A Muslim should be more distant from sins and transgressions during this month, and avoid everything that angers God Almighty.”
Praise be to Allah, Who has favored the sacred months over all other months of the year, and has singled them out for greater reverence and honor. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, with no partner in His Lordship and Divinity, His beautiful names and His great attributes. I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger, who explained to his nation the sacred months and warned them against injustice and committing sins therein. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family and his righteous and honorable companions. Now then:
A great month has come upon us, one of the great sacred months, which Allah the Almighty has commanded us to honor, to adhere more to His religion and law, and to revere. Allah the Almighty said: { Indeed, the number of months with Allah is twelve [lunar] months in the register of Allah [from] the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four are sacred. That is the right religion, so wrong not yourselves therein. } [At-Tawbah: 36], and it was proven in the two Sahihs on the authority of the Prophet, may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him, that he said: “ The year is twelve months; Four of them are sacred, three of them consecutive: Dhul-Qa’dah, Dhul-Hijjah, and Muharram, and Rajab of Mudar, which is between Jumada and Sha’ban . It was called Rajab because it was venerated, meaning it was glorified. It was added to Mudar because the tribe of Mudar used to greatly glorify and respect it. It has other names that indicate its honor.
It is obligatory upon the Muslim to know the value of this sacred month, because knowing and venerating it is the true religion, that is, the straight religion in which there is no crookedness, misguidance, or deviation. He must beware of sinning in it, because it is not like sinning in other months. Rather, sinning in it is greater, and the sinner in it is a sinner, as Allah the Almighty said: { They ask you about fighting in the sacred month. Say, “Fighting in it is great. ”} [Al-Baqarah: 217], meaning: a great sin and a serious crime. It is like injustice and sinning in the sacred land, about which Allah the Almighty said: { And whoever intends therein to commit an act of injustice – We will make him taste of a painful punishment. } [Al-Hajj: 25].
Abdullah bin Abbas, may God be pleased with him, said in his interpretation of the Almighty’s saying: { So do not wrong yourselves therein } – as narrated by Al-Tabari in his interpretation -: In all of them, then He singled out four months from that and made them sacred, and magnified their sanctity, and made the sin in them greater, and the righteous deed and reward greater.
On the authority of Qatada, may God have mercy on him, who said: Injustice in the sacred month is a greater sin and burden than injustice in any other month, even though injustice is great in any case. However, God magnifies whatever He wills of His command. He said: God has chosen the best of His creation; He has chosen messengers from the angels, and messengers from the people, and He has chosen His remembrance from speech, and He has chosen mosques from the earth, and He has chosen Ramadan and the sacred months from the months, and He has chosen Friday from the days, and He has chosen the Night of Decree from the nights. So magnify what God has magnified, for matters are only magnified by what God has magnified them in the eyes of the people of understanding and reason.
One of the most obvious signs of honoring this sacred month is to refrain from wronging oneself by committing sins and evil deeds, and committing crimes and transgressions. This is because sin in every age is evil and ominous for its perpetrator, because it is an affront to God Almighty and the greatness of His power. However, in the sacred month it is even worse and more ominous, because it combines an affront to God Almighty and belittling what God Almighty has honored.
If the veneration of the sacred month was something inherited from the people of ignorance before Islam, during which they refrained from shedding forbidden blood and from taking revenge and retaliation, then is not the one who claims to be a Muslim more worthy and deserving of this commitment?!
How can it be, when the consequences of injustice are dire and its effects are hideous? There is no success with injustice, nor survival with it, no matter how great the status of the oppressor is. Allah the Almighty said: { Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed } [Al-An`am: 21], and He the Most High said: { Are any destroyed except the wrongdoing people? } [Al-An`am: 47]. So injustice, aggression, and tyranny will not remain, nor will they have any authority forever, no matter how long and extended the time. Our Lord the Almighty said: {And how many a town did I grant respite to while it was doing wrong, then I seized it {And to Me is the final destination } [Al-Hajj: 48]. It is proven in the two Sahihs that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: God gives the wrongdoer respite until, when He seizes him, He does not let him escape. Then he recited: { And such is the punishment of your Lord when He seizes the towns while they are doing wrong. Indeed, His punishment is painful and severe .} [Hud: 102].
If this is the fate of the oppressor at all times and places, then what about the oppressor who transgresses in this sacred month and during these great days? That is why the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to his companions during the Farewell Pilgrimage – as proven in the two Saheehs on the authority of Abu Bakra (may Allaah be pleased with him): “ What month is this ?” We said: “Allaah and His Messenger know best.” He remained silent until we thought that he would call it by another name. Then he said: “ Is it not Dhul-Hijjah ?” We said: “Yes.” He said: “ What city is this ?” We said: Allah and His Messenger know best. He remained silent until we thought that he would call it by another name. He said: Is it not the Sacred City ? We said: Yes. He said: What day is this? We said: Allah and His Messenger know best. He remained silent until we thought that he would call it by another name. He said: Is it not the Day of Sacrifice ? We said: Yes. He said: “ Your bloods, your properties, and your honor are sacred to you, as sacred as this day of yours, in this month of yours, in this country of yours. And you will meet your Lord, and He will ask you about your deeds. So do not return after me as disbelievers – or he said : as misguided – striking one another’s necks. Let the witness inform the absent; Perhaps the one who conveys it will be more aware of it than some of those who heard it. Then he said : “Have I not conveyed the message ?”
