People Only Praying in Ramadhan......!

Society Religion & Philosophy
1

Ok, so may be you folks have also noticed this too.

In our masjid..usually (non-Ramadhan), at Asr time, there were, like 200-250 namazis. Maghrib, the highest had abt 400. etc.

Now, in Ramadhan… during Isha…abt 1,000 namazis…and in Maghrib, more that 1,200…!

Its wonderful. It’s great.

But my question is…

Do muslims think that praying the namaz is only fard in Ramadhan…?

If these muslims ‘continue’ this practice in Shawaal and then to all year, its a great start. But, sadly, from my experience, this jazba just disappears on Chaand Raat!

Why?

:Looking for answers:

2

Ok I am guilty of this
Ramzan is the only month that I dont miss a prayer

for the rest of the year I am a lazy bum

Mummy used to say 'If you dont pray then your roza becomes a faqa'

I think its kinda embedded in my mind

but then I have a very different philosophy bout religion..and usually i dont like discussing religion with others

I see people accusing each other of not being good muslims
In my eyes one isnt a good muslim if they sit on the janamaaz five times a day

I dont want to be a good muslim
I just want to be a Good Person ....muslim comes afterwards
Forget being even a muslim I am just thriving to be a Good person

I dont consider praying, roza and haj alone would guarantee me a place in jannat

jannat is for people who were Good Persons in their life time
Not good christians, muslims, hindus, jews waghera waghera

People might have a problem with my statment thats why i dont like discussing religion with them

I am better off being called a Non muslim, if being a muslim means doing what I dont feel right doing
Relgion is there only to tell ppl how to lead their lives in a good manner
The relationship bw a person and God is only bw the person and God
and noone can interfere in that

[This message has been edited by Anchal (edited December 02, 2000).]

3

This is interesting.....

I always thought that the first question will be about namaaz. And yes, being a good person is first.

There is this very important part in Sura'e'Baqra.. I think it is in the end of Second sipara...

It starts with...

"Naiki (good deed) is not that you face towards West or you face towards East (meaning prayers).... naiki is...."

And then, there is a whole list of issues, starting with Imaan, then treatment of your relatives, neighbours etc... Its very interesting and very important...

Can someone post the complete translation of the whole passage from Sura-e-Baqra?

Having said that, if we just concentrate on being a good person, means we are doing "Haqooq ul Ibaad" (rights of other ppl).

Should we also think about Haqooq Allah (Rights of our Creator)?

I guess this is the question.

Ideally we will like to do both. We have seen many examples, when ppl do one and forget the other. Like ... some moulvis who have a depraved mentality.... or some goody goody ppl, who know zilch about faraid (mandatory) aspects of the religion.

Am I making any sense ???

4

Haqooq e Allah

Believe in His Sole existance
Believe in His Power
Pray to Him and Only Him
Ask from Him and Only Him

arent these Haqooq e Allah

He just wants us to be Good people

What is a person doing when offering namaaz
praising God

God cant be praised otherwise?

I know namaaz brings a calming effect on a person
but to say or point a person to be a bad indivdual cause they dont offer prayers without knowing bout themselves is not right

Maybe a non namazi would be granted jannat cause he was a good person
and a namazi would be sent to dozakh cause he wasnt a good person

Its His Will
who are we to judge individuals bout how much they pray

5

I guess my question is…

why do muslims fast?
I mean, why do you fast in Ramadhan?

One would imagine, that muslims fast in Ramadhan, because it is a fard (mandatory) on all muslims, and is one of the basics and fundamentals of Islam. It is something we do entirely for Allah… right?

(Maybe some folks do roza as part of their dieting plan, I dunno)

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/wink.gif

And then, to ensure that our roza doesn’t turn into faqa (as you say), you also pray. Entirely praiseworthy. Lotsa ppl proly don’t do ‘that’ as well. Kher…nevermind

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/smile.gif

Now, the question is… if we fast, for all these reasons… then why would we not pray namaz all year round. Is it not as mandatory as roza?

Is it because roza is only for one month (ok, so we an do that)… whereas namaz is five times a day, 365 days a year (A lot!)?

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/confused.gif

[This message has been edited by Pristine (edited December 03, 2000).]

