The Dollar a Day Fast

Eating dollar a day meals this Ramadan By Abdul Malik Mujahid Over one billion people worldwide live on $1 a day. And that includes everything not just food. To put it in practical Ramadan terms, there are Muslims around the world who survive on an Iftar and Suhoor meals that are simple, inexpensive, and limited. Those of us blessed to enjoy a table full of a variety of foods when we break our fasts perhaps don’t consider this. Maybe we feel entitled to eat our fill. But for many, this is clearly not an option. A good number of them are probably Muslim Americans. I heard Dr. Mehmood Khan, PepsiCo's Chief Scientific Officer, say that while there is so much hunger in the world, 20 percent of the world population I obese. In the United States, the statistics say that we have 40,000,000 obese people. (I intentionally spelled out the 40 million so it does look as big as it is.) ;This Ramadan I invite you to take the dollar a day Ramadan challenge. I have done it for the last couple of years and count it as a true blessing of Ramadan. The idea is simple. You reduce the food and drink consumption at Suhoor and Iftar times to one dollar. Trust me, it’s not a big deal. If you can do it as a family whatever you can save can go to fight hunger in your neighborhood and across the world. If you cannot commit to a month try it for a week or at least a weekend during this blessed month. Remember that this is a time in which we are expected to experience hunger, give charity so that we are grateful to God, and have better character, key goals of Ramadan. I found it was not hard at all. It is not a starvation diet. There is a plenty you can eat within a dollar a day fast. I did not lose more than ten pounds during the month. Ramadan, in which we are supposed to experience hunger to achieve a better connection with God’s Creation and with the Creator Himself, somehow has become a marathon feast. It is self-defeating. Those who cook are overburdened and do not have enough energy left for extra worship recommended for Ramadan. There is no Hadith about feasting at Iftar. There is no Sunnah of food celebrations and special cooking at Iftar throughout the life of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and his Companions. May Allah be pleased with all of them. The feast actually is supposed to be Eid at the end of Ramadan not at the end of each day of fasting. The Prophet, who encouraged us to fill only one-third of our stomachs even on normal days, ate far less in Ramadan. Do a family Shura (consultation) before Ramadan and develop a menu of simplicity. Reduce the burden of cooking and divide it up across all family members. Suhoor Options I have eaten quarter to half a flat bread… with a couple of dates and water and felt it was good enough or dipped the bread in leftover curry from the night before once in a while I have take half a bread with a fried egg I have eaten half a cup of oatmeal… prepared with a little milk or prepared it with water on which I poured some left over curry or some fruit like an orange or an apple I have eaten a small portion of anything left over from the previous night At times I have just taken one banana just taken one banana All of the above, if done at home, is around half a dollar. If I was invited to an Iftar party, I would reduce my Suhoor to just one date and water so my Iftar could be little more. Please don’t skip Suhoor. The Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him, asked us not to skip it. Eat just a little as he did and as simply as he did. Allahumma Salle Ala Muhammad. Iftar Eating Iftar is not supposed to be a feast. Don’t divide up Iftar into snack followed by an evening meal. Just stick to one eating session. If you prefer to pray as soon as the time comes, break your fast with one date or water only, and after prayer sit down for the rest. It is important to achieve a variety while maintaining simplicity at the Iftar table. Try to limit it to just one main dish per evening. Or maybe just have a various snacks instead of a main dish once a week. I have done the following for Iftar Just taking a tablespoon or two of whatever is being served The more variety the less portion you take If I have not taken a date in the morning, I will take one in the evening I will take half to one piece of whole wheat flat bread or a couple of scoops of rice with two tablespoons of any vegetable or curry on the table. if there are more than two types of dishes on the table, I would just take one spoon each For drinks, avoid those bottles. They break your dollar a day budget just by themselves. Maybe a small glass of milk, homemade lemonade or for Pakistanis who want to ardently maintain their Ramadan tradition, Rooh Afza Iftar party eating Iftar parties have become an important part of Muslim culture, which unfortunately encourages the following Too much food Too much preparation time Insisting that guests eat more by almost harassing them Overeating Wastage of food since no food rescue programs are organized The Prophet encouraged us to invite each other for Iftar and he was a generous man. He was not always poor. Initially he was married to the richest lady of Makkah and in the later part of his life, he had