Ramadan Notes #1: Listen to Your Heart and Find Allah

As-salamu’alaykum,

Ramadan Mubarak!

The blessed month that the companions of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) used to prepare for 6 months ahead of time is upon us! It seems just like yesterday when we bid farewell to Ramadan 1444H.

Unlike the companions though, the busyness of our modern lives often gets in the way of our preparation for Ramadan with a tendency to have a transactional relationship with the month; where we want to do more (rather than be more) and check off more things from an expanding list of “to-dos” in Ramadan.

Allah SWT reminded us in the famous ayah about Ramadan; 

Surah Al-Baqarah (Ch. 2): v183; “O believers! Fasting is prescribed for you—as it was for those before you—so perhaps you will become mindful ˹of Allah˺.”

to focus on becoming more cognizant of Him in all of our affairs from home to work and across all of our interactions in the middle of our busy modern lives. 

The presence of mind required to achieve this fundamental goal of Ramadan starts with discovering (or rediscovering) ourselves. 

It begins with listening carefully to the musings of our hearts.

Sir William Osler M.D, one of the O.G.s of Medicine famously said “listen to the patient; he is telling you the diagnosis” which points to the central place of listening to our patients in order to be able to help them. 

As healthcare professionals leading busy modern lives and taking care of others often in chaotic healthcare settings, we have to apply Sir Osler’s advice to our own selves and make the space and time to listen deeply to our hearts during this blessed month through reflection and journaling. The mindfulness that we cultivate in these spaces will in sha Allah lead us back to the mindfulness of Allah that we all seek in Ramadan. 

Start by blocking out 20 minutes for yourself ideally early in the day when your mind is clear to do this.

Let me know how it goes in sha Allah

May Allah SWT, Al-Sami’ (the All-Hearing) enable us to discover ourselves and find Him through quiet reflection this blessed month and beyond. Amin

Sincerely,

Sulyman

P.S. Join like-hearted #HealthCareWorkers on zoom for weekly Ramadan Check-ins at 4.15pm CST/5.15pm EST/10.15pm WAT . Register and join with this link.

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