Monthly Word - Al-Habib Umar bin Hafiz  Al-Muharram : The Month of God

'The Prophets would fast the Day of ‘Ashura'

Whoever fasts on the final day of Dhul-Hijjah and on the first day of al-Muharram then God will make it an expiation for him for fifty years and fasting one day in al-Muharram is the equal of fasting for thirty days.”

The Prophet (saw) said, “Whoever fasts three days in the month of al-Muharram, they being Thursday, Friday and Saturday God will decree for him the reward of seventy years worship.”

Whosoever fasts ‘Ashura it is as if he fasted the [whole] year, and whosoever gives charity therein it is tantamount to a years [worth] of charity.’

the tradition, ‘Whosoever is generous to their family on the Day of ‘Ashura, Allah is generous to him for the remainder of the year.’

It is also a day of forgiveness ,‘This day Allah forgave the people (al-qawm), so make it a day of prayer and fasting.’ the Prophet (saw)  added to this, that ‘He will [also] forgive others.’ And so this is an incentive for people to renew sincere repentance on the Day of ‘Ashura hoping for its acceptance.’ .........  read full threads below for full references

 

Monthly Word - Al-Habib Umar bin Hafiz Part 1
Al-Muharram : The Month of God

Praise be to God, the Lord of the worlds. “Blessed is He who has made in the sky constellations, and has set there a lamp and an illuminating moon. And He it is who has madethe night and the day a succession, for whoever desires to remember or be thankful.”{25:61}

Oh Lord, bestow blessings and peace upon your slave that migrated, our master Muhammad (saw), as well as his pure folk and righteous companions. We, the community of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) , are approaching a new year, one of the many years that were determined by his (saw) migration. We are also anticipating the arrival of the month of God, al-Muharram, in which fasting is more beloved to God than any days other than Ramadan.

Among these days are the 9th and 10th of the month, in remembrance of the deliverance of our master, Moses (as). With the arrival of this month we are reminded of the flight of the chosen prophet, Muhammad (saw)  from Mecca to Medina, as well as all of the guidance, signs, lessons, admonitions, and exhortations that it contained.
The onset of the inviolable month of al-Muharram initiates the recitation of the Qur’an, invocations, prayer, fasting and supplications that have been related as being from the magnanimous acts of this month. The inextricably bound entities of time and space are vessels that are meant to be filled with religious acts that proclaim the majesty of God, blessed and exalted be He. Although, this stands true for all times and all places, certain times and places are more worthy of certain acts of worship as clarified by the tongue of prophecy.

This in essence is what is meant by sacred time, time that has a divinely designated value. Time which, due to the overflowing blessings that it contains, allows creation to taste the sweetness of faith through divinely designated acts. Al-Muharram is such a time, a magnanimous month whose benefits are profuse and plentiful.

Scholars have differed regarding which of the inviolable months is the best. Hasan al-Basri and others held that al-Muharram, the month of God, is the best with many of the later scholars concurring with that opinion. Wahb b. Jarir related on the authority of Qurra b. Khalid that al- Hasan said, “God began the year with an inviolable month and closed the year with an inviolable month and there is no month of the year other than Ramadan which is better than al-Muharram. It used to be known as ‘the Deaf-mute Month of God’ due to its extra-ordinary inviolability.”

The first ten days of al-Muharram are its most blessed days. Abu ‘Uthman al-Nahdi said, “They used to venerate three sets of tens: The last ten nights of Ramadan, the first ten days of Dhul- Hijjah and the first ten days of al-Muharram.”

It has been related that they are the ten with which God made the forty-day term of Moses complete. It was related that Wahb b. Munabbih said, God, exalted be He, revealed to Moses ‘Order your people to draw near to me in the first ten days of al-Muharram. Then on the tenth day let them come unto Me such that I will forgive them!”

Fasting is for God alone! Thus, it is no wonder that fasting has been prescribed during the month that prophecy called the month of God. It is therefore considered to be the best month to fast in after the month of Ramadan as affirmed in the hadith that was related on the authority of Abu Hurairah: The Prophet (saw)  said, “The best time to fast after Ramadan is in the month of God known to you as al-Muharram and the best type of prayer after the obligatory prayers is the night vigil.” (Muslim) Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali states that ‘this Hadith is explicit in regards to the supererogatory fasts of the month of God al-Muharram being the best after the fast of Ramadan.

This could however mean that it is the best complete month for one to offer voluntary fast in after Ramadan, whilst not excluding the fact that fasting parts of other months could have preference over the individual days of al-Muharram, such as the Day of ‘Arafat, the ten days of Dhul-Hijjah and the six days of Shawwal or the like.

