Spiritual Growth #3 Why We Have Special Days of The Year

Salam alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh at hamdu Lillahi Rabbil alameen wa Salatu was Salam ala MB mursaleen. Le of total Salah tasleem am buried. You know, I'm going to take a break from our usual routine when it comes to these reminders. And as you all know, it's a very, very special time of the year starting today. This is the first day of the hedger and our Prophet Allah who saw it was Salam did mention to us several ahaadeeth about these first 10 days of the blessed month of the hedger, but there's one Hadith that really sets the tone and really puts into perspective how important these days are. And this is an authentic hadith that our Prophet alayhi salatu salam tells us that

there are no days throughout the year that is more beloved to Allah than the first 10 days of the hedger. Now, I'm going to pause here for a second, what does that mean to you and I, when you hear a statement like that, that throughout the entire year, not even Ramadan has had teeth like this, not even when the Prophet Ali's thought was Sam's birthday, or when he was born comes around, and it'll be a well, we don't even have a Hadeeth like this. There's nothing that you can compare to the first 10 days of the hedger than this particular Hadith. It's so unique, and it is so profound, what makes these 10 days so important, so special, that Allah subhanho wa Taala would literally say that these

are the best days of the entire year. And some of the scholars mentioned that the first priority, of course, is what the month has been named after. The hedger means the owner of the month of the pilgrimage. So the one who is in charge of this month, the one who I mean, it boils down to the Hajj itself, that the world comes together, all the Muslims around the world migrate and go to the bless of lands of Mecca. But here's the thing, you know, we can talk about all of the blessings of this of these first 10 days, we can talk about all the things that we need to do to improve and increase our Amen. But there is one underlying issue that I think is really important for us to keep in mind and

consider as you welcome these first 10 days, and that is, why do we need these special days? Why do we need the first 10 days of the ledger? Why did Allah subhanho wa Taala do this for us? Why is it that we have special days like this throughout the year. So if it's not the first 10 days of the ledger, then you have the six fastest show? Well, you know, special time where you gain extra reward and blessings and forgiveness from Allah, then you have certain days throughout the year where you fast you have the Mondays and Thursdays, then you have the three white days of every Arabic month, where in the middle of the month, you can fast their blessings and forgiveness and things like that,

then you have these special moments throughout the entire year. Why does Allah subhanho wa Taala give us these special moments throughout the year and tells us and encourages us to do more? And the answer is very simple. Number one, this is an opportunity for us to increase our energy and our zeal in our worship with a large so a gel. you ever find yourself that when you get accustomed to something, it eventually becomes so routine, that it almost feels like it's it's kind of boring, like it's just a routine. It's just the habit that you've got into. And so you just do it for the sake of doing it. And this is something very common with prayer with as cowed with the recitation of

the poor. And once you do it enough, you actually have to figure out different ways to maintain that focus that hill, sure, and concentration and discipline, so that every time that you do pray, it becomes meaningful. You feel something when you pray. And sometimes that feeling it dies out as you do it more and more and more. And so these days, like the days of the head gym, help us to re energize that excitement, you know, the things that we hope for and we look for, and we want to experience in our worship. That's why we have these special days. The second reason is that Allah subhanho wa Taala sees in you and I, that as long as we are alive, and we're going to welcome these

special times throughout the year. We have what it takes to improve, we have what it takes to just become better and better. And alesse sees that in you and I with giving us the opportunity to live and see and welcome these blessing days of little hedger. Allah sees. You are my servant, you are my slave and you have what it takes to improve. And so I'm going to give you I'm going to facilitate an opportunity for you to do just them. So yes, brothers and sisters, if you're talking about what should you do

due on what you concentrate on on these first 10 days of total, hey, Jim, if you pray five times a day, pray more. If you recite for an everyday recite more, if you wake up 4pm will lane, lengthen your tahajjud even more, if you're somebody that's used to and you you make, as you say phrases of remembrances, and you recite the door eyes, and you're constantly in the state of remembrance of Allah subhanho wa Taala increased from that even more. The point is, whatever it is that you're doing for Allah, if you're generous, be more generous in these first 10 days, it's an opportunity for you to really shine and see what you're made of, it's an opportunity for you to see that, okay,

