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Ramadan: The Month of the Qur’an
Author : Dr. Mohammad Al-Hunaiti
Date Added : 06-05-2025

Allah, The Almighty, Says in the Qur'an (What means): "Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur’an, as a guide to mankind, also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (Between right and wrong)." [Al-Baqarah/2]. Ramadan is the month of goodness, charity, generosity, and blessings. In it, the believers race towards attaining The Pleasure of Allah, His forgiveness, and mercy.

Undoubtedly, the doors to goodness and opportunities to increase acts of worship during this great month are many and varied; each person benefits from them in ways that increase their good deeds, elevate their ranks, and earn The Pleasure of Allah, The Exalted. Among these doors are: reciting the Noble Qur’an, studying it, and gaining understanding of its rulings.

Indeed, reading the Holy Quran is among the best and most esteemed deeds in the sight of Allah the Almighty. How could it not be, when the Holy Quran is the speech of The Lord of The Worlds, which He sent down as guidance for the righteous, and revealed to His Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, as a mercy to the worlds.

Moreover, reading the Quran is recommended at all times, and it is even more emphasized during the month of Ramadan, because good deeds are multiplied in this virtuous month.

Among the evidence for the virtue of reading the Holy Quran is His saying, the Most High (What means: " For me, I have been commanded to serve the Lord of this city, Him Who has sanctified it and to Whom (belong) all things: and I am commanded to be of those who bow in Islam to God’s Will,- And to rehearse the Qur’an: and if any accept guidance, they do it for the good of their own souls, and if any stray, say: "I am only a Warner"." [An-Naml/91-92].

He The Almighty also Says (What means): "Those who rehearse the Book of God, establish regular Prayer, and spend (in Charity) out of what We have provided for them, secretly and openly, hope for a commerce that will never fail:" [Fatir/29].

In addition, Abdallāh Ibn ‘Amr (May Allah Be Pleased with them) reported God’s messenger as saying: "The one who was devoted to the Qur’ān will be told to recite, ascend and recite carefully as he recited carefully when he was in the world, for he will reach his abode when he comes to the last verse he recites." [At-Tirmithi].

Abu Hurairah narrated that the Prophet (PBUH) said: "The one who memorized the Qur'an shall come on the Day of Judgment and (the reward for reciting the Qur'an) says: 'O Lord! Decorate him." So he is donned with a crown of nobility. Then it says: "O Lord! Give him more!' So he is donned with a suit of nobility. Then it says: "O Lord! Be pleased with him.' So He is pleased with him and says: "Recite and rise up, and be increased in reward with every Ayah. "[At-Tirmithi].

‘Abdallah Ibn ‘Amr (May Allah Be Pleased with them) reported God’s messenger as saying: "Fasting and the Qur’an intercede for a man. Fasting says, ‘O my Lord, I have kept him away from his food and his passions by day, so accept my intercession for him.’ The Qur’an States (What means): ‘I have kept him away from sleep by night, so accept my intercession for him.’ Then their intercession is accepted." [Ahmad].

It was narrated that Anas bin Malik said: "The Messenger of Allah said: 'Allah has His own people among mankind.' They said: 'O Messenger of Allah, who are they?' He said: 'The people of the Qur'an, the people of Allah and those who are closest to Him." [Ibn Majah].

Abū Umāma (May Allah Be Pleased with him) said he heard God’s messenger say: "Recite the Qur’ān, for on the day of resurrection it will come as an intercessor for those who recite it." [Moslim].

However, it is obligatory upon the Muslim not to read the Quran as he reads other books, nor should his greatest concern be to increase the number of times he completes it. Rather, he should read the Holy Quran with contemplation and reflection. That is why the noble Companions would not move on from a verse until they acted upon it. Allah The Almighty Says (What means): "Then do they not reflect upon the Quran, or are there locks upon their hearts?" [Muhammad/24].

An-Nawwās Ibn Sam'ān (May Allah Be Pleased with him) said he heard the Prophet say: "On the day of resurrection the Qur’ān and those who acted according to it will be brought with sūra al-Baqara and Āl ‘Imran preceding them* like two black clouds or canopies with light between them, or as though they were two flocks of birds in ranks pleading for the one who recited them." [Moslim].

 I conclude with the saying of Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud (May Allah Be Pleased with him): "The bearer of the Quran should be recognized by his night when people are sleeping, by his day when people are eating, by his sadness when people are rejoicing, by his weeping when people are laughing, by his silence when people are  engaging in idle talk, and by his humility when people are being arrogant.'" [Narrated by Ibn Abi Shaybah in "Al-Musannaf"].

In this great month, the Muslim seizes every moment in obedience to Allah The Almighty and in reciting His verses, so that he may attain Allah's Pleasure and Paradise.

The published article reflects the opinion of its author

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling of Islamic Law regarding one who slaughters a ewe and it turns out to have been pregnant, and is it permissible to slaughter the ewe if one knows it is pregnant?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
If a person slaughters a ewe and it turns out to have been pregnant, the fetus becomes lawful (ḥalāl) by virtue of its mother's slaughter (tabaʿan li-ummihā).
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vol.6/P.158): "A fetus found dead [after the mother's slaughter], or found alive but in a state resembling that of a slaughtered animal [i.e., dying shortly after], becomes lawful — whether or not it had grown fur — provided it is found in the womb of a mother that was lawfully slaughtered, whether her slaughter was by cutting the throat, or by an arrow or hunting dog sent after her. This is based on the ḥadīth: 'The slaughtering of the fetus is [effected by] the slaughtering of its mother' [narrated by al-Tirmidhī, who graded it ḥasan, and by Ibn Ḥibbān, who graded it ṣaḥīḥ] — meaning that the slaughter which rendered the mother lawful renders the fetus lawful as well, by virtue of following her; and because the fetus is one of her constituent parts, and her slaughter renders lawful all of her parts."
This ruling differs, however, from the case of one who knows from the outset that the ewe is pregnant [and intends to sacrifice her specifically as the udḥiyah while pregnant] — in which case, according to the Shāfi'ī school, she does not fulfill the requirement of a valid sacrifice.
It is stated in Ḥāshiyat al-Bujayrimī 'alā al-Khaṭīb (Vol.4/P.335): "A pregnant animal does not fulfill the requirement [of a valid sacrifice], and this is the authoritative position (al-mu'tamad), because pregnancy diminishes the quality of the meat. As for why such an animal is nevertheless counted as complete [i.e., fully valid] in matters of zakāh, that is because the intent there is reproduction (nasl), not the quality of the meat.". And Allah, the Most High, knows best.

