#ramadan thoughts

[yeesiine]

Orange in front of my parents...

[eleminim]

Thinking

SubhanAllah, we read the Quran, scenes of Qiyamah, scenes where people are thrown into Jahannam but I noticed we never imagined ourselves being part of it, being the ones who lives that.. everything is being shown to us, still we don't Thank him enough for making us part of this deen, for being able to know Him

[gentlergunler]

10 lessons I learned from the first 10 days of Ramadan 🌙

(personal, subjective, and in no particular order)

1) It's a constant work and it doesn't get easier. This is the first thing that came into my mind. As a matter of fact, the daily routine of this month is no joke, whichever deeds you try to perform and incorporate in your deen from the 5 obligatory prayers, to the sunnah, to the nawafil, to the azkar, to the Qur'an recitation, to the daily x number of istighfar you promised yourself you'd achieve, it is a lot of work, especially if you have a family to take care of, a job or school to go to, or more critically, if your mental health is not at its best condition. Every day (or night), you get out of bed and you're back at square one, you have all this list of tasks to do, and it gets a lot some times, and you do feel exhausted (but if you are among the lucky ones, then it is the good kind of exhausted), and it's not like your prayers are gonna perform themselves, you have to ger up, you have to act. That's why you need to constantly remind yourself why you are doing this in the first place. What is the point of fasting and waking up in the middle of the night to pray and spending hours throughout the day just remembering Allah swt and reading his book, etc. You have to remind yourself of the ultimate purpose of this month, that we are sacrificing the worldly pleasures for the sake of Allah swt, to gain Taqwa, to be in a state of constante awareness and consciousness of Allah's presence, to get closer to Allah swt the most gracious the most merciful, and that if we don't actually put on some work and effort, we won't get to where we want to go, we won't achieve any of that. It is good to keep things in perspective. Be aware of what you are doing, where you are now, where do you wanna go and what it takes to get you there. If it's constant work and effort, then be it.

2) You can't achieve anything by yourself, your intentions are not enough, you need Allah's support. In fact, for the first couple of days I was so confused, I had to ask my sisters " If the devils are all locked away, why do I feel like I can't focus? " And I was constantly asking myself, if I have already prepared, downloaded the calendars and planners, put up a big board on my bedroom wall, etc., Why do I feel like my Iman is getting low?, AstaghfiruAllah. Aren't we supposed to feel on cloud nine? In a state of pure bliss? And then I came across a khutbah where the Sheikh may Allah swt bless him answered my question. He explained that even though Shaytan is locked away, he has already programmed us, for 11 months (he even made a joke that Shaytan deserves a month off because he has been working too hard for the rest of the year). Anyways, what I realized is even your will and your plans and your excitement about Ramadan and your promises to do so and so deeds is not enough if you don't ask Allah swt for support, for sabr, for guidance, for help, for strength to be able to fulfill those ibadat and carry out the plans you have made for this month. You need to constantly ask Allah swt because who else is our refuge? Who else is our source of strength and patience ? Who else will keep us steadfast on the straight path? And who else is gonna help us against the traps of Shaytan? No matter how willing or excited or determined you are to perform your prayers, finish reading the Qur'an, etc, you still need Allah swt to bless your deeds, every step of the way. Without Him, nothing can be achieved. So in your sujood, ask Him that He give you enough strength to finish that prayer in full Khushoo' and concentration, and after that prayer, ask him for sabr and strength to manage to perform the next one and the one after. Tell Him that you seek refuge in Him from the traps of Shaytan, from laziness and lethargy, from the disoriented heart and the distracted mind. Show Him that you are vulnerable and that even though you are trying to do this for Him, you actually can't do it without Him. SubhanAllah.

3) Forgive yourself when you fall short.

{يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَ}

{God intends for you ease and does not want hardship for you}

Allah swt literally said this in Surat Al Baqara (The Cow) when he prescribed Fasting upon us and introduced us to the holy month of Ramadan. Soz read it again. As simple as that, I am not gonna develop this idea further.

4) No matter how much you prepared before Ramadan came, you aren't prepared enough. Well, are you familiar with the saying that Ramadan is like a marathon and you have to prepare for it way before? That's actually true. And guess what? No matter how much you think you are prepared, there are still gonna be some moments when you'd still feel out of breath, where you wish you'd have prepared more. May Allah swt make us reach the end of this month smoothly and seamlessly. May Allah swt bless us and accept our deeds from beginning to end.

