We start with Q2 activities – the important things in life that are likely to slip away as they don’t have urgent deadline pressures.

So What Q2 Activities Should You Do?

Here are my top 5 suggestions for Q2 weekend activities, which are all in line with Islamic virtues.

#1 Increase Your Worship

Free time at the weekend is a blessing. We all would love more free time. A secret of the pious is that whenever they want to increase a blessing they give shukr for it, due to Allah’s promise in the Qur’an:

‘If you are grateful to Me, I shall certainly increase you (in favour).’ [Qur’an: Chapter 14, Verse 7]

What better way to give thanks for our free time than to increase our worship in it? Through this, inshaAllah, we will be blessed with more quality time. Throughout the week we may skip our Sunnas, read very little Qur’an and have poor concentration in salah. Now we’ve hit the weekend, let’s make up for lost ground.

#2 Visiting Family

Living in Leicester, a city where hundreds of Muslims migrate to for the Islamic environment, it can be exasperating trying to find your friends in the weekend. Why? They’re busy travelling to Preston, Bolton,and London or across the city visiting relatives The weekend is the traditional time for Muslims, especially in the West, where families tend to be dispersed, to visit in-laws, parents, siblings and call relatives back in the Muslim heartlands. And such customs are excellent Q2 habits to maintain as the Prophet informed us:

‘Anyone who desires the expansion of his provision or to have the best of his life prolonged, should maintain ties of kinship.” [Al Adab Al Mufrad]

#3 Spending Quality Leisure Time with One’s Spouse and Children

The Messenger of Allah urged us in the most unequivocal words to take care of our families:

“The best of you are those who are the best to their families, and I am the best to my family” [Sunan at-Tirmidhi].

As a teacher, I’ve seen the terrible consequences of ‘absentee fathers’ who work long shifts at the weekend, sometimes living for long stretches abroad, spending hardly any time with their kids. It doesn’t matter how long one’s beard is or how outwardly pious you may look, if you’re not spending quality time with your children – especially if they are in their teens – then don’t be surprised if they start acting up in all sorts of un-Islamic ways.

Boys in particular, in our times, need strong male role models if they are to avoid succumbing to a myriad of dangerous temptations. Two books which give fantastic advice about raising families in modern society include Stephen Covey’s ‘7 Habits of Highly Effective Families’ (the concepts of emotional bank accounts and one-on-one time are very powerful) and Sue Palmer’s ‘Toxic Childhood’ (I believe every parent should read this important book as it explores aspects of modern life which are ruining our children).

Activities with family and children should be varied and stimulating. Regular trips to museums, exhibitions or shared outdoor adventures can create immense bonding, revive spirits and provide cherished memories to last a lifetime. Such outings help refine teenagers, cushioning them away from the worryingly prevalent ‘rude boy’ or gangster culture which tends to attract a lot of Muslim youth.

#4 Studying Islam and Attending Gatherings of the Pious

Alhamdulillah, there is an abundance of courses, ranging from one-day conferences to 5 year ‘alimiyya’ programmes, locally, nationally and online, that can be undertaken solely on weekends. Also, any other gatherings of the ‘ulema or pious for the sake of learning sacred knowledge or remembrance of Allah are ‘groves of Paradise’ which should be attended as much as possible:

“No people sit remembering Allah, the Mighty and Exalted, without the angels surrounding them and mercy covering them and tranquillity descending on them and Allah mentioning them to those who are with Him.” [Ibn Majah]

I personally have come across dedicated students who, through their hard work at weekends, have learned Arabic to a high level, some graduating to scholarly levels. May Allah grant us such aspiration and inspire us to put in the time.

# 5 Wholesome Recreation

The Messenger and his Companions were incredibly fit. Even a cursory browse of some of the accounts of their military campaigns, shows an astonishing level of physical endurance. Similarly, we often read about the well known sacrifices of scholars from the early generations, such as Imam al-Bukhari or Baqiyy ibn Makhlad and countless others, who thought nothing of walking thousands of miles to learn hadith. Aside from the stirring example of dedication to knowledge, these great men must have been at a high level of health to undertake such lengthy journeys – in an age well before modern transport or advances in medicine. Life in those times involved daily physical exertion – more than even daily trips to the gym would provide – and kept people healthy.

Modern conveniences and lifestyles can mean for most of the week we can be confined to limited office space, driving everywhere and eating processed or junk food. For inspiration to get healthy and realise the potential of our bodies, I recommend John Robbins’ eye-opening book ‘Healthy at 100’. The weekend is a perfect time to get healthy: cook organic, wholesome home-cooked meals; go on long walks, hikes or camping; participate in weekly football or basketball (my wife enjoys ‘sisters-only basketball’ twice a week). Such activities can be combined with an intention to raise money for charity. For example, last summer a group of friends and I organised a family trip to Snowdonia. One of the brothers suggested getting sponsored for climbing Mount Snowdon and sending the money to Syria. We were going to climb anyway and it was fun, but by getting sponsored we managed to raise £5,000, alhamdulillah, for the refugees (see http://www.justgiving.com/sacrifice4Syria).

Start Your Weekend on Friday!

