All praises to Allah (SWT), Lord of the worlds. He who revealed in His Glorious Quran, "Oh you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those who came before you that you may keep your duty to your Lord (having taqwa)," {Qur’an 2:185}. And may blessings and-peace of Allah (SWT) be upon His last Messenger Muhammad ibn Abdullah. Oh you who believe, Ramadan is a sacred month wherein Almighty Allah (SWT) is constantly testing His creation and giving humanity the opportunity to achieve His (swt) pleasure.

Fasting is means of purification and developing the consciousness of our relationship with Allah. This Taqwa, is a protection against the schemes of Shaitan, and this world. Allah (SWT) has informed us that, "Whoever keeps his duty to Allah (has taqwa), He ordains a way out for him and gives him sustenance from where he imagines not. And whoever trusts in Allah, He is sufficient for him. Surely Allah attains His purpose. Allah has appointed a measure for everything." {Qur’an 65:2} Ramadan should be a time of increased activity wherein the believer, now lightened of the burdens of constant eating and drinking, should be more willing to strive and struggle for Allah (SWT).

The Prophet (pbuh) passed through approximately nine Ramadans after the Hijrah. They were filled with decisive events and left us a shining example of sacrifice and submission to Allah (SWT).

In the first year after the Hijrah, the Prophet (pbuh) sent Hamza ibn Abdul Muttalib with thirty Muslim riders to Saif al Bahr to investigate three hundred riders from Quraish who had camped auspiciously in that area. The Muslims were about to engage the disbelievers, but they were separated by Majdy ibn Umar al-Juhany. The Hypocrites of Al-Madinah, hoping to oppose the unity of the Muslims, built their own masjid (called Masjid al-Dhirar). The Prophet (pbuh) ordered this masjid to be destroyed in Ramadan. On the seventeenth of Ramadan, 2 A.H., Almighty Allah (SWT) separated truth from falsehood at the Great Battle of Badr (see article). Allah (SWT) gave them a decisive victory on this day of Ramadan that would never to be forgotten.

In 6 A.H., Zaid ibn Haritha was sent to Wadi al-Qura at the head of a detachment to confront Fatimah bint Rabiah, the queen of that area. Fatimah had previously attacked a caravan led by Zaid and had succeeded in plundering its wealth. She was known to be the most protected woman in Arabia, as she hung fifty swords of her close relatives in her home. Fatimah was equally renowned for showing open hostility to Islam. She was killed in a battle against these Muslims in the month of Ramadan.  By Ramadan of 8 A H., the treaty of Hudaibiyya had been broken and the Muslim armies had engaged the Byzantines in the North. Muhammad (pbuh) felt the need to strike a fatal blow to disbelief in the Arabian Peninsula and conquered the city of Mecca in ramadan (see article). This was one of the most important dates in Islamic history for after it, Islam was firmly entrenched in the Arabian Peninsula. During the same month and year, after smashing the idols of Makkah, detachments were sent to the major centers of polytheism and al-Lat, Manat and Suwa, some of the greatest idols of Arabia, were destroyed.

Such was the month of Ramadan in the time of the Prophet (pbuh). It was a time of purification, enjoining the good, forbidding evil and striving hard with one’s life and wealth to make the word of Allah the highest and Islam the dominant Deen.

After the death of the Prophet (pbuh), Muslims carried this Sunnah on and Allah used the true believers to affect the course of history. Ramadan continued to be a time of great trials and crucial events.

Ninety-two years after the Hujrah in Ramadan, Musa ibn Nusair, the Umayyad governor of North Africa, and his courageous general Tariq ibn Ziyad succeeded in liberating whole of Spain, Sicily and of France (see article). Beginning of the Golden Age of Al-Andalus where Muslims ruled for over 700 years.

In the year 682 A.H., Salahuddin al-Ayyubi, after battling with the Crusaders for years, finally drove them out of Syria and liberated the whole of the occupied lands in the month of Ramadan.

The Muslim world was then destined to meet one of its greatest challenges. In the seventh century A.H. the Mongols were sweeping across Asia destroying everything that lay in their path Genghis Khan called himself "the scourge of God sent to punish humanity for their sins.”In 617 A.H. Samarkand, Ray, And Hamdan was put to the sword causing more than 700,000 people to be killed or made captive.

In 656 A.H. Hulagu, the grandson of Genghis Khan, continued this destruction. Even Baghdad, the leading city of the Muslim world, was sacked. Some estimates say that as many as 1,800,000 Muslims were killed in this awesome carnage. The Christians were asked to eat pork and drink wine openly while the surviving Muslims were forced to participate in drinking bouts. Wine was sprinkled in the masjids and no Azan (call to prayer) was allowed. In the wake of such a horrible disaster and with the threat of the whole Muslim world. and then Europe being subjected to the same fate, Allah (SWT) raised up from, Saifuddin Qutz, who, united the Muslim army and met the Mongols at Ain Jalut on 26th Ramadan, 648 A.H. Although they were under great pressure, the Muslims with the help of Allah (SWT), cunning strategy and unflinching bravery, crushed the Mongol army and reversed this tidal wave of horror. The whole of the civilized world sighed in relief and stood in awe at the remarkable achievement of these noble sons of Islam. This was the spirit of Ramadan that enabled our righteous forefathers to face seemingly impossible challenges. It was a time of intense activity, spending the day in the saddle and the night in prayer while calling upon Allah (SWT) for His mercy and forgiveness.

Today, the Muslim world is faced with imperialist occupation, military aggression, widespread corruption and oppressive rulers. Surely we are in need of believers who can walk in the footsteps of our beloved Prophet (pbuh), the illustrious Sahabah, Tariq ibn Ziyad, Qutuz, Salahuddin and the countless heroes of Islam. Surely we are in need of believers who are unafraid of the threats of the disbelievers, yet kind and humble to the believing people; Muslims whose fast is complete and not just a source of hunger and thirst. May Allah (SWT) make us that generation of Muslims who can re-establish the Khilafah and carry Islam to all corners of the globe, and may He (SWT) give us the strength and the success to lay the proper foundations of the Islamic rule for the coming generations. May Allah (SWT) make us of those who carry out our Islam during Ramadan and after it.  Surely Allah (SWT) and His Angels invoke blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad. Oh you who believe send blessings and peace upon him.

Source: Ramadhan.org