Fasting during Ramadan does not only consist of refraining from food and drink, rather we must also protect ourselves from using bad language, backbiting, lying, and anger.

Unfortunately, for many of us, refraining from food also means an increase in anger and irritability, causing us to say some things we probably do not mean to. Here are some tips on how we can control our tongues (applicableoutide of ramadan) and increase in patience both in our communication with others and within ourselves:

1. Think

The phrases “think before you speak” and “if you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all” seemclichéd, but hold a lot of weight in the life of Muslims. It has sadly become common to be irritable when we are fasting, so we tend to snap quicker and say things we don’t really mean. In order to combat this, think about what you are about to say before you open your mouth. It sounds simple, but we have become so accustomed to speaking without thinking that words just seem to fly out of our mouths before we know it.

Tip: Try to take a couple moments before you speak to evaluate whether what you are about to say is beneficial or necessary. Use your hunger, weakness, tiredness (whatever it is that you’re feeling) to prevent you from opening your mouth unnecessarily!). Spend more time doing dhikr, or thinking, or contemplating than wasting time on unnecessary speech, which is not beneficial and potentially harmful.

2. Apologize

Hard as it may be, if we do happen to say something that is hurtful to someone, just simply apologize. Whether it was what you said or how you said it, remind yourself to apologize for your misbehavior if you feel like you stepped out of line (regardless of whether or not the other person shows that they feel hurt or upset). This can have nothing but positive effects. Many of us have trouble apologizing to people and accepting our mistakes so it will both humble us and also ensure that we are more careful next time, because it can be pretty uncomfortable to accept your mistake and verbalize it. Secondly, it can help better your relationship with the other person, because you are showing that you are aware of their feelings and that you care about them.

3. Environment

If you are going to be with people, surround yourself with good company. It takes two to gossip. Most people who engage in backbiting and slandering will not do it all the time and with all people, in fact they may have a select group of friends who share this habit. If you find that certain people make it easier for you to engage in this, steer clear of this crowd! If you tend to be the person who begins it, find new friends or keep to yourself. Ramadan is the time to resolve these issues and improve control of your tongue, not just from eating!

4. Remind

Backbiting and lying are big sins, and forbidden in the Quran and as mentioned in various ahadith. Research and learn the punishment for backbiting – one of the punishments is in the grave, so you can keep away from this sin by trying to visualise and sense how that would feel. If it’s swearing or cursing you want to leave behind, it is helpful to remind ourselves of the angels who write down all that we utter. Do we really want to make the angels record profanity? Do we want such vile words to be our last if the angel of death were to take our soul in that moment?

5. Reinforce

Lastly, a means of keeping ourselves on track is the old jar trick used by parents in past generations. The idea is essentially to keep a jar in the house in which you are required to drop a certain amount of money per failure to control your tongue, for example every time you swear or gossip. The amount of money should be significant enough to make you feel bad and regret your speech – it costs more in the Hereafter! At the end of ramadan you can donate the money to charity, but the real purpose is to give you a physical representation of how serious it is and how much you need to improve. It helps to ask someone to hold you to your promise and remind you if you slip up.

Often we do not realize how many negative things we say in a day, but this blessed month is an opportunity to improve our character which can extend into the rest of our lives.

About the Author

The blessed month of Ramadan gives us tremendous opportunities to seek for forgiveness and ask for Allah’s mercy. Special prayers and excess charity becomes a norm in many households. However, once Ramadan comes to an end, some people go back to their old ways of skipping a few prayers, or delaying them and committing sins without a second thought.

Creating a Habit of Fasting After Ramadan

While the blessed month of Ramadan comes to an end, we can continue to engage in the beautiful ‘ibadah (act of worship) of fasting.

“Allah (the Exalted) said: Every act of the son of Adam is for him except fasting. It is done for My sake, and I will give a reward for it…” (SahihMuslim).

