Dhu’l Hijjah Newsletter

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

Welcome to our tenth newsletter, as we welcome the month of Dhu’l Hijjah; the 12th and final month of the Islamic (hijri) calendar.  It is one of the four sacred months during which war is forbidden, and it is the month in which the Ḥajj (Pilgrimage) takes place as well as Eid al-Adha, the “Festival of the Sacrifice.”

THE FIRST TEN DAYS OF DHU’L HIJJAH
The first ten days of Dhu’l Hijjah are blessed days: Allah Most High Himself swore by them in the Qur’an:  “By the Dawn….. and the Ten Nights…”[Quran, 89:1-2]. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ informed us that there are no days in which righteous actions are more beloved to Allah ﷻ than the first ten days of this month. (Bukhari) For that reason some scholars have ruled that these days are better than the final ten days of Ramadan, although the nights of Ramadan are superior to these nights. 

The Prophet ﷺ said that fasting one of these days is equal to the reward of fasting for a whole year and standing in one of these nights in prayer is equal to standing in prayer on Laylat al-Qadr (al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah). It has also been narrated that the reward for actions in these days is multiplied seven hundred times.

REMEMBER ALLAH IN ABUNDANCE
The first 10 days are days in which we should remember Allah ﷻ abundantly. Allah ﷻ says that they “mention the name of Allah ﷻ on known [i.e., specific] days (Surah al-Hajj, 22:28) These “well-known days” according to the majority of scholars are the ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah. This is why the Prophet ﷺ said that in these days we should make abundant tahlil (saying la ilaha ill’Allah), takbir (saying Allahu akbar) and tahmid (saying alhamdulillah) (Ahmad).

THE DAY OF ARAFAH – THE BEST DAY OF THE YEAR
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said there is no day in which Allah saves more people from the fire than the Day of Arafah (Muslim) It has also been narrated that anyone who has an atom’s weight of faith in their heart will be forgiven by Allah ﷻ on this day, whether or not they actually stand at Arafah (Abu Daud)
Abu Qatada (Allah be pleased with him) related that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “Fasting the Day of ‘Arafah (9th of Dhu’l Hijjah) expiates for two years, one prior and one forthcoming…” [Muslim, Abu Dawud, Nasa’i, and Ibn Majah]. This is an immense gift from Allah to the Ummah of His Beloved ﷺ.

ACTIONS THAT CARRY THE REWARD OF HAJJ
Nothing of course can equal actually performing the hajj and worshipping Allah ﷻ in these blessed places. Allah ﷻ knows that many people long to make hajj every year but are unable to do so. Out of His generosity, He made the reward for certain actions (below) similar to the reward of a supererogatory hajj:  

1. Remembering Allah from Fajr until Ishraq.
2. Attending a gathering of knowledge.
3. Going to the mosque for the congregational prayer.
4. Performing the Friday Prayer.
5. Performing the Eid Prayer. 
6. Fulfilling the needs of your brother or sister. 
7. Being good to your parents.
8. Performing obligatory actions.

SACRIFICE (QURBANI) 
Qurbani, also known as Udhiyah, is the ritual of sacrificing an animal during Eid al-Adha. This act honours Prophet Ibrahim alayhi salaam who was commanded by Allah ﷻ to sacrifice his beloved son Ismail alayhi salaam as a test of faith. As Prophet Ibrahim alayhi salaam prepared to obey, Allah ﷻ, His mercy, replaced his son with a ram, showing that the true sacrifice was Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to submit to God’s will.

There is no action more beloved to Allah on the Day of Eid than making such a sacrifice. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ told his beloved daughter Sayyidah Fatimah al-Zahra’ alayha salaam that she would be forgiven for her previous wrongdoings with the first drop of blood to be shed from the sacrificed animal. She asked if this reward was specifically for the household of the Prophet and he replied: “For us and for all the Muslims.”

UPDATES / NEWS
IV Publishing in collaboration with DK Team have launched the android and apple apps for the Dala’il al-Khayrat, both are available for readers to download, recite and benefit from in sha Allah:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.appbits.DalailAlKhayrat&pcampaignid=web_share
https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/dalail-al-khayrat/id6467222357

We are in the last stages of completing the long awaited “Man of Many Splendours” a biography on the life of Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad rahimahu Allah, and are hoping to send it off to print very soon in sha Allah.

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Credit:  https://muwasala.org/2015/09/04/the-first-ten-days-of-dhul-hijjah/
https://muwasala.org/2015/09/21/the-day-of-arafah-2/

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