A final, rather novel point, I’d like to make in this article is that we should realign our weekend – or ‘days off’ – to include Friday. Earlier I discussed how Western attitudes to the weekend can influence us. The rhythms of our week, from 9-5 working hours and the weekday/weekend pattern, do not really beat to the tune of traditional Muslim culture. For one thing, the Western work-cycle (which unfortunately prevails in most of the Muslim world) cares little about salah times whereas the early Muslims would work around them. This is why it would be the practice of early Muslims to start work soon after Fajr and work until Zuhr before enjoying the relaxing qaylula (siesta-style afternoon nap).

One way to maximise productivity on weekends and thumb your nose at capitalist/consumer forces is to start your weekend on Friday. Think about it: Saturday and Sunday being days of rest is from the Jewish and Christian traditions respectively. But Friday is the most sacred day of the week for Muslims and deserves to be part of our ‘weekend’ psychologically, even if we have to work.

The Status of Friday

The virtues of Jumu’a are so numerous that books have been written on the subject. Two authentic sayings of the Prophet suffice for this article:

‘Among the best of your days is Friday’ [Abu Dawud]

and

‘On Friday, there is an hour when, if a Muslim slave asks Allah for something at that time, He will give it to him.’ [Abu Hurairah]

And of course there is the obligatory Jumu’a prayer to make. Alhamdulillah, many observe that whereas only the truly practising Christians tend to go to church on Sundays, nearly all Muslim men – no matter how sinful otherwise – attend Jumu’a prayers when they can. A useful treatise in English is Shaykh Ibrahim Madani’s ‘The Essentials of Jumu’a’ (Madania Publications) and one can easily find hadiths about Jumu’a in any reliable collection. Indeed in this book (p8-9) he makes a profound point about the difference between how Muslims observe Jumu’a compared with Christians/Jews observing the Sabbath:

“Firstly, the People of the Book believe that one day of the week is for rest because God created the skies and the earth in six days and rested on the seventh. Secondly, they have become inured to the belief that the Sabbath is the only day of worship and [thus] they do not have to worship on any other day of the week. On the other hand, Jumu’a is an existentially blessed day in Islam. It is a time for Muslims to come together (for worship) and to increase worship more than on other days. At the same time one may continue to do business or go to work (after salah has been concluded) ” [Quran: Chapter 62, Verse10]

Jumu’a is ‘Eid!

A fact that I didn’t learn until quite late in my life is that the Prophet referred to Friday as ‘a day of celebration (‘Eid)’ and therefore commanded that it should not be singled out for fasting. Indeed in another hadith reported in Ibn Majah Friday is given even more precedence: “Friday is the ‘mother’ of all days and the most virtuous in the sight of Allah Ta’ala. In the sight of Allah Ta’ala it has more greatness than Eid ul-Fitr and Eid ul-Ad’haa.”

This is why the Sunnahs of this day, to wear one’s best clothes, bathe, etc. are similar to that of ‘Eid ul-Adha or ul-Fitr. The practical point is this. What would you do if one of the two ‘Eids fell on a work day? You’d take a dayoff, wear your best clothes, attend the communal prayer, have a feast, do some extra worship, visit loved ones and enjoy the day. Well you can now do this every week! This is why many Arab countries keep their weekends on Thursday/Friday (don’t forget that night precedes the day in Islam and so the night of Friday actually starts from Maghrib on Thursday) or Friday/Saturday. Even in Leicester I meet many who are either self-employed or part-time and they manage to keep Friday off. Alhamdulillah the Islamic-Montessori school I work for is closed on Fridays.

If your work situation makes it unfeasible to have a complete day off on Fridays, then you can still honour this leader of days as follows:

• Try to work half-day or reduce your hours on Friday. For example, if you control your work through appointments (like a plumber or tutor) then schedule them for the morning so you’re freed up as much as possible from Jumu’a time onwards. You can check out this site to learn more about plumbing as I mentioned about it. If you need plumbing service, contact an expert from a plumbing contractor Seattle WA, for the top-notch service they provide.
• If you’re a man, do not miss Jumu’a Salah under any circumstances. Make sure you explain to your boss, early on, ideally before you sign a contract, that your religion requires you to attend Friday Prayers. Many can make it in their lunch break.
• Attend the mosque early so you can hear any talks, recite Qur’an and pray Sunnah or voluntary prayers. It was the practice of the Sahaba and Tabi’een to arrive for Jumu’ah as early as Duha time (early morning)!
• Observe as many Sunnahs of Friday as possible such as bathing, wearing especially smart clothes, applying scent, reciting Surah al-Kahf, using siwak, etc.
• Send abundant salat and salam upon the Prophet .
• Have a special meal on this day. I remember when I used to work for a solicitors’ firm in Manchester, the boss would generously take us all out for a special lunch on Fridays.
• When you get home make sure you unwind and relax with family in celebration of Friday.

The weekend is sanctioned in labour laws as a legal period of rest from work, in Judo-Christian tradition as the time of the Sabbath, and in Western consumer-capitalist culture as the time for entertainment and fun. While Muslims can comfortably share some aspects of these traditions, we are also distinct in honouring Friday and maintaining productivity. We use the extra time to do more good for Allah and we intend, even with our relaxation, the pleasure of Allah

“Say, “Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds.” [Quran: Chapter 6, Verse 162]

How do you maintain productivity on your weekends? Share your tips in the comments section.

