The best days of the year- 10 things to do in the first 10 days of Dhul Hijjah.

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

 السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

As, we all enter the precious month of Dhul Hijjah , some of us are anxiously looking forward for Eid , or Hajj for those blessed ones who are chosen among the very few who will be performing Hajj this year.

This is another sacred month , and The first ten days of Dhul Hijjah are better than the days of Ramadan!

"There are no days more beloved to Allah that He be worshiped in them than the ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, fasting every day of them is the equivalent of fasting a year, and standing every night of them ( in prayer) is equivalent of standing on the Night of Qadr." 

-Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ )

(Tirmidhi)

Here, I will be listing down 10 things to do in these 10 days to gain rewards InshAllah.

1.Fast-

The first nine days are a really good time to fast until Eid.

If you can't fast all the nine days, fasting on the day of Arafah ( 9th of Dhul Hijjah) is highly recommended, as Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ )

 said, fasting on this day erases our sins from the previous year and the next.

2.Read Quran-

This is a good time to read Quran. 

Challenge yourself to see how many chapters of the Quran can you complete in these blessed days.

3.Give Sadaqah/Charity-

Go an extra mile to give in charity, help those in need, give money to the poor, spend time with your family, help your parents, smile often, etc.

Any act done to make a person happy will be considered as an act of  charity that will be rewarded multiple times inshaAllah.

4.Increase in DHIKR-

This is the time to increase yourself in doing dhikr. Keep your tongues moist remembering Allah while doing all the errands. Keep reciting the talbiyah although you are not going to Hajj.

"Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar,

Allahu akbar, laa ilaaha illa-Allah

Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar,

wa lilahi'l hamd"

"Allah is Most Great, Allah is Most Great,

Allah is Most Great, Allah is Most Great,

There is no God but Allah,

Allah is Most Great, Allah is Most Great,

Allah is Most Great, and to Allah be praise."

5.Exchange Salam/Greetings-

We get cautious these days in interacting with people especially due to Covid-19. 

Renew your intentions and give salam at a distance to someone whom you even don't know!

Don't forget to give a smile along. Spread the fragrance of Islam in all possible ways!

6.Pray Tahajjud-

This is a good time to motivate yourself to observe the tahajjud prayer.

Think how blessed but short these nine days are and think of all the things you need to ask Allah swt for! Don't miss out on the great rewards of spending your night in prayer!

7.Teach your kids about Dhul-Hijjah-

I always make it a point to keep the strings of my kids attached in all possible ways in whatever blessed days we have,  be it Ramadan or these 10 days!

Make them understand the beauty of these ten days , tell them about the sacrifices of Ibrahim a.s and Ismail a.s, and the story of Zamzam.

Let them connect with the significance and blessings of these blessed days! 

They will be more excited and eager to do good deeds once they are aware of the blessings! That's how kids are SubhanAllah.

8.Pray in Masjid-

The reward of praying in Masjids is greater than that of praying at home so don't lose out on catching those rewards!

If you have the opportunity, do so.

9.Do a good deed for your parents-

Quite often we neglect on doing things for our parents, but this is a great time to do something for them.

Say a prayer, donate money / give charity on their behalf, plant a tree, etc.

One of the best things that a person has is a righteous child who prays for them.

In these blessed days, make your greatest blessing , your parents your priority and do a good deed for them. This will not only reward them , but also reward you for the good deed!

10.Spread the fragrance of Islam-

Don't forget to spread the message of Islam! You have plenty of options out there to tell a word about the significance of these blessed days to a non-muslim friend or a colleague.

Help people see the beauty of Islam in these blessed month.

I hope this was beneficial and may we reap the benefit of these blessed days in every possible way!

إن شاء الله

أمين

-Hafsa Mohammad.

Bond with the Beloved - Depth of Dhikr

               ﷽

Assalamuwalaikum wrwb.

Are you feeling
Tired,
Anxious,
Sad,
Angry,
Hopeless?

Do any of these feelings sound familiar to you?
Off lately, I have been hearing a lot of people complaining about anxiety and depression.

What do you think could be the main reason for that?
Well , apart from medical reasons ( if any) I think the main root of it is,
Perhaps, lack of bonding with our Beloved , Our Lord, The Almighty!

Many times, life can feel like a never ending merry-go round ride, from working to dealing with house-hold chores , taking care of the family, spending weekends running errands, with never ending responsibilities. I'm not saying that these activities are not important. However, most of the times we end up neglecting ourselves and our spiritual side in the daily pursuit of the fast pacing world, especially for we woman, who are often left unfairly amidst the brunt of chores and family responsibilities.