Fasting: A Muslim’s Shield

If you were given a shield to protect yourself from sins in this life, and Hell Fire in the next, you would on to it and not want to let go. This shield is fasting – let us not overlook it, but rather use this blessing, this gift given to us by Ar-Rahman.

The hadith quoted above continues: “…fasting is a shield or protection from the fire and from committing sins. If one of you is fasting, he should avoid sexual relation with his wife and quarreling, and if somebody should fight or quarrel with him, he should say, ‘I am fasting.’ By Him in Whose Hands my soul is’ The unpleasant smell coming out from the mouth of a fasting person is better in the sight of Allah than the smell of musk. There are two pleasures for the fasting person, one at the time of breaking his fast, and the other at the time when he will meet his Lord; then he will be pleased because of his fasting.” (Sahih Muslim).

Fasting should prevent you from backbiting, slandering, speaking rudely or involving yourself in idle or false talk. This time can be redirected to performing dhikr, Quran, or something more productive to pile up your good deeds.

When to Fast

Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Deeds are shown (to Allah) on Mondays and Thursdays, and I like my deeds to be shown when I am fasting.” (al-Tirmidhi).

In another hadith, Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said to me: “If you fast any part of the month, then fast the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth.” (al-Tirmidhi).

Note: there are some days which it is forbidden and disliked to fast on, so please ask an imam or scholar if you are unsure.

So let us follow the Sunnah of our Prophet and fast on Mondays and Thursdays of every week and/or on the 13, 14 and 15th of every month. By the way, once you do this for a while, performing voluntary fasts will become a beautiful habit and routine in your life.

5 Tips to Make Fasting throughout the Year Easier:

1. Make the intention:

Make the intention now that you want to sincerely fast for the Pleasure of Allah, and seeking His reward. Until you get used to this, set up a weekly/monthly reminder in your phone, day planner, laptop, or just on a sticky note to remind you what days you will be fasting.

2. If you need to, find fasting buddies:

While you want your fast to be private and sincerely for Allah alone ( not for show or praise), you can get extra reward by encouraging others to join you in this sunnah act.

You can encourage and motivate one another, and race for good deeds. Perhaps you won’t feel like fasting one Monday, but if you remember your friend you will be fasting, you won’t want to miss out on the reward and will want to also earn Allah’s Pleasure, Reward, and Forgiveness, insha’Allah.

3. Involve your Family Members:

If you do not find a fasting buddy or if you live in a non-Muslim area, simply involve your family members. Educate them about the countless virtues of fasting, and you can volunteer to buy dates or cook iftar. Insha’Allah by encouraging your family to do this extra good deed, more blessings and mercy will enter your household.

4. Build Family Ties:

Ramadan is a time when all the family members get to sit and eat together, sharing what they learnt or experienced, and feeling like a family. After Ramadan, we slip back into our normal routine – rushing off to complete tasks, attend meetings, so on and so forth – we might neglect the essence of spending quality time with each other. Lack of communication between parents and children or between spouses is also blamed on not finding sufficient time together.

What better way to rekindle the love and affection between family members by fasting at least twice a week (Mondays and Thursdays) or thrice a month (13, 14 and 15th days of the Islamic calendar). You will feel love for the sake of Allah, and feel connect by the rope of Islam.

5. Make it fun:

Make this fasting routine interesting. To add a bit of fun to the occasion, organize quizzes and give away prizes to encourage fasting amongst youngsters.

You can give each family member a chance to discuss about a (simple) Islamic topic or Muslim manners, preferably 30 minutes to an hour before iftaar. This would increase awareness about Islamic principles and character that need to be inculcated in each individual and in the family as a whole. This is a great method to identify what knowledge your family is missing and how to gain it, and to build family ties.

Keep in mind that topics should be simple and within your capacity (eg. Most of us are not qualified to interpret and give commentary on hadith); if researching topics would not be an effective option for your family, one can show a lecture by a Shaykh or read a passage from a book/commentary. The key here is to “make time” for yourselves rather than complaining about not having time.

