SOS : Ramadan is in the corner!

Peace be upon all

Alhamdulillah once again here comes Ramadan, the most awaited period of the year for all Muslims. I went to a shoe shop yesterday and Amine (the sales guy) told my mom and me of how Ramadan is special to him to the extend that he took the whole month off so that he could spend it peacefully with family and friends. Awesome!

I'm sure that many Muslims (and some who are not) are equally preparing themselves for the big month: what to cook, where to eat, when to take the day off, etc...

But..but..my fellow readers; even though we have a hectic and busy schedule in looking for rizk lets not forget of what Allah and his Prophet (peace be upon him) recommended us to do.

Allah the Compassionate has given us the months of Rejab and Shaaban to fully prepare ourselves for the big month. Rejab, Shaaban and Ramadan : three months in a row full of merits an virtues.

Today's the 16th of Shaaban. ...So with less than two weeks left before Ramadan, what should we do?

• Increase in recitation of the Quraan. If possible, complete a minimum of 1 part to daily so as to make 1 whole complete recital of the Holy Quran during Ramadan.
• Try and perform 4 rakah (units) of tahajjud before partaking in Suhoor.
• Learn a, or many prophetic duas in Arabic.
• As much as one can keep Allah in your heart by doing Dhikr eg: La ilaaha illallah, Allahu-akbar, Subhan-Allah, Alhumdulillah etc.
• Devoting more sincerity and concentration into our existing daily prayers.
• Try and utilise the days left to give up smoking.
• For the more foul mouthed amongst us, try to refrain from swearing the whole month. Friends can help here by lightly hitting or gently reminding his/ her friend each time they swear that they shouldn’t do it.
• And for my sisters who still have last year's fast to repay, hurry up now! :)

Special thanks to : http://www.haqislam.org/preparing-for-ramadan/

Here's a website with some other advices with a special Ramadan checklist (so to be checked-out):

http://blog.iloveallaah.com/2010/07/preparation-tips-for-ramadan/

OK now, ready people? On y va!!!

Tun Fatimah