When Allah Chooses Something: The Blessings Of Dhul Hijjah

When Ramadan approaches, many of us are excited. It feels like a gift from Allah to bring us back, no matter where we are in our spiritual journey. Indeed, Allah is al-Wahhāb (the Giver of gifts), and He is constantly showering us with gifts big and small, spiritual and material. There is something about the air in Ramadan, the communal spirit, and the personal restraint that makes the month so special; and it is because Allah Himself has chosen it as a month of elevation. Ramadan would not have its significance if Allah did not give it this importance through revealing the Qur’an in it and commanding us to fast so that we may attain God-consciousness [Surat al-Baqarah, 2:183,185]. It is His choosing that makes something special, hence the reverence we have for the month He has chosen is a sign that our hearts are spiritually alive, inshAllah, as Allah says,

“And whoever honors the symbols (shaꜤā’ir) of Allah, it is certainly out of the piety of the heart.” [Surat Al-Ḥajj, 22:32]

Allah has chosen and preferred other times too. One of them is the first ten days of Dhul-Ḥijjah. The Prophet ﷺ said, “No good deeds are better than what is done in these first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah.” Some companions of the Prophet ﷺ said, “Not even jihad in the way of Allah?” The Prophet said, “Not even jihad in the way of Allah, except for a man who goes out with his life and wealth at risk and he returns with nothing.” [Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 969]

Dhul Hijjah

Dhul-Ḥijjah is the last month of the Islamic calendar, and it is the only time of year that Muslims perform the Ḥajj pilgrimage. In Surat al-Ḥajj, Allah says,

“Proclaim the Pilgrimage to all people. They will come to you on foot and on every kind of swift mount, emerging from every deep mountain pass,

to attain benefits and celebrate God’s name, on specified days, over the livestock He has provided for them – feed yourselves and the poor and the unfortunate,

so let pilgrims perform their acts of cleansing, fulfill their vows and circle around the Ancient House,

All this [is ordained by God): anyone who honors the sacred ordinances (ḥurumāt) of God will have good rewards from his Lord” [Surat Al-Ḥajj, 22:27-30]

It is an incredibly special time when Muslims who are able to make their way to Mecca to perform these rites. It was the Prophet Ibrahim , the khalīl (close friend) of Allah , about whom Allah said:

​​“We showed Abraham the site of the House, saying, ‘Do not assign partners to Me. Purify My House for those who circle around it, those who stand to pray, and those who bow and prostrate themselves.” [Surat Al-Ḥajj, 22:26]

It was also during the Ḥajj that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ made his farewell sermon, addressing the Muslim community at the time with advice we still benefit from today. 

Naturally, only a specific number of believers will be able to undertake Ḥajj in any given year. Indeed, the Prophet ﷺ himself did Ḥajj once in his lifetime. But the first ten days are significant and blessed for all believers, as the hadith mentions the merit of the time (ten of Dhul Hijjah), and not just for those performing the Ḥajj. Ibn Ḥajar al-’Asqalānī stated that it appears that the distinction of the ten days of Dhul Hijjah is due to the convergence of the major acts of worship, including prayer, fasting (Arafah), charity (udḥiya), and Ḥajj, and this does not happen at any other time of year.

Allah could have made this time special only for those who undertake Ḥajj, but Allah is al-Karīm (the Most Generous), and He invites the believers as one community to benefit from the sacredness of this time. These are days of gratitude, of remembering Allah , and of striving for excellence for His sake. Allah encourages us by letting us know how beloved good deeds are to Him on these days, gives us the opportunity to be forgiven by fasting on the day of Arafah and supplicating to Him, and then we are gifted the days of Eid to celebrate, remembering Allah in those days and sacrificing livestock and distributing to the poor.

Indeed, the good habits that we accumulated during Ramadan might not be as solid by the time Dhul Hijjah is upon us. We might feel guilty that we have stopped prioritizing the Qur’an, or the daily remembrances, or making time to help others. If we were looking for the opportunity to reset, the ten of Dhul Hijjah are another example of the gifts of al-Wahhāb, who only gifts what brings us benefit in both worlds, who is al-Qarīb (the Near One) and reminds us that He is always close to us, and invites us to come close to Him.

Loving What Allah Loves, Venerating What He Has Chosen

When Sa’id ibn Jubayr reached the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, he would exert himself in worship so greatly that he would nearly overwhelm himself [Sunan al-Dārimī 1774]. Abu Uthman al-Nahdi stated that the righteous predecessors would venerate three “tens”: the last ten of Ramadan, the first ten of Dhul Hijjah, and the first ten of Muḥarram. 

Just like we love Ramadan, plan for it, and exert effort in doing what Allah loves during that month; we should love these days that Allah has chosen and exert the same effort. We do not know what Allah will choose to open for us, how He will elevate us, and which supplications He will respond to, for loving what He loves and putting in the effort to worship Him on these momentous days.

How can we make the most of these days?

1- Get excited!

The month of Dhul Hijjah has begun. We should get our hearts ready by reminding ourselves of how important these days are, the fact that Allah has chosen them, and the amazing opportunities we have to gain closeness to Allah . The Prophet ﷺ stated to the companions that, “you continue to be in prayer as long as you wait for prayer,” (Sunan Abī Dāwūd 422). By analogy, when we are excited, prepared, and waiting for Dhul Hijjah, it is as though we are in it before it has arrived!