This opinion is corroborated by the Hadith of ‘Ali b. Abu Talib that was related by both al-Imam Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi in which a man came to the Prophet (saw)  and said, “O Messenger of God, tell me what month I should fast in other than Ramadan?”

The Messenger of God (saw) replied, “If you desire to fast for an entire month in addition to Ramadan then fast the month of al-Muharram as it is the month of God, a month in which God accepted the repentance of certain folk and in which he accepts the repentance of others.” Ibn Hajr al-‘Asqalani has related on the authority of Hafsa that the Prophet (saw) said, “Whoever fasts on the final day of Dhul-Hijjah and on the first day of al-Muharram then God will make it an expiation for him for fifty years and fasting one day in al-Muharram is the equal of fasting for thirty days.”

Al-Ghazali related in the Ihya that the Prophet (saw)  said, “Whoever fasts three days in the month of al-Muharram, they being Thursday, Friday and Saturday God will decree for him the reward of seventy years worship.”

There are several other acts that are befitting of this tremendous month, some of which were alluded to at the beginning of this article. May God make us of those who understand the significance of this month through the performance of acts that He, exalted be He, deems significant.

Al-Muharram:  Virtues of the Day of ‘Ashura – The Tenth of Muharram

Praise is for Allah, Lord of the Worlds. And may blessings and peace be upon the Master of Messengers, Muhammad, and upon his pure Family and noble Companions, amin.

The blessed month of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic lunar year, holds many virtues; the most prominent of these is the Day of ‘Ashura, the tenth of Muharram. Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali states in relation to this, in his work, Lata’if al-Ma‘arif, ‘The Day of ‘Ashura has an immense virtue and a time old sanctity. The merit of fasting therein was well-known amongst the Prophets, peace be upon them all, Noah (as), Moses (as)both fasted therein. The Prophet (saw)  said in relation to this, ‘The Prophets would fast the Day of ‘Ashura, hence fast therein.’ This tradition was related by Baqiyy b. Makhlad in his Musnad.’

The basis for fasting this day can be found in many traditions, from them a tradition in the Musnad of Imam Ahmad on the authority of Abu Hurayra  who said, ‘The Prophet  passed by some Jews who were fasting on the Day of ‘Ashura, and so he enquired, ‘What fast is this?’ They replied, ‘This is the day that Allah, Powerful and Exalted, saved Moses (as) and the Children of Israel from drowning and drowned Pharaoh. And this is the day the ship [i.e. Noah’s Ark-(as)] settled upon al-Judi 1 and thus did Noah (as) and Moses (as) fast out of gratitude to Allah, Exalted, Most High.’ The Prophet (saw)then said, ‘I have more claim to Moses (as) and have more right to fast this day’ He (saw)then instructed his companions to fast.’

1 A mountain in northern Iraq near the city Mawsul.

‘Ashura
The Prophet (saw) would himself strictly adhere to fasting this day and the jurists differed as to the incumbency of fasting the Day of ‘Ashura prior to the ordainment of Ramadan. In a tradition on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas  when asked about fasting the day of ‘Ashura, he responded, ‘I did not see the Prophet (saw)  exert his efforts to fast on a day, from all days, more so, except this day; meaning the Day of ‘Ashura; and this month; meaning Ramadan.’ [Related in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim]. It has also been related by Imam Ahmad and al-Nasa’i on the authority of Hafsa  the daughter of ‘Umar b. al-Khattab  that the Prophet (saw)  ‘would not forsake ‘Ashura.’2

Also in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar  he said that, ‘The Prophet (saw)  fasted ‘Ashura and ordered it’s fast, and when Ramadan was ordained he forsook this.’ [i.e. ordering to observe fasting the Day of ‘Ashura]. Therefore we can take from this tradition that after Ramadan was ordained fasting the Day of ‘Ashura became a commendable act, prior to which it was obligatory. To clarify that the fast was no longer obligatory the Prophet (saw)  said, ‘‘Ashura is a day from the Days of Allah, so whoever wills fasts therein and whoever wills forsakes it’ From amongst those of the Companions who observed the fast were; ‘Umar b. al- Khattab , ‘Ali b. Abi Talib , Abd al-Rahman b. Awf , Abu Musa al-Asha‘ri , Qais b. Sa‘d , Ibn Abbas  and many others.

Additionally it has been related that the practice was to combine another fast-day to the tenth, the rationale being to differ to the Jews. In the Musnad of Imam Ahmad on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas  that the Prophet (saw)  said, ‘Fast the Day of ‘Ashura and differ from the Jews; fast a day before it and a day after it.’ Also when it was mentioned to the Prophet (saw)  that the Jews and Christians exalted the tenth of Muharram the Messenger of Allah (saw)  said, ‘When the approaching year commences – by the will of Allah – we will fast the ninth day.’ Those who fasted the ninth day included al-Shafi‘i , Imam Ahmad  and Ishaq b. Rahawai  and it was Abu Hanifa  who found it objectionable to single out the tenth day for fasting.

