20 Ramadhan

It was a simple majlis. Nothing ostentatious, food served on nondescript plastic plates, guests seated on linoleum. Doctors, lawyers, businessmen, students, slackers gathered in one humble hall to break fast together.

I sat at the back, as I always do. Its nearer to the exit, but that's not the point of the story. The purpose of typing this post juiced-up on caffeine so late at night is about the tazkirah that was given after the buka.

Now, it's important for me to tell you that officially the Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor frowns on this practice. To be fair to them, what they actually discourage is the giving of tazkirah after every 4 raka'ats of Tarawih, as they say it disturbs the concentration of the jemaah. Nevermind the fact most people bail out after 8 anyway, tazkirah or no tazkirah, and you pretty much lose concentration after the first mercun bang ten minutes into the first raka'at, but that's not the point of this post.

So this Ustaz reminded the faithful present in that humble hall, that tonight (local Malaysian time) marked the beginning of the final 10 days of Ramadhan. Of course, some people would say it was yesterday based on their own local sighting (of the anak bulan), and both are valid opinions, as Syeikh Hamza(h) Yusuf would say, although it is rather confusing, but that's not the point of this tale.

He reminded them, that in these final 10 days exists a night where deeds are rewarded the equivalent of 1000 months, roughly 83 years. That's ten years more than the Malaysian life expectancy rate for females, 14 years more than for its males. It was also mentioned how the Messenger of Allah (s) was the best of men during Ramadhan.

You see, these final 10 nights should be a sort of a wake up call. If you are like me, and the past 20 days of fasting have been more murtabak than mubarak, these final 10 days is the time to change.
If your tilawah has not progressed beyond page 5, then its time to pick it up again.
If your previous terawihs were impaired by the contents of your stomach, maybe its time to spend less at the bazaar ( despite what Tun Dr M says about the economy).
If your last tahajjud was... a long time ago, perhaps tonight would be a good time to resume it.

I advice myself and all readers of this blog this, and I ask Allah that I don't blow this last few days of Ramadhan. Amin.


Links:
Dato' Ishak Baharum's view of the current ban on tazkirahs. (In Malay)