enough wealth to sacrifice as much as 70-plus camels during his last Hajj. But he chose to live simply and eat less. An Iftar party must not defy the Prophet and the spirit of Ramadan. Here is what I have done in Iftar parties to stick to my dollar a day diet: Be the last in the line to take food. It will allow more time to socialize without food. It would bring time for Isha closer so there will be no time left for the host to insist on seconds. Take half of what you plan to eat. So when hosts insist on you taking more, you have room left for it. Make Ramadan and fasting a topic of the table instead of the usual useless discussions. There is nothing wrong in discussing the Prophet’s lifestyle and simple eating habits. There is nothing wrong with talking about hunger and how 15 million Muslim refugees live. Eating less while traveling Initially I found I had most difficulty eating under a dollar while traveling. You cannot demand at the Secretary of State’s Iftar dinner or some other important official evening to be served such a small amount of food. Nor can you easily find very low cost restaurants. So initially, I accepted eating as little as possible in these types of situations which resulted in me probably violating my dollar a day meal plans for about seven eight times a Ramadan. However, I eventually found a very delicious solution. I started visiting local grocery stores while traveling to a city and buying a few items: Some bread A small amount of grapes or 50 cents worth of peanuts or other fresh produce which would last me for a couple of days during the trip I was surprised to see how much variety I was able to find to stick to my dollar a day Ramadan. Now when it is not Ramadan, I enjoy doing this. On a recent trip to Switzerland, that is all I did for three days and enjoyed every bit of it, or shall I say every bite of it. Some More Tips 1. Skip the meat Meat, in most cases, is more expensive than other foods. Cutting it out of a meal is a surefire way of cutting costs. Limiting meat consumption is also considered healthier. If you cannot completely eliminate it due to what is available on the dining table, just take a small piece or limit yourself to the gravy around the meat. 2. Skip eating out or ready to eat meals Hardly anything comes cheap in this category. So avoid it completely. It is not very healthy anyway. 3. Eat more fruits and vegetables These are not only necessary to maintain optimum health, they are also less expensive than meat and other processed or packaged foods. Although I rarely eat canned food, don’t shun frozen fruits and vegetables. These are often cheaper while retaining health and flavor. Look up this dollar a day healthy food guide by WebMD. 4. Eat beans and lentils And here, you’ve got a great amount of variety. From the garbanzos familiar to lovers of Hummus to black eyed beans, you can experiment and find your favorite for a tasty, protein-rich, low-cost meal. 5. Yummy yogurt Yogurt is inexpensive but offers you great taste and calcium either by itself, as a spread or added to some fruit to make a smoothie. But buying ready-made yogurt could be costly. Try making your own. 6. Water, water, water The Prophet’s drink of choice when breaking his fast was water. Not even milk, which he loved. This is not only free, but it’s an alternative that replenishes what your body needs most to survive after a long day of fasting. 7. Skip the Shawarma …and opt for nuts of all kinds for your protein intake, as well as eggs every other Iftar. 8. Add inexpensive pasta, rice, and/or noodles This helps round out a meal and gives you some carbohydrates. 9. Make food from scratch Processed foods, frozen dinners, and other convenience foods are costly and very often not healthy. Cooking from scratch does not have to be difficult or intimidating. It’s one of the best ways to save money and maintain your health. Do it for the right reason I was fasting with a dollar a day food very silently. But those close to me who knew about it encouraged me to share this with others. Our intentions should be two-fold with the dollar a day Ramadan: Pleasing our Lord by following His Prophet’s path of sharing more and consuming less through simple living Developing a higher level of connectedness with those more than a billion human beings who go to sleep hungry most nights. A conservative South Asian scholar, Ashraf Ali Thanvi, once said you must become a good human being before you can ever become a good Muslim. Ramadan can help us become better Muslims to fulfill the twin tests of faith given by God in the Quran. These require a better connection to service to God’s Creation and a better connection with the Creator through worship: Have you ever seen a human being who contradicts the essence of faith? That is the person who pushes the orphan aside and does not promote feeding the needy. Woe, then, unto those who pray, but their hearts and minds are remote from the essence of their prayers, those who want but to be seen and praised, whereas they refuse to help others who need help. (Meaning of the Quran 107:1-7) May Allah give us life to see Ramadan and use it as a month-long exercise in simple living, consuming less and sharing more as the Prophet did. Ameen.

