End of Ramadhan: Now What?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

Eid Mubarak to your and your loved ones. كل عام وانتم بخير May Allah accept your fasting, prayer, charity, and all your good deeds.

Ramadhan has come and gone. But our Ramadhan worship should not end here or drastically decrease with the end of Ramadhan. Our worship continues until we die and it should improve as days go by. Today's worship should be better than yesterday's. It cannot be the same as 20 years ago, or we have surely missed out on the optimal.

Ramadhan was our training ground. Don't let the training go to waste.

You stood many hours for Taraweeh and qiyamu lail in Ramadhan, and that was a good month long practice indeed. So you should not have much problem performing extra prayers and waking up for tahajjud every night.

You recited and listened to a lot of Qur'an in Ramadhan. Don't stop doing this. Recite the Qur'an regularly and listen attentively to Qur'an everyday. It is recommended to complete reciting the entire Qur'an at least every 30 or 40 days. If you haven't studied the Qur'an with a qualified teacher, you should plan to do so as soon as possible. Reciting Qur'an the correct way is the way of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace. It is incumbent upon every Muslim to learn how to recite the Qur'an properly in order to recite the verses correctly, especially during prayer.

You had self restraint in Ramadhan. You held yourself from food and drink during the day and you eat little at night because your stomach has shrunk. Don't expand it by eating beyond your fill during this Eid celebration and forward. Some of you quit smoking in Ramadhan. Alhamdulillah. You have more patience in Ramadhan. Don't let your nafs take you back to your bad old habits before Ramadhan and avoid the unlawful.

You were very generous and charitable, not just with your money but also with your heart. You gave sadaqatul fitr, zakat and extra charity, and you forgave a lot of people. Continue to give charity all throughout the year and before you go to sleep, forgive those who have wronged you and ask Allah for their forgiveness.

It is Sunnah of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, to fast 6 days in Shawwal, Mondays, Thursdays, three white days of each lunar month, the day of Arafah, the first 10 days of Zulhijjah, Ashura, and most of Sha'ban and Muharram.

Fast regularly throughout the year and that will keep you in training, starting with fasting the 6 days Shawwal fasting (beginning 2nd day of Eid). Yes, all those Eid food and many Eid open houses and invitations sound like it is going to be difficult to fast when everyone is celebrating, but try it. Allah will make it easy for you.

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, Allah be pleased with him, who said that the Prophet, صلى الله عليه و سلم, said: Allah the Almighty said:

I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he makes mention of Me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself; and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an assembly better than it. And if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw near to him a fathom's length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.

You can always accept evening invitations.

The Prophet, صلى الله عليه و سلم, said:
Whoever fasts the month of Ramadan and he follows it with six days of Shawwal, it is as if he has fasted the whole year.

The Prophet, صلى الله عليه و سلم, said:
Whoever fasts Ramadhan and follows it up with six from Shawwal, it is as though he has fasted all of time, because each day is equivalent to ten days. Whoever performs a good deed, he will have ten like it.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه و سلم said:

The most beloved action to Allah is that which is most consistent.

We don't limit our fasting and certain acts of good deed in Ramadhan only. If we are consistent with our fasting and doing other good deed, not only this is a sign of the acceptance of one’s Ramadan fasts and good deed because a sign of Allah’s acceptance of a good deed is to be granted the success to perform similar good deeds, with consistency, this is a sign of one's commitment to continue in worship and submission to Allah, willingly, and not merely out of duty and obligation.

The recipe to gain Allah's love is to perform the obligatory religious duties and add supererogatory works.

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه و سلم said: Allah (mighty and sublime be He) said:

Whosoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me, I shall be at war with him. My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. I do not hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate about [seizing] the soul of My faithful servant: he hates death and I hate hurting him.

[Bukhari]

Good deeds raise one's rank and erase the person's sins (except major sins which require sincere repentance for forgiveness).

One of the signs of the righteous is patience and restraint. If we fasted correctly, then we would have benefited from one of the effects of Ramadhan--an increase in patience. One can never have too much patience. Lack of patience can cause lots of problems--to oneself as well as to others. Patience is an acquired trait which many people don't have or many lose it very easily. If you have patience, nothing befalls you disturbs or bothers you. You will go through challenges, difficulties, uneasiness and discomfort in stride. The pious and the righteous people, who are not free from trials and tribulations of this life, are the happiest people because they have patience and restraint.

May Allah give us tawfiq. Ameen. Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam