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Superior
Days For Righteous Deeds |
Sheikh
`Abdullah Ibn `Abdur-Rahman Al-Jibrin
Verily,
the praise belongs to Allah, the Most High, and may the blessings
of Allah and peace be upon His Prophet Muhammad and his family and
companions, all of them. It is narrated from Ibn `Abbas (may Allah
be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) said: “There are no days in which righteous deeds done in
them are more beloved to Allah than these days, i.e., the ten days
(of Dhul-Hijjah).” They said: “O Messenger of Allah, not even
jihad in the path of Allah?” He said: “Not even jihad in the
path of Allah, the Most High, except if a man goes out (for jihad)
with his self and his wealth, then he doesn’t return with
anything from that.” (Al-Bukhari, Abu Dawud, and others. The
exact wording is that of Abu Dawud.)
It
is narrated from Ibn `Umar that the Prophet (peace and blessings be
upon him) said: “There aren’t any days greater, nor any days in
which deeds done in them are more beloved to Allah, the Most High,
than these ten days (of Dhul-Hijjah). So, increase in them the
saying of tahlil (La ilaha illa Allah), and takbir (Allahu
Akbar) and tahmid (al-hamdu lillah).” (Musnad
of Imam Ahmad)
The
Types of Deeds in These Ten Days
First:
The performance of Hajj and `Umrah, and these are the best of deeds
that may be done. A number of hadiths indicate their superiority,
one of which is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessing be
upon him): “Performance of `Umrah is an expiation of the sins
committed between it and the previous `Umrah, and the reward of the
Hajj which is accepted by Allah, the Most High, is nothing but
Paradise.” (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
Second:
Fasting during these days-as many of them as may be easy for one to
fast-especially the Day of `Arafah. There is no doubt that the act
of fasting is one of the best deeds, and it is from what Allah, the
Most High, has chosen for Himself, as in the hadith qudsi:
“Fasting is for Me, and it is I who give reward for it. Verily,
someone gives up his sexual passion, his food and his drink for My
sake...” (Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Malik, At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa’i and
Ibn Majah)
Also,
from Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri, who said that the Messenger of Allah
(peace and blessings be upon him) said: “No servant (of Allah,
the Most High) fasts one day in the Path of Allah, except that
Allah, the Most High, removes his face from the Fire because of it
(the distance of traveling) seventy years.” (Al-Bukhari and
Muslim)
From
Abu Qatadah we have that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) said: “Fasting the Day of `Arafah will be credited with
Allah by forgiving one’s sins of the previous year and the
following year.” (Muslim)
Third:
Takbir (Allah Akbar) and dhikr (the remembrance of
Allah through different words of praise and glorification) in these
(ten) days. Allah says: [And mention the name of Allah on the
appointed days.] (Al-Hajj 22:28)
This
has been explained (by some) to mean the ten days (of Dhul-Hijjah),
and the scholars consider it desirable to increase dhikr in
these days, based upon the hadith of Ibn `Umar narrated by Ahmad,
which contains the words “so increase in these days the tahlil
and takbir and tahmid.”
It
is reported about Ibn `Umar and Abu Hurayrah that “the two of
them used to go out to the market place during the ten days (of
Dhul-Hijjah) saying, ‘Allahu Akbar,’ causing the people also to
say it.” (Al-Bukhari)
Ishaq
narrates from the scholars of the Tabi`in (the successors of the
Prophet's Companions) that in these ten days they used to say the
Takbir: “Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar. La ilaha illa Allah, wa
Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, wa lillahi al-hamd.”
It
is a beloved act to raise the voice when saying the Takbir in the
markets, the houses, the streets, the masjids, and other places,
because of the saying of Allah, the Most High: [that you may
magnify Allah for His Guidance to you] (Al-Hajj 22:37).
The
saying of Takbir in congregation, i.e., everyone pronouncing the
Takbir with one voice, is not permissible since this has not been
transmitted (to us) from the early generations of the Companions
and those who followed their ways. Verily, the sunnah is for
everyone to say the Takbir individually. And this is (generally)
applicable to dhikr and supplications, except if the person
doesn’t know what to say. In that case he may repeat after
someone else until he learns the words to be said. It is also
permissible to make dhikr with all the different wording of takbir
and tahmid and tasbih, and the rest of the Islamic
legislated supplications (from the Qur’an and Sunnah).