Therefore, the Muslim should be more distant from sins and transgressions in this month, and avoid everything that angers Allah, the Blessed and Exalted. He should avoid being unjust to his Lord by associating partners with Him, and by devoting any of his worship to someone other than Him, the Almighty. He should also avoid being unjust to his brothers by attacking them, shedding their blood, consuming their money and rights, or delving into their honor, gnawing at their flesh, pursuing their faults, divulging their secrets, and causing them harm. He should also avoid being unjust to himself, and harming his person by disobeying his Creator, especially the minor sins that some people are lenient about. If a person indulges in minor sins, he will be thrown face down into the Fire, unless he repents. And to his Lord he will return. It has been proven in Musnad Al-Imam Ahmad on the authority of Sahl bin Sa`d Al-Sa`idi, may God be pleased with him, that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “Beware of minor sins, for the example of minor sins is like that of a people who camped in the valley. One of them brought a stick, and another brought another, until they had cooked their bread. And when the one who commits minor sins is caught by them, they will destroy him .”
Just as sins are magnified and their sanctity increases in the sacred month, so too are good deeds and acts of obedience magnified and multiplied in these days, because they are virtuous times. Scholars have said that righteous deeds are multiplied in virtuous times and places. So drawing closer to Allah, the Almighty, through obedience in the sacred month is better and more beloved to Him, the Exalted, than worship on other days, as in the statement of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him: “Sin is made greater in them, and righteous deeds and reward are greater.”
It is recommended for the Muslim in this month to increase and persevere in what is proven by the Sunnah on all other days of voluntary acts of obedience; such as prayer, fasting, charity, and other acts of worship, while maintaining the obligatory and necessary duties. However, it is not permissible to single it out for an act of worship, or to believe that it has a virtue in this month over all other acts of obedience, when the fact is that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, did not legislate it for us in it, nor did his noble companions, may God be pleased with them, do it in it. This is because many fabricated or weak hadiths have been narrated, and many weak or invalid reports have been reported, indicating the desirability of reviving some of the nights of this month, or the virtue of continuing to fast and pay zakat during the days of this month. These hadiths and reports cannot be relied upon to prove the legitimacy of singling out the month of Rajab for these acts of worship, because worship is not prescribed in Islam except with clear evidence from the Noble Qur’an or from the authentic Sunnah, otherwise the act is not acceptable under any circumstances, due to the statement of the Prophet ( peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in what was narrated by Muslim: “Whoever does an action that is not in accordance with our command, it will be rejected .”
The month of Rajab is one of the sacred months of the Islamic calendar, which was named thus because fighting is forbidden during it, unless the enemy initiates it. Violating the sacred things in this month is more severe than in other months of the year, so God Almighty has forbidden us from injustice and committing sins during this blessed month. God Almighty says: { So do not wrong yourselves therein } [At-Tawbah: 36].
The truth is that the month of Rajab has no virtue or special status over other months, except that it is one of the sacred months. Also, the narrations that indicate that the verse of the Night Journey and Ascension was revealed in it do not justify – even if they are true – innovating specific acts of worship in this month as some people do, because such actions did not exist during the time of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, or during the time of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs or the Followers.
There is no authentic hadith specifically on this matter, nor is there any evidence to indicate that a specific day of this sacred month should be fasted. Rather, there is a weak hadith in the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) on the desirability of fasting the sacred months, including Rajab, in general. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said: All the hadiths that have been narrated on the virtue of fasting the month of Rajab are weak or fabricated hadiths. In fact, most of these hadiths are fabrications and are not among the weak hadiths that are narrated on the virtues of deeds. End quote.
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar said: There is no authentic hadith that can be used as evidence regarding the virtue of fasting or praying on a specific night of the month of Rajab.
