Spiritual delights of fasting Ramadhan (20)

Today on the 20th 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, open for me this day the gates of paradise, and shut for me therein the gates of hellfire, and grant me success in reading the Qur’an, O You who send down tranquility into the hearts of the faithful!”

As you know we are passing through the heartrending days of the blessed month of Ramadhan when the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS) was in acute pain in the year 40 AH, having been struck on his head a fatal blow by the poisoned sword of the renegade Ibn Muljam al-Moradi, while engrossed in the Fajr or Morning Prayer on 19^th Ramadhan. These days and nights special mourning ceremonies are in progress all over Iran and in all those parts of the world where live the followers of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).

Incidentally, tonight will be the 2^nd of the Grand Night of Qadr or Grandeur, on which God decrees the fate of all mankind for the year to come. Do pray for us dear listeners and beware of selfish tendencies which the ever-lurking devil exploits by tempting the weak of mind to feel jealous of others. We should overcome such dangerous inclinations by admitting our own faults and acknowledging the better work of others, which we may have failed to understand because of our own inadequate knowledge.

These are indeed the virtues of blessed Ramadhan that teaches us the finer points of life and faith, and how to build fraternal ties by dismantling the walls of distrust. The month of fasting ought to arouse our consciousness of God Almighty and make us realize that it is haraam or religiously forbidden to occupy a position for which we are not qualified and cannot adequately discharge duties related to it, even if some official paper has put us uncomfortably in that position. This is what we learn from the martyrdom of Imam Ali (AS), who was the victim of the jealous and the unqualified, who wrongly thought that they knew more than him. The Imam, however, patiently endured the seizure of his rights and usurpation of his political position by undeserving and unqualified persons. 

The Prophet’s 7^th Infallible Heir, Imam Musa Kazem (AS) says we can learn so many things from even a single incident. For instance, when pieces of coal are together they create more heat. This teaches us that the secret to a life full of warmth and collective progress is to maintain cordial ties and live beside each other, so that this spirit of fraternity enables us to build a thriving economy, free of anxiety and mistrust. Another point to note is that in order to increase sustenance one should respect the parents and gladden their hearts, so that they pray for us.

Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) says:

The supplication of parents for their children is equal to the supplication of a prophet for his people. Once a young man approached the Prophet, and said: I have committed every imaginable sin; is there any hope for my forgiveness. The Prophet, whom God calls “Mercy unto the whole creation”, asked: Are your parents alive? The young man said: My father is alive, but I have lost my mother. The Prophet said: Be good to your father and serve him.

As soon as the young man left, the Prophet said if that man had a mother his sins would have been forgiven sooner.

The holy Qur’an in Surah Isra, ayahs 23 and 24 says:

“Your Lord has decreed that you shall not worship anyone except Him, and [He has enjoined] kindness to parents. Should they reach old age at your side —one of them or both— do not say to them, ‘Fie!’ And do not chide them, but speak to them noble words.”

“Lower the wing of humility to them, out of mercy, and say, ‘My Lord! Have mercy on them, just as they reared me when I was [a] small [child]!”

One day Prophet Moses (PBUH) supplicated to God requesting that his companion in Paradise be made known to him. God told him to go to a young man in the market. As directed, Moses went and found out that the particular person was a butcher by profession. For some time, the Prophet watched his work from a distance but saw no specific behaviour of exceptional devotion. One evening when the butcher as usual closed his shop and was leaving for his home, Prophet Moses approached him and without introducing himself, asked him whether he could be his guest that night. The butcher agreed and took him to his house. As soon as the young man entered the house, before everything else, he prepared food. Then he went to an old woman who was crippled and patiently fed her.

Then he changed her clothes and helped her to do her work. Prophet Moses viewed that the young man did nothing special than caring for the old lady, besides performing his obligatory religious duties. He did nothing else in any extraordinary way, like long hours of prayers, prostrations and supplications. In the morning before leaving the house, the butcher once again went to the old woman and fed her kindly.

Upon bidding farewell, Moses asked the butcher who was that old woman, since after you fed her she raised her hands to the heaven and uttered some words. The young man said: She is my mother and every time I feed her, she prays for me and beseeches God to make me the companion of Prophet Moses in Paradise. On hearing this, Moses was amazed, and after introducing himself, gave the good news to the butcher that his mother’s prayers have been answered.

Now we bring you part of a Munajaat or Whispered Supplication of those who are obedient to God, as taught by the Prophet’s 4^th Infallible Heir, Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS):

“O God, inspire us to obey You, turn us aside from disobeying You, make it easy for us to reach the seeking of Your good pleasure which we wish, set us down in the midst of Your Gardens, dispel from our insights the clouds of misgiving, uncover from our hearts the wrappings of doubt and the veil, make falsehood vanish from our innermost minds, and fix the truth in our secret thoughts, for doubts and opinions fertilize temptations and muddy the purity of gifts and kindnesses!”

The Imam teaches us how to beseech God after fulfilling religious obligations to remove doubt from our heart. He considers doubts and suspicions to be the grounds for every evil, because if doubts were to rise regarding religious decrees, it will be the beginning for deviation. Of course, those who turn to God are enlightened by divine guidance and saved from the temptations of the devil. Elsewhere in the Whispered Supplication of the Obedient, the 4^th Imam says:

“O God, carry us in the ships of Your deliverance, give us to enjoy the pleasure of whispered prayer to You, make us drink at the pools of Your love, let us taste the sweetness of Your affection and nearness, allow us to struggle in Thee, preoccupy us with obeying You, and purify our intentions in devoting works to You, for we exist through You and belong to You, and we have no one to mediate with You but You!”

AS/ME