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Tariq Mahmood, Toronto, Canada
The greatest spiritual retreat a Muslim undertakes is the month of Ramadan, which arrives every year to rejuvenate one both internally and externally. However, every great undertaking requires thought, and the hallmark of every great plan and initiative is that it is broken down into smaller, more attainable goals.
For example, when one desires victory over their opponent, their mission doesn’t consist of telling soldiers to ‘fight with all their might’; rather, true strategy involves specifying who will fight first, how they will attack, what support can be offered, and what is to be done in all eventualities. As Benjamin Franklin reportedly once said, ‘Failing to plan is planning to fail.’
This is why Ramadan – a time for the great battle against one’s baser self – has been evenly divided into very specific days to perfectly execute this spiritual mission. Ramadan is divided into three Asharahs, which refer to ten-day periods. Thus, these three Asharahs total 30 days and comprise the month of Ramadan.
Each ten-day period is marked by its own theme and focus. The first Asharah takes the same approach that every successful plan does: it starts at the fundamentals. As such, because Ramadan is a religious and godly endeavour, the first step dictated by Islam is to dive into the all-encompassing and holistic theme of mercy.
Islam teaches that God’s attribute of being ‘the Merciful’ is one of four fundamental and over-arching qualities of God. In the Holy Qur’an, God Almighty states, ‘I will inflict My punishment on whom I will; but My mercy encompasses all things.’[1] Furthermore, the Prophet (sa) of Islam once stated, ‘Verily, when Allah created the creation, He wrote with His Hand concerning Himself that: “My mercy prevails over My wrath.”’[2]
Thus, it is fitting that God Almighty begin this month by sending down His own mercy when one asks for it, and that He asks humanity to show mercy to others, so that the mercy of God is also reflected in the actions of His creation.
Thereafter, the path of nearness to God Almighty leads one to the next step: the Asharah of forgiveness. These ten days delineate from the mercy of God, in that mercy (according to Islam) is not conditional upon the actions of man; rather, it is generally bestowed upon humanity as a whole. However, on the path of righteousness, when mistakes are made and sins are committed, one must seek forgiveness from God for these actions.
Imagine an awkward situation where one ends up wronging a friend or is himself wronged. So long as both of them do not clear up the misunderstanding and apologise, their friendship remains fractured. Once they reconcile, their friendship continues as if nothing had ever occurred. In the same way, Islam dictates that once a person has wronged God by violating His laws, they must seek His forgiveness in order to strengthen the relationship between them.
Furthermore, just as a person was expected to show greater mercy during the first ten days of Ramadan, they are now expected to accomplish a more difficult task: forgiving others. Mercy is relatively easier: a person could show compassion and love to others, be they family, friends or even strangers.
Forgiveness, however, involves letting go of wrongs committed against oneself. Perhaps this involves reconciling with the family member or friend you didn’t forgive after they betrayed your trust, or perhaps it’s a matter of changing your personality overall to become more accommodating. This embodies the Qur’anic principle of forgiveness, as God states that one of the conditions of attaining His provisions is that ‘When they [Muslims] are wroth, they forgive.’[3] Thus, forgiveness is a critical attribute in Islam, both when seeking this attribute in God and forging this attribute within oneself.
The provisions granted by God as a result of this mercy and forgiveness are twofold: one portion which is given in this world, and a much greater provision, which is granted in heaven. This is known in all three Abrahamic religions as ‘Salvation’.
Thus, it is only fitting that the last ten days of Ramadan be wholeheartedly dedicated to one’s salvation from hell. It is important to note that Islam does not merely believe heaven and hell to be destinations after one perishes; rather, one creates their own heaven and hell in this life first. The most devastating torment that can plague a human, according to Islam, is none other than being disconnected and distant from God Almighty, as the Founder (as) of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community once elucidated:
‘What is the aim of religion? It is only that man should have full faith in the existence of God and in His perfect attributes, and then deliver himself from his carnal passions and develop a personal love for Him. This, in fact, is the paradise, which will find various manifestations in the hereafter.
To remain unmindful of the True God, and to keep away from Him, and not to love Him truly, is the hell which will reveal itself in diverse forms in the hereafter. The purpose of religion is to attain full faith in the existence of God and to love Him completely.’[4]
Thus, a Muslim focuses their last ten days on gaining nearness to God and seeking salvation from hell, having become more aware of God’s mercy and forgiveness. Furthermore, a Muslim strives to create that very heaven on earth, by beautifying and adorning their environment with positivity, love, mercy, and forgiveness.
These three stages make up the month of Ramadan. One cannot attain salvation without forgiveness, and one cannot attain forgiveness without mercy. Thus, God Almighty has brilliantly crafted the perfect guide to achieving righteousness, and it is the goal of every Muslim to accomplish this mission. This plan comes into effect when Muslims sacrifice even permissible things, choosing instead to nourish their souls with the mercy, forgiveness and salvation of Allah the Almighty.
ENDNOTES
1. The Holy Qur’an, 7:157.
2. Jami’ al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3543.
3. The Holy Qur’an, 42:38.
4. Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), Fountain of Christianity (Tilford, Surrey: Islam International Publications Ltd., 2007), 24.
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