6

Hmm, Pristine i agree with you--alot of people place an emphasis on doing good deeds in ramadaan….which may seem unbalanced or insincere at times. Yet, we have to keep in mind that ramadaan is not only a month of mercy….a gift given to us from Allah swt, but it is also a month of training….a month wherein we prepare ourselves for the days that come after ramadaan, when we don’t have this peace, these blessings, these opportunities.
I mean think about it, does Allah swt need us to fast? Does He really need us to suffer and starve ourselves? Ramadaan is for us. Its a time where we purify and prepare ourselves. Many people(i'm talking about nonmuslims) have a mistaken idea about ramadaan, they see it as a time where from sunrise to sundown we starve ourselves, then afterwards we engorge—stuff ourselves trying to compensate for all we denied ourselves. But thats not true…so sometimes I correct them..…and sometimes I don’t. These people don’t understand ramadaan, they don’t understand fasting….because a lot of the time we ourselves don’t understand it…we don’t see the beauty. I mean a lot of the time, these assumptions ppl, ie.nonmuslims, make they do contain some truth. How can they be expected to recognize the beauty…the radiance if so many of us remain blind to it. This past friday, the imam was telling us in the khutba, about a girl who had converted to islam that morning…she’d drawn close to islam in the previous ramadaan where she had kept all the fasts and attended the prayers, she had seen the beauty of not only ramadaan..but the light…the noor of islam, and that morning she declared, La illaha illallah….Muhammadur rasulullah.
I think another reason why so much stress is placed on good conduct and avoidance of backbiting, lying, etc., in this month—in ramadaan, stems…maybe…from the fact that these take away from the essence of our ‘sacrifice’---from the true spirit of our fast, i mean fasting is not only abstaining from food,etc., but it is abstaining from backbiting, lying, fraud, extravagance……I think…despite all the imbalance and perhaps uneven/biased attitude, its alright---as long as people remember to retain this spirit, these qualities when ramadaan comes to a close…

Anchal baji, i don't think it is a matter of judging, because afterall who are we to judge?. I think its a matter of following the commands of Allah swt...Of course Allah swt can be praised otherwise, fasting, charity, zikr...the remembrance of Allah swt in our daily life and deeds, everything is praise of Allah swt if we do it with that niyyat..that intention. But that isn't the point...the point is that namaaz is something which the Almighty the All Knowing has instructed us to do. We cannot say that person who offers namaaz is better than one who doesn't, we are not anyone to judge, all we know is that namaaz is one of the obligations Allah swt has placed on us......and i dont know, i think that if one wanted to fulfill one's deen, if one wanted to bring oneself close to Allah swt...to the noor of Allah swt, one would strive to fulfill these obligations....right?

7

[quote]
Originally posted by Pristine:
**Ok, so may be you folks have also noticed this too.

In our masjid..usually (non-Ramadhan), at Asr time, there were, like 200-250 namazis. Maghrib, the highest had abt 400. etc.

Now, in Ramadhan... during Isha...abt 1,000 namazis...and in Maghrib, more that 1,200...!

Its wonderful. It's great.

But my question is...

Do muslims think that praying the namaz is only fard in Ramadhan...?

If these muslims 'continue' this practice in Shawaal and then to all year, its a great start. But, sadly, from my experience, this jazba just disappears on Chaand Raat!

Why?

:Looking for answers:**
[/quote]

If the jazba is full of munafiqat, then it disapperas. These people who gather at the mosque are only there to have a get together and social interaction. They have no love of Allah or any passion for religion, thats why this dikhawa(showw off) in month of ramadhan and taraweeh disapperas shortly after ramzan.
You need pure souls and hearst, not clean shining clothes and perfumed shirts!

8

Azam, You Wrote ..
**
If the jazba is full of munafiqat, then it disapperas. These people who gather at the mosque are only there to have a get together and social interaction. They have no love of Allah or any passion for religion, thats why this dikhawa(showw off) in month of Ramadhan and taraweeh disapperas shortly after ramzan. You need pure souls and hearst, not clean shining clothes and perfumed shirts!
**

Brother thats a bit un-just, don't you think ?.. No-one but Allah knows what is in the hearts of people and I don't think it's up to you or any other human to say whether or not someone is at the mosque to Show off or that their actions are full of Munafiqat.