you might have a good routine in the things you do to worship your Creator. But now it's an opportunity to take that one step higher, one level higher. And so it's an it's an incredible moment for all of us to really see what we're made of. And then another point to keep in mind, these first 10 days of the hedger also look at it, on the flip side, that all the mistakes and weaknesses that we all have, with our Creator, with our worship, and our daily routine, you know, if you pray, it's not going to be of no benefit. If you still lie, if you're impatient, if you lose your anger, you're dishonest, you still have these awful qualities that you need to work on. But then you pray five

times a day, that tells you that the prayer is not working for you the way it should, you're not concentrating, you're not utilizing that moment of prayer, or whether it be fasting or other forms of worship. It's not working for you, because your heart your sincerity, you're not taking that stuff seriously. And so these days of the hedgehog give us an opportunity to recognize our weaknesses, and really concentrate and work on them. And the last thing that I want to share with you, you know, like I said, we can sit here and talk about all the blessings of the ledger, we can talk about all that we should be doing and how we should increase our worship. But there's one very,

very important part of these 10 days of the higgitt that made it special. And that's, of course, what the month was named after, which is the pilgrimage or the hedge. I want you to imagine for a moment especially those of you who have never gone for the hedge, what is the intention for people who go for Hajj, what do they seek? What are they long for? What is it that they want, when they make that massive sacrifice. So you know, they save all the money, they allocate the time they prepare their travels, they say goodbyes to their families and to their friends. And they go to the blessing lens of Mecca. And it's not like a vacation. You don't just go there and you sit down and

enjoy the sun and enjoy all the Hillel foods. No, you actually go there, and you go through another level of grind, another level of struggle and hardship that you probably have never experienced in your whole life. I mean, just imagine for a moment, you alongside with seven to 10 million people all doing the exact same thing, trying to get to this next place the exact same time moving together, sleeping together, eating together, you're all dressed the same, you all act the same, you pray the same. And so you're just like this one massive body trying to achieve one thing. And that's the thing that we all have in common. What is it that we all want? The focus for every pilgrim in

every pilgrim is that they want the forgiveness of Allah subhanho wa Taala. Like that's the that's the thing that motivates them. That's the driving force for all of these pilgrims is that they make a sincere intention. I want to seek and gain the forgiveness, the mercy, the acceptance of Allah subhanho wa Taala. That same attitude is the attitude that you have with these days of the future. Even though we physically might not be making Hajj our heart is in the state of

our heart is making Hajj right now. our heart and our sincerity is focused that even if I'm not physically there, I can still gain gender wherever I am Bismillah I can still gain a lot of acceptance I can still gain Allah's mercy and forgiveness. And so when you use that as the motivational factor in you to really push you, then you know that Islam is working for you. Then you know that every time you pray, you're being your prayers are accepted and your Eman continues to strengthen and increase when you can get to that place. Then you know why you need the days of the hedger why you need these special moments throughout the year. And so brothers and sisters, you know

again, if you're thinking about

list of all of these righteous acts of worship and good deeds that you can do. You know, that's fine. That's a great thing to do in terms of organizing your focus, and your concentration and your efforts. But the fact of the matter is, if you have problems with the way you speak to people, if you have issues with being honest, if you are just an overall bitter person, you just can't seem to get along with anybody. If somebody rubs you the wrong way you hate them, you put them put them down, you disconnect from them. Like if these are some of the issues that you struggle with. That's what the ledger is all about. That's what Ramadan is all about. That's what Hajj is all about. When

people go for Hajj, it softens them. And that's one of the wisdoms behind hardship is that it softens your heart. So that when people then tell you, okay, this is what's better to do when people do give you advice. Because you've gone through that grind, you're able to listen now, and you're able to understand the perspective that people are coming from. And it uplifts you, it makes you an overall better person. That's what we want to achieve with these first 10 days of the ledger. And so with that being said, you notice that all I want to concentrate on, if we're going to talk about and reflect on these days, is what do you want out of these days, think about what it is that you yearn

