Photo by: Tima Miroshnichenko
“Whoever stands (in prayer) in Laylatul Qadr while nourishing his faith with self-evaluation, expecting reward from Allah, will have all of his previous sins forgiven.” (Bukhari and Muslim).
With a week until we bid Ramadan farewell, we must use the remaining time we have to the best of our ability, in order to perform extra acts of worship that will strengthen our relationship with Allah swt and allow us to carry on attaining taqwa (God-consciousness) long after the month of mercy has passed us.
We’ve listed five acts of worship that will elevate the remainder of Ramadan for you:
1. Reap the rewards of voluntary prayers: Our good deeds during this blessed month are multiplied by 70, subhanAllah! What other time of the year is this possible? Let’s make the most of every precious moment we have left and practice the sunnah, as much as we are obligated to perform our fardh. This includes:
- Taraweeh prayers, or night prayers, after Isha.
- Tahajjud (a minimum of 2 rakat, with the optimal amount being 13 rakats as prayed by the Prophet pbuh).
- Daily sunnah prayers for each salah which include 4 rakat before and after Duhur, as well as 2 rakat after Maghreb.
- Shaf’ and Witr prayers after Isha/Taraweeh.
2. Increase in your supplication and daily thikr: At a minimum, we should glorify Allah swt every day and every night: SubhanAllah, Alhamdulilah, Allahu Akbar, Laa ilaha ila Allah. Try to remember Allah swt in those quiet moments in between too!
Do you know what the most special Laylatul Qadr dua is?
Aisha RA said: “I asked the Messenger of Allah: ‘O Messenger of Allah, if I know what night is the night of Qadr, what should I say during it?’ He said: ‘Say: “O Allah, You are pardoning and You love to pardon, so pardon me.” “Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa’fu ‘annee” (Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and Tirmidhi).
3. Give back to those in need: Being charitable is an essential form of worship - but even more so in the final ten nights, where Laylatul Qadr, the night that is better than a thousand months takes place. This is an unmissable opportunity - who knows if we’ll live to see another Ramadan?
With its countless benefits, charity is a protection against calamity, let’s not wait until it’s too late. The same way we ask Allah swt for help in our times of need, we must also do our bit and help those who are most vulnerable around the world.
4. Read your Quran with abundance: And increase your knowledge with the tafsir! Reading the Quran means understanding its depth and valuing the complexity of the beautiful prophecies and linguistic elements, that you won’t attain from surface reading.
5. Strive in your repentance: We should constantly be asking Allah swt for forgiveness for our past and present sins, whilst purifying our intentions and asking our Lord to keep us steadfast so that we may not repeat the same mistakes again.
“Our Lord! Punish us not if we forget, or fall into error.” [Al-Baqarah, verse 286].
Let’s keep working on improving ourselves every day, with sincere worship and maximum effort. If you’re feeling disconnected - not to worry. Allah’s mercy knows no bounds. We must take a moment to refocus our attention away from worldly affairs and turn to Him.
“And when (O Messenger) My servants ask you about me, then surely I am near: I answer the prayer of the Suppliant when he prays to me”. [Al-Baqarah, verse 186].
It’s not too late, but if you haven’t already schedule your donations NOW and don’t miss the Night of Power: https://charityright.org.uk/nightofpower
