Spiritual delights of fasting Ramadhan (18)

Today on the 18th day of the blessed month of Ramadhan, we start our daily programme titled “Spiritual delights of fasting Ramadhan” with the special supplication for the day:

 “O Allah, waken me this day to the bountifulness of its dawns; light up my heart with the rays of its lights; and dispose all my bodily members to follow its trail, with Your light; O Illuminator of the hearts of the Gnostics!

A famous English adage says: It is human to err. It means human beings are not free from mistakes. But according to the divine religion of Islam, this human frailty is no excuse for repeatedly committing mistakes, and does not mean that Muslims can justify the blunders they make. Islam is the most dynamic system of life. It is the universal creed chosen for all mankind by the All-Wise Creator, Who has left open for us the door of repentance. The moment we regret our actions, and turn to God in a sincere manner, the All-Merciful Lord will surely forgive us. His Mercy is Infinite, and is at its peak in the blessed month of Ramadhan, which is an opportunity for us to correct our behavior, and reform ourselves.

This means that there are certain rights of God upon us that we should fulfill. For instance, we are obliged to pray five times daily, fast in the month of Ramadhan if we are healthy, perform the Hajj pilgrimage once in life if we have the financial means, and pay Zakaat and Khoms to the poor if we have surplus income after meeting our basic needs. In case, we have been negligent of these obligations, it is never too late to realize our mistakes and errors. Once we realize that we have made mistakes, we should strive to earnestly fulfill what we had missed. And this is not at all difficult.

We should first understand that repetition of these offenses darkens the heart and distances us from God and His Mercy. So, when we stand in prayer, we should be fully conscious of our act by rejecting all satanic temptations and being deeply engrossed in remembrance of the Lord Most High. It is God Almighty Who forgives us and gives us another chance. We had become worthless on committing sins, but if we repent and turn to God for forgiveness, we will regain our human dignity. Imam Jafar Sadeq (AS), the 6^th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) has taught us through one of his supplications:

“My God, You advised me but I did not take lesson, You cautioned me against sins but I did not heed. Now it is me who has no excuse in Your Divine Court; so forgive me O the All-Merciful. O My God, Your servants are not aware of Your Infinite Knowledge and are incapable of acquiring Your proper cognition. We all are in need of your Infinite mercy so, don’t turn us away.”

How wonderful! Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) and his Infallible Heirs have taught us how to repent and seek forgiveness from the All-Loving God. For instance, the Prophet’s 4^th Infallible Heir, Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS) in his Munajaat or Whispered Supplications for the Repenters, says:

“My God, if remorse for sins is a form of repentance, I - by Your might - am one of the remorseful! If seeking forgiveness for offenses is an alleviation, I am one of those who pray for forgiveness! To You I return that You may be well pleased!

My God, through Your power over me, turn toward me, through Your clemency toward me, pardon me, and through Your knowledge of me, be gentle toward me!”

This supplication is meant for us the sinners, and it does not mean that Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS), ever erred, let alone commit sin. As an Infallible Imam, he was the picture of piety, virtue and total obedience to the Will of God in all matters. Through these Munajaat we learn the ways of attaining the proximity of Allah, the All-Merciful. The Imam in the concluding passages of the Munajaat for the Repenters, says:

“My God, though the sins of Your servant are ugly, Your pardon is beautiful. My God, I am not the first to have disobeyed You,… O Responder to the distressed! O Remover of injury! O Great in goodness! O Knower of everything secret! O Beautiful through covering over! I seek Your munificence and Your generosity to intercede with You…so accept my supplication, disappoint not my hope in You, accept my repentance, and hide my offense, through Your kindness and mercy, O Most Merciful of the merciful!”

For your information today the 18^th of the blessed month of fasting is the day when God Almighty revealed the Zabour or Book of Psalms to Prophet David. It contained hymns and praises to the Lord Most High and was a means of educating the Israelites on the fundamentals of faith like monotheism, divine justice, God-appointed leaders and the day of Resurrection, in addition to building morals in society by striving for virtue and abstaining from sins and vices. Unfortunately, the ever-rebellious Israelites, as usual, tampered with its contents and changed many of its concepts, to the extent that what remains today of the Psalms of David is a distorted version.

However, with the advent of the universal faith of Islam and revelation of the holy Qur’an as the final heavenly scripture for all humanity, the messages of the past prophets were naturally revived. God Himself has guaranteed the protection of the Qur’an, and for preservation of the pristine teachings of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), the Almighty decreed divinely-appointed leadership.

Thus, thanks to the endeavours of the Ahl al-Bayt, the teachings of Islam have remained untainted, and these repositories of divine knowledge, in every age and era strove to bequeath to humanity the bezels of wisdom. One such bezel is the book containing the life-inspiring supplications taught by the Prophet’s 4^th Infallible Successor, Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS). Known as “Sahifat-as-Sajjadiyya” this wonderful collection is known as Zabour Aal-e Mohammad or the Psalms of the Progeny of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Today we will cast a glance on this valuable heritage of humanity that contains every topic under the sun, including scientific issues, such as the weight of light, which was unimaginable over a million and four centuries ago.

Since we are approaching the Grand Nights of Qadr, starting tonight on the 19^th eve, on whose morning the Commander of the Faithful, the Leader of the Pious, the Epitome of Justice, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS) was struck a fatal blow on his head, while in the state of the morning prayer, by the poisoned sword of the renegade Abdur-Rahman ibn Muljam, and attained martyrdom two days later, we offer our heartfelt condolences to all listeners, and request them to supplicate for us during the special rituals tonight.

AS/ME