It isn't any easier to maintain and achieve the right balance between deen and duniya.
Although , we may intend wanting to read more Quran every day and gain more ajr or gain more knowledge about our deen, or offer nafawil prayers, but due to our hectic lives, we are unable to do so.
It can be too difficult sometimes to reflect on our religion and spiritually to gain a lot from it!

This is where the need of "Bonding with your Beloved" through Dhikr arises!

It can be a vital part of your day. Dhikr is not only powerful but also , a simple way to worship our Lord, when we have lack of time.

Allah swt has made our religion Islam so easy that even the shortest surahs or duas or phrases on reciting can receive abundant rewards.

Dhikr is so easy and carries huge rewards, this is an act of worship we should strive to increases in our daily lives . It is a direct and powerful way of strengthening your bond and relationship with your Lord. By praising and glorifying Allah swt, we are showing our gratitude to Him. We are acknowledging the fact that none has power except Him.
Once, we truly understand this depth, that we are not actually in control of our lives, and it is only with the help and will of Allah that we can achieve things or success in our lives.
As, we begin to depend on Allah for all things and not on people, we can live our lives with a lot more contentment which can give us inner satisfaction and peace.

For , Surely it also a means of getting peace and tranquility to our hearts!

' Verily, in the remembrance of Allah , do hearts find rest." (Quran 13:28)

Sincerely, increasing the amount of dhikr in our daily lives will have a substantial impact on all areas of our lives. By, the very essence of constantly being connected to our Creator, our Imaan will naturally increase which eventually will help us build our bond with Him in all aspects of life.

Here, I am going to list down few types of dhikr and their virtues.

The First Kalimah, ‘La illaha ill AllahMuhamadur-Rasul Allah’ 
(There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the messenger of Allah)
 is an essential dhikr, as it is the declaration of faith. It is considered to be the best dhikr!

“When a servant of Allah utters the words La illaha ill Allah sincerely, the doors of heaven open up for these words until they reach the Throne of Allah, so long as the utterer keeps away from the major sins”- Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ)
[At-Timiridhi]. 

‘Subhanallahi wa bihamdihi, subhanallahil azeem’

 Glory be to Allah and Praise, Glory be to Allah, the Greatest. 

Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said, “There are two statements that are light on the tongue to remember, heavy upon the scales and dearest to the Merciful.”

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

‘La hawla wala quwwata illa billah’ . 
There is no power nor might without Allah.

This dhikr is a treasure from amongst the treasures of Paradise.

‘SubhanAllah wal hamdulillah, wa laa illAllah wAllahu akbar .
 Glory be to Allah, All Praise is for Allah, There is No God but Allah, Allah is the Greatest.

These are most beloved to Allah and have been encouraged in many hadith of the Prophet (ﷺ).

‘Astaghfirullah'.
 I seek Allah’s forgiveness.

This is another dhikr that can be recited abundantly to wipe away our sins. 
The Prophet (ﷺ) is reported to have done this more than seventy times a day.

Learning Allah’s ninety nine names/attributes is another way to do dhikr. 

The constant recitation of the names can be the best remedy to many problems in your life. 
Allah swt commands us to supplicate to Him by invoking His beautiful names.

When Allah is mentioned in a gathering, Allah remembers those believers in a higher gathering in the heavens amongst angels. 
When you try to get closer to Allah, Allah draws even closer towards you.

"So remember Me, I will remember you."

 ( Quran 2:132 )

Dhikr is a vast and deep topic. The purpose of this article is to highlight the power of dhikr in our everyday lives and also to encourage my dear muslim brothers and sisters to increase the amount of dhikr they do in their daily lives.

I hope that this would not only be helpful and beneficial on a spiritual level from the constant recitation of Allah’s beloved phrases but also help us defeat the depressed phase most of us are facing during these tough times .
Our levels of Imaan can naturally fluctuate every day and this is an immediate way to remember Allah. 
No doubt, life can be complicated and hectic but Islam fundamentally is very simple and easy to implement in our lives, if we make the effort and have sincere intentions.

Whilst we still have to take care of matters of the dunya, we can often escape in a sort of meditative form of worship with dhikr and attain peace which will help us to sort out all the affairs of duniya and help us construct a positive balance between deen an duniya.

                                        جزاك اللهُ خيراً‎

-Hafsa Mohd.