It was narrated that Imaam Maalik may Allaah have mercy upon him would take leave of his friends after completing his lessons of knowledge in order to contemplate the life of the Companions of the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), and study the books that mention them and read their stories so that he could follow their footsteps and make the best use of their example. Although he was not destined to live with them, their living biographies were his provision throughout his life journey.
It is of great importance while we are in the spacious oasis of the month of Ramadan to contemplate thoughtfully on the life of the Companions and our righteous predecessors may Allaah be pleased with them all. We will touch upon and study their successful lifestyles during the blessed month of Ramadan so that they may be our guide and ideal example in traveling throughout the journey of this blessed month.
1. Invoking Allaah The Almighty to allow them to live until Ramadan
Mu‘alla ibn Al-Fadhl may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “The companions of the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) would supplicate to Allaah The Almighty for six months in advance to prolong their lifeuntil Ramadan. Then they used to supplicate Him for six months (after that) to accept their righteous deeds in it.” Yahya ibn Abi Katheer may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “Among their invocations was, ‘O Allaah deliver me to Ramadan and deliver Ramadan to me and accept it from me.’”
2. Calling Ramadan Al-Mutahhir (the Purifier):
It was narrated that ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab may Allaah be pleased with him would say at the arrival of the month of Ramadan, “Welcome to the one who purifies us from sins!”
3. Seeking Forgiveness Persistently
It was narrated that ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar may Allaah be pleased with him used to make this Du‘aa’ (supplication) upon breaking his fast: “Allaahumma inni as’aluka birahmatika al-lati wasi‘at kulla shay’in an taghfira li (O Allaah, I ask You by Your mercy which encompasses all things, that You forgive me).”
4. Paying Special Attention to the Recitation of the Noble Quran:
Ibn Rajab may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “Faatimah may Allaah be pleased with her narrated that her father, the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) told her that Jibreel would review the Quran with him once every year, and in the year of his death he reviewed it with him twice.” [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim], and from the Hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas that this process was done at night. [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
Consequently, this indicates that it is recommended to do much recitation of the Noble Quran during the nights of Ramadan. The purpose is that night has less distractions, contains more willpower and the heart and tongue focus on contemplation as Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Indeed, the hours of the night are more effective for concurrence [of heart and tongue] and more suitable for words.} [Quran 73:6]. Moreover, Ramadan has a special relationship with the Noble Quran as Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {The month of Ramadan [is that] in which was revealed the Quran, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion.} [Quran 2: 185] [Lataa’if Al-Ma‘aarif, p. 315]
‘Uthmaan ibn ‘Affaan may Allaah be pleased with him would recite the entire Noble Quran once a day. Some of the Companions may Allaah be pleased with them would do that every seven days in the Taraaweeh (night prayer in Ramadan). It was narrated that ‘Imraan ibn Hudayr said, “Abu Mijlaz would lead the night prayer in the neighborhood during the month of Ramadan, completing the recitation of the Quran entirely every seven days.”
Some of our righteous predecessors would complete it while praying at night during Ramadan every three nights, some others in seven nights while some others every ten nights.
Qataadah may Allaah have mercy upon him would complete it every seven days, every three days in the blessed month of Ramadan, and every night in the last ten days.
Weeping a great deal for fear of Allaah The Almighty was their prominent feature during the recitation of the Noble Quran. Al-Bayhaqi narrated that Abu Hurayrah may Allaah be pleased with him said, “When the verse in which Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Then at this statement do you wonder? And you laugh and do not weep.} [Quran 53: 59-60] was revealed, the people of As-Suffah wept to the extent that tears ran down their cheeks. When the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) heard their crying, he also wept and thus we wept for his weeping. Then the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) said: ‘A man who weeps out of fear of Allaah will not enter Hellfire until the milk goes back into the udder.’” [At-Tirmithi]
Sufyaan Ath-Thawri may Allaah have mercy upon him would leave all his work at the arrival of the blessed month of Ramadan and dedicate himself to the recitation of the Noble Quran.
Al-Waleed ibn ‘Abd Al-Malik may Allaah have mercy upon him would complete the recitation of the entire Quran every three days and in one Ramadan he completed it seventeen times.
Ar-Rabee‘ ibn Sulaymaan may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “Imaam Ash-Shaafi’i would read the entire Quran sixty times every Ramadan and thirty times in every other month.”
Abu Bakr ibn Al-Haddaad may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “I tried hard to adhere to what Ar-Rabee‘ said about Imaam Ash-Shaafi‘i that he used to complete the entire Quran in Ramadan sixty times other than what he recited in the prayer. The maximum amount of times I could do were fifty-nine and thirty times in the months other than Ramadan.”
Muhammad ibn Ismaa‘eel Al-Bukhaari may Allaah have mercy upon him would read the entire Quran during the day of Ramadan and complete reading every three nights after the Taraaweeh prayer.
Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “The forbiddance of completing recitation of the Quran in less than three days applies to this being made a regular practice, but as for favored times such as Ramadan, especially, the nights in which The Night of Al-Qadr is sought, or favored places such as Makkah for the visitor, it is recommended to increase reciting the Quran to utilize the time and location. This is the view of Ahmad, Is’haaq and other Imaams, and the practice of others also indicates this." [Lataa’if Al-Ma‘aarif]
5. Making Taraaweeh and the Night Prayer Lengthy:
The companions of the Prophet, sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ), would prolong the Taraaweeh prayer and would not recite just two or three verses as Muslims do nowadays. It was narrated that As-Saa’ib ibn Yazeed said, “‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab may Allaah be pleased with him ordered Ubayy ibn Ka‘b and Tameem Ad-Daari to lead people in praying eleven Rak‘ahs during Ramadan. The reciter would recite hundreds of verses to the extent that we would have to support ourselves with staves due to the lengthiness of the prayer and would not depart until the first signs of dawn.”
They would think that it was short if one recited Soorat Al-Baqarah in twelve Rak‘ahs (units). It was narrated that ‘Abdur- Rahmaan ibn Hurmuz said, "I heard the Companions of the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) cursing the disbelievers in Ramadan.” He added, “The reciters would recite Soorat Al-Baqarah in eight Rak‘ahs, and if they recited it in twelve Rak‘ahs people would think that it was short.”
It was narrated that Naafi‘ ibn ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdullaah may Allaah have mercy upon him said, “I heard Ibn Abi Mulaykah may Allaah have mercy upon him saying, ‘I would lead people in prayer during the month of Ramadan and read Soorat Faatir and the like in one Rak‘ah and no one complained about that.”
It was also narrated that they would continue praying until it was very close to dawn. Maalik narrated that ‘Abdullaah ibn Abi Bakr may Allaah be pleased with them said, “I heard my father saying, ‘By the time we finished our night prayers in Ramadan, we would rush the servants to prepare the food in fear of Fajr approaching.’”
6. Seclusion for Dedicating Oneself to Worship
Naafi‘, the freed slave of Ibn ‘Umar may Allaah be pleased with him said, “Ibn ‘Umar would pray in his house during the month of Ramadan. When the people departed from the mosque, he would go off to the mosque of the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) taking a flask of water with him. He would not leave the mosque again until after performing the Morning Prayer.”
‘Abdul ‘Azeez ibn Abi Rawaad said, “I saw them (our righteous predecessors) endeavoring greatly in undertaking righteous deeds and then worrying whether or not those deeds had been accepted.”
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