A guiding word from the honorable Shaykh on what must be preserved after Ramadan.
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The Shaykh : As for what follows: This is the first meeting of the month of Shawwal in the year 1414, and with it we open our meetings after the blessed month of fasting. This is the fifty-first tape of this meeting series. We ask Allah the Exalted to record it for us as a good deed and not against us.
After this blessed month, we remind ourselves and you that if the month of fasting ends, it does not mean that fasting has ended. If the month of standing in prayer ends, it does not mean that standing in prayer has ended. If the month of charity ends, it does not mean that charity has ended. This is because deeds do not end when their seasons end; rather, deeds end when the term of life ends. As Allah Blessed and Exalted said:[Ali 'Imran 3:102] So we are commanded to remain upon Islam until death. And He Blessed and Exalted said: And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1376Sahih (Darussalam) And al-Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "Indeed, Allah has not set a limit for the deed of His believing servant, or for the deed of His believing servant, other than death. Then he recited His saying, the Exalted: " So fasting is still prescribed, praise be to Allah.
It is prescribed for a person to fast three days of every month, whether from the beginning, the middle, or the end of the month, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family):Riyad as-Salihin 1260 And Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: But the best is that these three days be the white days, which are the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth of every month.
There is also weekly fasting that repeats with the repetition of weeks, which is fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to fast them and said:Sunan an-Nasa'i 2358Hasan (Darussalam).
There is annual fasting throughout the year: fasting on the Day of 'Arafah. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said regarding it:Jami` at-Tirmidhi 749Da'if (Darussalam).
And fasting on the Day of 'Ashura. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sunan Ibn Majah 1738Sahih (Darussalam).
So fasting, praise be to Allah, is still prescribed. These days that are fasted make up for the defects that occur in the fasting of Ramadan. Indeed, they make up for the defects that occur in the fasting of Ramadan, because the fasting of Ramadan must have some defect in it. Either forbidden words that the fasting person says, or a forbidden act that the fasting person does, or a neglect of an obligatory duty that the fasting person neglects. It needs patching, because these are breaches in the fasting that need patching. With what do you patch it? You patch it with voluntary deeds. For this reason, it came in the hadith that voluntary deeds make up for the obligatory ones on the Day of Resurrection, and they patch the defect in the obligatory.
Standing in prayer is still prescribed every night. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to stand in prayer until his feet swelled. And it is authentic from him (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) that he said:Muwatta Malik 15:32.
So: Standing in prayer is prescribed every night, and prayer is also prescribed at all times except the times of prohibition. In those times, nothing is prayed except the obligatory prayers or the voluntary prayers that have a cause, more than praying at night and day. For this reason, a man fulfilled a need for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: "Ask," meaning: What do you want me to reward you with? He said: "I ask you for your companionship in Paradise." Look at the high aspiration! He did not ask for anything from this world; he asked to be the companion of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) in Paradise. The scholars said: By frequent prostrations, meaning: by frequent prayer, because prayer is called prostration, as it is a pillar in it. Just as it is said: "Free a neck," meaning: a complete slave. But because the neck is the part by which life cannot exist, it was used for the entire slave.
Charity did not end with Ramadan. Charity is prescribed at all times, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sunan Ibn Majah 4210Da’if (Darussalam) Who among us does not make mistakes? Sunan Ibn Majah 4251Hasan (Darussalam) And how many are our mistakes! And how much is our extravagance upon ourselves! Charity extinguishes the sin as water extinguishes fire. And charity is charity, even if it is half a date. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan an-Nasa'i 2552Sahih (Darussalam) For indeed, Allah the Exalted is Good and accepts nothing but what is good. And if a person gives charity from what is good, then Allah the Exalted takes his charity with His right hand, even if it is a date, and He grows it as a person grows his foal, until it becomes like a great mountain. So give charity. And know that charity is not only what a person gives to a stranger who is not from his family. Charity to your family is better than charity to strangers. And spending on the family is charity. Indeed, the dinar that you spend on your own maintenance is also charity, charity upon yourself. And charity to the near relative is better than charity to the distant one, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The important thing is that you spend the expense seeking the Face of Allah the Exalted.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) visited Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas and said to him:Sahih al-Bukhari 56 "Maintenance" is an indefinite noun in the context of negation, encompassing all maintenance, little or much. You will be rewarded for it, on the condition: that it is for Allah, seeking His Face. You will be rewarded for it, even for what you put in your wife's mouth, although your spending on your wife is an obligatory duty. If you did not spend on her, she would say: Either you spend or you divorce. You spend on her to reconcile her and fulfill her right, and out of fear that she will demand divorce. And yet, you are rewarded for the spending on her. So the doors, praise be to Allah, are many and wide.