I would like to conclude with quotes by scholars who bring up points we should keep in mind:

Al-Fudayl ibn-Iyaad said: “Know that if you can’t pray at night and you can’t fast during the day, you are prevented and what prevents you is your number of sins, so look into your heart.”

Solution: Avoid sins, seek forgiveness, make du’a, and push against your nafs

Ibn Qayyim Al-Jaqziyyah said: “The Shaytaan has misled most people by beautifying for them the performance of certain voluntary acts of worship such as voluntary prayers and voluntary fasting while neglecting other obligatory acts of worship such as enjoining the good and eradicating the evil, to the extent that they do not even make the intention of performing them whenever they are able to.”

Solution: We should strive to not neglect the obligatory acts of worship.

Dear brothers and sisters, let us push ourselves to pursue the Hereafter by performing nafl fasts. Make an effort to please your Lord and learn about Islam together. It is a great way to train your mind, body, character and nafs all year round. Doing extra voluntary acts of worship is a means of gaining the Pleasure of Allah (The Exalted), if He Wills – so let us take up this noble routine of voluntary fasting.

What are some of your tips that help you stay committed to fasting well beyond Ramadan?

Bismillah.

Al-hamdulillah, we began this project in the name of Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) and we end it today Praising Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) abundantly for enabling us to put it together and making it a success.

Whatever correct and good advice you found on this website it’s from Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala), and whatever mistakes you found on this website it’s from us and the shaytaan.

I ask Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) to bless these efforts and make this site truly memorable to all of you inshaAllah. And we hope to come back next year; stronger, better, and more productive than this year inshaAllah.

Personally, I want to thank the ProductiveRamadan team, these were the ‘hidden’ arms and legs of this website who’ve done super work during this month to get this website running so smoothly. Please do not forget them in your duas. I also want to thank our writers who’ve thrilled us with great content and great advice, may Allah reward them. A final thank you to all our sponsors and partners for their support on this project.

Till next year,

May you have a Productive year!

Sincerely,
ProductiveMuslim

p.s. For more tips from ProductiveMuslim & Crew, just visit us at ProductiveMuslim.com!

We didn’t want to leave you hanging after Ramadan with no productivity tips, so here are 10 tips to have a Productive Eid!

1. TAKBIR!

Keep reciting the Eid Takbir as much as you can wherever you go from the maghreb of the last day of Ramadan till the Eid Prayer! Recite the takbeer in the car, in the shopping malls, at home! Revive this Sunnah and truly feel the greatness of Islam.

2. Prepare your Eid outfits early!

Maybe too late now but I hope you bought all your Eid clothes BEFORE Ramadan started! If not, don’t panic, try to find something reasonable in your wardrobe and don’t stress yourself with late night shopping on the night before Eid.

If you’ve bought your Eid clothes early, then prepare it the night before and place everything you need in one place (last thing you need is the early morning rush before Eid prayer and forgetting where you’ve put your new shoes!)

3. Follow the Sunnah before the Eid Prayer

The following acts are prescribed as Sunnah at the beginning of the day of ‘Eid-ul-Fitr before proceeding to the Eid prayer:

1. 1. Take a bath.
2. Put on your best available clothes.
3. Wear perfume (for the men).
4. Eat a sweet food, preferably dates, before the Eid prayer.
5. Recite the following Takbir while going to the ‘Eid prayer:

Allahu Akbar Allahu Akbar La Ilaha Ila Allah Wa Allahu Akbar Allahu Akbar Wa Lillahi Alhamd (Eid Takbir)

4. Increase your supplications

On this blessed day, ensure you make dua that Allah accepts all your good deeds and grants you another Ramadan. Thank Allah (Subahanahu Wa Ta’la) for blessing us with good food, clothes, families/friends, and safety. Also don’t forget the Ummah in your prayers; pray for Palestine, for the victims of natural disaster anywhere, and all those suffering in our Ummah.