The post How to Enjoy a Productive Weekend (Part 2) appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

But the reality of weekends for many of us is that they slip away week after week: some revel in plain ‘chilling’ using the opportunity to relax to the max, though they then regret the lost time; others are just as busy with non-work commitments that they also miss out; and some just don’t know what to do. If you face any of these scenarios regularly, or you’d like more solid ideas to plan your weekends, then hopefully you’ll find some help in this short series. I believe at least 50% of productivity comes down to attitude and 50% from principles or technique; true to this philosophy, Part 1 will explore the unique approach Muslims should have towards weekends, and holidays or ‘free time’ in general.

The Muslim Attitude Towards Weekends

I’d like to start by blowing away a Western attitude that’s so deeply ingrained in most of us that we probably don’t even realise it’s un-Islamic. If you’ve even worked in a typical high-pressure office or institutional environment then you’ll be very familiar with the ‘living for the weekend’ mentality. Work is a 9 to 5 duty of reluctant drudgery until you get that ‘Friday feeling’ and celebrate the onset of the weekend. You are productive out of obligation and to get that pay-check for five days but really ‘live life’ for two. This is more a capitalist attitude than Western as it reinforces the ‘work hard, play hard’ motto.

In cities across Europe and North America and increasingly across the capitalist-driven world workers will work very hard during the working week, only to then indulge themselves in nightclubs, pubs, football matches, parties and countless other vices at the weekend. Muslims may avoid the strictly haram but I certainly remember during my student days how the weekend could signal all-nighters watching movies, all day playing sports and then a little cramming on Sunday to prepare for the week ahead.

It was Shaykh Hamza Yusuf Hanson who I first heard commenting on this Western attitude many years ago, and he reminded the audience that for Muslims every single day is sacred. Every single day is a time for worship of Allah, weekend or weekday. When Allah declares:

‘I have only created Jinn and Man that they may worship Me’ [Quran: Chapter 51, Verse 56 ]

There is no distinction between work days and weekends. Indeed, In Surah al-Inshirah, an oft-recited verse, fa iza faraghta fa-nsab, Allah commands us:

‘So when you are free, toil on [in worship]!’ [Quran: Chapter 94, Verse 7]

After a hard week’s work in the office, kitchen or school our first inclination is to rest. Yet the Prophet , who had more responsibilities and hard work than many of us put together, was commanded to ‘toil on’. This is why we read of his long hours of Salah in the night to the extent that his feet swelled. However, for the Muslim, whether it is the evening/morning, work-day/holiday, weekday/weekend our goal and purpose for every moment should be to worship Allah in the best way possible. When we’re at work, we’re happy to work for the sake of Allah ; when we’re home we’re happy to worship Allah . No doubt this is how the early Muslims, the scholars and the pious from every generation lived.

Purpose of the Weekend

Having said all the above, it doesn’t mean we can’t prepare differently for the weekend compared with the weekday. Indeed, the very fact that we tend to have a lot more unscheduled time on the weekend means we have to plan it more carefully than the weekday. Many complain that they don’t have time to do things they really want to during the working week. This is often true. Some of our schedules can be so demanding that there is literally only enough time for work, salah, meals, and sleep! Recently, I came across information about gambling sites Malaysia, which got me thinking about how people use their leisure time. For this reason, even rest and recreation is an important activity for the weekend – as long as we don’t indulge in them for their own sake. Our niyyah should be firmly for Allah , to refresh ourselves so we can return to ‘ibadah later. The Prophet alludes to this when he taught

‘Your body has a right over you, your eye has a right over you and your wife has a right over you.’ [Bukhari]

Q2 Time

One of the most useful concepts I’ve learnt from studying time management is the ‘time management matrix’. This matrix divides all our tasks we want to do into four quadrants which can be labelled Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4. These quadrants divide our activities into degrees of urgency and importance. It’s not the purpose of this paper to describe this matrix in detail so I’ll suffice by sharing a diagram with examples:

The point of all this is to explain that people who are ineffective spend most of their time doing Q3 and Q4 activities. If you’re reading this article and lead a reasonably responsible life then I’d guess you spend a lot of time, especially on weekdays, doing Q1 activities. Most people spend the majority of their time across Q1 and Q3. Really effective people, and productive Muslims, however, spend quality time in what Stephen Covey calls ‘the Quadrant of Quality’: Q2. These are the activities which really count, things which would make a huge difference to one’s life but are not ‘urgent’ in the sense that there are no pressing deadlines: learning Arabic, taking time in our ‘ibada, spending time with family and friends, giving the house a good spring clean.

Think about all the accomplishments you are grateful to Allah that you’ve achieved like completing a degree or saving up to buy a house. All such long-term projects require regular Q2 time (or else they descend into Q1 deadlines!). One of my teachers used to say, ‘Anything worth having in this world is attained only through patience.’

So weekends, and holidays in general, provide an unmissable opportunity to do Q2 activities. For more details about the time management matrix and Q2 time planning I recommend consulting Covey’s ‘First Things First or 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’.

Part 2, inshaAllah, will give recommendations for Islamic Q2 activities you can build into your weekend.

The post How to Enjoy a Productive Weekend (Part 1) appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

1. Sleep

As alluded to already, one may have to adjust one’s sleep pattern. The Sunnah of sleeping after Zuhr (qaylula), is practised by many to help them re-energise. For workers fasting, the time immediately upon arriving home is ideal. Sleep can also stave off hunger. Just remember to make an intention before flopping down in exhaustion!

