Ayyuhal muminoon al-hadiroona ittaqullaha wa ati`ooh. Inna Allah ma` alladheenattaqaw walladheena hum muhsinooon.
O Muslims, believers! Alhamdulillah we are in shahr Ramadan, the month of Ramadan and every year Ramadan comes one time. Every 12 months, Allah gave one month. And in that month, Allah swt as, the Prophet (s) mentioned, “Ramadan is the month of the ummah” where he said, "Rajabun shahrullah, Sha`banu shahree wa Ramadan shahr ummattee."
And Allah said: shahr Ramadan allatee unzila feehi al-quran.
It is the month in which Allah revealed guidance for humanity, in that month Allah revealed the Quran to be the guide for human beings and to be the constitution for human beings and to wrap everything up to be something for the last Ummah.
Everything comes in a sequence. When Sayyidina Adam came it was a cycle up to Sayyidina Nuh and from Sayyidina Nuh to Sayyidina Musa to Sayyidina `Isa another cycle and from Sayyidina `Isa to Sayyidina Muhammad was another cycle.
So we see Adam came with message, Nuh came with message, Musa came with message, `Isa came with message and then we see that the last messenger Sayyidina Muhammad (s) came with the last message, after Injeel and Taurat; came with the Holy Quran.
And He said, “anyone who looks for that month I am going to give him guidance.” So that is the month of guidance, Shahru 'l-hidaya. That is why many important issues have been opened in Ramadan, that have been given to people who are fasting that month.
So that is guidance and it is the best guidance for humanity. And that month all Sahaba used to look for it as it is important one… There are many people who like to go to see the crescent when it comes up on the horizon, on the first night before Ramadan begins. I know people back home like to go to the beach to see the crescent coming. Because that crescent when it comes, it will bear witness on all those who were observing it. And it will say to Allah that these servants were looking for Ramadan.
So Anas said, that those servants who go to look for the crescent and they praise Him, and in that time the crescent comes, a very short time and disappears shortly after Maghrib recite, “Allahuma ahil `alayna hilal al-baraka - Make that crescent to be baraka for us” and read Surat al-Fatiha, Allah will protect him from any diseases that come to the eyes.
You have a disease that comes to the eyes, then go look for the crescent of Ramadan.
So in time of Sahaba they never had problems in their eyes. Now there are a lot of sicknesses in eyes.
One lady came to me on my last travels and she said I am sick. I said what are you sick with? She said, "I have tuberculosis in my eyes." First time I heard of tuberculosis in the eyes.
So lot of problems and sicknesses we are seeing. So to eliminate that go to the beach and look for the crescent, investigate where it is and go to see it and recite that du’a and 7 Fatihas.
Say you didn’t see the moon, but you went with good intentions as the Prophet said, “all deeds are by intention.” So if you don’t see it, say “O Allah I went to see crescent but did not. Allah is kareem he will give that reward.”
And what did Sayyidina Salman say ? He said, adalakum shahrun `adheem.
The Prophet (s) gave guidance, his irshaad, we cannot say lectures. He gave the revelation. And he said, "Ramadan came its shadows appeared, in it is a night better than a thousand months." How many years is that? It is 9 years. No [it is] more. 90 years of your age. One night is equal to ninety years. It means what you are going to live, Allah gave you the chance in one night to achieve in one night. It is one night and you spend your whole life in worship and trying to be good. But Allah said, “I am giving you that in one night.”
FaradAllahu siyaamahu wa …qiyaamahu tatawa`an and to pray at night is a Sunnah and whoever fast that month as if he has freed someone from slavery.
In old times slavery was too much. If you free someone Allah will free you from hellfire.
That is in Nuzhat al-majaalis. And as if he has fasted 70 months other than Ramadan. One month of Ramadan fasting is equal to 70 months other than it.
If you fasted seven years in sequence as if you fasted one Ramadan, that means the reward. Allah will reward it a lot.
And in that month the rizq of mu’min will increase. A lot of favors. I never went to any house in Ramadan, even a homeless, you will see his table full in Ramadan. You never see in Ramadan a person whose table is not full of food. Not only food, but Allah will give heavenly rizq, spiritual rizq. Whenever Sayyidina Zakariyya entered her niche he found food,
And it is the month of patience and if anyone gives food for a fasting person, for one person, if someone is fasting and you invite him to your home, it is as if you have freed someone from slavery and you will be freed from hellfire. If you feed 10 people, 20 people, then it will be more rewarded. That is why people run to feed each other in Ramadan.
And the Prophet said, man hadara majlis min majaalis adh-dhikr fee Ramadan, katab Allah `ala kulli qadamin `ibaadati sannah.
So count the people are coming from here and there, how many feet [metres] they have traveled. Some people coming to break fast here and some people traveled from here to Makkah or Madina to witness the month of Ramadan there. How many feet they went and attended a majlis dhikr, whoever attended majlis dhikr in Ramadan will be given by Allah one years worship for every footstep, and he will be with me under Allah’s swt Throne on Judgment Day.
O Muslims, Allah is rewarding a lot in this month. And if someone attends dhikrullah in every association he will be given a city of nur, madinatun min nur.
You see these laser lights people like to go and see. Imagine these are dunya colors. What about Paradise colors. What is that city of light the Prophet (s) mentioned? It means a city in the Divine Presence, in the presence of your Lord where He invites the believers to come forward to his Divine Presence when Allah appears to the believers in Paradise, Allah cannot be seen, but His manifestation can be seen. No one can see that manifestation in dunya. But in akhira you can see that manifestation Allah gave His blessing to those who taste Ramadan and may Allah make us among those who fast Ramadan in best way. We are weak and we ask Allah to change our fasting from imitational fasting to real fasting.
Alhamdulillah.