Fourth:
Repentance and abstaining from disobedience and all types of sins,
since forgiveness and mercy are the results of deeds. Disobedience
is the cause of being far away from Allah, the Most High, and
repulsion; whereas obedience is the cause of being near to Allah,
the Most High, and His love. Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet
(peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Verily Allah has a sense
of ghayrah (a sense of honor and prestige, and the anger
caused by its being violated), and Allah’s sense of ghayrah
is provoked when a person does that which Allah has prohibited.”
(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
Fifth:
Doing plenty of voluntary (nafl) righteous deeds of worship
like Prayer, charity, jihad, reading the Qur’an, enjoining what
is good and forbidding what is evil, and other such deeds.
Surely,
these are among the deeds that are multiplied in these days. During
these days even deeds that are less preferred, are superior and
more beloved to Allah than superior deeds done at other times.
These deeds are superior even to jihad-which is one of the best
deeds-except in the case of one whose horse is killed and his blood
is spilled (i.e., he loses his life in jihad).
Sixth:
It is legislated in these days to make Takbir at all times of night
and day until the time of the `Eid Prayer. Also, it is legislated
to make Takbir after the (five) obligatory Prayers that are
performed in congregation. This begins from Dawn (Fajr) on the Day
of Arafah (the 9th of Dhul-Hijjah) for those not performing Hajj,
and from Noon (Zhuhr) on the Day of Sacrifice (10 Dhul-Hijjah) for
those performing Hajj, and it continues until `Asr Prayer on the
last day of the Days of Tashreeq (13 Dhul-Hijjah).
Seventh:
The slaughter (udhiyah) of a sacrificial animal is also
legislated for the Day of Sacrifice (10 Dhul-Hijjah) and the Days
of Tashreeq (11, 12, and 13). This is the Sunnah of our father
Ibrahim when Allah, the Most High, redeemed Ibrahim’s son by the
great sacrifice of an animal in his place. It is authentically
reported that Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)
sacrificed two horned rams, black and white in color, and said takbir
(Allahu Akbar), and placed his foot on their sides (while
slaughtering them). (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
Eighth:
The one who plans to make a sacrifice should avoid cutting hair or
nails from the first day of Dhul-Hijjah until he offers the
sacrifice. It has been narrated from Umm Salamah (may Allah be
pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) said: “If you see the hilal (new moon) of Dhul-Hijjah,
and any one of you wants to make a sacrifice, then he should not
cut (anything) from his hair and his nails.” (Muslim and others)
And in one narration he said: “Then he should not cut (anything)
from his hair, nor from his nails, until he performs the
sacrifice.” Perhaps this is because of the similarity with the
one who is bringing a sacrificial animal for slaughter (in Hajj),
as Allah, the Most High, says: [And do not shave your heads until
the hadi (sacrifice) reaches the place of sacrifice…] (Al-Baqrah
2: 196)
The
apparent meaning of this prohibition is that it is particularly for
the one who is performing the sacrifice and does not include the
wife or children, unless there is an individual sacrifice for one
of them. There is no harm in washing the head or scratching it,
even if hairs may fall out.
Ninth:
It is incumbent for the Muslim (who is not performing Hajj) to make
every effort to perform the `Eid Prayer wherever it is performed,
and to be present for the khutbah (sermon) and benefit from
it.
The
Muslim must know the wisdom behind the legislation of this `Eid
(Islamic public celebration). It is a day of being thankful and
performing deeds of righteousness. So, the Muslim must not make it
a day of wildness, pride, and vanity. He or she should not make it
a season for disobedience and increase in the forbidden acts-those
things that could cause the cancellation of the good deeds done in
these days of Dhul-Hijjah.
Tenth:
After what has been mentioned, it is fitting that every Muslim,
male and female, take advantage of these days by obeying Allah, the
Most High, remembering Him, thanking Him, fulfilling all the
obligatory duties, and staying far away from the prohibited things.
Every Muslim must take full advantage of this season and the open
display of Allah’s gifts to attain the pleasure of his or her
Lord.
Surely,
Allah, the Most High, is the One Who grants success, and He is the
Guide to the Straight Path. And may the blessings of Allah, the
Most High, and peace be upon Muhammad and his family and
companions!
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