An oft-neglected Sunnah is to talk less after Isha and to sleep early. After a whole day of fasting and the long rakahs of Tarawih, most of us are pretty tired and so should be able to take advantage of this practice. Consequently, one should have more energy in the day.

2. Nutrition and Energy

Like me, I’m sure you’ve felt the surprising increase in energy when fasting. Modern eating habits include excessive eating of sugary snacks, junk food and meat. As we lighten our stomachs, it’s as if our bodies become more lithe and freed to work for us.

Much of this can be undone by the famous cultural problem of overeating during Iftar, dinner and Suhur. Scholars, magazines and radio programmes discuss this issue so much, that I’ll say quite simply that if we want to be more energised in the day, what we eat is far more important than how much we try to stuff in. A nutritious breakfast of organic muesli, hard-boiled egg, wholemeal toast and fresh fruit is superior to stuffing oneself with the previous night’s oily samosas, pakoras, fried paratha and Coke!

Also, on a time management note, the time we save in missing breakfast, lunch and snacks is incredible. When I completed a personal time-log I found that it was not uncommon for an average meal to take 15 minute preparation and 30 minutes eating time. If tea breaks take half this time, then during our fasting hours we save at least 2 hours quality time to devote to other projects.

Naturally, there are times of the day when you want to divert yourself from the rigours of fasting. Reading, sport, relaxation or socialising for a short period can be recommended here. Having worked at several Muslim schools, I can attest to the fact that our children can be just as vigorous in their playtime during Ramadan!

For ideas on how to create energy for yourself, consult http://zenhabits.net/55-ways-to-get-more-energy. 

3. Time Blocking

Blocking out chunks of time to devote to specific activities is particularly imperative in this month. Most obviously, I’d recommend making the generic block of working for ‘worldly’ concerns, such as your job, community projects or studies, in the day and devoting oneself for ibaadah in the night. This follows the Quranic indication, ‘And we made the night a covering, and the day for seeking livelihood’ (Surah Naba) and is the practise of our pious predecessors.

Similarly, time in the weekend can be blocked out for chores or projects you don’t have time for during the week. 

4. Quran

As the ‘Month of the Quran’ we should all have a programme of recitation and/or study of the Quran. Make a target for the month and then divide by the number of days. Don’t sleep till you meet your daily target. 

5. Habit Forming

30 days is the ideal time period to form a habit. Daily habits are very powerful because they enable you to perform small but regular deeds which the Prophet has informed us are the ‘most beloved to Allah’. You could choose a daily word (a formula of dhikr you want to continue daily), a portion of Quranic reading or study of a sacred science, such as Tajweed. Just as important, but usually neglected, would be to form an inward habit, for example, speaking only good or being generous. For some excellent tips on habit forming, I recommend you read http://zenhabits.net/tags/habits.

6. Laylat ul-Qadr

The wisdom in having one night equivalent to 80 years worship, and then withholding the precise date of that night, is to make us avid to seek it. I’tikaf enables one to seek this night; if we can’t do all ten nights we should at least endeavour to perform a nafl (optional) itikaf of a few days. And if we can’t do any days of itikaf, we should certainly increase the intensity of our ibaadah.

7. Leaving the Wasteful or Bad

One of the most comprehensive hadiths which touch upon time management is ‘From the beauty of a person’s Islam is to leave that which does not concern him.’ Leaving aside TV, excessive socialising, playing of computer games and internet surfing are all praiseworthy objectives. Out of sheer respect for the month we should leave all sins and pointless activities. I won’t dwell on this point, though. If you focus on all the recommendations above, Ramadan is such that you won’t have time to waste time!

Conclusion

Whatever you do this month, realise that Allah has placed immense barakah (blessings) in Ramadan. That’s why thousands of Muslims this month start wearing hijab, or grow their beards, give up music, start learning their religion or change their trend for the better. This is a month of training. All the practices suggested in this article are recommended at all times and so it is hoped, with Allah ‘s help, that whatever we pick up in Ramadan, we continue forever afterwards. Ramadan is the best time of year to reassess and reorganise our priorities, putting Allah first. If this is not ‘effective time management’ for Muslims, then I don’t know what else is.

Read the other parts of this series here: Part 1 | Part 2

Benefited from this article? Join our brand new Productive Ramadan course – a simple, practical and complete blueprint for leading a Productive Ramadan insha’ Allah!

The post [Ramadan Series] Rethinking Time Management this Ramadan: Part 3 appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

Despite the plethora of time management systems, methods, organizers and techniques, the best have been often the simplest. Being able to schedule all your activities is actually the most efficient way of utilizing our time. That’s why schools, colleges, universities, businesses and countless other institutions do it. When you have a set programme to follow, you get things done. The problem is that we simply lack the self-discipline to programme our personal lives in the same way as our work/studies

Allah , through the guidance of the Prophet and his inheritors, has created within Ramadan such a schedule that automatically promotes the discipline to get a lot done.

The Ramadan Schedule

The recommended daily practices of Ramadan thus provide a structure within which we can plan our day accordingly. Below, I give some ideas for how we can utilize these times.

