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The
Virtues of the Ten Days of Dhul Hijjah |
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| Among the special seasons
of worship are the first
ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah, which
Allaah has preferred over all the other days of the year.
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Ibn
‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased
with him and his father) reported that the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "There are no days in
which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allaah than these ten
days."
The people asked, "Not even
jihaad for the sake of Allaah?"
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| He said, "Not even
jihaad for the sake of Allaah, except in the case of a man
who went out to fight giving himself and his wealth up for
the cause, and came back with nothing."
(Reported by al-Bukhaari,
2/457). |
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Ibn ‘Abbaas
(may Allaah be pleased with him and his father) also
reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said:
"There is no deed more precious in the sight of
Allaah, nor greater in reward, than a good deed done during
the ten days of Sacrifice." |
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He was asked, "Not
even jihaad for the sake of Allaah?"
He said, "Not even
jihaad for the sake of Allaah, except in the case of a
man who went out to fight giving himself and his wealth
up for the cause, and came back with nothing."
(Reported by al-Daarimi,
1/357; its isnaad is hasan as stated in
al-Irwaa’, 3/398)
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| This season of worship
brings many benefits, such as the
opportunity to correct one’s faults and make up for any
shortcomings or anything that one might have missed.
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| The happy person is the
one who makes the most of these special months,
days and hours and draws nearer to his Lord during these
times through acts of worship; he will most likely be
touched by the blessing of Allaah and will feel the joy of
knowing that he is safe from the flames of Hell.
(Ibn Rajab, al-Lataa’if,
p.8) |
| The Muslim must understand
the value of his life, increase his worship of Allaah and
persist in doing good deeds until the moment of death.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): "And
worship your Lord until there comes unto you the certainty."
[al-Hijr 15:99]
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The mufassireen
(commentators) said: "‘The certainty’ means death."
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The
Prohibitions for the one who wants to offer a sacrifice |
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The Sunnah indicates that the
one who wants to offer a sacrifice must stop cutting his hair and
nails and removing anything from his skin,
from the beginning of the ten days until after he has offered his sacrifice,
because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: |
| "When you see the new moon
of Dhu’l-Hijjah, if any one of you wants to offer a
sacrifice, then he should stop cutting his hair and nails
until he has offered his sacrifice." According to another
report he said: "He should not remove (literally, touch)
anything from his hair or skin."
(reported by Muslim with four isnaads, 13/146) |
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The
Prophet’s instruction here makes one thing obligatory and his
prohibition makes another haraam, according to the soundest opinion,
because these commands and prohibitions are unconditional and
unavoidable. However, if a person does any of these things
deliberately, he must seek Allaah’s forgiveness but is not required
to offer (an extra) sacrifice in expiation; his sacrifice will be
acceptable.
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| Whoever needs to remove
some hair, nails, etc.
because it is harming him, such
as having a broken nail or a wound in a site where there is
hair, should do so, and there is nothing wrong with that.
The state of ihraam is so important that it is permitted to
cut one’s hair if leaving it will cause harm. |
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There is nothing wrong with men or women
washing their heads during the first ten days
of Dhu’l-Hijjah, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) only forbade cutting the hair, not washing it. |
| The wisdom behind this
prohibition of the one who wants
to offer a sacrifice from cutting his hair etc., is so that
he may resemble those in ihraam in
some aspects of the rituals performed, and so that he may
draw closer to Allaah by offering the sacrifice. So he
leaves his hair and nails alone until the time when he has
offered his sacrifice, in the hope that Allaah will save him
in his entirety from the Fire. And Allaah knows best. |
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If a person has
cut his hair or nails during the first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah because
he was not planning to offer a sacrifice, then he decides later, during
the ten days, to offer a sacrifice, then he must refrain from
cutting his hair and nails from the moment he makes this decision. |
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Some women may delegate
their brothers or sons to make the sacrifice on their
behalf, then cut their hair
during these ten days. This is not correct, because
the ruling applies to the one who is offering the
sacrifice, whether or not he
(or she) delegates someone else to carry out the actual
deed. The prohibition does not apply to the person
delegated, only to the person who is making the
sacrifice, as is indicated in the hadeeth. The person
who is sacrificing on behalf of someone else, for
whatever reason, does not have to adhere to this
prohibition.
