Make the Most of last days of Ramadan ( Abdullah Cheng)
Dear brothers and sisters,
We are officially in the last 10 days of Ramadan, and only a few days left until Ramadan is over. We need to remind ourselves that these last 10 nights of Ramadan are the holiest nights of the entire year. There is no other time in the year that is more precious and more valuable than these last 10 nights. We learn from the Hadith that the Prophet ﷺ would tighten his belt for the last 10 nights, he would stay awake the whole night and spend most of the night in Dhikr, Qur’an, Du’a, Salah, he would wake up his family, and he would immense himself in acts of worship more than any other time in the year.
The focus here is that the Prophet ﷺ would do this especially for the last 10 nights rather than one single night. Because we don’t know when exactly is Laylatul Qadr for sure, and that’s the point. We know from one narration that the Prophet ﷺ was about to inform us about when is Laylatul Qadr, but two Muslims were arguing with each other, then the Prophet ﷺ said that the news about Laylatul Qadr has been taken away, and he said: “Perhaps that might be for your own good.” [Sahih Bukhari 2023] So we should understand that it is a blessing that this knowledge is hidden from us, so that we try our best for all the last 10 nights of Ramadan instead of just one single night.
If you feel that you still didn’t make the most of Ramadan yet, it’s still not too late, we still have a few more days. If you feel that you have done well so far, then keep up the good momentum and strive to do even better.
If we couldn’t do our best for every single day of Ramadan, let’s at least try our best in the last 10 nights. If we cannot do our best in all last 10 nights, at least try our best in the odd nights. If not all the odd nights, at least the 25th, 27th, 29th. And if not these 3 nights, at least the 25th and 27th. If not these two, at least the 27th. But we shouldn’t be too obsessed and fixated on which particular night is Laylatul Qadr and ignore the other nights, because even if the other nights are not Laylatul Qadr, they are at least the most precious nights of the most precious month of the entire year.
So how can we maximize the remaining time we have during these last 10 nights? What we can do is to strive for asking forgiveness from Allah and increase our acts of Ibadah without introducing anything new.
Increase our night prayers, in terms of the amount, the time, the quality. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever stands in prayer during Ramadan with sincere Iman and seeking reward, his previous sins will be forgiven.” [Sahih Bukhari 2009] This applies for the entire Ramadan, but especially the last 10 nights. Have hope that Allah will forgive our sins and reward us for our deeds.
If you are able to pray with a Jama’at, try to pray with the Imam from the beginning till the end. The Prophet ﷺ said in a Hadith: “Whoever stands for prayer in Ramadan with the Imam until he is finished, it will be recorded as if he prayed the entire night.” [Sunan Al-Tirmidhi 806] So we should all strive to complete the prayers along with the Imam if we are able to come to the masjid for Taraweeh or praying somewhere else in congregation.
Be as generous as we can, give charity and food and feed those who are in need. If we want our rewards to be multiplied, we should feed the fasting person, especially the needy ones, as the Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever gives food for a fasting person to break his fast, he will have a reward just like theirs”. [Sunan ibn Majah 1746]
Make sincere and personal Du’a in isolation. Try to have some time alone, avoid much socializing, decrease our phone time, delay any business and work if possible, have a portion of the night only for myself and Allah, and ask Him whatever we want from Him with absolute sincerity and firmness. Especially in the last 10 nights of Ramadan, we should be making this Du’a all the time: “اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي” (O Allah, You are Forgiving, You love forgiveness, so forgive me)
Realize my brothers and sisters, that this could be the last 10 nights of Ramadan that we experience in this life, this could be the last Laylatul Qadr we experience before we pass away, no one can guarantee that we will still be around next year. And even if we are still alive, who can guarantee if our body is as healthy as we are now, if we still have as much energy as we have now, if we still have as much free time as we have now. So take this golden opportunity not only as the most precious time of the year, but possibly the most precious time of our lives before leaving this world.
May Allah make us among those who fast for His sake and worship Him with sincerity, may Allah forgive us and erase our sins as if they had never existed before, may Allah accept our Du’a and our deeds in Laylatul Qadr and during these blessed nights of Ramadan.