It is not the purpose of this article to give religious guidance. The suggestion of acts of worship is based on my own practice and limited knowledge. For further details, clarification and specific knowledge of the most praiseworthy acts of worship to be performed, please consult trustworthy qualified scholars.

Suhur

From the outset, most of us have to rise earlier than usual to partake of the highly recommended Sunnah of having a meal before the fast starts. If not in practice already, this gives us the opportunity to pray the night vigil prayer, Tahajjud – the merit of which is enormous.

Fajr Salah

For men, most masjids adjust their jamat times so that they don’t need to wait too long after their suhur before praying Fajr in congregation. Usually there’s at least a 30 minute gap after your prayers, and this time is ideal to engage in dhikr or Quran recitation. Consult the prayer times of your local mosques; jamat times often vary and you may find an alternative mosque’s Fajr jamat time to be more suitable for your schedule. Women praying at home can pray their Fajr and then – since they’re awake anyway – sit for 10-30 minutes for devotions.

Sunrise

Another praiseworthy sunnah is to sit after Fajr in dhikr until around 20 minutes after sunrise; one then prays the Ishraq salah. If one has no work or study commitments (with Ramadan this year being in the summer holidays this is a reality for many) then you can and should make this a daily practice. However, if you need to be awake early for work then this may be too difficult. For example, in Leicester, UK, you’d have to rise around 2.30AM for Suhur and Tahujjud, do ibaadah for 30-40 minutes, pray Fajr at 3AM and then stay up until 6AM.

There’s no easy solution to the Fajr and Ishraq issue. Prayer times vary across the world and you need to work out a sleep schedule you can keep up. Personally, after consulting with scholars, I decided to prioritise praying Tahajjud and Fajr in jamat, sleep and then, upon waking at the normal time for work (8-9AM), pray Salat al-Duha. This prayer is similar in merit to Ishraq and thus solves my personal problem.

Maghrib and Iftar

The minutes before Iftar and Maghrib are highly desirable for ibaadah, particularly supplication (dua). A wonderful sight at mosques at this time is that of rows of locals engaged in fervent recitation, dhikr and dua. Iftar inevitably involves invitations. Scheduling important work or personal devotions is undesirable for this time as you have little control. Resist the temptation of allowing guests or hosts keeping you from Isha jama’at and Tarawih. Actually, the fact that we have Tarawih prayers provides an ideal time frame.

Tarawih

Although not compulsory, praying Tarawih in congregation at the mosque has many benefits – the most memorable of which are to be able to hear the whole Quran being recited in prayer, and the exciting communal atmosphere. Sisters should research local facilities as most cities provide space for them to also participate.

I’tikaf

Devoting the last ten days to exclusive worship at the mosque (or a room in the home for women) is an unparalleled method to ensure maximum time for drawing near to Allah . As it is a big time commitment, like Hajj, for many of us it may only be possible to perform a few times in our lifetime. This need not be the case. Over the years I’ve witnessed friends proactively adjusting their work and holiday times so they could fit in this tremendous ibaadah annually. If you want to do it, you’ll find a way. And once you taste its benefit, you’ll want to experience it again and again. Whole chapters on time management discuss dealing with interruptions – phone calls, emails, unexpected guests, post. The laws of Itikaf mean that all such interruptions are eliminated. In a modern world characterised with constant interruptions, the ten days of Itikaf are an incredible way to unplug from all the chaotic rush, and, instead, to tune into remembering Allah .

To be continued…

Read the other parts of this series here: Part 1 | Part 3

Benefited from this article? Join our brand new Productive Ramadan course – a simple, practical and complete blueprint for leading a Productive Ramadan insha Allah!

The post [Ramadan Series] Rethinking Time Management this Ramadan: Part 2 appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

The Key Sunnah in Habit Forming

The Prophet said:

“…Allah does not get tired (of giving rewards) but (surely) you will get tired and the best deed (act of Worship) in the sight of Allah is that which is done regularly.” [Sahih Bukhari]

“…the most beloved deed to Allah’s is the most regular and  constant even though it were little.” [Sahih Bukhari]

These ahadith are a strong proof of the importance of doing good deeds via daily habits as something done daily is done continuously. If you think about it, Allah has taught us this through much of our Deen. We must pray five times a day, at set times, every single day; we have recommended du’as to make at set times (for example before eating or sleeping) every day.

In Arabic, a daily spiritual work or dhikr is termed a wird (pl. awrad); and the Sahaba made it a point to make wirds of Qur’an recitation and other forms of dhikr. Scholars continued this practise and we have inherited this great tradition of breathing life into our day through regular daily awrad. For instance, a great Sunnah wird is to recite up to a juzz (one thirtieth) of the Qur’an daily. Many pious parents or imams urge those in their care to do wirds of Tahlil (La ilaha illaLlah) hundred times. Scholars instruct their students to make a daily habit of memorising hadith. The potential ‘habits for Allah’ are endless and can include even ‘worldly’ habits which help one’s work or health, such as exercise and sleeping early.

A second salient point from the hadith is that little and regular is preferable to large and erratic. It is Sunnah to create a routine of good deeds which, even if small, we keep up for the rest of our life. It’s better to read half a juz of Qur’an a day, than to leave the week bereft of Qur’an and then read chapters and chapters on one day.