Who is responsible for performing the aqiqah?

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
The one upon whom the 'aqīqah is incumbent is whoever is obligated to financially maintain the newborn — whether the father, paternal grandfather, or mother. It is to be performed from their own wealth, not from the wealth of the newborn child.
As for one upon whom the financial maintenance of the newborn is not obligatory, they may not perform the 'aqīqah except with the permission of the one upon whom it is obligatory — namely, the father. And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on performing the night prayer (*qiyām al-layl*) between the first and second adhān of Fajr? And which is better: delaying the prayer until shortly before the Fajr adhān, or performing it earlier than that?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The time for night prayer (qiyām al-layl) begins after the Maghrib prayer and lasts until the second adhān of Fajr. The best time for it is the last third of the night, and best of all are the fourth and fifth sixths of the night. If the night is divided into two halves, the latter half is better.
Whoever intends to pray at night is encouraged to delay the Witr until he has prayed the night prayer. If he knows that he will not wake up, it is better for him to pray and perform Witr before sleeping, so that he does not miss both the night prayer and the Witr.
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vpl.1/p.462): “I say: The voluntary prayer of the night, that is, the absolute voluntary prayer (al-nafl al-muṭlaq), is better than the absolute voluntary prayer of the day, because of the report in Muslim: ‘The best prayer after the obligatory prayer is the night prayer.’ In another narration of his: ‘In the night there is an hour that no Muslim man meets while asking Allah for any good of this world and the next except that He gives it to him, and that is every night.’ It is also because the night is a time of heedlessness. I restricted the voluntary prayer to the absolute kind following the commentator, although what the ḥadīth and the underlying meaning require is that the night rawātib be preferred over the day rawātib, since the jurists preferred the two rakʿahs of Fajr over everything except Witr. The middle of the night is better than its two ends if it is divided into thirds, because heedlessness is greatest then and worship is hardest. If he wishes to pray during some third, the best is the fourth and fifth sixths, based on the ḥadīth in the two Ṣaḥīḥs: ‘The most beloved prayer to Allah the Exalted is the prayer of Dāwūd: he would sleep half the night, stand for a third of it, and sleep for a sixth.’ Then the latter part is better than the first if he divides it into two halves, because of the saying of Allah the Exalted: ‘And in the hours before dawn they would ask forgiveness’ [al-Dhāriyāt: 18], and the report of the two Shaykhs: ‘Our Lord, Blessed and Exalted, descends,’ meaning His command descends, ‘to the lowest heaven when the last third of the night remains, and says: Who calls upon Me, that I may answer him? Who asks of Me, that I may give him? Who seeks My forgiveness, that I may forgive him?’”
It is also stated in ʿUmdat al-Sālik (p. 60): “It is better to perform it [the Witr] immediately after the sunnah of ʿIshāʾ, unless he has tahajjud, in which case it is better to delay it so that he performs Witr after it. If he performs Witr and then wishes to pray tahajjud, he prays two rakʿahs at a time and does not repeat the Witr, nor does he need to cancel it with a single rakʿah before the tahajjud. It is recommended that he not deliberately pray after it.”
Qiyām al-layl is a term applied to any prayer performed at night. Tahajjud, on the other hand, refers to the night prayer that follows sleep, whether it is prayed after Maghrib or after ʿIshāʾ, or the prayer performed after ʿIshāʾ without sleep. On this basis, the Witr is also called tahajjud, since it is only prayed after ʿIshāʾ.
It is stated in al-Majmūʿ (Vol.4/p.84): “The sound position, as stated in al-Umm and al-Mukhtaṣar, is that the Witr is called tahajjud.”
It is stated in Nihāyat al-Zayn (Vol.1/p.114): “Among the absolute voluntary prayers is qiyām al-layl. If it is performed after sleep, even during the time of Maghrib and after having prayed ʿIshāʾ early (taqdīman), it is called tahajjud.”
And it is stated in Ḥāshiyat al-Bujayrimī ʿalā al-Khaṭīb (Vol.1/p.418): “His statement: ‘(the night prayer)’: the genitive construction (iḍāfah) carries the sense of fī, meaning a prayer in the night. His statement: ‘(it would be more fitting)’: the reason it is more fitting is that the night prayer includes both tahajjud and other prayers.” And Allah Almighty knows best.

Does an internal medical examination for a woman affect her fast?

An internal medical examination for a woman invalidates the fast because it involves the entry of a foreign object into the body cavity (jauf) while fasting.
In this case, the woman must refrain from eating and drinking for the rest of the day out of respect for Ramadan and make up for the missed fast after Ramadan.
Such an examination should be avoided in Ramadan and other months unless absolutely necessary, as exposing the private parts is only permissible in cases of necessity.
If necessary, a woman should seek a Muslim female doctor first. If one is unavailable, she may see a female doctor from the People of the Book (Jews and Christians). If neither is available, she may consult a trustworthy and competent Muslim male doctor.

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