In Ramadan, what Prevents a Muslim from Piety?

(Translated)

Sayyidina Umar (r.a) said: "Account yourselves before you are held accountable and be prepared for the greatest show." About the month of Ramadan, it was narrated in the two Sahih from Abu Hurayrah (r.a) that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said: «إِذَا جَاءَ رَمَضَانُ فُتِّحَتْ أَبْوَابُ الْجَنَّةِ وَغُلِّقَتْ أَبْوَابُ جَهَنَّمَ وَسُلْسِلَتِ الشَّيَاطِينُ»“When the month of Ramadan starts, the gates of the heaven are opened and the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are chained.”

These two authentic Athar are sufficient for the Muslim to fear his soul. When the devils are shackled, there is no excuse for a Muslim to be complacent, for his soul, which is between his sides, is his enemy. Therefore, the wise Muslim stands before himself and holds it accountable with the precise measures, like the weighing scale for gold it weighs the dust because a sprinkling of gold is precious. A few days in a month in which those who did not realize forgiveness lose - despite the opening of the gates of the heaven and the closing of the gates of Hell – these are more valuable than gold.

Here is an attempt to put the finger on the wound; to find out what is preventing us from being among those who our Lord said:

﴿وَسِيقَ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا رَبَّهُمْ إِلَى الْجَنَّةِ زُمَرًا حَتَّى إِذَا جَاؤُوهَا وَفُتِحَتْ أَبْوَابُهَا وَقَالَ لَهُمْ خَزَنَتُهَا سَلَامٌ عَلَيْكُمْ طِبْتُمْ فَادْخُلُوهَا خَالِدِينَ﴾

“But those who feared their Lord will be driven to Paradise in groups until, when they reach it while its gates have been opened and its keepers say, "Peace be upon you; you have become pure; so enter it to abide eternally therein," [they will enter].” [Az-Zumar: 73].

The follower of the verses of the Quran, especially what was revealed in Mecca, as they solve human problems and tackle the Nafsiyya (disposition) of the early Muslims, will find that they have discussed all the obstacles that prevent us as individuals from piety towards Allah Almighty.

Islam has fought laziness and the lack of fortitude, He (swt) said in Surat Ash-Sharh

﴿فَإِذَا فَرَغْتَ فَانصَبْ * وَإِلَى رَبِّكَ فَارْغَبْ﴾

“So when you have finished [your duties], then stand up [for worship].* And to your Lord direct [your] longing.” [Ash-Sharh: 7-8]. And said in Surat Al-Asr:

﴿إِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لَفِي خُسْرٍ * إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ﴾

“Indeed, mankind is in loss, * Except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience.” [Al-Asr: 2-3[.

And fought the inclination for this life and the preoccupation with its pleasures from the remembrance of Allah, He (swt) says:

﴿وَاضْرِبْ لَهُم مَّثَلَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا كَمَاء أَنزَلْنَاهُ مِنَ السَّمَاء فَاخْتَلَطَ بِهِ نَبَاتُ الْأَرْضِ فَأَصْبَحَ هَشِيمًا تَذْرُوهُ الرِّيَاحُ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُّقْتَدِرًا﴾

“And present to them the example of the life of this world, [its being] like rain which We send down from the sky, and the vegetation of the earth mingles with it and [then] it becomes dry remnants, scattered by the winds. And Allah is ever, over all things, Perfect in Ability.” [Al-Kahf: 45]

And fought materialism and selfishness by His saying:

﴿وَاصْبِرْ نَفْسَكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ رَبَّهُم بِالْغَدَاةِ وَالْعَشِيِّ يُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَهُ وَلَا تَعْدُ عَيْنَاكَ عَنْهُمْ تُرِيدُ زِينَةَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَلَا تُطِعْ مَنْ أَغْفَلْنَا قَلْبَهُ عَن ذِكْرِنَا وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ وَكَانَ أَمْرُهُ فُرُطًا﴾

“And keep yourself patient [by being] with those who call upon their Lord in the morning and the evening, seeking His countenance. And let not your eyes pass beyond them, desiring adornments of the worldly life, and do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance and who follows his desire and whose affair is ever [in] neglect.” ]Al-Kahf: 28[. And His saying:

﴿وَلَا تَمُدَّنَّ عَيْنَيْكَ إِلَى مَا مَتَّعْنَا بِهِ أَزْوَاجًا مِّنْهُمْ زَهْرَةَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنيَا لِنَفْتِنَهُمْ فِيهِ وَرِزْقُ رَبِّكَ خَيْرٌ وَأَبْقَى﴾

“And do not extend your eyes toward that by which We have given enjoyment to [some] categories of them, [its being but] the splendor of worldly life by which We test them. And the provision of your Lord is better and more enduring.” [Taha: 131].

Thus, Quran did not leave a gap in the disposition of the Muslim and his personality but treated it

﴿شِفَاءٌ وَرَحْمَةٌ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ﴾

“…Healing and mercy for the believers” [Al-Isra: 82].

