The Best Month for the Believers and the Worst for the Hypocrites

The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam was asked which was the best type of charity, he sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam replied, “The charity of Ramadhaan (or given during Ramadhaan).” (Tirmithi)

Salmaan Al-Faarisi, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam gave a speech on the last day of Sha’baan, and said, “O people! You are being approached by a great and blessed month. A month which contains a night that is better than one thousand months. Allaah made fasting within it an obligation and made praying in that night an optional act of worship. He who performs any righteous voluntary act within it, will be rewarded like one who does an obligatory act at any time other than during Ramadhaan.

He who performs an obligatory act of worship within it will be rewarded like he who performs
seventy acts of worship at any time outside this month. It is the month of perseverance – and perseverance is rewarded with Jannah (Paradise). It is the month of compassion, in which the sustenance of a believer increases. He who feeds a fasting person within this month has his sins forgiven and he will be protected and released from the hellfire. He also gets the reward of that person’s fasting without decreasing the reward of the fasting person.”

Then the companions, may Allaah be pleased with them, said, ‘O messenger of Allaah! Not all of us can find the extra food needed to feed another fasting person’.

So the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam responded, “Allaah will give you the reward of feeding a fasting person even if you were to give him just a sip of milk, a date, or a sip of water. He who feeds a fasting person until he is full, Allaah will make him drink out of my river, a sip of which will never allow him to be thirsty until he enters Jannah.”

Then he continued, “…This is the month the beginning of which is mercy, the middle part is forgiveness and the last part of it is release from hellfire.” (Al-Bayhaqi).

So, pay attention, may Allaah be merciful to you all.

the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam , gave glad tidings of the month of Ramadhaan to his companions and informed them of its virtues and how the reward of righteous deeds performed therein is multiplied.

The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, referring to the month of Ramadhaan, “Never has a better month arrived for the believers and never has a worse month come to pass for the hypocrites.” (Ahmad)

Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, “All the (rewards of the) deeds of the son of Aadam are for him, (he is aware that) the reward of performing them will be multiplied by ten to seven-hundred times. Allaah has said, ‘Except for fasting, as it is for Me. I shall reward it. (i.e. I will decide what the reward will be) This is because the fasting person leaves his desires, food and drink purely for My sake.’ The fasting person has two times of great pleasure: once when he breaks his fast and the other when he meets his Lord. The smell emanating from the mouth of a fasting person is better in the scale of Allaah than the smell of musk”. (Ahmad)

The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam referred to Ramadhaan as the ‘month of perseverance’ due to the necessity of perseverance and patience during this month.

Due to this, as well as the suffering from the pain of hunger, thirst and weakness of the body due to fasting, ‘Abdullaah Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, ‘No one knows the reward of fasting except Allaah’. (Al-Bayhaqi)

The reward for righteous deeds varies due to different reasons, for example, due to the sanctity of specific places such as Makkah and Madeenah. The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, ‘Praying in my Masjid is one thousand times greater (in reward) than prayer elsewhere – except for Al-Masjid Al-Haraam (in Makkah).” (Bukhaari)

Among the virtues of this blessed month is that the reward for good deeds is multiplied by up to seven hundred times, for those who purify their intentions and perform their actions purely for the sake of Allaah – such as those who spend in charity from their wealth, provided that their wealth comes from lawful means.

Allaah only accepts charity which is from Halaal (lawful) means. The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, ‘Allaah accepts charity with His Right Hand and then increases it in reward for the person giving it, just like one of you raises his colt, until the reward for it becomes the size of a mountain’. (Bukhaari & Muslim)

Anas ibn Maalik, may Allaah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, ‘Charity extinguishes the anger of the Lord and protects the giver of it from an evil end’. (Tirmithi)

The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said, ‘The shade of the believer on the Day of Judgment, will be his charity’. (Ahmad)

Charity given in secret is better than that given openly because Allaah said, which means, “If you disclose your charitable expenditures, they are good; but if you conceal them and give them to the poor, it is better for you, and He will remove from you some of your misdeeds (thereby). And Allaah, with what you do, is (Fully) Acquainted.” (Al-Baqarah: 271).