5 goals for Ramadan - great video for youth and everyone else too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gKOSIhcIkzA

Start your Shahr Ramadan guilt free

From:  http://www.ezsoftech.com/ramadan/ramadhan.asp

My deepest love and respects to you and your beloved ones on the advent of Ramadhan. Like the other 1.5 billion Muslims on this earth, I am sure we cannot wait to start fasting daily and enjoying the blessings of prayer and Holy Quran in this month. Many positive feelings overtake us this month: excitement, happiness, anticipation of blessings and reward, joy upon meeting family and friends regularly and the delight of amazing delicacies on the Iftar table! However for many of us, it is the negative emotions that predominate at the start of this month: fear of yet another unsuccessful Ramadhan, apprehension and guilt. We start this month of Ramadhan feeling guilty for being away from Allah (SWT) for so long; for not having read Holy Quran this year until now; of not having prayed any Tahajjud prayer until now; of not having fasting throughout the year - except for now. This guilty feeling leads to a lot of negativity in our approach to this month and perhaps to the lack of optimism in retrying those special attempts we had made before to read the whole Quran or to pray Tahajjud every night or some other good deed in Ramadhan. In fact for so many of us, guilt takes us away from Allah (SWT) and makes us feel inferior and sometimes cripples us to lesser levels of aspiration and success. "What can this poor slave of Allah (SWT) achieve anyway, when he is so engrossed in sins having done so many evil deeds?" For many - the thought of what we have done in the past - cripples us to what we can do in the future. However, I would like to ask you all to approach this Ramadhan guilt free! Free of guilt of the past. Why worry about something you can't change? It is not the past that should worry us or bother us, rather what could happen in the future. The past is the past - we can't change the sins we have done in the past - so to constantly focus on that for the vast majority of us - is far more crippling for the future than anything else. The prophetic guidance is to regret the past sins and missed opportunities, whilst fearing the future possible sins and being weary of missing future opportunities. It is as Ibnul-Qayyim said in Nooniyyah: "By Allah, I don't fear my past sins, since I have sincerely repented to Allah (SWT) and Allah (SWT) loves to forgive. However, what I truly fear is that in the future this heart of mine will cease to rule by this Quran and this revelation." Remember that Allah is Al-Wadud - the loving God - He is the one who loves you more than your own parents! So overpowering is Allah's mercy that it has transcended His anger. So wide is His Mercy that the Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam said: "If the disbeliever knew of the extent of the Mercy of Allah, then none would have despaired of entering His Paradise!" [Reported by Muslim] And plus, what past sins, when your sincere repentance with Allah's Mercy would have wiped it away and replaced it with equivalent good deeds: "Except him who repents and believes and does a good deed; so these are they of whom Allah changes the evil deeds to good ones; and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful." [Al-Furqan 25:70] My friends, how do you dare to think that Allah (SWT) does not love you? If He hated you, why did He keep you alive till another Ramadhan? If He hated you, why does he provide for you even when you disobey Him? If He did not love you, why is He allowing you to taste the sweetness of loving Him this month by fasting and praying? If He didn't love you, why did He keep you upon Islam? So come back to Al-Wadud - your loving Lord - the one who loves you more than anything else. He is waiting for you and is more happy with you remembering Him than you can imagine. If you come to Him today, He will rush to you. If you remember Him, He will remember you. If you talk about Him, He will talk about you to those with Him. If you say sorry O Allah, He will forgive you and turn them into good. So start your Ramadhan guilt free and enjoy a month of renewed emaan and focus on the good that you can do this month. Learn from the past mistakes, but focus on the future! It is truly as the Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam said: "Verily actions are judged by their endings." With all my love and prayer for your success in this holy month of Ramadhan. Dr. Tawfique Chowdhury

