Dhul Hijjah is better than Ramadan!
What if I told you that there is a time of year that is better than Ramadan? That’s kind of a half-truth (and I’ll explain) but yes, there is a time of year that you should be preparing for right now, and if you keep reading I’ll tell you how.
There is a concept in the Islamic tradition that whenever God says something is important, it means that it’s something important (go figure). How exactly do we as the listener understand this? Simple, whenever God makes an oath, it’s important. One place where He swears is the beginning of Surah Al-Fajr, “By the Dawn and by the Ten Nights” (89:1–2). Your next question should be, “What are these ten nights?”
Well without too much detail, the term “night” here is actually referring to “day” and scholars have spoken about this at length. This verse is said by Mujahid, ibn Abbas, and ibn Zubayr to refer to the initial days of Dhul Hijjah, the month of Hajj.
Yup, the same Hajj that millions are preparing to embark on right now (if they haven’t already left).
You see, not everyone can go on Hajj, and God in His infinite wisdom and knowledge was aware of this before we were even created, so He gave us various paths to also partake in the blessings of Hajj.
Here’s the first thing that you need to remember.
Ten Days of Dhul Hijjah = MASSIVE REWARDS
How massive you ask?
Read this hadith, Ibn Abbas reported: The Prophet, peace, and blessings be upon him, said, “No good deeds are better than what is done in these first ten days of Dhul Hijjah.”
Do you understand? Literally, there is literally no time throughout the entire year as great as the ten days of Dhul Hijjah!
I know, you’re wondering, “What about Ramadan?!” Yes, Islamic scholars have had this discussion at length and the consensus is that Ramadan has the best nights and Dhul Hijjah… well, I think you get it now.
Be Aware
You now know that the reward is massive, and in order to get a piece of the reward, you’ve got to begin preparing for the opportunity that God is about to present to you. The days of Dhul Hijjah should begin around the 1st or 2nd of August. It'll be time for you to kick it into high gear, kind of like Ramadan.
You’ll probably want to do loads of good deeds but my advice is to not get too ahead of yourself. Take some time and write up a list of goals that you want to accomplish. Maybe you want to read loads of Quran, help at your local masjid, or use our platform and give charity all over the world (not a bad idea if I do say so myself). Whatever you choose to do, write it down and make tangible goals.
Prioritize
Now that you have your goals in order, it’s time to be a bit realistic. Why? Well, let's go back to the title, have you forgotten Ramadan? Many either didn’t take the time to create goals or were shocked that Ramadan came so quickly because they weren’t expecting it. At times they get both the time right and their goals, but they didn’t prioritize.
You need to determine which goals are more important than others, or more time-sensitive. If you want to finish the Quran or maybe a few sections of it, then you may want to put it on the top of your list because it’ll take more time from you.
“No good deeds are better than what is done in these first ten days of Dhul Hijjah.”
Maybe you want to give charity because you know it has a massive reward. You could, of course, talk to a few friends or find a local organization doing good work. Or you could do that and visit our website where you’ll find hundreds of projects all over the world that are waiting for people like you to support. You can even take it to the next level by joining the Dhul Hijjah campaign where you can support a campaign for each day of the blessed ten days!
The goal at the end of the day is making these ten days successful. Make your intention from now, start planning, and get ready for an amazing Dhul Hijjah!
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