5) Our deeds don't get accepted because they're good enough, they get accepted because Allah is merciful. I heard this in a youtube khutba just last night and it resonated with me. Put this in your mind, learn it by heart, print it out on your forehead if necessary! No matter how perfect you think your deeds are, they won't get accepted because you're an amazing slave of Allah swt and you win at worship and ibadah. Don't get too confident, beware of arrogance, control your ego. Stay humble and know your place. The only reason why your deeds would be accepted is because Allah swt will have mercy on you, not because you are so good that your deeds would qualify you for forgiveness and acceptance. So pray that Allah swt accepts our deeds and pray that he encompasses us with His mercy.

6) Don't compare to others, don't get intimidated by others, we are not on the same journey. Walk your own rocky path. I can't stress this enough. I know a lot of brothers and sisters Mashaa'Allah, Allahuma barik, are overachievers, or they might just be out of our league. And sometimes, through social media, we see what they share (in their attempt to motivate us and share some tips and good deeds, spread the knowledge, May Allah swt bless them, accept their deeds and reward them), so we get intimidated. Sometimes it feels like what we are doing is not good enough because it doesn't even compare to what X or Y are doing. And we feel a bit scared that we are not good enough of slaves for Allah swt or that Allah swt wouldn't be pleased with us like He swt would be pleased with them, and we can even feel unworthy and get discouraged ( beware it's a shaytan trap). It is simple though, your path to Allah swt is very personal. What a brother or a sister does only get to inspire you not discourage you or intimidate you. When you see someone sharing something good or beneficial, make duaa for them and make duaa for yourself then leave it at that. Competition is taking over every aspect of our worldly life, we shouldn't let it mess with this sacred part as well. And remember, we are not all on the same journey to Allah swt. It is okay if you can't recite the Qur'an in such a beautiful way or if you can't pray 10 rakaas of Taraweeh, it is okay if you can't read in Arabic or if you don't learn any hadith by heart. Allah swt is patient enough and considerate enough. Scratch that, He swt is the most patient, the most considerate, the most gracious, the most generous, and He appreciates your effort. What matters for Him is your sincerity and the purity of your intentions.

7) The less food you take, the more energy you will have. FACTS. I mean, imagine the struggle of having to pray Ishaa and Taraweeh on a full stomach where every time you get down for sujood you feel like your soup is coming up :/ Allahu almusta'aan. This month is not about feasting. It is literally about giving up pleasures (food being one of them) to focus on Allah. So, Focus on what's important and set your priorities straight.

8) Don't overdue it. Beware of the ghost of Burnout. So yeah, like I already said earlier, it is a lot of work and it requires preparation and constant effort. The aim is to be at our best shape of health and Iman on the last 10 nights because they are the most sacred, the most important, the most blessed. You might wanna consider starting small with your deeds and building up slowly. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Do good deeds properly, sincerely and moderately and know that your deeds will not make you enter Paradise, and that the most beloved deed to Allah is the most regular and constant even if it were little." [Al Bukhari]

9) Personalize your ibadat / plans. In other words, do what's best for you and what's beneficial for you. Define your weaknesses and the areas in which you want to improve. Don't just do this or that deed because everyone else is doing them. Do not follow blindly. What is good for you might not be the thing recommended or done by the others. And what you need on your faith journey is not what X or Y needs. You will be judged on your own deeds, your own journey. Have a purpose and a reason for what you are doing and why you are doing that. Also, the more you feel like your plan or your routine is personal, the more you can relate to it and connect with it, the more sincere you will be, the more excited and enthousiastic you will be, and the easier it will be for you to perform your ibadat in Shaa Allah.

10) Too much information can be poisonous. If ,like me, you got into a habit of watching lectures and videos of speakers this Ramadan, then breaking news: it might get confusing. I don't want you to feel lost and confused. Allahima barik the resources are countless and limitless. But also, you have to beware whom you listen to. There are different sects, different perspectives, different rulings on certain things. So, try not take things blindly. Take them with a pinch of salt and always try to do a background check. And eventually, when it gets too much, always choose what's best for your heart, because we are created with an innate sense of "right" , our fitrah is sane, Alhamdulillah. So, try to be critical. Allah swt even recommends that.

I hope this post can be beneficial. Tell me which part you related to the most, and if you have any extra tips, please share. May Allah swt accept our deeds and grant us forgiveness, amen. 🤍

[nolabballgirl]

some thoughts about Woensdag 8:28 (ep. 1, clip 6):

yasmina and luca's friendship! WOC solidarity that i'd like to explore more. i wish we had more of an opportunity for luca to have her own storyline and not throwing a bunch of random things into her backstory just for the sake of doing so. and although she seems to play it off to luca's face, i do think yasmina knows exactly what luca meant when she talks about lightning going through your body. 😊

so we know that yasmina generally doesn't attend parties, etc. but i think what doesn't exactly click with the girl squad is that it's also ramadan, and it's not as simple as that she's free after sunset, and fridays are considered extra holy after all.

i know some of my non-muslim friends growing up had this misconception that we fast during the day, but then go buck wild at night! 😅 sure, a bet there are some muslims who do that. but generally for someone as practicing as yasmina, the nights are full of observances like special prayers (taraweeh), reading the qur'an, decompressing from the fast with family, etc. this is ramped up even more during the last ten nights of ramadan.

and generally during ramadan, people who are practicing tend to minimize worldly activities compared to other times of year (i try and cut down on music/Netflix binging 😁) so there's more time for self-reflection and prayer. but to the extent you do go out during ramadan, it's usually to more "halal friendly" places like dinner parties or restaurants. it would be nice and more respectful tbh if the girl squad picked something that wasn't a bar (looking at you dani soto!) or getting drinks. how about going out for dessert or tea with yasmina (after she breaks her fast)?

[kenzaharris]

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[mobeenhakeem]

Love

Stop putting every hope of happiness in the hands of another person. Love is amazing, it’s a blessing from Allah. But love comes in many ways and from many places. Love already surrounds you. Our generation has convinced themselves that the only love that is valuable will come from a partner/spouse. Through this naive belief, provoked by shaytan, we miss so much of the beautiful world around us!

— Mobeen Hakeem

[yeesiine]

I missed the gym

[gentlergunler]

Half of Ramadan 🌕💛

SubhanAllah, how fast is it that we have reached the halfway mark of this blessed month, and we only reached by Allah's mercy. Just yesterday we were excited impatiently waiting for the month to start, and Alhamdulillah, we have already gone through two full weeks of it, by Allah's mercy and blessings. For those who have had a rocky start, that's okay, we still have two full weeks to fix things, work on ourselves, do better, or at least try. For those who feel exhausted or low on energy, that's okay too, take a breath and start again, put your trust in Allah swt and pray that He'd give you the sabr and strength to keep going, and verily He will. Ramadan is never to be lived without preparations, and like we have prepared for the beginning, we have to prepare for al-khawateem. We have to make the ending as beautiful as the beginning if not more. The blessed last 10 nights are very important, a sacred chance not to be wasted. So we get a few days now to organize our plans, sort things out and set for an upgrade spiritually and practically. Be ready for the last 10 nights, be ready for Laylatu Al Qadr. May Allah swt make us among those who reach it. And May Allah swt have mercy on those who left us before Ramadan, who didn't get a chance to witness it this year, or those who didn't get a chance to finish it with us. May Allah swt wrap them in His mercy and accept them and forgive their sins 🤍.

May Allah swt accept our deeds and forgive our sins.

اللهم اهدِني فيمن هدَيتَ، وعافني فيمن عافيتَ، وتولَّني فيمن تولَّيتَ، وبارك لي فيما أعطيتَ، وقِني شر ما قضيت؛ فإنك تقضي ولا يقضى عليك، وإنه لا يَذِلُّ مَن واليتَ، تباركتَ ربَّنا وتعاليت.

'O Allah guide me among those You have guided, pardon me among those You have pardoned, befriend me among those You have befriended, bless me in what You have granted, and save me from the evil that You decreed. Indeed You decree, and none can pass decree upon You, indeed he is not humiliated whom You have befriended, blessed are You our Lord and Exalted.'