Ramadhan is the month of Holy Qur'an

Alhamdulillah, we are truly blessed to welcome Holy Month of Ramadhan 2012, which is another opportunity to invigorate our spirits, strengthen our faith and pray for our resolve during this month of mercy and forgiveness. The Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, in his sermon at the approach of the Holy Month of Ramadhan, has said: "And for the one who spreads his kindness, Allah (SWT) will spread His mercy over him on the Day of Judgment." This is the month of Allah (SWT), the month of repentance, the month of fasting, the month of charity, the month of supplications and recommended prayers, but on the top of all and according to Holy Qur'an, this is the month of Qur'an. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (as) said: "Everything has a spring and the spring of Holy Quran is the month of Holy Ramadhan." Allah (SWT) has revealed this book to his last and our beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam as a clear sign of guidance and judgment between right and wrong. It is an irony that we Muslims even after 1400 years are debating the method of understanding this book while ignoring a basic fact that the piety and purity of soul is the pre-requisite to understand this book. Though Arabic language skills and qualified teachers also required but if we look at the current Arab Governments it is evident that they failed to distinguish between right and wrong. This is, perhaps, why we have the "Night of Power (Lailatul Qadr)" after almost 20 days of catharsis. The night of power, the most precious one, comes every year in this month of Ramadhan. This night is superior to thousand months and the divine revelation of the Holy Quran took place in this night. It is recommended to search this night every year so the purified souls can be elevated to the domain of revelation to comprehend the teachings of Holy Qur'an and finally be able to differentiate between right and wrong. The attitude of indifference and idleness of people around the world, particularly in Muslims, will only be removed when they will be able to differentiate between right and wrong. That is why Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (RA) extended the idea of purification and self-restraint in the month of Ramadhan to include the International Day of Al-Quds on the last Friday, because only the purified and free souls can take brave actions for the oppressed people of the world. It is customary among many peoples to set New Year resolutions. The majority of people lose their new found resolve, however, within just a few months. This is mainly because few of us know how to set goals for our self-promises. Even less have an action plan to achieve them. The best time to set resolutions or renew intentions for Muslims is not in Muharram or January, but Ramadhan (R is for Ramadhan and resolution), for Ramadhan is divinely designed to be a month of personal and communal change. No surprise, then, that it is also the lunar period in which Allah Almighty changed the destiny of humankind by blessing them with His final and universal Divine Guidance. The blessed month of Ramadhan offers a unique opportunity and convenient time for Tahajjud prayer, especially when the time of commencing the fast is favorable. Allah (SWT) gives abundant reward for all our acts of worship during this blessed month of Ramadhan, therefore, we need to make special efforts to pray the Salatul Layl and keep it up for the rest of the year to raise our level of spirituality. We urges all Muslims to refrain from indulging in the moon sighting debates, which only divide us further and instead, we should all focus our energies towards activities thatunify the Muslim Ummah and make us responsible and caring human beings by: Purifying soul and understanding of the Holy Qur'an Helping people in the Canadian community and around the world who are suffering from both man-made and natural disasters Raising voices against occupying Zionism and colonial Imperialism to bring justice and peace to this great world we all live in May Allah accept all your good deeds in this blessed month of Holy Ramadhan

Planning for the month of Ramadan - it is Time NOW!