And if the fasting of Ramadan is with faith and seeking reward, it is a cause for the forgiveness of sins, and so is its standing in prayer. There are other causes for the expiation of sins:Sunan Ibn Majah 3812Sahih (Darussalam) Allah is the Greatest! A great blessing. Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi (Glory be to Allah and praise be to Him). If you say it one hundred times, Allah will forgive your sins even if they are like the foam of the sea! And it is known that no one can count the foam of the sea.
And your saying: Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi does not take much of your time. I believe that if a person says it with moderation, he will complete it in ten minutes or less. And you can complete it while walking in the market, while sitting in your house, while sitting waiting for prayer. Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi one hundred times, your sins will be forgiven by it, even if they are like the foam of the sea. For this reason, the scholars said: It should be said at the end of the day, to expiate what he did during the day. And the good is much! Praise be to Allah. But we need a lifetime, we need to seek reward.
When a person performs ablution in his house and perfects the ablution and goes out to the mosque, nothing takes him out except prayer. Do you know what his reward is? He does not take a single step but Allah raises for him thereby a degree and removes from him thereby a sin. O Allah, to You is praise. The single step has two benefits for you: The first: that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, raises for you thereby a degree. And the second: that He removes from you thereby a sin. And this is a great blessing. But where are those who seek reward? Where are those who are capable of this? Where are those who feel this feeling when they go out from their houses to the mosques? Most people are either ignorant of this and do not know, or they know but are heedless and do not seek reward. For this reason, you should seek reward for the good you do, seeking reward from Allah, meaning: that you hope for the reward of Allah thereby.
So we ask Allah the Exalted to help us and you in His remembrance, His gratitude, and the excellence of His worship. And to make our remaining in this world a raising of our degrees, and nearness and closeness to Him. Indeed, He is capable of all things.
And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. And now to the questions, and each person has only one question.
After this blessed month, we remind ourselves and you that if the month of fasting ends, it does not mean that fasting has ended. If the month of standing in prayer ends, it does not mean that standing in prayer has ended. If the month of charity ends, it does not mean that charity has ended. This is because deeds do not end when their seasons end; rather, deeds end when the term of life ends. As Allah Blessed and Exalted said:
O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims [in submission to Him].
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَAnd worship your Lord until certainty comes to you.
وَاعْبُدْ رَبَّكَ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَكَ الْيَقِينُWhen a person dies, his deeds are cut off
إذا مات الإنسان انقطع عملهAnd worship your Lord until certainty comes to you.
وَاعْبُدْ رَبَّكَ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَكَ الْيَقِينُIt is prescribed for a person to fast three days of every month, whether from the beginning, the middle, or the end of the month, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family):
Observing Saum (fasting) on three days of every month is equivalent to a full month's fasting.
صيام ثلاثة أيام من كل شهر صوم الدهر كلهThe Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to fast three days of every month, not caring whether he fasted them from the beginning of the month, the middle, or the end.
كان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يصوم ثلاثة أيام من كل شهر، لا يبالي أصامها من أول الشهر أم من وسطه أم من آخرهThere is also weekly fasting that repeats with the repetition of weeks, which is fasting on Mondays and Thursdays. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to fast them and said:
Those are two days in which deeds are shown to the Lord of the worlds, and I like my deeds to be shown (to Him) when I am fasting.
هما يومان تعرض فيهما الأعمال على الله، فأحب أن يعرض عملي وأنا صائمThere is annual fasting throughout the year: fasting on the Day of 'Arafah. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said regarding it:
for indeed I anticipate that Allah will forgive (the sins) of the year after it, and the year before it.
إنه يحتسب على الله أن يكفر السنة التي قبله والسنة التي بعدهAnd fasting on the Day of 'Ashura. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
I hope, will expiate for the sins of the previous year.