5. Take a different route to/from the mosque

In a narration the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to take a different route on his way back from the Eid prayer. Changing lanes gives you the chance to spread the greetings of Salam to different people. There’s also a subtle meaning here when you come back with a different route; you’re coming back home after Eid a changed and better person inshaAllah.

6. Take a day off!

Yes, I am talking to the workaholics here. Eid is Eid, take a day off, you won’t get fired! (I hope :P). Best advice is to book your day off in advance. Explain to your employers that Eid is as important to you as Christmas (or any other festival they like) is to them. However, we don’t want to be accused of being unproductive nor all the Muslim staff going awol, so ask early, and the employer can arrange staff replacement or reduce your hours on the day inshaAllah.

7. Visit friends/neigbours/relatives

This is a great part of Eid. But first a few forgotten etiquettes:

1. Call before you visit (you don’t want to visit and find them all sleeping!)
2. Take a Gift (no matter how small) especially for the children.
3. Invite them to yours as well (they’ve played host, now it’s your turn!).

For those who have made amends and established broken family relations during Ramadan, Eid is your opportunity to strengthen these new ties inshaAllah, so don’t miss out!

Also, for relatives living far, make sure you prepare a call list and call them one by one with Skype or international phone cards, they’d really appreciate your call.

8. Eat moderately

This is a big one to look after. We almost ruin our diets in the space of one day with Eid food. I know it’s hard, but try to limit the amount of food you have and stick to regular meals on the day. To help you, think ahead and the pains you’ll have by over-indulging during Eid day. You don’t want an Eid with a stomach ache now do you?

9. Stick to the good deeds

This is super important, and it’ll make sure that you continue with your good deeds after Ramadan inshaAllah. Make sure you stick to the good deeds after Eid from day 1; so Salah on time, Hijab on (if you’re new to Hijab), reading few pages of Quran..etc. You want to build these good deeds into your daily habit and get them to be part of your new you from day 1. If you let go on Eid day, it’ll be harder to pick them up again on the 2nd or 3rd day of Eid.

10. Exchange Gifts/Make Cards

Exchange gifts amongst family/friends and relatives, this can be small perfumes to beneficial household items. For family/friends that are far off from you, send a handwritten Eid card via post (instead of really boring E-Cards). Here are simple tips how kids can make gifts for family/ friends.

For Kids: How to make an easy Eid Card . Frugal Card making from Happy Muslimah and more tips

Hope you like the above! Have a happy and productive Eid!

(p.s. Share any other tips you have with us below in the comments section).

The month of Ramadhan shall be over once again. But is Ramadhan really going to be over so soon or have we finished it already? The purpose of Ramadhan is to help us to get closer to Allah Almighty. The purpose of the long prayer vigils is so that it changes us internally to become tolerant and obedient beings. But have we become God conscious or have we just been more food conscious? Have the long nights of staying up has made us more spiritual or instead have we become more irritable?

There is still time to harvest the blessings of this Glorious Month, so let’s not give up too early!

Here’s a tool that I often use from the famous productivity system Getting Things Done (aka GTD), when perplexed or confused on what’s the best course of action to take. The tool is called the ‘Natural Planning Model.’

The Natural Planning Model is a series of questions that you can ask yourself to get to the best possible concrete actions you can take about any situation that you’re in.

The Questions that you would ask yourself are:

1. PURPOSE:
- Why is this being done?
- This would be great, as long as…what?

2. WILD SUCCESS:
- What would it be like if it were totally successful? How would I know?

3. BRAINSTORMING:
- What are all the things that occur to me about this? What is the current reality? What do I know? What do I not know? What ought I consider? What haven’t I considered? Etc.

4. ORGANIZING
- What needs to happen to make the whole thing happen?

5. NEXT ACTIONS
- What should be done next, and who will do it?

Let’s run the above questions and see how we can make the best of the rest of our Ramadhan:

1. PURPOSE:

Why is this being done? Why am I even thinking about this?
I may not have given my best in the past days of Ramadhan and there are such few precious days left. Only Allah (Subahanahu Wa Ta’ala) Knows if I will be alive to reap the rewards of this month next year, so hence I need to plan out to ensure I make the most of what’s left.