If you have a plan for what you want to achieve and how to do it during the coming month of Ramadan, you are more likely to succeed. Here are a few options to help you:

1. http://www.jannah.org/ramadan/ramadanplan.html
This is an article and link to an Excel file planner that you can customize. It contains a checklist you can use with your family to track everything from fasting, nafilah prayers, Qur'an recitation, charity, sleeping, exercising, going to Masjid, etc.

2. http://ramadhanplanner.wordpress.com/ This link contains a blog and example of using Google Calendar to create daily plans. I followed the example here to create a calendar for the upcoming month with times set aside for exercise, suhoor, Qur'an, resting, iftar, and dua'as. You can customize it however you like.

Fitness in the month of Ramadan

Each year, many people aim to use the month of Ramadan for a variety of self-reforming habits including spiritual, mental, and physical changes. Fasting clearly places an emphasis on spiritual reform by gaining mastery over natural appetites. But some people also see it as an opportunity to stop smoking, overeating, and starting exercise regimes.

When fasting in summer, the stresses on the body are more extreme. There is less time for eating, praying, and sleeping in the night hours, and completing required tasks during the day can be more difficult due to heat and extended hours without sustenance. Unfortunately, many Muslims abuse their bodies in the month of Ramadan by eating unhealthy foods and overeating, and/or by abandoning all exercise due to fasting and time constraints. In addition to getting less sleep, this leads to weight gain, muscle loss, illness, and lack of energy.

Nevertheless, with careful planning, it is possible to start, maintain, or improve eating and workout habits during the month of Ramadan. A plan should incorporate both exercise and nutrition. First of all, one needs to have a proper frame of mind that food is for energy first and we should choose what we eat to provide our body with what it needs for energy. There are definitely social and pleasure aspects to eating that we also need to accommodate, but these should not be allowed to override all consideration of healthy eating. Exercise in the month of Ramadan should include strength training to help minimize muscle loss due to fasting. This applies to men and women of all ages, as strength training helps maintain or improve bone density, increases metabolism, improves body shape and posture, and may reduce depression symptoms. Aerobic or cardio exercise is necessary for health of the circulatory system and burning excess calories.

One good method for planning your eating and fitness regime for the upcoming month of Ramadan is to use or adapt an existing program. One program designed particularly for use in the month of Ramadan, although it can also be used at any time, is Fit4Ramadan. This program is detailed in an 80 page manual (a pdf e-book download available for purchase at a reasonable price) that provides everything from a strength training workout plan, complete with pictures, that does not require a lot of special gym equipment, to a detailed daily meal plan and even a grocery shopping list. This list will not include samosas, but there is information on how to allow a limited amount of the special and rather unhealthy foods you may desire during the month. It provides quality information on what is healthy to eat and what a good meal for suhoor and iftar ought to consist of. If you are already a fitness guru, you will not find a lot of new information in the Fit4Ramadan program, but it does provide a logical, doable program for a variety of fitness levels. If you want a ready-to-go program so that you do not have to reinvent the wheel, then this is a sound option.

A very much less-detailed but similar plan was written by Rehan Jalali, C.S.N.
There are a few minor differences of opinion between the two programs on matters such as caffeine and timing of workouts, but the general nutrition and exercise advice are quite alike. Both recommend consuming a daily multivitamin especially during the month of Ramadan, and both recommend that workouts take place before suhoor or after iftar and not during the fasting day. Cardio exercise may be best done before suhoor, while strength training may be good either before suhoor or after iftar. Both suggest nutrition shakes as a reasonable option for suhoor.

Neither discuss enough around getting proper sleep. Sleep deprivation is likely in the month of Ramadan, but it is still necessary to try to make allotments of time for sleep in order to maintain health, avoid weight gain, and maintain ability to perform required daily tasks while fasting. In the month of Ramadan, this may best be accomplished through a nap before maghrib whenever possible. Doing most meal preparation one day a week on a weekend day, simplifying meals, and limiting unnecessary extra work and tasks for this month may help make this possible.

