The Garden of Knowledge

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

 15 Shabaan 1443/18 March 2022

All praise is due to Allah, the Cherisher, Sustainer, Nourisher and Provider of the entire creation. May peace, blessings and salutations be upon our Beloved Prophet Muhammed ﷺ.

Alhamdulilah we find ourselves halfway through the month of Shabaan and on route to the month of Ramadan, Allah willing. The month of Ramadan is a month of blessings, mercy and opportunity. The month of Ramadan is the month in which the Quran was revealed. As Allah says in the Holy Quran in Surah Baqarah, verse 185:

شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ ٱلْقُرْءَانُ هُدًۭى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَـٰتٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْفُرْقَانِ

“Ramadan the month in which the Quran was revealed as a guide for humanity with clear proofs of guidance and criterion”

Ramadan offers us the opportunity to become better Muslims. It is a month where we can get rid of our bad habits completely rather than just pause it, and form new beneficial habits. It is a month which gives us a glimpse of what we are capable of doing on a daily basis.

One may ask what is the best way for us to remove our bad habits and form new beneficial habits. Shaykh Sayed Habib Ali Jifri offered a solution in one of his lectures.

“In any action which your ego starts talking to you about doing, ask yourself if Nabi ﷺ was in the same situation, what would He ﷺ do and if He ﷺ was besides you at that moment how would he like you to be? Imagine you receive a message from Nabi Muhammed ﷺ saying that He ﷺ will be coming to stay with you for 3 days and He ﷺ is bringing his beloved daughter Fatima Zahra (R.A) to keep the women of the household company. What would each of us need to change? Starting from the bedroom, what would we need to change? What would we need to change on our Facebook and Twitter pages? What would we need to change from our browser history? What would we need to change from the CD’s in our cars? What friends around you would you be happy for Nabi ﷺ to know you friends with and what friends would you feel ashamed to introduce Nabi ﷺ to? What daily habits would you let Nabi ﷺ share with you and which ones would you feel ashamed for Nabi ﷺ to see you doing?” – Shaykh Sayed Habib Ali Jifri.

Let us all take a good look at ourselves this month of Ramadan and ponder over this beautiful piece advice of our beloved Shaykh Sayed Habib Ali Jifri. We ask Allah to facilitate and allow us to bring about positive change in our lives and to accept our efforts from us and grant us understanding In Sha Allah!