Assalamu Alaikum – Peace and Blessings to all!
The blessed month of Ramadan is now less than 10 days away! What are you doing to prepare for this month about which Allah (swt) says:
Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may attain taqwaa. [Qur’an 2:183]
The word taqwaa is best understood as a state of ‘God-consciousness’. Therefore, this ayah informs us that the purpose of Ramadan is to teach/train us to be in a constant state of God-consciousness – during Ramadan as well as the rest of the year. But how can we do this if we don’t prepare for this month and treat it as a training period? Every year, we make New Year’s Resolutions, but what about our Ramadan Resolutions? That’s why this year for Ramadan I’ve decided to create a list of my Top 10 Ramadan Resolutions and share it with you. Insha’Allah you find this list helpful for you and it allows you to really capture the true essence of Ramadan 🙂
- Read the entire Qur’an
Since Ramadan is the month in which the Qur’an was revealed, we are encouraged to read, study, and complete the Qur’an over the course of the month. Initially, this sounds like a huge feat but it’s actually very simple if we plan for it in advance and work hard at it. All you have to do is commit to reading 4 pages after each prayer! And if you can’t read or understand it in Arabic, there’s nothing wrong with reading it in English! What I do is try to read both with a good side-by-side translation but if time is tight, just focus on the English for now so you can understand it. - Memorize and learn the tafsir for one new surah
It doesn’t even have to be a very long surah. Just set aside some time everyday to study this surah, understand the meaning, and memorize it. You can even practice the section you’re currently working on by reciting it during your prayers for that day. The Tafsir of Ibn Kathir is of the most respected and accepted explanations for the Quran and is the most widely used explanations in Arabic used today. - Learn 3 new duas from Qur’an or Sunnah
There’s nothing like the feeling of holding up your hands or touching your forehead to the ground and speaking directly to Allah (swt) asking him for whatever it is that you want. The only thing better is using duas that come directly from the Qur’an or that have been recited by the Prophet Muhammad (saaw). So pick a few that you’d like to memorize and begin using them in your prayers, afterwards, and whenever the need arises! Here is a nice site with some duas for different occasions. - Turn off the radio and TV
You won’t realize how much time you spend listening to the radio and watching TV until you turn them off for a whole month! And I mean all day, not just when you’re fasting. Ramadan isn’t just about fasting from food, we’re supposed to be fasting from all worldly things that take us away from worshiping and praising our Creator – remember, God-consciousness! But I don’t believe there’s anything wrong with watching videos of Islamic talks and lectures though! You can find videos to watch at TubeIslam, HalalTube, and The Deen Show, for starters. - Use the Internet wisely
The internet is a tricky thing. On the one hand it’s a true blessing, a very useful tool, and for some, a necessary part of the work/school day. On the other hand, it’s a HUGE time-waster (Facebook anyone?)! So the key here is to always have a clear picture of what it is you need to do online and just do it! Make an honest effort to not go off on useless tangents (we know how easy that is!) and limit your time spent online each day. If you just have to go on Facebook, make it worth your while (as well as your friends) and share a link that will help others learn something or expand their knowledge in some way – then spend no more than 15-20 mins checking your feed and then SIGN OFF! - Pray taraweeh
Try to go to the masjid and pray taraweeh with the Imam at least one time this Ramadan. If you can go every night, masha’Allah and alhamdulillah! I know for me, it’s just not something I can do right now, but what I like to do instead is pray taraweeh at home. It’s very simple – I just pray 8 rak’aahs (2 sets of 2 rak’aahs, short break for duas, then 2 sets of 2 rak’aahs) and then I pray the witr prayer (2 rak’aahs then 1 rak’aah). It’s recommended to lengthen the nightly prayers so try to recite the longer surahs that you know or recite more than one surah for each rak’aah. - Wake up for suhoor
When I was younger, my mom always woke us up for suhoor. Once I was on my own, I totally skipped suhoor; I ate at midnight, woke up 5 minutes before Fajr adhan to drink a glass of water, prayed then went back to sleep. What I didn’t know until recently is that the suhoor meal is actually a sunnah.
The Prophet (saaw) said:Eat Suhoor; Indeed, there is a blessing in Suhoor. [Bukhari and Muslim]
The Prophet (saaw) also said:
The distinction between our fasting and the fasting of the people of the book [Jews and Christians] is the taking of Suhoor. [Muslim]
The best suhoor is to eat dates since the Prophet (saaw) said:
How excellent are dates as the believer’s Suhoor. [Abu Dawood]
It’s also much healthier to eat a nutritious meal before attempting to fast the entire day; your brain needs energy to function properly. By skipping out on suhoor, you’re depriving your brain of this energy – no wonder we always seem so tired and unable to concentrate during the day! So let’s return to the tradition of waking up early and eating suhoor with the family. Waking up before dawn will be much easier if we’re not staying up late the night before watching TV or Facebook-ing. 😉
- Make dua
Ramadan is the month of dua and Allah (swt) loves when we call upon him, so let’s make sure to remember to ask Allah (swt) for everything we want!
The Prophet (saaw) said:There are three people whose dua’s are not rejected, the fasting person until he breaks the fast, the just ruler and the dua’s of the oppressed whose dua Allah lifts above the clouds and opens unto it the doors of the heavens, and Allah says, I swear by My honor, verily I shall assist you even though it may be after some time. [Ahmad and Tirmidhi]
Make dua each day before starting your fast, when breaking your fast, during/after prayer, at the masjid, when giving zakat, etc. Here is a nice list of duas to recite for various reasons throughout the day and here is another list of 30 duas for 30 days. Here is a dua we can all say right now:
اَللّهُمَّ بَلِّغْنَا رَمَضَان – Allahumma ballighna Ramadan – O Allah! Let us reach the month of Ramadan
- Pray the Sunnah prayers
There are 12 confirmed sunnah prayers that are associated with the obligatory prayers. If we’re not praying them already, Ramadan is definitely the time to start!
The Prophet (saaw) said:There is no Muslim servant of Allah who prays twelve supererogatory rakats from other than the obligatory prayer for the sake of Allah most high except that Allah makes for him a house in paradise. [Muslim]
The sunnah prayers are: 2 before Fajr, 4 before Dhuhr and 2 after it, 2 after Maghrib, and 2 after Isha.
- Read Surat Al-Kahf on Fridays
Surat Al-Kahf is a very special surah in the Qur’an; not only are there many virtues for reciting and memorizing it, but it also contains 4 main stories! The following hadiths speak about the benefits and virtues of this surah:
The Prophet (saaw) said:Whoever reads Surat Al-Kahf on Friday, he will be illuminated with light between the two Fridays. [Bukhari and Muslim]
The Prophet (saaw) said:
Whoever memorizes ten Ayahs from the beginning of Surat Al-Kahf will be protected from the Dajjal. [Muslim, Abu Dawud, An-Nasa’i and At-Tirmidhi]
So let’s remember to follow this sunnah and read surat Al-Kahf on Fridays; and if you can’t read the whole thing, at least try to read the first 10 ayahs… by the end of Ramadan, you’ll have them memorized insha’Allah!
Finally, here is a 10 Day Ramadan Prep Challenge for the last 10 days leading up to Ramadan. It’s a nightly audio lecture with different guest speakers addressing a different topic each night!
Let’s aim to strive this Ramadan. With a very small amount of effort, we pray that Allah (swt) will help our hearts soften and honor us with making it easy to turn to Him and open up to Him.
May Allah (swt) make us of the successful in Ramadan, and make it easy for us to turn to Him completely and perpetually. Ameen.
Do you have any Ramadan Resolutions of your own? Share them in the comments below!