A third option is to adapt your existing fitness regime or, if just starting, to adapt one that may not be specifically for the month of Ramadan. If you are an avid exerciser, particularly if you are a cardio-fanatic, you may want to scale back the intensity of workouts and focus on maintenance while fasting. But it is not necessary or healthy to avoid exercise during the month - the regular guidelines in terms of time for exercise still apply (such as the oft-recited 30 minutes a day for all adults). One example of an easy-to-adapt realistic program is the 10-Minute Total Body Breakthrough by Sean Foy. It is an extremely reasonable, adaptable, well-researched program that can easily be incorporated into your routine during the month of Ramadan. It discusses nutrition, but its focus is on a variety of simple, adaptable workouts that provide strength training and cardio benefits in a short amount of time. These workouts could easily be accomplished prior to fajr prayer without having to drastically reduce sleep time. One could also adopt a walking routine with a bit of strength training on alternate days, or adapt an exercise video or book one already has or that is readily available on the Internet. One of the best Internet resources for fitness is Sparkpeople. It is an excellent free community resource where you can find workouts, nutrition information, moral support, and track your food and fitness. A well-researched, non-fad, quality nutrition program like Weight Watchers can also be started or maintained during the month of Ramadan to help you make proper eating choices and avoid weight gain.

Some people see the month of Ramadan as an opportunity to turn over a new leaf, but starting a whole new program during a summer fast can be intimidating and unrealistic. It is a common saying that it takes 40 days for a new habit to be created or a bad one to be destroyed, and the month of Ramadan, which already requires change, may be a good beginning for many. Even if you are not interesting in making big changes in the month of Ramadan, everyone should want to avoid abusing their body in this month and gaining weight, and some will want to make fitness and nutrition gains. These goals can only be accomplished through planning. The above options provide tools for that planning so that you can have your healthiest month of Ramadan yet, which should also make it easier for you to achieve your spiritual goals during this blessed month.

Another Great Message On Setting Goals for the Month of Ramadan

Caption: Attitude is most of the battle!

Salaamun Alykum and Ramadhan Kareem to all.

Below is an email received from DAR-UL-MUSLIMEEN NEWS BITS - Dodoma Tanzania.

Jim Rohn, a motivational speaker, once said, "I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they plan their lives. Perhaps it's because escape is easier than change."

Escape is no doubt fun. But fundamental change, the kind that can move us forward in life and help us achieve all that we want from it, requires the kind of long-term thinking, planning, and implementation many of us simply want to run away from.

It’s neither easy, nor enjoyable. Planning for the big picture often means confronting our faults and failures, as well as being willing to get out of a comfortable pattern of living, even when we know that things can and should be better.

Ramadan offers us the best opportunity in this regard. If we don’t already, we can set goals for only this blessed month, so we aren’t overwhelmed by making a huge life change. But at the same time, we can instill positive habits and attitudes that, if repeated throughout the blessed month, can change our lives for the better.

For example, I know one sister who never prayed. One Ramadan, she began to do so five times a day, and she hasn’t looked back. That was 23 years ago. It took just one Ramadan to instill in her this lifelong habit.

You, too, can set worthy goals this Ramadan, with the hope that they will become lifelong habits. Please take some time out this week, not more than 15 or 20 minutes, and jot down a few things you would like to accomplish during the upcoming month of fasting.

The beginning of the new year is usually considered a good time to set goals and make resolutions. Ramadan is even better. Since it’s for only one month versus one year, it’s easier to stick it out and really try to make the effort. The possible benefits: the development of a lifelong good habit, a good deed done in a systematic way, and a sense of accomplishment that can be carried over the rest of the year.

Here are some suggested goals to set in Ramadan 2010:

1. Break your fast with a $1 meal and give the rest to the needy.

Over one billion people worldwide live on $1 a day.

Please see: http://earthtrends.wri.org/updates/node/6 . That includes a good portion of Muslims who not only spend their days fasting, but break their fasts with less-than-lavish meals, made up of foods like beans, rice, lentils, and bread.

