Blessed First 10 days of Dhul Hijjah (Abdullah Cheng)
Dear brothers and sisters,
As we enter the first 10 days of Dhul Hijjah, we have to remind ourselves of the importance and significance of these 10 blessed days, and why these days are considered the most blessed days of the year. The fact that these days are especially blessed means that not all days in the year are the same, not all days in the year are as blessed as these 10 days. This is in fact a mercy of Allah towards us, because this encourages and motivates us to put in more effort for a period of time. If the whole year were to be the same, we would not be encouraged to do more. So when we are told that these are the most blessed days of the year, it’s meant to tell us that we should put in more effort than usual.
The Prophet (SAW) said in a Hadith: “There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allah than these ten days.” Then the Sahaba asked: “Not even Jihad?” And the Prophet said: “Not even Jihad, except if a man who went out to fight and gave up all his wealth for the sake of Allah and came back with nothing.” (Sahih Bukhari 969)
What makes it even more blessed is that these 10 days include the best deeds a Muslim can perform during the entire year. On these days, we remember Allah by saying the Tasbih (Subhanallah), Tahmid (Alhamdulillah), Tahlil (La ilaha illa Allah), Takbir (Allahu Akbar), we offer more prayers, we give more charity, we fast on these days, and the Hajj is performed during this time. So it is essential that we plan beforehand how we are going to spend these 10 days.
According to the majority of scholars, in the beginning of Surah Al-Fajr, the things that Allah swears by refer to the days of Dhul Hijjah:
وَٱلْفَجْرِ
By the dawn,
Some scholars say that ‘the Fajr’ that is mentioned here refers to the Fajr of the day of Eid, and Fajr is the best part of the day.
وَلَيَالٍ عَشْرٍۢ
and by the ten nights,
The scholars commonly agree that the ten nights here refer to the first 10 days of Dhul Hijjah, which are the best days of the year.
وَٱلشَّفْعِ وَٱلْوَتْرِ
and by the even and the odd,
The scholars say that the ‘even’ refers to the day of Sacrifice (the 10th day of Dhul Hijjah) and the ‘odd’ refers to the day of Arafat (the 9th day of Dhul Hijjah). These 2 are the best days among the 10 days.
وَٱلَّيْلِ إِذَا يَسْرِ
and the night when it passes!
This refers to the last parts of the night and the most blessed time for Qiyam (night prayer).
One of the most encouraged actions to perform at the end of these 10 days, which is the day of Eid al-Adha, is to offer a sacrifice for the sake of Allah. The sacrifice and the rituals of the Hajj should remind us of the legacy and the efforts of our Prophet Ibrahim (AS) as well as the struggles that he went through.
Allah said in the Qur’an:
وَإِذِ ٱبْتَلَىٰٓ إِبْرَٰهِـۧمَ رَبُّهُۥ بِكَلِمَـٰتٍۢ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّى جَاعِلُكَ لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًۭا
Ibrahim (AS) was tested by Allah, and he fulfilled all the commandments of Allah. Allah said: “I will make you a role model for the people"
Allah has commanded the believers to emulate the Prophet Ibrahim (AS) and his family, millions and billions of people around the entire world are following his footsteps, to try to be as brave, as certain, as steadfast as him, so that perhaps we could also achieve similar results and receive similar blessings that Allah has blessed him, and one of the biggest blessings he has received was to have an honorable legacy that people follow even after death. Even thousands of years after his death, every single Muslim today mentions his name every single time during our prayers:
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلِيٍّ مُحَمَّدِ وَعَلِيٌّ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا صَلَّيْت عَلى إِبْرَاهِيم وَعَلى آلِ إبْرَاهِيمَ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ ، اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلى مُحَمَّدِ وَعَلى آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ كَمَا بَارَكْت عَلى إِبْرَاهِيم وَعَلى آلِ إبْرَاهِيمَ إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ .
O Allah, send prayers and blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You sent prayers and blessings upon Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim
All the rituals in Hajj, making Tawaf around the Kaaba, walking between Safa and Marwa, standing in Arafat, giving sacrifice, an entire pillar of Islam was based on the actions of our Prophet Ibrahim (AS) and his family. He was able to leave such a huge legacy because of the firmness in his Iman, the struggles he went through, and this legacy is way bigger than what he could have expected. Prophet Ibrahim (AS) became very old and thought that he couldn’t have any child, but Allah not only blessed him with a child, but all the Prophets that came after him were all from his progeny. If we want to leave a legacy for ourselves, if we want to leave goodness in this world even after we are gone, we should try to imitate and follow what our Prophet Ibrahim (AS) did.
Even if some of us are not able to go to Hajj this year, we should also take advantage of these 10 blessed days, especially the day of Arafat. Even if we are not able to stand in the places where the Prophet Ibrahim and his family stood, we are still able to reflect on their struggles, their Tawakkul, their sacrifice for the sake of Allah during these 10 blessed days. I would highly encourage those who have the ability, to fast on the day of Arafat, to come to the Masjid and focus on doing more Du’a and Dhikr and prayers.
May Allah accept the efforts and Du’a of all the Hujjaj from all around the world, may Allah allow those among us who haven’t performed the Hajj to be able to do so as soon as possible, may Allah accept our deeds on these blessed days.