In terms of time management and effectiveness there is no doubt that successful people manage to discipline themselves to maintain life-changing habits – for life.  

A Method for Maintaining Habits

The most effective book I have read in advising how to maintain habit-forming is Leo Babauta’s ‘The Power of Less’ – my inspiration for starting the Habits for Allah GoogleGroup (which is currently available for students of my time management courses). Leo was a highly-stressed, overworked, overweight, mediocre smoker who changed his life around mainly through the power of implementing small habits, one at a time. His blog, Zen Habits, is one of the top ten in the world.

Time and again we’ve tried to implement habits – be it adhkar or an exercise routine – to find that after a few months they disappear. Guided by Islamic wisdom, I’ve summarised the main principles of our habit forming group to five:

Step 1 – Select a habit that is truly important for your life mission.

There’s no point in picking a habit of reading Shakespeare every day unless it has some relevance to your career. The habit should be something that excites you as you know it will make such a massive difference in your life. I’ll give some suggestions later.

Step 2 – Make your habit easy.

This is important. For example, if you think you could manage 10 words a day of Arabic vocabulary memorisation, cut down to 5 or whatever you’d consider super easy. You can always increase the habit for the next 30 days.

Step 3 – Only one habit per month.

This is a key principle which Leo calls ‘the thirty-day challenge’. Any more than this and the chances of failure multiply considerably. But by putting all your focus on one habit for the month – inshaaAllah – this is a sure means to make it stick.

Step 4 – Post your goal publicly.

This is where an e-group is handy. The idea is to inform as many family/friends/colleagues as possible that you are trying to form your new habit. You could have a habit buddy who you text daily. The point here is accountability.

Step 5 – Report on your progress daily.

Each day you must report to the same group of people whether you succeeded in implementing the habit that day.

Some, if not all of these principles may be quite novel to you but the purpose is long term. We don’t want to start a habit today which we give up in a month’s or even year’s time. We want habits for life. One of Shaytan’s favourite tricks is to tempt us to pile up our award so that we get fed up with all our failures and give up. Remember the opening hadith? So the five principles above aim to safeguard the chance of tiring or giving up on habits. Form your own groups with friends and family, or you are welcome to visit and apply to join the Habits for Allah Group.

Habits in Ramadan

This leads us nicely to our final discussion. What about habits in Ramdan? This month already has several habits built into it: fasting, praying for long rakahs and listening to the Qur’an (Tarawih); encouragement to make specific dhikrs. What’s more though, it is the perfect time – more than even the beginning of the year – to initiate a new habit as psychologically it’s a lot easier. This is the month when the Shayateen are chained, barakah descends and you actually have a lot more time to do good (the hours saved by not eating or preparing for meals!). Every Muslim is more inspired this month to avoid bad and do more good. So the ground is set to start a habit.

What habits to form for Ramadan?

I feel an obvious choice would be a habit related to the Qur’an – as it is the Month of the Qur’an. However, I’ve heard scholars recommend working on getting rid of haram inward traits such as riya (showing off in good works) as these are actually the highest priority in Shariah. So the foregoing list of recommended habits will include habits of the heart which are often ignored. They’re not in any particular order, but hopefully will help you think about the right Ramadan Habit for you. Remember these are suggested daily

• Reciting a portion of Qur’an a day
• Reading a portion of translation a day
• Reading a portion of Tafsir a day
• Reading a hadith a day
• Revising any memorised surahs
• Memorising a short hadith
• Memorising some Qur’an
• Perform a particular dhikr, e.g. Darood Sharif
• Pray a particular nafl salah, such as Tahajjud
• Avoid a haram action/trait (e.g. backbiting)
• Give sadaqah
• Focus on acquiring a Sunnah trait (e.g. generosity)
• Learn Arabic vocabulary
• Review notes on Islamic sciences
• Read Islamic literature, especially Seerah
• Study an Islamic science (e.g. Fiqh/Tajweed)
• Listen to a favourite scholar

An important point is that during Ramadan, and the last 10 days in particular, you may well need to have himmah (resolve/ambition) to do more than one habit. Just for this month, I think this is fine – take advantage of the barakah!

Anyone who has tried knows that habit forming is really, really hard. But, as Aristotle is reported to have said: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”  So the effort is worth it as forming habits for Allah is in reality a means of changing yourself, working on transforming our ways to be in conformity to the Sunnah and in loving obedience to our Creator. So get ready and prepare! Make this Ramadan the month when you establish habits for Allah.

If you can think of any other habit I’ve missed, please post in the comments below.

Benefited from this article? Join our brand new Productive Ramadan course – a simple, practical and complete blueprint for leading a Productive Ramadan insha Allah!

The post [Ramadan Series] Changing Habits in Ramadan appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

Before we begin, it’s worth reminding ourselves why Ramadan has a time management imperative. David Allen, creator of the world famous GTD system, has explained that when we want to do anything at any given moment, there are four criteria which should determine our choices: context, time available, energy and priority. If you think carefully, all four are quite dramatically altered in Ramadan.

Since it is the holiest of all months with many required rituals (the least of which is rising earlier for Suhur, fasting and the Tarawih prayers) the context is unique. What can be achieved in Ramadan is necessarily different to other months (notice I didn’t say less than other months).