At least three times this Ramadan, try to do Iftar with a $1 meal. It will give you a perspective beyond empathizing with the hungry from dawn to dusk only.

2. Give away something you truly love

Allah reminds us in the Quran: “You shall not attain righteousness until you spend out of what you love (in the way of Allah). Allah knows whatever you spend,” (3:92). Also, Prophet Muhammad (saww), was noted to always be generous, and was even more so in Holy Ramadan.

Keeping this in mind, choose something you truly love and are attached to this Ramadan and give it to someone in need. For example, if you had been saving up to buy a personal item - be it a gadget, something nice for your house, or a fun vacation - consider giving away all that money to a charity you trust, a family member or friend struggling financially, or to help cover an ill person’s medical bills, for example.

The point of the exercise is to become closer to Allah by sharing with others and reducing our attachment to material things.

3. Console a grieving friend

Grief can take many forms, ranging from the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, illness, or any other hardship. If possible, visit a grieving friend or acquaintance in person, meet for lunch, or at least call. Text messages, tweets, and wall posts just don’t cut it when it comes to really hearing someone out and giving the support they need in times of difficulty.

4. Begin one small, sincere, but regular good deed

The Prophet (saww) advised, “Do good deeds properly, sincerely and moderately and know that your deeds will make you enter Paradise, and that the most beloved deed to Allah is the most regular and constant even though it were little”

Start one, and only one, small good deed this Ramadan. It could be smiling more if you are a generally more serious type; calling or visiting parents just one more day a week than you usually do; or cooking one meal a week so your spouse has more time to remember Allah. Choose your deed and stick with it.

5. Host an Iftar for the hungry

Polish your guest list this year and include family, friends or neighbors who you know are struggling financially or are truly hungry. Too often, we invite our exclusive clique of people close to us, most of whom don’t worry about where their next meal is going to come from, unlike one in 3 famlies in the world.

This year, expand your social circle and include those who are truly in need. Better yet, invite your “crew” and your new friends together.

6. Give up one, and only one, addiction

This runs the gamut from lattes to Facebook, to video games to chai/caffeine of any kind. The aim is to lessen dependency on those things we don’t truly need and remember that we should rely completely on Allah for all things.

7. Tolerate or forgive one bad habit or quirk of a loved one

As we remember Allah’s tolerance of our countless faults, this Ramadan - 10 days of which are defined as the “days of forgiveness” - overlook or forgive a specific fault of a loved one. This can be small but annoying habits, like regularly losing the grocery list, forgetting lunch on school days, or perpetually being 15 minutes late.

These are just pointers for us to think and ponder upon. The idea is to set a format whereby one does not forget his goal for this month inshallah.

Let us remember the less fortunate and also pray for the unity of our Ummah and families.

Iltimas e dua

Planning Guide and Duas and Amaal for the Month

Duas.org has its main page now set up for the month of Ramadan. You can click on any date and get duas and deeds recommended to perform. I find it a little annoying that when you first go to the page there is a sound player on, but you can easily turn it off.

Here is a dua from Imam Sajjad (as) for welcoming the month.

Here is a collection of amaal for the first night, including a link to first day.

Here is Dua Iftitah, recommended for reciting each night of the month.

It is easy to become overwhelmed in the month of Ramadan. While there is always more we can do, if we set unrealistic goals we only end up frustrated rather than spiritually renewed. Further, if we turn the month of Ramadan into a fast-paced commercial or social occasion, we can miss the point altogether. So keep a positive attitude, simplify your life in whatever ways are possible and realistic, and aim for forward progress, no matter how small it may seem.