This would be great, as long as… what?
The rest of Ramadhan would be super as long as…?
- I remain God Conscious, in my thoughts, actions, deeds.
– I aim for quality and not quantity. It doesn’t matter how many pages of the Qur’an I complete, or how many rakahs I pray. How much of that has made me into a better individual is what matters.
- I strive to maintain humility in the process

2. WILD SUCCESS:

 What would it be like if it were totally successful?

If I had a successful last few days of Ramadhan, I would gain Allah’s Pleasure and all my past sins would be forgiven.

- Pray Tahajjud regularly with concentration and purpose
– Not just recite, but delve, ponder over the Qur’an to reach for it’s inner-meanings.
- Go for i’tikaaf in the remaining few days.
– Recite Duas from the Quran and Sunnah
– Give to Charity, especially one major charity that I’ve not done as of yet. Need not be giving of money, it can be time and efforts instead.

3. BRAINSTORMING:

What are all the things that occur to me about this? What is the current reality? What do I know? What do I not know? What ought I consider? What haven’t I considered? Etc.
Current reality for me is that a significant time is being spent at work. I may need to step back from work for these last nights to make the most of Ramadhan to gain Spiritual Proximity with Allah (Subahanahu Wa Ta’ala)

4. ORGANIZING

What needs to happen to make the whole thing happen?
I need to replan my Daily Schedule. I have to look at my Calendar and To-dos that I have over for the next week and reschedule them. Ensure I have a quiet spot at home, for prayer. Check my bookshelves and ensure that the prayer books I need are there.

5. NEXT ACTIONS

What should be done next, and who will do it?

To ensure that I can give the time required for prayer and reflection, my Next Actions are:

I have to make calls to friends and associates to reschedule my meetings.

I have to send email to staff that I would not be that much available over the next few days so that they can schedule their agendas accordingly.

Finally I have to wake-up in the morning and just do it.

So do use the Natural Planning Model to make the best of what’s left of Ramadhan. Infact you can use to help you out with anything that has been bothering you to arrive at concrete steps on what you need to do next.

About the Authors:

Arif and Ali Vakil are brothers, who are running a family real-estate business in Bangalore with their father. In 2008, their business was the first business to be trained in GTD in India and Arif and Ali were the first Certified GTD trainers in India. Their newest project is The Lifeline Foundation,  a Non-Profit Organisation that works tirelessly in trying to ensure that the poor in Bangalore have sufficient means to live a life of Dignity. Check out their projects and offer your support. http://www.lifelinetrust.in/ (You can contact Brothers Arif and Ali through the “contact us” form here)

I feel compelled to put this together because I’ve seen the following boo-boos happen for years. In sha Allah, you can help me spread the word by sharing this article with your community, friends and family.

What is Zakat ul-Fitr?

Think “Iftar”, Zakat Ul-Fitr is the charity that we pay at the end of Ramadan. Here is the foundational hadith that establishes the obligation of Zakat ul-Fitr:

Ibn `Umar reported that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam), made Zakat al-Fitr compulsory on every slave, freeman, male, female, young and old among the Muslims; one Saa` (a measurement: four double handfuls) of dried dates or one Saa` of barely.
[Sahih Bukhari - Arabic/English, vol. 2, p. 339, no. 579]

To understand Zakat ul-Fitr, here is a good summary of it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Zakat_al-fitr

But unfortunately, our community makes some basic boo-boos in the payment of Zakat Al-Fitr that must be clarified.

