Ramadan
In History
by Dr Abdullah Hakim Quick
All praises to Allah, Lord of the worlds. He who revealed in His Glorious
Qur'an, "O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was
prescribed for those who came before you that you may keep your duty to your
Lord (having taqwa)," (2:185). And may blessings and peace of Allah be
upon His last Messenger Muhammad ibn Abdullah, forever.
O you who believe, Ramadan is a sacred month wherein Almighty Allah is
constantly testing His creation and giving humanity the opportunity to achieve
infinite, endless Bliss. Fasting is a complete purification and a means to
developing the consciousness of Allah's presence. The consciousness of Allah
(Taqwa) is a protection against the schemes of Shaitan, and the suffering of
this world. Allah has informed us that, "Whoever keeps his duty to Allah
(has taqwa), He ordains a way out for him and gives him sustenance from where
he imagines not. And whoever trusts in Allah, He is sufficient for him. Surely
Allah attains His purpose. Allah has appointed a measure for everything."
(65:2)
Many Muslims today have a misconception about fasting and the activities of a
fasting person. They go into a state of semi-hibernation, spending most of
their daylight hours in bed. If they fear Allah, they wake up for prayer, but
then return to sleep immediately. This unnatural sleep makes them become lazy,
dull-witted and often cranky.
Ramadan is actually a time of increased activity wherein the believer, now
lightened of the burdens of constant eating and drinking, should be more
willing to strive and struggle for Allah. The Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa
sallam, passed through approximately nine Ramadans after the Hijrah. They were
filled with decisive events and left us a shining example of sacrifice and
submission to Allah.
In the first year after the Hijrah, the Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa sallam,
sent Hamza ibn Abdul Muttalib with thirty Muslim riders to Saif al Bahr to
investigate three hundred riders from Quraish who had camped suspiciously in
that area. The Muslims were about to engage the disbelievers, but they were
separated byMajdy ibn Umar al-Juhany. The Hypocrites of Madinah, hoping to
oppose the unity of the Muslims, built their own masjid (called Masjid
ad-Dirar). The Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa sallam, ordered this masjid to be
destroyed in Ramadan.
On the seventeenth of Ramadan, 3 A.H., Almighty Allah separated truth from
falsehood at the Great Battle of Badr. The Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa
sallam, and 313 of his companions set out to intercept a caravan of their own
goods that had been left in Makkah. It was led by Abu Sufyan himself, and
estimated at 50,000 dinars. They were met, instead, by a well-equipped army of
the nobility of Quraish, intend on putting out the light of Islam. Despite
being outnumbered three to one and appearing weak and unseasoned, the Muslims
defended their faith with a burning desire to protect the Prophet and meet
their Lord through martyrdom. Allah gave them a decisive victory on this day of
Ramadan, that would never be forgotten.
In 6 A.H., Zaid ibn Haritha was sent to Wadi al-Qura at the head of a
detachment to confront Fatimah bint Rabiah, the queen of that area. Fatimah had
previously attacked a caravan led by Zaid and had succeeded in plundering its
wealth. She was known to be the most protected woman in Arabia,
as she hung fifty swords of her close relatives in her home. Fatimah was
equally renowned for showing open hostility to Islam. She was killed in a
battle against these Muslims in the month of Ramadan.
By Ramadan of 8 A.H., the treaty of Hudaibiyya had been broken and the Muslim
armies had engaged the Byzantines in the North. Muhammad, sallallahu `alaihi wa
sallam, felt the need to strike a fatal blow to disbelief in the Arabian Peninsula
and conquer the city of Mecca.
Allah has declared His Sanctuary a place of peace, security and religious
sanctity. Now the time had come to purify the Ka`bah of nakedness and
abomination. The Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa sallam set out with an army
having more armed men than al-Madinah had ever seen before. People were
swelling the army's ranks as it moved toward Makkah. The determination of the
believers, guided by the Will of Allah, became so awesome that the city of Makkah was conquered
without a battle, on 20 Ramadan. This was one of the most important dates in
Islamic history for after it, Islam was firmly entrenched in the Arabian Peninsula. During the same month and year, after
smashing the idols of Makkah, detachments were sent to the other major centers
of polytheism and al-Lat, Manat and Suwa, some of the greatest idols of Arabia, were destroyed.
