Ramadan Mubarak | A Prayer for Ramadan 1445

Alhamdulillah, Ramadan 1445 is now upon us, and we are blessed to be here to welcome the return of this most holy of months.

Ramadan returns as a friend, come to remind us of our true state in this world and urge us to return to what we are meant to become.

It brings a reminder of our physical embodiment.

A reminder of our interdependence.

A reminder of gratitude for all we have, all we are given.

A reminder that we too may one day find ourselves needful — a reminder to be amply generous to those in need.

A reminder of the joys of community, and the beauty of solidarity in struggling for something worthwhile together.

A reminder to turn inwards — that the inward is abundantly accessible.

A reminder to turn towards that which is Greater. Allahu akbar.

A reminder that we are the most lowly of creatures, absolutely dependent on one another, this earth, and God in each moment; and that we are creatures called to a unique responsibility — the responsibility to be emissaries of the Divine in this creation and to beautify all things.

Ramadan returns as a light, an easefulness contained right in the heart of hardship — a reminder that this creation is diffuse with Divine Compassion, and that we too may come to have eyes to perceive this in myriad things, or perhaps more important, that our lives may be transfigured in such a way that this Compassion becomes all the more readily visible.

Ramadan is life turned up to 10 — a concentration, a crystallization of the real essence of existing, so that we may become more intimate with this existence.

Ramadan is a rupture, a defamiliarization — an opportunity to take a standpoint outside of our habituated routines so that we may intentionally reorder our life with whatever wisdom we glean from this blessed month.

May this Ramadan be an opportunity to cultivate God-consciousness beyond our typical egocentric confines. May this Ramadan be a chance to feel solidarity with the downtrodden and oppressed. May this Ramadan serve as a reminder that our existence is a gift, and one we are called to beautify for the sake of all creation. May this Ramadan serve as a shelter from evil — both those that originate within ourselves and those that come from without.

May our intentions be purified, may our repentance be accepted, and may our station be increased, inshallah.

Ramadan Mubarak ❤