Boo-Boo One: Paying at Eid Salah

Some people go to Eid prayers and drop money into the donation box thinking that they have paid their Zakat ul-Fitr. No, Zakat al-Fitr, which is food, must be in the hands of the needy family BEFORE Eid prayer. If someone goes to Eid prayer and pays then it is GUARANTEED that the money will NOT arrive on time. And thus the person paying is sinful for having missed the payment of Zakat al-Fitr. May Allah forgive us.

Boo-Boo Two: Snail mailing the money overseas

Basic principle as before: the Zakat al-Fitr, food, MUST be in the hands of the needy BEFORE Eid prayer. One cannot mail the money overseas and have it arrive in the hands of the needy after Eid prayer is over.

However, if one is able to get the Zakah al-Fitr to the needy overseas BEFORE Eid prayer is conducted in their locality, then in sha Allah it’s alright.

Boo-Boo Three: Not paying

Yes, as simple as this boo-boo is, it is HARAM to skip the payment of Zakat Al-Fitr. EVERYONE must pay Zakat Al-Fitr,
every member of the household. So if you have 8 people in your house, Zakat Al-Fitr must be paid x 8, even if the youngest member is just a few days old.

Boo-Boo Four: Confusing Zakat ul-Fitr with Zakat ul-Maal

We are talking about Zakat al-Fitr here (think “Iftar”, i.e. Ramadan). Zakat Al-Maal (Maal literally means wealth), is the Zakah due on ones money – and that could be due any time during the year depending on when it was due.

Boo-Boo Five: Giving money instead of food

Although some scholars have allowed giving money instead of food, the spirit of Zakat Al-Fitr is to give food to the needy of the community, NOT money.

The Companion of the Prophet, Abu Sa`eed al-Khudree, radi Allahu ‘anhu, said, “In the Prophet’s time, we used to give it (Zakatal-Fitr) as a sa` of food, dried dates, barley, raisins or dried cheese”. [Bukhari - Arabic/English vol. 2, p. 340, no. 582]

Boo-Boo Six: Giving one’s Zakah al-Fitr to a charitable building project

Some people mistakenly give their Zakah Al-Fitr to a charitable building project: like the building of a Masjid, or Islamic school. There is a difference of opinion on this issue, but suffice it to say that the spirit of Zakah Al-Fitr is that the needy should have plentiful food on Eid. All eight types of recipients of Zakah mentioned in the Quran are HUMANS, not “building projects”.

Boo-Boo Seven: Giving Zakat ul-Fitr to non-Muslims

Charity is given to both Non-Muslims and Muslims. However, Zakah al-Fitr charity is something exclusive to the MUSLIM poor and needy. Hence, one could not give Zakah Al-Fitr to any needy person on the street. “Regular” charity can be given to them, but not Zakah Al-Fitr.

Boo-Boo Eight: Delaying distribution

Sometimes Masjids might collect Zakah Al-Fitr money and then put it in a bank. It doesn’t reach the needy for months and months. The correct method is to give Zakah Al-Fitr immediately when it is due.

In sha Allah, if you have Zakah questions, I encourage you to seek counsel from your local sources of knowledge. People you can speak to directly. And I’ve noted some points that have a difference of opinion, so if your local sources of knowledge tell you other than what I’ve told you, and you trust them, then listen to them.

With best wishes to see you succeed in Ramadan at the highest level!

About the Author:

Muhammad Alshareef was born and raised in Canada. In his youth, he memorized the Quran and later graduated with an Islamic Law degree from the Islamic University of Madinah, class of 1999. He is the founder of AlMaghrib Institute through which he teaches university-level seminars on Islam. AlMaghrib Institute seminars have been conducted across the USA, Canada, and the UK.

Starting Monday September 20th,  join Sh Muhammad Alshareef  for 10 consecutive days in Post-Ramadan bootcamp.
The goal of Post-Ramadan No-nonsense 10-day “Get It Done” boot camp is that, you will have taken the crucial first steps in every area of your life! Make this the most unforgettable Ramadan of your life! Register to Post Ramadan- Bring IT 2.0 - and prepare yourself for some of the most outstanding days of your life!