The time available in the evenings is considerably less with preparations for iftar, breaking of the fast (which often involves hosting or being hosted) and the lengthy Tarawih prayers. Fasting can be (but not always) quite draining so we may not have the energy levels to execute tasks as in other months, or, at the very least, our energy levels change in their daily pattern. And since it is such a holy month, our priorities shift considerably (understanding this can solve many modern time management complaints) from the mundane to the profane.

Given the above – whether we’re a manager in a large company, a student, a businessman or professional – the normal means of achieving our daily goals are necessarily going to require a rethink. But, firstly, our very goals in Ramadan need to be very clear.

The Purpose of Ramadan and How it Affects our Time

Scholars, when discussing the nature of ibaadah, or worship, usefully categorized it into two types: direct and indirect. As you are aware, all actions – be it washing the dishes or going through the motions at work – can be worship if transformed by the wonderful elixir that is intention. However, there are other modes of worship – such as dhikr, salah and reciting Quran – which are direct and have no worldly connection. Direct worship is clearly superior, in of itself, as it is a spiritually stronger means of pleasing Allah . For much of the year, we have very little direct worship prescribed: the five daily prayers, Hajj and zakat take a tiny portion of our daily life.

On the other hand, there is plenty of opportunity to engage in indirect worship: raising a family, earning a living and serving the community. Ramadan, though, is designated especially for direct worship. The briefest glance at the practice of the Prophet and his Companions during Ramadan proves this quite conclusively. [For a fuller discussion of the philosophy of Ramadan please consult Mufti Taqi Usmani’s Islamic Months p83-86.]

This brings us to the modern dilemma. Muslim professionals often worry about how they are to perform at their optimum during this sacred month. An inferiority complex develops where many feel embarrassment at ‘productivity’ declining. Office workers, students and project workers apologetically explain that they can’t take on as many evening assignments.

Muslim newspapers bemoan the nation’s economic decline. In reaction to this, an obsession into how one can maximize health and energy levels develops – so we can match non-fasting, non-Muslim colleagues. With all my reading into success literature, motivation and effectiveness, I could easily jump on the bandwagon and spur on my readers to increase their output despite Ramadan’s ‘economic limitations’. But I won’t, because that would be missing the point.

This month is about worshipping Allah directly. It’s about focusing and enjoying the benefits of fasting. It’s about increasing our relationship with the Quran. It’s about going to the masjid and enjoying the annual opportunity to pray 20 rakahs in congregation listening to beautiful recitation. And if that means less worldly glory, so be it! There is absolutely no need to feel ashamed or embarrassed in having a quiet word with one’s boss, and explaining that, due to the sacredness of this month, you’ll have to take less on. Be proactive. Take some holiday time in advance; delegate some work to subordinates, or rearrange your schedule to fit in more work during the weekends.

Once you understand that Ramadan’s priority is worship, everything else will fall into place. Take the example of a married housewife who looks after a few kids at home. If her husband dies, suddenly she has to take on a 40 hour/ week commitment of work, on top of the existing school run, household chores and motherhood. In her wildest dreams she never conceived of working on top of her already busy lifestyle. But her husband died. She had no choice. She had to do it. So she did it by being proactive. She found a way: she employed a nanny from Nanny Agency Chicago, which provides top-notch nanny services; she batched her chores; and she cut out time-wasting activities. By being proactive, she increased her efficiency by 200%. And there are countless real-life examples like this all over the world.

What this example illustrates, as Dr. Schwartz explains in his classic The Magic of Thinking Big, is that “capacity is a state of mind. When you really believe you can do more, your mind thinks creatively and shows you the way.” Thus, in Ramadan, if we make ibaadah our focus, ask Allah to give barakah in our time and truly believe we can manage all we need to – then the solution to how to fit it all in will simply come.

If you’ve grasped this vital point – the correct attitude towards the purpose of Ramadan – then you have the most important lesson in this article. All other techniques are branches compared with this root message. If someone wants to be a good Muslim and they learn one or two good deeds here and there, how will such a person compare to one who decides to make taqwa (God-consciousness) and obedience to all Allah ‘s commands their basis? The latter is focusing on an attitude and this will cause him to make progress at a far superior rate to the Muslim focusing in on a few isolated actions. Similarly, if you make one’s intention and determination to make Ramadan a project for increasing one’s direct ibaadah, you’ll make enough progress without having to do much else.

Nevertheless there are certain strategies which can enhance and maximise our use of time even after we have the right attitude. Such knowledge is the subject matter of Part Two (coming soon!) of this article.

Read the other parts of this series here: Part 2 | Part 3

Benefited from this article? Join our brand new Productive Ramadan course – a simple, practical and complete blueprint for leading a Productive Ramadan insha Allah!

The post [Ramadan Series] Rethinking Time Management this Ramadan: Part 1 appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

The post The Concept of Time from Our Scholars (Part 3 of Series on Time) appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

Hadith 1

The Prophet said: ”Take advantage of five matters before five other matters: your youth before you become old; your health, before you fall sick; your wealth, before you become poor; your free time before you become preoccupied, and your life, before your death.” (Narrated by Ibn Abbas in the Mustadrak of Hakim & Musnad Imam Ahmad. Sahih)

The scholars regard this as one of the core hadiths of the religion as it spurs one to right action in so many different life circumstances. It contains two key principles with respect to Islam’s approach to time management: a sense of urgency to our life and expressing thanks for our blessings.