The situation of Ramadan these days, where Islam is absent from life, and the situation of Muslims are summarized by the words of Allah Almighty:

﴿وَاللّهُ يُرِيدُ أَن يَتُوبَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَيُرِيدُ الَّذِينَ يَتَّبِعُونَ الشَّهَوَاتِ أَن تَمِيلُواْ مَيْلاً عَظِيمًا﴾

“Allah wants to accept your repentance, but those who follow [their] passions want you to digress [into] a great deviation.”  [An-Nisa: 27].

What happens to Muslims in this Holy month of the manifestations of the distance from Allah and His law are the symptoms caused by regimes that fight Islam with all their efforts, for the nations are like the vessel; if it is filled with thought, it will give thought, and if it is filled with nonsense, it will not exude except foolishness.

Regimes in which a dancer gives Fatwa and an advocate appears for the promotion of food and perfumes in a deliberate exchange of roles, aimed at reducing the sanctity of Allah. Is not Allah saying

﴿ذَلِكَ وَمَن يُعَظِّمْ شَعَائِرَ اللَّهِ فَإِنَّهَا مِن تَقْوَى الْقُلُوبِ﴾

“That [is so]. And whoever honors the symbols of Allah - indeed, it is from the piety of hearts…” [Al-Hajj: 32]…

Regimes that harness all their capabilities from the media, "scientists", ulema, intellectuals, curricula and even the platforms of Allah as well as the laws that they legislate to perpetuate the Western systems. Starting with the fatwas of obeying the ruler (Wali Amr), and the series and films that enshrine selfishness and following desires. This type of serials has spread in recent years, promoting the Western lifestyle, filled with stories of obscenity and adultery, the abandonment of obedience to the father - who appears as ruthless preventing his daughter’s freedom – as well as consumption of alcohol and drugs and making the criminals heroes in dramatic plots and tragedy music that attract the follower to unwillingly sympathize with their immorality, And consecrating national and nationalist concepts that cultivate in the Muslim selfishness, egotism and racist outlook of his Muslim brother, such as in Lebanon and Jordan where racism is systematically practiced by the regimes against the Muslims of Syria.

In the propaganda broadcast by the Palestinian Authority in schools for the child banking week, where Riba is promoted on the pretext of accustom children to accumulate money to secure their future, not only do they legislate for Riba, but they cultivate in our children materialism and the love of Dunya.

The Muslim women, who they advocate for the need to equate her with men are not excluded in this war but are paradoxically the most disadvantaged and receive the largest portion of it!

So, in addition to the stereotyped image of modern women and the advertisements of beauty, fashion, fashion companies, kitchens, furniture, etc. which target women, they have been exposed through both the official and non-official media, and women's rights associations, to a huge amount of toxins for brainwashing in terms of success and self- realization. This is what man has been exposed to, albeit less.

The measure of success in society became what positions we occupy and what certificates we earn which are evaluated according to what we memorize, that is, how much we score, and it has nothing to do with our intellectual product, scientific wealth and our benefit to society. So. success is measured by a digital scale based on linking the value of the person with the money he owns (real estate, bank account balance, the latest mobile phone, cars ...). An evaluation by which the status of a woman who sponsors a family, raises a generation, carries the Dawah to those around her and educates the women of her community is not considered to have any effect because she did not get a signed certificate by the state and did not occupy a position in an official institution!

We blame the state and the regime here and hold it accountable, but we do not exempt ourselves, for the satanic regime has no authority over those who fear their Lord and worship Him with insight!

This is on the spiritual side. As on the political side, if we assume the validity of the separation between the two, we look and our hearts are filled with agony as we see the armies of the Muslims fail to perform the obligatory duty, which they fill their gap with, as the Messenger of Allah (saw) ordered them as the people of power and protection by granting victory to our oppressed brothers and sisters.

So, piety towards Allah Almighty is a duty on every Muslim, whatever his position. It is a duty and a crown of all duties on every soldier and officer in any Muslim army to work to support this Muslim blood, to work to remove the offers that restrain them from the establishment of the abandoned law of Allah, and to work to apply the law of Allah in the earth and carry out the task of succession that we are found on the earth for it.

As a result of the criminality of these regimes against the Muslims in the Islamic world, where the piety towards Allah is absent from all the rulers and all have failed to support the Ummah, Ramadan is no longer the month of piety and conquests, but became the month of sin and evil, a month in which the Ummah is humiliated from one end to another. In Al-Aqsa and the desecration of the Jews of its sanctities is the greatest evidence.

In East Turkistan and Alaska, Muslims face the option of starving in Ramadan or eating pork. In Germany and France, Muslims are harassed and restricted to fasting. In Egypt, the minarets are closed, and the people of Sinai are killed. In Morocco, the high prices occupy people in living instead of engaging wholly in worship.

Ramadan complains to Allah the shortening of the Muslims and the criminality of the influential. And I think, perhaps it were to speak, it would have said the famous words of Ibn al-Siddiq, "Oh Allah, I complain about the weakness of the trustworthy and the betrayal of the strong."

Oh Allah, this is Ramadan, and this is your Ummah they call to You for help and there is no helper except you. O Allah give our souls their righteousness, You are the best who purifies them. O Allah we ask you a victory and make us be from its witnesses and soldiers. A victory by which Islam and its people are honored and by which disbelief and its people are humiliated. O the best of those asked and the most gracious who answered.

And Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Bayan Jamal