What Are the Virtues of the Month of Rajab?
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
What are the virtues of the month of Rajab?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
The Prophet’s Supplication and the Status of Rajab
Anas Ibn Malik (Allah be pleased with him) said, that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) used to make the following dua, when the month of Rajab came in:
“Allahuma Barik lana fi Rajaba wa Sha‘bana wa ballighna Ramadan.”
“O Allah, bless us in Rajab and Sha‘ban, and allow us to reach Ramadan.” [Abu Nu’aym, al-Hilya]
It has been mentioned by Abu al-Fath ibn Abi al-Fawaris in his Amali (dictations and transmissions) and Imam Suyuti has also mentioned in his al-Jami‘ al-Saghir from Hasan Basri that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said:
“Rajab is the month of Allah. Sha’ban is my month. Ramadan is the month of my umma (followers).”
From the above hadith, it shows that it is preferable to make dua, to remain in the coming and following months, in order to perform good actions in them, because a true believer increases in his age with goodness. The best of people is the one who lives long and performs good actions.
The pious predecessors used to prefer passing away after performing acts of worship, such as fasting in Ramadan or returning from Hajj. It was said by them: “Whoever dies in this state is forgiven.”
Rajab as a Month of Preparation and Sacredness
There is no doubt that the month of Rajab is the key to the opening of the months of goodness and blessing.
Abu Bakr al-Warraq (Allah be pleased with him) said:
“Rajab is a month of cultivation, Sha‘ban is month of irrigating the fields, and the month of Ramadhan is a month of reaping and harvesting.”
In summary, the month of Rajab is a sacred month and the first of the virtuous and noble months. It is therefore appropriate to honor it fully by engaging in good deeds and restraining oneself from sins and harmful behavior, as it is the month attributed to Allah.
It has been mentioned in a hadith qudsi that Allah says:
“Fasting is for Me, and I alone shall reward for it.”
Fasting in the month of Rajab helps prevent a person from committing sins, let alone acts such as killing or harboring enmity toward others, matters for which this month was made sacred, even during the pre-Islamic (Jahiliyya) period. [See: Nablusi, Fada’il al-Shuhur wa al-Ayyam]
I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel has received a traditional education in various countries. He started his schooling in the UK and completed his hifz of the Quran in India. After that, he joined an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied secular and Aalimiyya sciences. Later, he traveled to Karachi, Pakistan, and other Middle Eastern countries to further his education. Mawlana has served as an Imam in the Republic of Ireland for several years and taught the Quran and other Islamic sciences to both children and adults. He also worked as a teacher and librarian at a local Islamic seminary in the UK for 12 years. Currently, he resides in the UK with his wife and is interested in reading and gardening.