Although scholars differed on the authenticity of the hadith narrated by Abu Dawud, in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to al-Bahili: “Fast during the sacred months and leave them,” the majority of jurists agreed that it is desirable to fast during the sacred months. However, some scholars disagreed with the majority of scholars based on the authentic hadith narrated by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “The best fasting after Ramadan is the month of Allaah, Muharram, and the best prayer after the obligatory prayer is the night prayer.” For this reason, al-Hafiz Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Lata’if al-Ma’arif fi ma li-Mawasim al-Aam min al-Wazi’if (p. 130) – after explaining the impermissibility of taking it as a holiday and a season as some people do: Among the rulings of Rajab are what was narrated in it regarding prayer, zakat, fasting, and ‘umrah. As for prayer, no specific prayer has been authenticated for the month of Rajab, and the hadiths narrated about the virtue of the Ragha’ib prayer on the first night of the month are: Friday of the month of Rajab is a lie and falsehood that is not valid, and this prayer is an innovation according to the majority of scholars, and among those who mentioned this from the prominent scholars of the later hadith masters:
Abu Ismail al-Ansari, Abu Bakr ibn al-Sam’ani, Abu al-Fadl ibn Nasir, Abu al-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi, and others. The earlier scholars did not mention it because it was introduced after them, and it first appeared after the four hundred. Therefore, the earlier scholars did not know it and did not speak about it.
He said: As for fasting: nothing has been authenticated from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, or from his companions regarding the virtue of fasting Rajab in particular.
Then he said: As for zakat: the people of this country – meaning the Levant – are accustomed to paying zakat in the month of Rajab, and there is no basis for that in the Sunnah, nor was it known from any of the predecessors.
Then he said: As for performing Umrah in Rajab, Ibn Umar, may God be pleased with them both, narrated that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, performed Umrah in Rajab, and Aisha disapproved of that while he was listening, so he remained silent. (Aisha’s hadith was narrated by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih.)
Then he said: It has been narrated that there were great events in the month of Rajab, but none of that has been authenticated. It has been narrated that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, was born on the first night of it, and that he was sent on the twenty-seventh of it, and it has been said: on the twenty-fifth, but none of that is authentic. It has been narrated with an unauthentic chain of transmission on the authority of Al-Qasim bin Muhammad that the Isra’ of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, was on the twenty-seventh of Rajab, and Ibrahim Al-Harbi and others denied that.
Many of the scholars who have verified the hadith of Al-Hafiz Ibn Rajab, may God have mercy on him, said similarly. The scholar Ibn Al-Qayyim, may God have mercy on him, said before him in (Al-Manar Al-Munif) (p. 96): Every hadith that mentions fasting in Rajab and praying some of its nights is a fabricated lie.
Ibn al-Subki, may God have mercy on him, narrated – as in (Nail al-Awtar) by al-Shawkani (331/4): On the authority of Muhammad ibn Mansur al-Sam’ani, who said: There is no established Sunnah that specifically recommends fasting Rajab, and the hadiths that are narrated about it are weak and no scholar would be happy about them.
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may God have mercy on him, said in (Tabyeen al-Ajab bi-ma Warda fi Fadl Rajab) (p. 9): There is no authentic hadith that can be used as evidence regarding the virtue of the month of Rajab, nor regarding fasting it, nor fasting a specific part of it, nor regarding standing in prayer on a specific night in it. Imam Abu Ismail al-Harawi al-Hafiz preceded me in asserting this. We narrated it from him with an authentic chain of transmission, and we also narrated it from others.
Al-Hattāb al-Ru’ayni al-Maliki, may God have mercy on him, transmitted his words, or rather summarized his letter, and approved his rulings in it, in (Mawahib al-Jalīl li Sharh Mukhtaṣar Khalīl) (3/320).
Al-Shawkani, may God have mercy on him, said in Al-Sayl Al-Jarrar (1/297): There is no authentic, good, or slightly weak Sunnah reported specifically regarding Rajab. Rather, everything that has been narrated specifically regarding it is either fabricated and false, or extremely weak.
The result is that no specific virtue has been proven for any act of worship in the month of Rajab. However, this does not mean that worship is not prescribed in it – not on the belief of a specific virtue – with what has been proven of voluntary acts of obedience and virtuous deeds, such as prayer, fasting, charity, and other acts of worship that are more virtuous and bring greater reward in it. Because it is a sacred month, and it is not like the other months of the year. For this reason, Imam al-Nawawi, may God have mercy on him, said in (Sharh Sahih Muslim) (8/39): There is no proven prohibition or recommendation regarding fasting Rajab in particular, but the basis of fasting is that it is recommended. In Sunan Abi Dawud, it is stated that the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, recommended fasting during the sacred months, and Rajab is one of them. (Hadith of Abi Dawud: Fast during the sacred months and leave out those in its chain of transmission who are not known; as Ibn Hajar said in (Tabyeen al-Ajab) (p. 3).
So, you who are successful, esteem this month and seize its blessings. Repent to your Lord in it, and abandon your past mistakes and ugly actions without turning back. Correct your condition in it, and let your state of mind be as the first of your predecessors said:
Whiten your black page in Rajab ** with righteous deeds that save from the flames
A sacred month has come from among the sacred months. If a supplicant calls upon Allah in it, he will not be disappointed.
Blessed is the servant who has been purified in his deeds ** and refrains from indecency and doubt.
O God, guide us to Your guidance and make our work in Your satisfaction.
Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds, and may God’s prayers and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his companions.
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Author: Dr. Fahd bin Ibrahim Al-Juma