2- Fast if you can, especially on the Day of Arafah

The Prophet ﷺ was asked about fasting on the day of Arafah and he said, “It will expiate the sins of the previous and upcoming years.” [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1162]

There is a difference of opinion about whether the Prophet ﷺ would fast all of the first nine days of Dhul Hijjah. Some of his wives stated that he did, while Aisha stated that he did not fast on all nine days. Either way, fasting is a beloved act of worship, and fasting some days, and at least the day of Arafah, is rewarded inshAllah. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever fasts a day in the way of Allah, Allah will move his face away from the Hellfire by a distance of seventy years.” [Agreed upon]

3- Remembrance of Allah

In Dhul Hijjah, the Prophet ﷺ would command people to  “… increase in them your declaration of the oneness of Allah (tahlīl), your exaltation of Him (takbīr), and your praise of Him (taḥmīd),” [Aḥmad]. Ibn ‘Umar and Abu Hurayra, may Allah be pleased with them, would go out to the markets and make takbīr out loud, and the people would follow them in doing that.

Remembrance is the opposite of forgetting. The essence of remembrance is the presence of the heart and awe before Allah , and the best way to achieve those is by understanding what we are saying. When we say “lā ilaha ilā Allāh – there is no god except Allah” (tahlīl), we are negating that anything is worthy of worship except Him. We are being alerted to check the state of our hearts by asking ourselves, what have we made equal to Him? What do we submit to besides Him? What do we elevate above Him? Indeed, Allah asks,

“Have you seen the one who has taken his own whim as his god?…” [Surah Al-Jathiya, 45:23] When we say “lā ilaha ilā Allāh” it is a proclamation that we submit to nothing – not our whims or desires, nor external false deities – except Allah .

When we say “Allāhu akbar – Allah is greater” (takbīr), we are reminding ourselves that Allah is greater than anything and everything. He is greater than our problems and worries, He is greater than any external power that exists, and He is greater than all the pleasures of this world. 

Finally, when we say “alḥamdulilāh – praise be to God” (taḥmīd), we are both praising and thanking Him. You might thank someone who has done something nice for you, but they might not be praiseworthy people. Similarly, you might praise someone who has excellent character or who has achieved something great, but you do not thank them because they have not given you anything. Ḥamd is both praise and thanks – we praise and thank Allah for His essence and for His giving, recognizing that anything that comes from Him is praiseworthy, and this is why, even during hardship, we say “alḥamdulilāh” because we know there is ultimate good.

So, we can say these remembrances with presence of heart and reverence for the Most High:

الله أكبر الله أكبر الله أكبر، لا إله إلا الله، الله أكبر الله أكبر، ولله الحمد

Allah is the greatest (x3), there is no deity but Allah, Allah is the greatest (x2), and to Him is all praise.

4- Supplication, especially on the day of Arafah

Ibn al-Qayyim stated that the Prophet ﷺ would increase his supplications in the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, and would command people to increase their tahlīl, takbīr, and taḥmīd (Zād al-Ma’ād, 2/360).

The Prophet ﷺ also said, “The best supplication is that which is made on the day of Arafah. The best of it is what was said by myself and the prophets before me: There is no God but Allah alone, without any partners, unto Him belong the dominion and all praise and He has power over all things,” [Muwatta, 504].

Think of how much hope you have when you supplicate during the last ten nights of Ramadan, and how present your heart is, especially when you think it might be Laylat al-Qadr. This is another opportunity!

5- Whatever good you can do!

The hadith of the Prophet ﷺ is general. Whatever good deed we can perform on these days is amazing. An example of doing good is helping others. He ﷺ said, “A Muslim is a brother of another Muslim, so he should not oppress him, nor should he hand him over to an oppressor. Whoever fulfilled the needs of his brother, Allah will fulfill his needs; whoever brought his brother out of a discomfort, Allah will bring him out of the discomforts of the Day of Resurrection, and whoever conceals the faults a Muslim, Allah will conceal his faults him on the Day of Resurrection.” [Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2442] Ibn al-Qayyim stated that one should increase in their ritual acts of worship as well, particularly the remembrances [Madārij al-Salikīn, 1/110]. 

6- Your effort is rewarded

While the ten days of Dhul Hijjah are special, the first hurdle is getting ourselves excited for it and keeping up the motivation, simply because the extra good is voluntary, the communal activities are lacking, and shaitan is out and about. But that makes our effort extra special – loving these days and doing good in them is a sign of our love for Allah . Allah is teaching us to worship Him in different circumstances, and to venerate Him when it is not obligatory – will we choose to do so?

7- We are all included

A person who is ill may not be able to do extra, and a menstruating woman will not be able to fast or do extra prayers. But Allah is generous, and His gifts encompass all of us. He is more merciful and just than we can ever imagine. If you genuinely have a reason, Allah rewards you for all the things you would have done. Your sincere intention is enough! The Prophet ﷺ told us, “Whoever intends to perform a good deed but does not (or cannot) do it, Allah will record it as a complete good deed,” [Agreed upon].

One of the actions we can all do is help others to realize the importance of these days. Help others to do good by gently reminding them to remember Allah , to be kind to others, to fast if they are able, to recite the Qur’an, and so much more. The Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever guides someone to goodness will have a reward like one who did it.” [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1893]

May we all benefit from these days.

Related:

– Optimizing The First 10 Of Dhul Hijjah – MuslimMatters.org

– Reviving The Sacred Months: Dhul Hijjah (Part 1) – MuslimMatters.org