Eid Mubarak to everyone! The month of Ramadan came and went in a flurry of pre-dawn meals and post iftar food comas. Hopefully the spiritual month was filled with great food, good memories, and most importantly God. Take a moment to reflect on the past thirty days and realize how beautiful everything is in Ramadan, from the amazing iftars to endless Tara’wih and the hard and cruel sehris that seriously dented your sleeping schedule, causing you to toss and mumble every time you got out of bed to force food down your throat at an insane hour of the day.
This particular Eid celebration for me personally will be a much more sweeter and exciting occasion, for this was the first time in my 18 years of being a Muslim that I fasted all 30 days of the glorious month and kept Allah (SWT) and his magnificent power in my head for the entirety of the month. Filled with nights of reading Quran and praying, I felt a closer connection to God and felt like I was getting to know the Lord much more clearly than any other moment in my life. The intention for the month of Ramadan is often more than just immediate worship to the mighty Allah (SWT), for it is also a chance for us Muslims to control ourselves and practice self-control for one month of the year in order to be more prevalent in the next 11 months till the next Ramadan. With all the fasting, praying, and even Zakat that is required in order to have a successful and notable Ramadan, the actions of worship and charity also humble us. They remind us to live at a certain standard which is more selfless and focus on understanding the importance of the things that bring us closer to God.The self-reform and abstention from basic things such as food and drink keep us in line during the month of Ramadan and the future to protect us from gluttony and wrongful desires, improving our self- restraint. The overall beauty of Ramadan is that we learn to give and not take, which we do so much on a regular basis.
So let’s remember on this glorious Eid day the certain things that we overlook everyday and lets remember to be grateful for everything that we have and thank Allah (SWT). And of course make dua for everything that we still need. Let’s be grateful for our health and our minds and brains, for they are quickly taken advantage of by us but are not valued high enough until it is too late. Let’s be grateful for all the peace and harmony that we will have on this beautiful day, without the immediate fear of losing our life or the fear of destruction of our homes. Let’s be grateful that we have had awesome iftars for the past 30 days, and let’s be grateful for all the moments that we shared during those iftars, whether it was a quick bite of a date, or a meal fit for kings. And finally, let’s be grateful for the people we shared them with; friends, family or even strangers.
In the end, Eid is a celebration for a month of excellence towards God and the one-day after thirty days of hard fasting where we let loose a little and eat everything our heart has desired for the past thirty days (slow down there buddy, you don’t need that third serving maybe). Remember the morals and lessons that you gained during this month of Ramadan and prepare your minds and your bodies for another 11 months of self- control towards yourself and others. Continue to be grateful for everything that you have in life, from the smallest things like clean water and 4G internet, to the big things like family and a house to sleep in.
And when you are being grateful for all these blessings from Allah (SWT) remember those who aren’t as lucky. Remember those that won’t be celebrating Eid like you are, and keep them in your prayers as well.
May Allah (SWT) grant all your duas, and while you are asking, keep the people of Gaza, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Burma, Syria and the rest of the world in your prayers. May Allah heal the world of its pain and misery, may He relieve the oppressed from their oppressors and may He grant us freedom, peace and the ability to coexist. Ameen.
This particular Eid celebration for me personally will be a much more sweeter and exciting occasion, for this was the first time in my 18 years of being a Muslim that I fasted all 30 days of the glorious month and kept Allah (SWT) and his magnificent power in my head for the entirety of the month. Filled with nights of reading Quran and praying, I felt a closer connection to God and felt like I was getting to know the Lord much more clearly than any other moment in my life. The intention for the month of Ramadan is often more than just immediate worship to the mighty Allah (SWT), for it is also a chance for us Muslims to control ourselves and practice self-control for one month of the year in order to be more prevalent in the next 11 months till the next Ramadan. With all the fasting, praying, and even Zakat that is required in order to have a successful and notable Ramadan, the actions of worship and charity also humble us. They remind us to live at a certain standard which is more selfless and focus on understanding the importance of the things that bring us closer to God.The self-reform and abstention from basic things such as food and drink keep us in line during the month of Ramadan and the future to protect us from gluttony and wrongful desires, improving our self- restraint. The overall beauty of Ramadan is that we learn to give and not take, which we do so much on a regular basis.
So let’s remember on this glorious Eid day the certain things that we overlook everyday and lets remember to be grateful for everything that we have and thank Allah (SWT). And of course make dua for everything that we still need. Let’s be grateful for our health and our minds and brains, for they are quickly taken advantage of by us but are not valued high enough until it is too late. Let’s be grateful for all the peace and harmony that we will have on this beautiful day, without the immediate fear of losing our life or the fear of destruction of our homes. Let’s be grateful that we have had awesome iftars for the past 30 days, and let’s be grateful for all the moments that we shared during those iftars, whether it was a quick bite of a date, or a meal fit for kings. And finally, let’s be grateful for the people we shared them with; friends, family or even strangers.
In the end, Eid is a celebration for a month of excellence towards God and the one-day after thirty days of hard fasting where we let loose a little and eat everything our heart has desired for the past thirty days (slow down there buddy, you don’t need that third serving maybe). Remember the morals and lessons that you gained during this month of Ramadan and prepare your minds and your bodies for another 11 months of self- control towards yourself and others. Continue to be grateful for everything that you have in life, from the smallest things like clean water and 4G internet, to the big things like family and a house to sleep in.
And when you are being grateful for all these blessings from Allah (SWT) remember those who aren’t as lucky. Remember those that won’t be celebrating Eid like you are, and keep them in your prayers as well.
May Allah (SWT) grant all your duas, and while you are asking, keep the people of Gaza, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Burma, Syria and the rest of the world in your prayers. May Allah heal the world of its pain and misery, may He relieve the oppressed from their oppressors and may He grant us freedom, peace and the ability to coexist. Ameen.