The biggest thing you seemed to have overlooked is that in the Holy Month of Ramadan, it is Easier to do naikee (good deeds). Because this is one of the Barkaths (Blessings) of this blessed month. This you can experience by yourself, ie how easy it is to get up in the morning to do Sehri and then perform Fajar.

Yes I do think that people should do their best to carry on after the month of ramadan and continue to perform their prayers. But that is upto them and for Allah Taala to give them Tawfeeq.

But to turn around and call their actions 'Show off' is not justified. Brother you should not jump to conclusions so quickly nor be harsh in the judgement of others. I remember having heard a Hadith shareef of the Blessed Prophet (peace be upon him)once which goes something along the lines of

** There some among you who lead a life of sin and continue to do so untill you are but a hairs bredth away from Hell, and then you do a naikee for which Allah Taal forgives you and makes you among the dwellers of Heaven. And there are some among you who lead a life of Piety and continue to do good deeds untill you are but a hairs bredth away from Heaven, and then you commit a sin for which Allah Taal makes you among the dwellers of Hell **

Brother, a life time of good deeds does not guarantee entry in to heaven and a lifetime of sin does not guarantee entry into hell. These same people whome you are judging could do just ONE naikee during ramdan shareef for which their entire sins are forgiven.

Live and let live... do not judge for who is better than Allah to deal with our affairs ?.

Death is only the Beginning.

9

Some people pray the Eid Prayer, The Jumu^ah Prayer and druing Ramadan only. It's good that they praying, but they should know that the Prayers are a personal obligation at any time onto every accountable Muslim.

Subhanallah, many don't know the value of the five prayers.

10

Great topic Pristine! Ok now I'll make a promise to you...since your posts are so nice, I'll be sure to specially scan all the boards for your posts.

Ok one great way to answer the question is to analyse the three types of people on this earth

1) The Righteous

2) The Kaafir

3) The Hypocrite

The righteous is the Muslim who has taqwa...taqwa is basically * the * answer to your question, it is what makes you fast, it makes you pray and give zakat. It makes you be kind to others and what makes you do good and thus be a 'good person', like Anchal put it.

Taqwa is basically the will of the good muslims who does good deeds. Taqwa is a result of both fearing and adoring Allah. Allah has mentioned it over and over again in the Quran. The verse that commands us to fast states that we should fast if we are among the 'Muttaqeen'.

Taqwa is the strength of a Muslims and it is best developed during ramadan. So try to force yourself to adore Allah as much as you can and you'll certainly be a stronger Muslim.

Those Muslims who do not have taqwa and do not fast or do not pray and give zakat are basically Hypocrites, and hypocrites are of the worst kind.

The Kaafir is he/she who does not believe in Islam. and mind you, Islam is not one among many religions, it is the only right and universal religion.

Islam means submission to Allah, it is a compound word and also means peace and tranquility. If you call yourself a Muslim you are basically stating that you believe in God and understand the purpose of this life is to show him that you are not among those who disobey him.

The Quran explicitly states that even Hazrat Ibrahim was a 'Muslim' and I think that this should really help clear our understanding about the religion.

Anchal I will answer you in my next post so as to avoid this post from looking too big and boring.

11

Anchal:

You are right on the fact that we shouldn't judge other peoples prayers, however it is our duty to help them understand the importance of prayer.

When we confront Allah we do two of the following things:

1) Praise Him

2) Ask Him

Ok, os let me put a LOT of emphasis on this:

Allah need ** no ** praise, for He is above all praise, our praise will not glorify Him any further, for His glory is limitless.

Allah also needs ** no ** petition, for He, the All-Knowing know our needs better than we do; His bounties are open without asking, both to the righteous and the sinner.

Islam is not just a religion, it is a way of life. In reality, it is the * perfect * way of life. The Quran is one of the greatest gifts of Allah. Having a perfect, peaceful and prosperous life is only good for our own spiritual well-being.

