Can’t fast what now?4

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The holy month is finally here and twelve days has passed. The most of you are probably fasting, if possible of course. Some of you have even tried it out due to curiosity and the health benefits. As you can read in our previous post, some of us are excluded from fasting. Some of us need to listen to our body due to our health condition and need to decide if you are able to join for the whole month or to rather spread it over a year time. Women are prohibited to fast while having their monthly period. No fasting. No tawaf. No prayers and you aren’t even allowed to even touch a Quran. Can’t fast, what now? Swipe the slide show for a quick view what we can do and if you want to know the details keep on reading…

Intension

نبيه (niyyah) is where it all should start. Why? This is because the value of a person’s actions is based upon his intention, objective or motive. Muslim scholar’s use the term niyyah, for it is to differentiate acts done for the sake of Allah SWT from those done for the sake of others apart from Allah SWT.

فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَاعْتَصَمُوا بِهِ فَسَيُدْخِلُهُمْ فِي رَحْمَةٍ مِنْهُ وَفَضْلٍ وَيَهْدِيهِمْ إِلَيْهِ صِرَاطًا مُسْتَقِيمًا

So those who believe in Allāh and hold fast to Him – He will admit them to mercy from Himself and bounty and guide them to Himself on a straight path.

An-Nisa 4:175 Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

Take this opportunty in this holy month to practice our niyyah to use it, also after Ramadan In shaa Allah.

Dhikr

Is a form of meditation where you are in remembrance of Allah SWT.
Subhnallah All praise to God (33 times)

Alhamdullilah Praise be to God (33 times)

Allahu Akbar God is the greatest (33 times)

Laa Illaha Illallah Wahdahu La Sharika Lah Lahul Mulka Wa lahul Hamdu Wa Huwa Ala Kulli Shay In Qadir

There is no true god except Allah. He is one and he has no partner with him. His is the sovereignty and his is the praise, and he is omnipotent (once)

“Whoever recites the above after every salah, his sins will be forgiven if they are as much as the foam of the sea.” Sahih Muslim-

The more the better, but these are some guidelines after prayers. This might be easy for the tongue, but weights heavy for you in your advantage on the day of judgement. Al-Bukhari 7/168 and Muslim 4/2072

TIP: To those whom are not able to pray, try to dhikr at the time you are supposed to pray five times a day. I started to dhikr on prayer times and it created a routine to combine those two when I was able to pray again.

Listen to Quran recitation or practice memorisation

You can put it on the background, as you would do with a podcast or music. You can also start reading the translated version of Quran. It’s the perfect time to memorise a new surah of the Quran. We all have those moments where we pray and recite Al-Iklhaas after Al-Fatihah. Or am I the only one?

Sadaqaah

Sadaqah (Jariya) is charity given to others voluntarily in order to please God and expect nothing in return.

These acts are not necessarily physical or monetary like giving out donation, give away water (water is one of the most important substance on Earth) or host an event where people can come and iftar together.
FYI: When you invite one muslim for iftar it equals as if you are fasting for one day extra.

It can also be simple as a smile, helping one and other or babysitting for those that want to perform Terawih prayers.

There is a difference between Sadaqah and Zakat Fitr.

Zakaat Fitr is a form of obligatory charity that has potential to ease the suffering of those in need. We added fitr, because for zakaat you then need to see whether your net assets are equal to, or exceed, the nisab threshold depending on your wealth. It is preferable to pay zakaat-fitr from the time of sunset on the eve of ‘Eid-ul-Fitr. And best to give it prior to the festive prayer, but is possible during the festive day before sunset. The one who pays zakat before this time, don’t forget to add the word ” in advance” before, as this is necessary. To postpone its payment after this period is haram (is forbidden). And the one who did not have time to pay Zakat-ul-fitr by this time is obliged to reimburse it as soon as possible.

How much? The Quran does not provide specific guidelines on which are taxable under the zakat, nor does it specify percentage to be given. Depending on your wealth, give to those whom are at least in one of these eight groups catogorized.

إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاء وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالْغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللّهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ فَرِيضَةً مِّنَ اللّهِ وَاللّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ

Alms-tax is only for the poor and the needy, for those employed to administer it, for those whose hearts are attracted ˹to the faith˺, for ˹freeing˺ slaves, for those in debt, for Allah’s cause, and for ˹needy˺ travellers. ˹This is˺ an obligation from Allah. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.
At-Tawbah 60 – Sahih International

Gain your Islamic knowledge and spirituality

قَالَ رَبِّ اِنِّىۡۤ اَعُوۡذُ بِكَ اَنۡ اَسۡـئَلَكَ مَا لَـيۡسَ لِىۡ بِهٖ عِلۡمٌ​ؕ وَاِلَّا تَغۡفِرۡ لِىۡ وَتَرۡحَمۡنِىۡۤ اَكُنۡ مِّنَ الۡخٰسِرِيۡنَ‏ ﴿

Noah pleaded, “My Lord, I seek refuge in You from asking You about what I have no knowledge of, and unless You forgive me and have mercy on me, I will be one of the losers.”

– Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

We can’t be judged by the things we don’t know, so gain more by studying the books, follow a video online or join a lecture. By doing this with the right intentions In Shaa Allah you will automatically gain in spirituality.

NOTE: It’s important for us to master the foundation of our religious sciences. Now a days the internet is full with information, but not all of them are righteous. Make sure to double check it with a scholar at all times.

Supplication/ Doa

A voice of heart, a request to God, a source of connection between God and Human. Want to know a secret? For the past four years I’ve been doing extra doa’s during the last ten days of Ramadan hoping to catch Laylat ul-Qadr, and you know what? All what I wished for came out. Alhamdullilah. Might be a coincidence, hard work, effort or not? Only Allah SWT knows, but I like to call it magic ✨TRY IT!!

Spread love 

By sharing your food with the neighbours, as you wake up in the middle of the night and might disturb them. Invite a non-believer to join you for iftar and share the benefits of fasting or help others prepare for sahoor or iftar.

Thank you for reading, and to be absolutely clear to the new readers, I’m not a scholar and if given information are wrongly interpreted please don’t shoot the messenger, but follow up with a scholar or an imaam to be sure.

How are you spreading love this month? Share your comments below and inspire us with new ideas!

🤍

The FO-UR Team

Acknowledgement

Sahih muslim

Madhab Sufi

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran