7/10/2012 - Religious Family
Interfaith –
Article Ref:
SV0808-3647
By: IslamiCity
Staff
Sound Vision* -
Eat, drink and be moderate
Almost all of us do it - once Iftar
time hits, we
just keep plowing food and drink into our mouths till it's hard
to move
afterwards. And those of us who do it know this is totally contrary to
the
spirit of Ramadan, through which we're supposed to learn self-control not
self-indulgence. Let's try to stick to the Prophetic rule on eating: fill our
stomachs with one-third food, one-third water and one-third breathing space,
even in Ramadan.
Give a dollar a day in charity...or five or
ten
The Prophet Muhammad, peace and
blessings be upon
him, was always generous but even more so in Ramadan. Let's
open our hearts and
dig a little deeper in our wallets this year. Even less
than a dollar a day adds
up. Whatever you can give, it's the intention that
counts.
Memorize 4 new Surahs
Memorizing the Quran often seems like
a daunting
task. But the key is doing it in small bites. Since there are four
weeks in
Ramadan, try to memorize one new Surah a week. Start off with a
short, easy one.
Once you've started, you'll build momentum and may even want
to memorize a
longer one the following week.
Go to Tarawih prayers
Post-Iftar, the first urge is to
sleep after an
exhausting day. But try your best to head out to the mosque for
Tarawih prayers.
Praying alone is wonderful, but doing it in congregation is
fantastic. The
community spirit is part of Ramadan's blessings. Don't miss it
this year. If
going every day is not possible, try going at least once week.
Attend the Tarawih prayer in which the
recitation of the Quran will be
finished
Call the local mosque and find out which day the
Imam will be
finishing the recitation of the Quran in prayer. Attend to not only
hear part
of the Quran's recitation in prayer, but also participate in the
heart-rending
Duas that follow it.
Stop swearing and/or backbiting - with a special
box
It's hard not to shoot our mouths
off when
someone's upset us. Whether we utter those four-letter words or
backbite about
someone to our family and friends, we know this isn't the
God-approved way of
letting off steam. In Ramadan, when we want to build our
spirituality, we've got
to wage Jihad against our bad habits.
Try this: get a
box and every time you catch
yourself swearing or backbiting put some money in
it. It could be a buck or
less. The point is to choose an amount that makes it
feel like
punishment.
At the end of the month send the money to a charity
or
buy a gift for the person whom you've backbitten the most against.
Call/email your relatives
You'd think that given the easy
access to email,
competitive long-distance calling rates, phone cards, etc.
these days, we'd keep
in touch with family and friends more often. But the
opposite seems to be the
case, as we get caught up in life's
"busyness."
Strengthening ties with family members and keeping
in
touch with friends is part of our way of life and an act Allah is very
pleased
with. This Ramadan, call family and friends or at least email them a
Ramadan
card and ask them how their fasting is going.
Go on a technology diet
Even if you work in the IT industry,
you can do
this. Avoid checking personal email and surfing the web during your
fast. After
Iftar, instead of plopping yourself in front of the screen, go to
Tarawih. The
same goes for the television. The point is to try to give our
full attention to
spiritual elevation this month.
Read 5 minutes of Quran a day...just five, not
more, not less
Even if you feel you've got
absolutely no time, set
a timer or the alarm on your cell phone and find a
relatively quiet place. You
can read the first page of the Quran you open or
follow a sequence. The choice
is yours. The point is simply to
connect with God through His revelation in the
month of the Quran.
Forgive everyone who has hurt you
Still got a festering wound from
the fight with
your friend last year? Still upset about something your spouse
said during a
heated argument? Or are you still bitter about the way your
parents sometimes
treated you as a kid? Let go of the anger and pain this
Ramadan and forgive
those who have hurt you. Forgiving someone is not only
good for the body, but
it's also great for the soul. And in Ramadan, ten days
of which are devoted to
Allah's forgiveness, shouldn't we lesser beings
forgive too?
If you find it very difficult to forgive everyone,
forgive at
least three people.
Happy Ramadan !!!
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