The whole language of this hadith points to the limited nature of our life and how time is running out. In Surah al-Rahman, verse 26, Allah (Subhanahu Wa’Tala) beautifully states ”Kullu man alaiyha faan” (All that is on earth will perish); describing the essential reality that every moment that passes is a moment that brings our death closer; our lifespan is like an upturned sand-timer and the last grain could drop soon. So the Prophet reminds us to act quickly before old age, before sickness, before our money decreases, before we get too busy and before our death. In other words, we must act now before it’s too late.

This links to the second principle of shukr, or gratefulness. Each one of the five matters are five blessings of the highest magnitude: youth(which Arabs have traditionally defined as less than 40!), health, wealth, free time and life itself. Allah, Most Glorious, has informed us of the secret of keeping and indeed increasing our blessings: “If you are grateful, I shall certainly give you increase” (Qur’an 14:7). How then do we give thanks for these blessings? Beyond thanking Allah regularly with our tongues, scholars explain that true gratefulness is to “use the blessing for what they were intended for” or as Junayd al-Baghdadi (May Allah have mercy on him) explained at a mere seven years of age: “That one not disobey Allah using the blessings He has given.” So, for instance, we should spend our youth in seeking beneficial knowledge; our wealth in sadaqa; our energy to worship Allah more.

The last two matters mentioned in the hadith relate directly to time management. Our free time is what we have left to work with. In Surah al-Inshirah (94:7), an oft-recited verse, ”fa iza faraghta fa-nsab”, Allah commands us: ‘So when you are free, toil on [in worship]!’ After a hard day’s work in the office, kitchen or school our first inclination is to rest. Yet the Prophet(, who had more responsibilities and hard work than many of us put together, was commanded to ‘toil on’. This is why we read of his long hours of Salah in the night to the extent that his feet swelled.

I remember a scholar once criticizing the Western work culture of counting the hours to 5 P.M., the days to the weekend and the weeks to the holidays. As a teacher, I can attest that in my profession we are accustomed to constantly counting down till the holidays! However, for the Muslim, whether it is the evening/morning, work-day/holiday, weekday/weekend, our goal and purpose for every moment should be to worship Allah in the best way possible. When we’re at work, we’re happy to work for the sake of Allah; when we’re home we’re happy to worship Allah. No doubt this is how the early Muslims, the scholars and the pious from every generation lived. I live next door to a local Imam and I can tell you that when he’s not at work with his wife teaching at the madrasa, he’s at home teaching Hifz to his children. Though you and I may be far from such incredible striving, we can at least ensure that a portion of each night is reserved for toiling in worship. Many Islamic leaders recommend even a few rakahs of Tahajjud before Fajr comes in. By devoting at least a small portion of each night, after our day’s work, to worship we can hope that our life, the fifth and final blessing mentioned in the hadith, is not wasted.

Hadith 2

“Allah said, ‘The son of Adam wrongs me for he curses Ad-Dahr (Time); though I am Ad-Dahr (Time). In My Hands are all things, and I cause the revolution of day and night’” (Al-Bukhari).

This hadith used to confuse me for many years until I asked one of my teachers for the meaning of the phrase ‘I am Time’ for I knew that Allah, Most High, is beyond time and does not resemble His creation. It was explained to me that the Arabs of the time of the Prophet (saw) were very proud people, especially proud of their strength, vitality, power, wealth and status. Since old age,and death would eventually erode all of these qualities they would grow despondent and curse time as they felt it ‘made them old’. Allah responded to this ignorant custom with this hadith qudsi, saying in effect, “I alone effect the changes in you (due to time).” Thus by cursing time, one is indirectly cursing Allah (just as one would be if you cursed destiny which is also only effected by Allah).

There is an immediate relevance to us here. Many a time, we find ourselves having a difficult situation or experiencing ‘one of those days’ where everything seemingly goes wrong. Sometimes, Shaytan overcomes us at such moments and we find ourselves thinking thoughts such as ‘Why does Allah create days like this?’. Na’uzu billah, such thoughts are like modern curses of time and we should guard against such words or thoughts. Indeed, if we contemplate the blessings of time in our times, there is much to be thankful for. Most readers of this article are living away from the many troubled Muslim lands where they are suffering carnage, warfare, famine, oppression or poverty.

How can we complain about lack of free time, when there are thousands of Muslims who have to spend their ‘free time’ searching for food, dodging bombs or just trying to survive? My wife attended a recent lecture by the famous modern muhaddith, Shaykh Mohammed Akram Nadwi, about women scholars in Islamic history (he’s researched thousands of them). When asked how they found time to do all their incredible studies of Hadith or Fiqh on top of their household duties, the shaykh explained that they were as busy as we were (indeed had to walk great distances without modern transport)and yet found time.

Women(and men) today are simply lazy compared to our great predecessors!

Alhamdulillah, we are blessed with ample time and modern conveniences to efficiently use it. Let’s increase this blessing by toiling hard to use it in ways most pleasing to Allah.

In the next article, I’ll be discussing how the great scholars of the past, such as the muhaddithat just mentioned, used their time.

The post The Concept of Time in Hadith (Part 2 of series on Time) appeared first on ProductiveMuslim.com.

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