Ramadans here again and Im sure most of you have lots of things you want to achieve in this

month. For example, some might want to finish reading the whole of Quran by the end of the
month. Some might also want to be involved in a charity program or volunteerism.
I dont know about you but I find myself feeling overwhelmed by the whole thing. I admit that I
had never been that productive in the previous Ramadans. (You know, I was one of those who
thought that it was like any other month except for the fact that you cant eat and drink for about
half the day.) So, to have those kinds of big goals staring in my face this time, I just feel like
fainting and giving up.
But then I remembered that Allah SWT mentions in the Quran:
Then shall anyone who has done an atoms weight of good, see it!
(Surah al-Zalzalah, verse 7)
See, no matter how small or simple our deed is, Allah knows it and will reward us for it. So, for
those of you who are feeling stressed up and are on the verge of giving up (myself included),
dont fret. Dont think that because you cant manage to volunteer in a charity program, you
cant do any good deeds. There are many other simple, little deeds that you could do this
Ramadan, such as;
Be kind to your parents
Have you ever noticed that during Ramadan, your parents (especially your mum) have to wake
up super early to prepare for your sahur? And that your mum has to make sure dinner is ready
early so you can break fast on time? Not only that, in between those two, she has to sweep and
mop the floor, throw out the trash, wash the dishes, wash your clothes, take care of your brothers
and sisters and the list goes on.
Why not, this Ramadan, you try to wake up early and help your mum prepare for sahur? In
addition, why not help your parents wake your brothers and sisters up from their sleep? Besides
that, help clean up the house a bit for example, by cleaning up the table and washing the dishes
after youve finished eating. Maybe you can even help to take care of your brothers and sisters
by reading a story about Prophet Muhammad SAW to them (while refreshing or maybe adding
your own knowledge about him at the same time).
Plus, if you havent already, it is always fun when you and the whole family help out to prepare
the meal for break-fasting. So, do that. Try it. It is indeed fun when everybody do their part and
help out in the kitchen.
Besides that, try your best to not be spiteful to your parents in any way either through your
words or actions (a reminder for myself too).
Allah SWT mentions in the Quran:
Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents.
Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of
contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honour.
(Surah al-Isra, verse 23)
Give salaam to fellow Muslims
We are all aware that we have to give salaam to fellow Muslims, but do we actually do it? Be
honest, when you walk into your classroom or office or the mosque, do you give salaam to the
fellow Muslims you meet? I myself have to admit that I dont always do it. Maybe sometimes
okay, most probably once in a blue moon. Most of the time, I just, er, ignore them and pretend
like I dont see them. Sometimes I even pretended like I didnt hear it when a fellow Muslim
gave salaam to me. And that is so wrong.
Allah SWT says in the Quran:
But if ye enter houses, salute each other a greeting of blessing and purity as from
Allah
(Surah an-Nur, verse 61)
When a (courteous) greeting is offered you, meet it with a greeting still more courteous,
or (at least) of equal courtesy. Allah takes careful account of all things.
(Surah an-Nisa, verse 86)
Rasulullah SAW was quoted as saying, You will not enter paradise until you believe, and you
will not believe until you love one another: spread salaam (the greeting of peace) among
you. (Reported by Muslim)
When a man asked the Prophet about the best actions, the Prophet SAW replied, Feeding the
hungry, and saying salaam to those you know and those you dont know. (Reported by Bukhari
and Muslim)
So, dont take giving salaam for granted. Even if it is just a simple deed, it is considered one of
the best actions by Prophet Muhammad SAW!
Stop gossiping and think positively
I used to think that I tend to gossip because I have shaytan whispering sweet nothings into my
ear and encouraging me to gossip by telling me its okay because it is a normal thing to do and
it is somehow therapeutic. (It is NOT by the way. I never feel better after a gossip session. I
always end up feeling worse. To make things more worse, I find myself digging up other
peoples faults to gossip about more often and therefore, never feel at peace.) But then I still find
myself gossiping even during Ramadan, a shaytan-less month. Why is that so?
I have now learned that even when shaytans are chained during Ramadan, we still have our nafs
and habits. I will always have the nafs to backbite others. Plus, like any other habits, gossiping
will be hard to be kicked because, well, it has become a habit. But since we have an advantage
this Ramadan with shaytans out of the way, insya-Allah, it will be easier for us to kick the habit
and control our nafs if we really want to (because the only thing standing in our way is our own
selves).
One of the ways to avoid gossiping is by avoiding negative thoughts and suspicions. Instead,
think positively. When we think positively, we would find ourselves not finding other peoples
faults anymore instead, we would see others behaviours in a positive light. For example, when
we see a young couple holding hands at the shopping mall, if we think negatively, we might
suspect that they are just boyfriend and girlfriend and what they are doing is haram and there is
a high chance that we might proceed and gossip about them with our friends. In contrary, if we
think positively, we would think that they might be a married couple and what they are doing is
halal, so there is nothing to gossip about.
Allah SWT mentions in the Quran:
O you who believe! Avoid much suspicion, in deeds some suspicions are sins. And spy
not neither backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead
brother? You would hate it (so hate backbiting). And fear Allah, verily, Allah is the one
who accepts repentance, Most Merciful.
(Surah al-Hujuraat, verse 12)
If you havent already noticed, all of the deeds above are mentioned in the Quran, so by doing
them, we are not merely remembering or reading what Allah tells us to do through the Quran.
Instead, we are actually PRACTISING them. Yay us! Alhamdulillah, all praises to Allah
Besides them, other simple deeds that we could do this Ramadan include refraining ourselves
from getting angry, treating our less fortunate friends dinner (break fast) and watching
beneficial TV shows which can give us knowledge like 30 Minit Ustaz Don and the
Madrasah series on TV Al-Hijrah.
It has to be noted that no matter how big or small, complex or simple your deeds are, in the end,
it is the NIAT (intention) that counts. If you are sincere in doing your deeds (by making your
intention right which is to do everything for Allah SWT), then, insya-Allah, Allah will accept
your deeds. But if your intention is wrong for example, you do a good deed just to show
everyone that youre being productive this Ramadan then, your deed will just be a waste.
So, dont worry if you cant do it all. Just do your best. Nonetheless, we have to try and take full
advantage of this blessings-filled and shaytan-less month. But no matter what, always remember
that everything we do, our life, our death, are for Allah, the All-Loving, Most Merciful, our
Creator. Insya-Allah, Allah will accept all our deeds for Him. Amin.
Wallahu alam.
- Artikel iluvislam.com