Such was the month of Ramadan in the time of the Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa
sallam. It was a time of purification, enjoining the good, forbidding the evil,
and striving hard with one's life and wealth. After the death of the Prophet,
sallallahu `alaihi wa sallam, Muslims carried on this tradition and Allah used
the true believers to affect the course of history. Ramadan continued to be a
time of great trials and crucial events.
Ninety-two years after the Hijrah, Islam had spread across North
Africa, Iran, Afghanistan, Yemen
and Syria.
Spain
was under the tyrannical rule of King Roderic of the Visigoths. Roderic had
forced his six millions serfs and persecuted Jews to seek the aid of the
Muslims of North Africa in order to be delivered. Musa ibn Husair, the Umayyad
governor of North Africa, responded by sending his courageous general Tariq ibn
Ziyad at the head of 12,000 Berber and Arab troops. In Ramadan of that year,
they were confronted with a combined Visigoth army of 90,000 Christians led by
Roderic himself, who was seated on a throne of ivory, silver, and precious gems
and drawn by white mules. After burning his boats, Tariq preached to the
Muslims warning them that victory and Paradise
lay ahead of them and defeat and the sea lay to the rear. They burst forth with
great enthusiasm and Allah manifested a clear victory over the forces of
disbelief. Not only was Roderic killed and his forces completely annihilated,
but also Tariq and Musa succeeded in liberating the whole of Spain, Sicily
and parts of France.
This was the beginning of the Golden Age of Al-Andalus where Muslims ruled for
over 700 years.
In the year 582 A.H., Salahuddin Al-Ayyubi, after battling with the Crusaders
for years, finally drove them out of Syria and the whole of their
occupied lands in the month of Ramadan. The Muslim world was then destined to
meet one of its most frightening challenges.
In the seventh century A.H. the Mongols were sweeping across Asia
destroying everything that lay in their path. Genghis Khan called himself
"the scourge of God sent to punish humanity for their sins". In 617
A.H., Samarkand,
Ray and Hamdan were put to the sword causing more than 700,000 people to be
killed or made captive. In 656 A.H., Hulagu, the grandson of Genghis Khan,
continued this destruction. Even Baghdad,
the leading city of the Muslim world, was sacked. Some estimates say that as
many as 1,800,000 Muslims were killed in this awesome carnage. The Christians
were asked to eat pork and drink wine openly while the surviving Muslims were
forced to participate in drinking bouts. Wine was sprinkled in the masjids and
no Azan (call to prayer) was allowed. In the wake of such a horrible disaster
and with the threat of the whole Muslim world and then Europe
being subjected to the same fate, Allah raised up from the Mamluks of Egypt,
Saifuddin Qutz, who united the Muslim army and met the Mongols at Ain Jalut on
25th of Ramadan, 458 A.H. Although they were under great pressure, the Muslims
with the help of Allah, cunning strategy and unflinching bravery crushed the
Mongol army and reversed this tidal wave of horror. The whole of the civilized
world sighed in relief and stood in awe at the remarkable achievement of these
noble sons of Islam.
This was the spirit of Ramadan that enabled our righteous forefathers to face
seemingly impossible challenges. It was a time of intense activity, spending
the day in the saddle and the night in prayer while calling upon Allah for His
mercy and forgiveness.
Today, the Muslim world is faced with drought, military aggression, widespread
corruption and tempting materialism. Surely we are in need or believers who can
walk in the footsteps of our beloved Prophet, sallallahu `alaihi wa sallam, the
illustrious Sahabah, Tariq ibn Ziyad, Qutuz, Salahuddin and the countless
heroes of Islam. Surely we are in need of believers who are unafraid of the
threats of the disbelievers, yet kind and humble to the believing people;
Muslims whose fast is complete and not just a source of hunger and thirst.
May Allah raise up a generation of Muslims who can carry Islam to all corners
of the globe in a manner that befits our age, and may He give us the strength
and the success to lay the proper foundations for them. May Allah make us of
those who carry out our Islam during Ramadan and after it, and may He not make
us of those who say what they do not do. Surely Allah and His Angels invoke
blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad. O you who believe, send
blessings and peace to him forever.
(This was taken from Islaam.Com)