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This prohibition appears to apply only to
the one who is offering the sacrifice, not to his wife and children,
unless any of them is offering a sacrifice in his or her own right,
because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to
sacrifice "on behalf of the family of Muhammad,"
but there are no reports that say he forbade them to cut their hair or
nails at that time. |
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If a person was planning
to offer a sacrifice, then he
decides to go and perform Hajj, he should not cut his
hair or nails if he wants to enter ihraam, because the
Sunnah is only to cut hair and nails when necessary. But
if he is performing Tamattu’ [whereby he performs
‘Umrah, comes out of ihraam and enters ihraam anew for
Hajj], he should trim his hair at the end of his ‘Umrah
because this is part of the ritual.
The things that are described
above as being prohibited for the person who is planning
to offer a sacrifice are reported in the hadeeth quoted
above; the person is not forbidden to wear
perfume, have marital relations, wear sewn garments,
etc.
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The Types of Worship to
be Performed During these Ten Days |
| One must understand that
these days are a great blessing from Allaah to His slave,
which is appreciated properly by the actively righteous. It
is the Muslim’s duty to appreciate this blessing and make
the most of the opportunity, by devoting these ten days to
paying more attention to striving hard in worship. Among His
blessings to His slaves, Allaah has given us many ways in
which to do good and worship Him, so that the Muslim may be
constantly active and consistent in his worship of his Lord.
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Among the good deeds which the Muslim
should strive to do during the first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah are:
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| Fasting.
It is Sunnah to fast on the ninth day of
Dhu’l-Hijjah, because the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) urged us
to do good deeds during this time, and fasting is one of the
best of deeds. Allaah has chosen fasting for Himself, as is
stated in the hadeeth qudsi: "Allaah says:
‘All the deeds of the son of Adam are for him, except for
fasting, which is for Me and I am the One Who will reward
him for it.’"
(Reported by al-Bukhaari, 1805). |
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The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) used to fast on the ninth of Dhu’l-Hijjah.
Hunaydah ibn Khaalid reported from his wife that some of the
wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
"The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to fast on
the ninth of Dhu’l-Hijjah, on the day of ‘Aashooraa’, on three days of
each month, and on the first two Mondays and Thursdays of each month."
(Reported by al-Nisaa’i, 4/205 and by Abu Dawud; classified by al-Albaani
as saheeh in Saheeh Abi Dawud, 2/462). |
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Azkaar.
It is Sunnah to say Takbeer ("Allaahu
akbar"), Tahmeed
("Al-hamdu Lillaah"),
Tahleel ("La ilaha ill-Allaah")
and Tasbeeh ("Subhaan Allaah")
during the first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah,
and to say it loudly in the mosque, the home, the street
and every place where it is permitted to remember Allaah
and mention His name out loud, as an act of worship and
as a proclamation of the greatness of Allaah, may He be
exalted.
Men should recite these
phrases out loud, and women should recite them quietly.
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Allaah says (interpretation of
the meaning): "That they might witness things
that are of benefit to them (i.e., reward of Hajj in the
Hereafter, and also some worldly gain from trade, etc.), and
mention the name of Allaah on appointed days, over the beast
of cattle that He has provided for them (for sacrifice)..."
[al-Hajj 22:28] |
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The majority of scholars agree
that the "appointed days"
are the first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah,
because of the words of Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be
pleased with him and his father): "The ‘appointed
days’ are the first ten days (of Dhu’l-Hijjah)."