for, and you think about and that's important to you, with your relationship with Allah. Because at the end of the day, my brothers and sisters,

this reminder is coming at us more and more, it's more apparent, it's more clear, it's more blunt to us every single day. And that is, we don't have time anymore. We could literally leave this earth at any second. And so you just never know if you'll have the opportunity to see days like this again. So take advantage of them, try to at least recognize that these days are special, and they're important to you and do something to commemorate the importance of those days. I mean, there are millions of Muslims around the world that flock and celebrate, for example, the birthday of the Prophet alayhi salatu was Salam. I mean, you know, that's one issue. But the point is, is when you

put all that energy and that time, and that planning for something like that, but a lot did not say that those days are the most beloved days to him, he chose those as the days most beloved to him. So no matter how much energy and time you put planning for other things, put more energy and time and really prioritize these days more so than any other days, simply because Allah said, these are the most beloved days to him, there has to be more to these days than what we know, for the for a lot is just make a statement like that. Think of any blessed day throughout the year, think of any blessing moment throughout the year. And this is always at the top of the list. So this is a really, really

beautiful time and a great opportunity for us. It is incredibly special. Nothing on this planet compares to the first 10 days of gold. And we're starting to see that and realize that because more content is being placed out there, there are more reminders, more speakers, more scholars, more people are posting and talking about these first 10 days of their puja. And so now this is our opportunity to really take advantage of it. re energize our love, our desire, our our hunger, to worship our Creator, and even more importantly, refine our etiquettes become better people purify our hearts, you know, try to do our very best to overall be not just a good Muslim, but a good

person. This is both that we need. The Prophet alayhi salatu was Salam was a good men. Before he was a prophet. He was honest, people trusted him. People saw beauty in his lap, the way he dealt with others the way he would do business. Everything about his character was beautiful. And all of that was recognized before he was given the core end. And so scholars have taught us that those are the things that are needed for Allah to bless you with his knowledge bless you with this message is you have to be a good person. And when you have a good heart and you behave well you have good etiquettes with people, then Allah gives you more and more knowledge of the poor and Allah blesses

you to understand and come closer to him. This is the exact same thing that he did with the Prophet alayhi salatu was Salam. And hopefully, this is the same thing that you and I can have as well. Bismillah hytera land so with that being said, it's the first day of the hijab, if you're fasting Alhamdulillah if you're not fasting, think about fasting tomorrow, and continue this throughout Until next week, the day before eating shut Allahu taala so think about just where it what it is that you can do to improve yourself. What are some of the things that you can say or do or be involved in

To really refine your etiquettes become a better person, purify your heart, purify your soul, purify your relationship, but even more so how you can increase your worship and devotion to your Creator. When you do that, then you will capture and you will discover just why Allah made such a statement about these first 10 days of mail letters. So would you bless all of us give us the strength, the ability and the focus to really take advantage of these first 10 days of the Legion? May Allah azza wa jal except for us our deeds, may unless penalty continue to increase our Amen. May Allah azza wa jal always and forever count us amongst 100 hire the people that are good and acceptable to him that

he's pleased with in this world, and even more so in the hereafter. A lot of them. I mean, so like I said, Guys, I mean, this is part of our series of spiritual growth. But I wanted to take a break from our normal routine, and talk about something that's relevant and important to all of us. We are in these blessing days of the most beloved days throughout the year to Allah subhanho wa Taala. So take full advantage of them. Don't forget the fast of Otto fed the ninth day of the future, don't forget that they are prophet alayhi salatu was Salam encouraged us to fast on that day, and the reward when you think it just can't get any better? Subhana Allah, the reward, Allah will forgive

all of your sins in the previous year, as well as in the coming year. Because why you fasted one day for him so panela Alhamdulillah Allah, how about, we praise Allah and we send our gratitude and we show our gratitude to him for blessing us with the opportunity to welcome and experienced these days of the hedger May Allah is so much a blessing for me and bless it for all of you I love them I mean, just below height and everybody take care of yourself stay healthy male last panel utterly increase you in worship and accepted love them. I mean, just like Mila was Salam or aleikum wa rahmatullah wa barakato.