Approaching the Month of 'Ibadaat

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

'And I did not create the jinn and mankind except for ‘ibaadat [that they may worship Me].'

(Surat al-Dhariyaat: 56)

This article was written by Ra'sul Hududil Mayameen Janab Syedi Aziz Bhaisaheb Qutbuddin in 2014.

Ramadaan al-Mo’azzam – Shehrullah – is around the corner. It is the month of ‘ibaadat – the month in which we do roza through the day and pray through many nights. The word ‘Ibaadat signifies our devotion, submission and prayer to Allah Ta’ala. As the verse quoted above states, ‘ibaadat is the reason for our creation because through ‘ibaadat we are able to achieve salvation in Aakherat, which is our purpose in life.

Rasulullah SA showed all Muslims the best way to perform ‘ibaadat. The Shari’at that he established demarcated an entire month in the Hijri calendar in which all Muslims dedicate themselves to ‘ibaadat. All Imams in Rasulullah’s progeny continued to guide Mumineen to perform ‘ibaadat, especially in Shehrullah.

During the Imam’s seclusion, the Du’at Mutlaqeen continue this guidance. In last several hundred years, and especially in the time of Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA, the tradition of writing the Risaalat Ramadaaniyya has taken place in Shehrullah as the Risalat are treatises which are written primarily with the purpose of urging Mumineen to devote themselves to ‘ibaadat in Shehrullah and maximize barakaat and heavenly grace in this month. Many Mumineen will remember how the 51st and 52nd Dais set an example of ‘ibaadat in Shehrullah, leading Imamat Namaaz in the Masjid for all five faraz; praying Bihori and Tahajjud every night and leading the Bihori on Lailatul Qadar; composing the Munajaat for Mumineen to recite at night; and most importantly praying for Mumineen day and night.

Today, Syedna Khuzaima Qutbuddin TUS follows in the tradition of these Du’aat. As those who have witnessed it will attest, his devotion in ‘ibaadat is unmatched, the sincere doas in his wasilas are from the heart and for every Mumin. While all Muslims observe Shehrullah with some degree of ‘ibaadat, it is because we follow Rasulullah’s Dai that we do ‘ibaadat as Rasulullah and the Imams prescribed. Alongside the roza and iftaar, as per the direction of our Hudaat, we pray ‘Allahumma haaza Shahru Ramaadaan’ after every namaaz putting into practice the directions of Rasulullah in his khutba before Ramadaan (this khutba will be featured in next week’s Siill). We pray washeq on the layaali faazela (auspicious nights) and are not overwhelmed with bid’ats (innovations).

The doas and Munajaats composed by our Hudaat teach us whose intercession to seek, how to do doa and what is most important to do doa for. We do good deeds and reach out to our family and friends as per our Hudaat’s guidance. We pray Qur’an with the knowledge given to us by our Hudaat that the Qur’an Natiq is the Imam-uz-zaman, whose recognition and remembrance is essential for our salvation. We give zakat to Rasulullah’s Dai and receive his doa, just as those in the time of Rasulullah and the zuhoor of the Imam gave zakat to Haqq na Saheb. Most importantly, we realize that it is through our walaayat of Panjetan, A’immat and their Du’aat – and particularly our walaayat of our Dai-z-zamaan, that our ‘ibaadat is accepted by Allah Ta’ala. As we pray in Bihori always,

بِحُبِّكُمْ تُقْبَلُ الاَعْمَالُ اِنْ قُبِلَتْ وَيــُغْفَرُ الذَّنــــْبُ لِلعَاصِينَ اِنْ غُفِرَا

It is because of your mohabbat and walaayat that our deeds and ‘ibaadat is accepted. It is because of that our sins are forgiven.

As followers of Syedna Qutbuddin TUS we are looking forward to the month of ‘ibaadat for the sake of ‘ibaadat, for the sake of divine grace. We are not concerned with ‘buying’ spaces for ‘ibaadat. We are not anxious about the coercion to fill certain numbers regardless of our capacity and regardless of the prescriptions of Shari’at. We are not anxious that we will be staring at a TV screen in Lailatul Qadar rather spending every second in ‘ibaadat facing the Qibla. Our focus is ‘ibaadat – namaaz, roza, zakat, Qur’an, and Do’a. May Allah Ta’ala grant us the strength to perform his ‘ibaadat this Shehrullah.