No doubt that Allah – Most High – recompenses His servants for their deeds; in relation to fasting on the tenth of Muharram it has been related in Sahih Muslim on the authority of Abu Qatada  that a man asked the Prophet (saw)  about fasting on ‘Ashura, so he replied, ‘Anticipate from Allah to expiate the prior year.’ It has also been ascribed to ‘Abd Allah b. ‘Amr b. al-‘Aas  that he said, ‘Whosoever fasts ‘Ashura it is as if he fasted the [whole] year, and whosoever gives charity therein it is tantamount to a years [worth] of charity.’

Imam Ahmad  was asked if he had heard about the tradition, ‘Whosoever is generous to their family on the Day of ‘Ashura, Allah is generous to him for the remainder of the year.’ He replied, ‘Yes. Sufyan b. ‘Uyaina related it from Ja‘far al-Ahmar from Ibrahim b. Muhammad al-Muntashir and he was from the best of people of his time.’ Also Ibn ‘Uyaina said, ‘We have tested this for fifty or sixty years and have only seen good [from this].’

Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali also states that, ‘It is also a day of forgiveness as Abu Musa al-Madini relates from the tradition of Abu Musa [al-Ash‘ari] who ascribed it to the Prophet (saw)  that, ‘This day Allah forgave the people (al-qawm), so make it a day of prayer and fasting.’

In a tradition on the authority of Imam ‘Ali  the Prophet (saw)  added to this, that ‘He will [also] forgive others.’ And so this is an incentive for people to renew sincere repentance on the Day of ‘Ashura hoping for its acceptance.’

2 Meaning he would not leave fasting on the Day of ‘Ashura.


‘Ashura
Hence we can say that it is commendable to perform good deeds during this month. Some of the praiseworthy customs of the blessed city of Tarim include that on the eve of the ninth day of Muharram a gathering is established in Khulayf, [a locality within Tarim] in the Mosque of the erudite Husain b. ‘Abd Allah Bilhaj Ba-Fadl, whereby a large gathering assemble to recite praises of Allah until just before Maghrib and then they move onto Masjid Ba-‘Alawi to be present for the recitation after the ‘Isha prayer. A general gathering is also established on the tenth night of Muharram in Masjid Ba-‘Alawi wherein they recite the virtues of the tenth night and subsequently it is concluded with supplication from the Imam. Al-Sayyid Hamid b. Muhammad Shihab al-Din also states that, ‘It is recommended to exert oneself in right action, such as visiting the sick and visiting the people of probity.

At the time of ‘Asr, on the tenth, a general gathering is established in the house of one of the notable scholars of Tarim where the admonition of the salaf is heard alongside nashids and then [the gathering] is concluded with supplications. Those who are fasting then prepare themselves to break their fast.’

Also during this blessed month there is a visitation to al-Sayyid al-Muhajir Ahmad b. ‘Esa by a significant group of people from Tarim, Sayun and other localities. And similarly, after ten days of Muharram have passed, there is a visitation to the noble companion – ‘Abbad b. Bishr al-Awsi al-Ansari  – his place of burial being slightly east of Tarim. Again a large group of people attend and the gathering is headed by the noble Khatib family of Tarim; it being recommended to visit burial places based on the prophetic tradition, ‘Frequent the graves for verily they remind you of the hereafter.’ [Related in the Sunan of Ibn Maja.]

The author of Kanz al-Najah wa Surur maintains that on ‘Ashura, ‘One should stay up the whole night in worship, reciting the Quran or making remembrance of Allah and the like.’ He also states that, ‘it is recommended on this day to perform that which is authenticated [from the Prophet (saw)  in relation to right actions]. Some of them [i.e. the scholars] numbered ten deeds; prayer, sending prayers upon the Prophet (saw), visiting family relations, charity, ghusl, wearing kohl, visiting a scholar, visiting the sick, caressing the head of a orphan, and spending upon ones family.’ Of the most significant deeds that the aforementioned author specifies is ‘to beseech Allah as this has an immense benefit.’ May Allah – Most High – allow his needy slaves to benefit from this blessed month and this sacred day, amin.

 http://www.guidancemedia.com/upcoming/AL-Muharram1.pdf

 

Month of Muharram
Dua' for Muharram
History of 'Ashura
Duties of the Month of Muharram by Imam Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali
Monthly Word - Al-Habib Umar bin Hafiz  Al-Muharram : The Month of God