We are about to enter the Holy Month of Ramadhan and as we count down the final days of the month of Sha’ban it is an opportune time for us to reflect on areas of spiritual improvement in preparation for the coming blessed month of fasting. The two months preceding Ramadhan are preparatory months allowing us the opportunity to maximally benefit from the spiritual feast of Ramadhan.
When the warriors returned from the battlefield, the Prophet (SAW) said to them, “Greetings to those who have returned from the minor jihad”, or in other words, the minor struggle. They looked at each other in amazement as they had faced the onslaught of swords and arrows and could not comprehend how this was the minor struggle. If this was the minor struggle, what could possibly be the major struggle, or the greater Jihad?
It is said that the Holy Prophet (SAW) stated, “The one who starts his day with his main concern being worldly affairs has nothing to do with Allah (SWT), and whoever does not care about the Muslims is not one of them, and whoever willingly accepts humiliation without being forced is not one of us.”
The month of Sha’ban has arrived and with it comes many blessings. It is said that the Holy Prophet (SAW) stated, “Sha’ban is a distinguished month and it is my month, the carriers of the Divine Throne sanctify it and know its right, and it is the month in which sustenance is increased for the believers. Sha‘ban is the month of performing deeds, good is multiplied seventy times and evil is diminished, sins are forgiven and good deeds are accepted.”
Last week Muslims around the world commemorated the event of Isra wal Mi’raj (the Spiritual Night Journey). It is believed that the event occurred in the twelfth year of the Holy Prophet’s mission in Makkah during the night of the 27th of Rajab.