If you go back a few centuries to the great Islamic days, where everybody practicised the right deen you will understand that Allah did not benefit from there righteousness, but they themselves benefitted. That was the age when most people had perfect lifestyles, when arts and science flourished and when there was peace, brotherliness and friendliness. You will realize that just being a good person is not enough.

A recent study has revealed that the optimum fasting needed by the body to clear up the digestive system is around 30 days. and lo!, Islam has prescribed 30 days fasting for us already.

I believe, that Namaz helps remind us that we have to abide by the laws of Islam and be nice to other people and most of all be nice to ourselves.

Being ungrateful to His favors, and defying Him will not hurt Him in any way but will hurt ourselves and our community.

Islam is not a law that has to be enforced, it is a teaching, we follow it our your own good, if we don't there should be no compulsion. The verse of the holy Quran taken right after the Ayaat-al-kursi in Surah al Baqarah says it all:

"Let there be no compulsion in religion, Truth stand clear from error" [2:256 Holy Quran]

Being a good person is nice, but along with that we also have to understand the meaning of this life. We should pass this test and win the super life afterwards! I mean how could we be defiant of our own Creaator, its just so rude.

12

Nice post GFQ, really enjoyed reading it.

Alhamdulillah!, keep up the good work.

13

Hmmm.... Nice responses.

Interesting angle about the three types of people.

Frankly, I don't think... people who only pray in Ramadhan...are doing it bcz of hypocracy or any other ulterior motive.

Instead they pray in Ramadhan because they feel like praying... its a blessed month, after all.

Why they don't pray the rest of the 11 months... There can be several theories...

(1) They are too lazy... and/or
(2) They are indifferent...They feel namaz is not that important. If we are a good person, that is enuf.

Thats my take.

14

Well Pristine, I never said that people who only pray in Ramadhan are hypocrites...

Only Allah knows best.

My point was basically that people who do not have the will to carry out Islamic duties are lacking taqwa and are thus practising hypocrisy.

15

Ummm…

Whats the difference … ?

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/wink.gif

16

Salaam friends!!

A very good point!! When I was at University 2 years ago, we were given prayer-room facilaties which were more or less half used to empty, but when it was Ramadhan or when exams used to arive, then it was quite busy. We read similar things about the Quaresh during the time of the Prophet when they used to sail on thier ships. Whilst during the storm they would swear that should they be saved, they worship only Allah, but changes their minds once on safe ground.
When people are in most need of hlp, when they atre vulnerable, they will turn to thier creator.
We can only hope that the strides people make towards iman can be continued well beyond this holy month. Ameen!!

17

well.. for one since shaitan is out of service in ramadan therefore more people think about saying their prayers and doing more good deeds in general...
i myself am very guilty of the fact that even though i try to pray during all months but i usually manage only 2-3 prayers a day.. but during ramzan i find time for most prayers...

from what i think, ramzan gives me a new start, or another chance to rebuild my spiritual side..

other than that i sincerely hope that i keep saying my prayers even after ramzan..

[This message has been edited by ammarr (edited December 07, 2000).]

18

bismihi Ta’ala
assalam o alaikum

check out http://www.al-islam.org/adab for a title

The Etiquettes of Prayer
by the late Imam Khoemini

this will serve a reminder to others and also to myself as to the benefits and mysteries of the prayer, insha 'Allah

let us know what you thought of the title

regards

aK

[This message has been edited by AliAbbas (edited December 08, 2000).]

19

mein tho ramzan mein bhi namazo ko danda marri hu....i'm such a bad person.....miss every single one from zhur to magrib cuz of school.....and then after teh long day, can't be bothered to do the taraweez and the kaza's and all....not a great excuse where namaaz isn't even maaf when ure dying.....i guess i have to shape up before i die and god shifts me to hell.....

20

and i always thought that i read namaz because it was fardh…not because it gave me a calming affect…

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/rolleyes.gif

..a non namazi is one who is usually in the wrong path…salaat is a way of submitting to the ALMIGHTY and performing what we’ve been told over and over in teh quran…its kinda like saying…well i think shirk is also ok…as long as im a good person…or a person who does shirk is bettter than a person who is bad yet does not practice shirk…

when one offers salaat, he or she should (internally) be guilty if he/she performed any sins during the day…salaat is a way of reforming One from the sheitaan…