Ramadan Raindrops - Days 24 & 25

 

Fridays during Ramadan always feel so special. It's a minor cleansing within a major cleansing - like putting a bathtub in an ocean - you get the privilege of bathing in both at the same time.

We've now reached a point where there are no more Ramadan Fridays remaining. Our beloved friend, Ramadan, is about to leave us. Where has the time gone?

Really, where has the time gone? Not only have the days of this blessed month passed quickly but so did the days, weeks and months before it. And so will the days, weeks and months after it. We are living in an era where time is fleeting. It is as if someone pressed a permanent fast-forward button. 

Due to the tender mercy of Allah we receive signs, both general & specific. These signs can serve as guidance, correction, reminders, confirmation, and/or relief. Amongst the many signs that the Final Day is near is the quick passage of time. Exactly when it will happen is something we do not know and will not know. Knowledge of the appointed time of the Final Day belongs solely to Allah.

But we do have knowledge of its signs. A few of them, in no particular order, are:

1. unqualified people in positions of authority and/or corrupt leaders

2. widespread fornication

3. men presenting as women & women presenting as men

4. blatantly disrespectful children

5. widespread consumption of alcohol

6. religious knowledge becoming uncommon while secular knowledge grows

7. the spread of usury

We should be careful not to engage in these nor to condone them. If we happen to witness these signs then internal alarms should ring. These signs serve as alerts to remind us that it is time to increase in intending and striving to prepare our souls for judgment on the Final Day. Or, as my elders would say, "It's time to get your house in order."

May our preparations (in the form of fasting, prayers, pure intentions, worship and deeds) be accepted. And may they weigh heavily, in our favor, upon the scales of the Final Day.

*** *** ***

"So as for those whose scales are heavy, they will be in a pleasant life. But as for those whose scales are light, their home will be an abyss." 

Qur'an 101:6-8