أحتسب على الله أن يكفر السنة التي قبلهSo fasting, praise be to Allah, is still prescribed. These days that are fasted make up for the defects that occur in the fasting of Ramadan. Indeed, they make up for the defects that occur in the fasting of Ramadan, because the fasting of Ramadan must have some defect in it. Either forbidden words that the fasting person says, or a forbidden act that the fasting person does, or a neglect of an obligatory duty that the fasting person neglects. It needs patching, because these are breaches in the fasting that need patching. With what do you patch it? You patch it with voluntary deeds. For this reason, it came in the hadith that voluntary deeds make up for the obligatory ones on the Day of Resurrection, and they patch the defect in the obligatory.
Standing in prayer is still prescribed every night. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to stand in prayer until his feet swelled. And it is authentic from him (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) that he said:
Our Lord, the Blessed and Exalted, descends every night to the heaven of this world when the last third of the night is still to come and says, 'Who will call on Me so that I may answer him? Who will ask Me so that I may give him? Who will ask forgiveness of Me so that I may forgive him?'
ينزل ربنا إلى السماء الدنيا حين يبقى ثلث الليل الآخر فيقول: من يدعوني فأستجيب له؟ من يسألني فأعطيه؟ من يستغفرني فأغفر له؟ حتى يطلع الفجر، وذلك كل ليلهSo: Standing in prayer is prescribed every night, and prayer is also prescribed at all times except the times of prohibition. In those times, nothing is prayed except the obligatory prayers or the voluntary prayers that have a cause, more than praying at night and day. For this reason, a man fulfilled a need for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: "Ask," meaning: What do you want me to reward you with? He said: "I ask you for your companionship in Paradise." Look at the high aspiration! He did not ask for anything from this world; he asked to be the companion of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) in Paradise.
So he said: Or something else? He said: That is it, O Messenger of Allah. He said: Then help me to control yourself by prostrating frequently.
فقال: أو غير ذلك؟ قال: هو ذاك يا رسول الله، قال: فأعني على نفسك بكثرة السجودCharity did not end with Ramadan. Charity is prescribed at all times, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
charity extinguishes bad deeds just as water extinguishes fire
الصدقة تطفئ الخطيئة كما يطفئ الماء النارEvery son of Adam commits sin
كل بني آدم خطاءProtect yourselves from the Fire, even with half a date.
اتقوا النار ولو بشق تمرةYour charity to a relative is both charity and maintaining family ties.
صدقتك على القريب صدقة وصلةThe Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) visited Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas and said to him:
You will be rewarded for whatever you spend for Allah's sake even if it were a morsel which you put in your wife's mouth.
واعلم أنك لن تنفق نفقة تبتغي بها وجه الله إلا أجرت عليها، حتى ما تجعله في فم امرأتكAnd if the fasting of Ramadan is with faith and seeking reward, it is a cause for the forgiveness of sins, and so is its standing in prayer. There are other causes for the expiation of sins:
Whoever says: Subhan Allahi wa bi hamdihi (Glory and praise is to Allah) one hundred times, his sins will be forgiven even if they were like the foam of the sea.
إذا قال الإنسان: سبحان الله وبحمده مائة مرة غُفرت خطاياه ولو كانت مثل زبد البحرAnd your saying: Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi does not take much of your time. I believe that if a person says it with moderation, he will complete it in ten minutes or less. And you can complete it while walking in the market, while sitting in your house, while sitting waiting for prayer. Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi one hundred times, your sins will be forgiven by it, even if they are like the foam of the sea. For this reason, the scholars said: It should be said at the end of the day, to expiate what he did during the day. And the good is much! Praise be to Allah. But we need a lifetime, we need to seek reward.
When a person performs ablution in his house and perfects the ablution and goes out to the mosque, nothing takes him out except prayer. Do you know what his reward is? He does not take a single step but Allah raises for him thereby a degree and removes from him thereby a sin. O Allah, to You is praise. The single step has two benefits for you: The first: that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, raises for you thereby a degree. And the second: that He removes from you thereby a sin. And this is a great blessing. But where are those who seek reward? Where are those who are capable of this? Where are those who feel this feeling when they go out from their houses to the mosques? Most people are either ignorant of this and do not know, or they know but are heedless and do not seek reward. For this reason, you should seek reward for the good you do, seeking reward from Allah, meaning: that you hope for the reward of Allah thereby.
So we ask Allah the Exalted to help us and you in His remembrance, His gratitude, and the excellence of His worship. And to make our remaining in this world a raising of our degrees, and nearness and closeness to Him. Indeed, He is capable of all things.
And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. And now to the questions, and each person has only one question.