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The Takbeer may include the words
"Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, la ilaaha ill-Allaah;
wa Allaahu akbar wa Lillaahi’l-hamd (Allaah is Most Great,
Allaah is Most Great, there is no god but Allaah; Allaah is
Most Great and to Allaah be praise),"
as well as other phrases. |
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Takbeer
at this time is an aspect of the Sunnah
that has been forgotten, especially during the early part of this
period, so much so that one hardly ever hears Takbeer, except from a
few people. This Takbeer should be pronounced loudly, in order to
revive the Sunnah and as a reminder to the negligent.
There is sound evidence that Ibn ‘Umar
and Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with them) used to go out in
the marketplace during the first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah, reciting
Takbeer, and the people would recite Takbeer when they
heard them. The idea behind reminding the
people to recite Takbeer is that each one should
recite it individually, not in unison, as
there is no basis in Sharee’ah for doing this.
Reviving aspects of the Sunnah that
have been virtually forgotten is a deed that will bring an immense
reward, as is indicated by the words of
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him):
"Whoever revives an aspect of my Sunnah that is forgotten after my
death, he will have a reward equivalent to that of the people who
follow him, without it detracting in the least from their reward."
(Reported by al-Tirmidhi,
7/443; this is a hasan hadeeth because of corroborating asaaneed).
Performing Hajj and ‘Umrah.
One of the best deeds that one can do during these ten days is to
perform Hajj to the Sacred House of Allaah. The one whom Allaah
helps to go on Hajj to His House and to perform all the rituals
properly is included in the words of the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him): "An accepted Hajj [Hajj-e-Mabroor]
brings no less a reward than Paradise."
Doing more good deeds in general,
because good deeds are beloved by Allaah and will bring a great
reward from Him. Whoever is not able to go to Hajj should
occupy himself at this blessed time by worshipping Allaah,
praying (salaat), reading Qur’an, remembering Allaah, making
supplication (du’aa’), giving charity, honouring his parents,
upholding the ties of kinship, enjoining what is good and forbidding
what is evil, and other good deeds and acts of worship.
Sacrifice.
One of the good deeds that will bring a person closer to Allaah
during these ten days is offering a sacrifice, by choosing a
high-quality animal and fattening it, spending money for the sake of
Allaah.
Sincere Repentance.
One of the most important things to do during these ten days is to
repent sincerely to Allaah and to give up all kinds of disobedience
and sin. Repentance means coming back to Allaah and foregoing all
the deeds, open and secret, that He dislikes, out of regret for what
has passed, giving it up immediately and being determined never to
return to it, but to adhere firmly to the Truth by doing what Allaah
loves.
If a Muslim commits a sin, he must
hasten to repent at once, without delay,
firstly because he does not know when he will die, and secondly
because one evil deed leads to another.
Repentance at special times is very important
because in most cases people’s thoughts turn towards worship at
these times, and they are keen to do good, which leads to them
recognizing their sins and feeling regret for the past. Repentance
is obligatory at all times, but when the Muslim combines sincere
repentance with good deeds during the days of most virtue, this is a
sign of success, insha Allaah.
Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning):
"But as for him who repented, believed and did righteous
deeds, then he will be among those who are successful."
[al-Qasas 28:67]
The Muslim should make sure that he
does not miss any of these important occasion,
because time is passing quickly. Let him prepare himself by doing
good deeds which will bring him reward when he is most in need of
it, for no matter how much reward he earns, he will find it is less
than he needs; the time of departure is at hand, the journey is
frightening, delusions are widespread, and the road is long, but
Allaah is ever watchful, and to Him will we return and render
account.
As the
Qur’aan says (interpretation of the meaning):
"So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom, shall
see it,And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom, shall
see it." [al-Zalzalah 99:7-8]
There is much to be gained, so
make the most of the opportunity afforded by these invaluable and
irreplaceable ten days. Hasten to
do good works, before death strikes, before one can regret one’s
negligence and failure to act, before one is asked to return to a
place where no prayers will be answered, before death intervenes
between the hopeful one and the things he hopes for, before you are
trapped with your deeds in the grave.
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MAY ALLAH THE
ALMIGHTY FORGIVE THE SINS AND ACCEPTS OUR HAJ |
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