur’an was revealed and it totally transformed mankind by connecting it to the highest order. By revealing the guidance towards true faith, the criterion, the measure, the principle, the standard to distinguish between good and evil, between those who are on the right path and those who are damned and are astray; there can be no doubt, no skepticism or reservation of Allah’s revelation and Islam’s message as hope and blessing for mankind.

Indeed, there are even attempts and orchestrations to induce the faithful to leave the faith. Conspiracies and strategies abound by Islam’s detractors to distort the religion, hoping that Muslims themselves will somehow implode in the self destruction of their iman by being dazed and confused through incessant devious assaults either openly through media or subtlety through disinformation and cloaked crafty educational programs. Orientalist thought is being rekindled and refashioned, being spread and championed by reconstituted ‘brown sahibs’ – dressed locals to promote secularism and pluralism, often under the cover of campaigning for human rights. It simply is a futile attempt ‘to eliminate Islam from the realm of public space’, to quote renowned scholar Uthman al Muhammady.

But the sparkle of Ramadan, the surge in remembrance and the height of taqwa shall be triumphant and shall overcome. The people of faith cherish and treasure truth and are very jealous of the deen of Islam. No one shall be able to treat it lightly. Yes there were people in the past and there maybe some too at present who wish to regard lightly of Ramadan and of the associated spiritual activities. Some just carry on as usual, conducting some mundane activities at whatever time of day, even though, it is better and proper to prize and revere the limited time available to perform tarawih or the recite the Quran and experience more of the pleasures and significance of fasting. Some only wish to observe the fast and the breaking of the fast, relegating it just to a time table shift in daily affairs. There are many in this world who still let the Night of Power just pass by without feeling any loss or even realizing its existence or significance altogether.

It is hoped that with a community wide consciousness, counsel, close support and exhortations from family and friends, that this time, we shall with the help of Allah s.w.t. and to Him only we seek help, we perform the utmost in our fasting and observance of Ramadan so that we shall attain the highest level of taqwa.


4 September 2007

Anwar Ibrahim and the Helicopter

It has become almost a ritual every night of Anwar Ibrahim’s campaign. Minutes into his speech at ceramahs, a hovering helicopter appears beaming white light onto the stage and the audience below. The ardent supporters by their thousands then cheer and shouts of “boo” and some hurl abuse at the formidable machine up in the sky. The helicopter maneuvers and then hovers away.

It has become an interesting feature as part of the whole unique events taking place in Permatang Pauh. It seems almost surreal as if at a far out concert with the heli shining out white light to glow at the performers and the raving fans.

Some say it is there to keep the peace. Others say it is taking videos and aerial photographs to gauge Anwar’s support. It is said to be sending continuous assessments upstairs. The police may have been counting the number of white caps of Anwar’s supporters and sympathizers. But what about the numerous others who attend without the head caps including the Chinese and Indians. Only Anwar can pull out events that attract all of them and somehow his detractors claim that he is a threat to national unity. They are so out of touch that they need this expensive piece of device hovering up in the sky.

It simply shows who the real Goliath is. BN with its security apparatus, money and dirty tricks seems to be having a field day at taunting, slandering and assassinating Anwar and his supporters. The mass media feeds preposterous claims including faking bomb threats, speeches from scandalous defectors, uttering self damning oaths and issuing unbecoming fatwas from cheap “scholars”.

Do they really think people are that stupid and could steep so sordidly low? Have we noticed the low turnout of national flags out on public display apparently indicating general dissatisfaction among the masses?

By the way a sleepy PM suddenly woke up to find out just how the public live their lives traveling on rail commuters. He must have been dozing in his sleepy cocoon all these years. Anyway that is what is called a photo-op, it happens all the time in the West. Bush goes to Iraq, takes photos shaking hands with local Iraqis and is speedily taken away from the danger zone on a heli back to safety. It is over in minutes. A sincere PM would have gone unannounced and come out with action and results to help the public. To KL and Klang Valley citizens, they have already shoved him and his clique out of their lives.

Permatang Pauh has always kicked Pak Lah out for good!