Here is a questionaire from the site that may help you to set some goals. You can use it however you like, but at least it may give you some ideas and some focus:

1. The first thing that comes to my MIND about the Holy Month of Ramadan is:
A - Variety of food, Iftar, Suhoor
B - Hardships, Thirst, Hunger
C - Spirituality, Being away from sins
D - Gatherings with friends
E - Quran and Prayers

2. I have decided the Primary GOAL for this Ramadan is to:
A - Be God fearing and increase Taqwa
B - Build my character
C - Attain perfection
D - Increase my spirituality & purify soul
E - Prepare for death

3. To Improve my Salah (Prayers), I have decided the following:
A - Improve concentration
B - Understand its meaning
C - To stand in night prayers (Tahajjud)
D - To be punctual for Jamaat prayers
E - Increase my prostrations

4. To improve my relationship with Quran, I have decided the following:
A - Read the whole Quran at least once (Tilawat)
B - Memorize a few Surahs (Aayaat)
C - Learn to recite the Quran correctly (Tajweed)
D - Understand its meanings & ponder over its verses
E - Go through the Tafseer

5. To be closer to Allah (SWT), I have decided to recite the following:
A - Daily duas for Ramadan
B - Dua after prayers
C - Supplications for Iftaar
D - Duas from Quran & Hadith
E - Duas with tears

6. From health point of view, I have decided the following:
A - I will quit smoking
B - I will control my eating and sleeping habits
C - I will not over eat
D - I will prefer fruits & vegetables over fatty foods
E - I will do some light exercise to keep fit

7. From knowledge point of view, I have decided the following:
A - Read Islamic books
B - Attend Islamic lectures
C - Start a study circle or Quran translation program
D - Browse through Islamic websites
E - Listen to Islamic CDs or Audio cassettes

8. I have decided to work on the following Ma'aroof:
A - Arrange for Iftar
B - Being kind to relatives
C - Help my neighbours
D - Lighten the burden of others
E - Give alms to poor
F - Respect my elders
G - Attain good manners and behavior

9. I have decided to shun the following Munkar:
A - Telling lies
B - Speaking ill of others, gheebat
C - Losing temper
D - Watching TV, serials, films, etc.
E - Vain talk

10. For Shab-e-Qadr, I have decided the following:
A - To search it in the odd nights of last 10 days
B - To seek forgiveness for past sins
C - To ask for guidance for future
D - Recite Quran
E - To stand in prayers

Here is a picture file of the planning/assessment chart related to the above questionaire. If you go to duas.org you can download modify it to suit your needs.

(If you click on the image, it should get larger)

There is also a self-assessment geared more for children chart that can be downloaded from the duas.org page. It has a different checklist for each date. These might be particularly useful for young children learning to pray and fast. For example the first date looks something like this, but you could certainly edit it from the download to tailor it for your own purposes:

01 Ramadan 1431 AH ---------------------- ----------------------

Event: Ramadan Starts

Activities
Quran Recited Number of Rukoo/ Para _____

Fast (Roza)  No  Full Half

Namaze Fajr  Ada  Qaza  No

Namaze Zohrain  Ada  Qaza  No

Namaze Maghribain  Ada  Qaza  No

Namaze Shab  Ada  Qaza  No

Reading for the day
Excerpt from Mafatih regarding Ramadan - Part 1

Questions/Extra Acts/Etc.
(Fill in here)

Last thought of the day:
At the end of the day, Remember!
Doors of Janna are open today. Raise your hands in Dua
Ask Allah to help you improve in this month

So that's the example of the form, minus some formatting - it is available for download at the duas.org link above.



The above video is dua for the first day of Ramadan - there is a short dua for each date in Arabic with English translation. This and many other similar duas for the month of Ramadan are available at the alhidaaya YouTube Channel.

I pray you have found something helpful and encouraging here and I pray that Allah swt accepts all our fasts and grants us all forgiveness and spiritual improvement this month!

Fitness and Fasting

Here is a basic article about staying/getting fit during the month of Ramadan (or any other time, really). It recommends the obvious - maintain some level of muscle-building and exercise, and if you want to lose weight, eat a balanced diet of about 500 calories less than your maintenance level per day, and don't skip suhoor. There is a calculator there to help determine your maintenance level.