Virtues and Sunnah of Dhul-Hijjah -By Bello Kifayat Adenike (Mazeedatul Khayr)

In the name of Allah,The Beneficent,The Merciful.

Dhul-Hijjah is the twelfth and last month of the Islamic calendar. And as the name implies, it is the month of pilgrimage when Muslims visit the house of Allah in Makkah when capable of doing so.

Like the month of Ramadan, Dhul-Hijjah is also a month full of bountiful and innumerable blessings for the Muslims around the world.

Many of us Muslims maximize our good deeds during the last ten nights of Ramadan, but the first ten days of the Dhul-Hijjah are just as valuable and Muslims should not miss out on this incredible opportunity to earn extra rewards on simple good deeds.

There are lots of Sunnah to follow during these first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah in order to earn more rewards from Almighty Allah (S.W.T) and some of the Sunnah are as follows:

1. Doing a lot of Dhikr:
The Prophet (S.A.W) said: “There are no days greater and more beloved to Allah than these ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, so increase in them your declaration of the oneness of Allah (Tahleel), your exaltation of Him (Takbeer), and your praises of Him (Tahmeed).” Therefore, it’s advised to increase our Ibaadah during these days by doing lots of dhikr (remembrance).

2. Fasting on the day of Arafah:
If we are unable to fast from the beginning of the month of Dhul-Hijjah, then we should try to fast on the 9th day of Dhul Hijjah which is the day of Arafah, (Yaom l Arafah).

The day of Arafah is regarded as the most blessed day of the year. The Prophet (S.A.W) said: “There is no day on which Allah frees more people from the hell fire than on the day of Arafah.”

On this day of Arafah, Muslims are advised to seek forgiveness and seek Allah’s infinite mercy. The Prophet (S.A.W) said: “Fasting on the day of Arafah expiates the sins of the previous year and the following one.”

3. Give more Sadaqa:
“Ibn Abass (R.A) reported that the Prophet (S.A.W) said: “There are no days on which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allah than these days”, the companions asked, “Not even Jihad for the sake of Allah? Then the Prophet answered, “Not even Jihad for the sake of Allah, unless a man goes out himself for jihad, taking all his wealth with him and comes back with nothing.”
We should put extra effort into doing good deeds during these days.

From the points explained above, it proves that Almighty Allah (S.W.T) loves to be worshipped during these days, so, we should increase in our acts of Ibaadah by doing a lot of Dhikr, praying at night and fasting during the day, fasting on the day of Arafah, giving out alms (Sadaqa) and engaging in lot of more Sunnah during these days.

May Almighty Allah accept our worship as an act of Ibaadah. May He count us among the pious ones on the last day. May He spare our lives to witness Eid -l-kabeer and more of the festive periods on earth, in sound health and enormous wealth.
I wish all Muslims in the World Eid Mubaarak in advance.

Wa Salam Alaykum Warahmotullahi Wabarakaatuhu.

Bello kifayat Adenike is a 100 level student of Accounting from Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.