The sermon of the holy Prophet, peace be upon him and his household, on the holy Ramadan, delivered on the last Friday of Shaban
Abu al-Hasan al-Rida, peace be upon him, narrates from his father through his ancestors that the Commander of the Faithful, peace be upon him, has said: The Messenger of Allah one day gave us a sermon and said:
“O people, the month of Allah has come to you with its bounty, blessings and forgiveness.
It is a month which is the best of months with Allah; its days are the best of days, its nights are the best of nights, and its hours are the best of hours.
It is the month in which you are invited to the banquet of Allah and you are included in the circle of the people of the glory of Allah.
Your very breaths in it are the glorification of Allah, your sleeping in it is devotion, your deeds are accepted in it, and your prayers in it are granted.
So ask Allah your Lord with true intentions, and pure hearts to help you to fast in it and to recite His book, for truly the wretched is he who is denied the forgiveness of Allah in this great month.
In your hunger and thirst remember your hunger and thirst on the day of Judgment.
Give alms to the poor and the destitute among you, honour your elders and be merciful to the youngsters, visit your relatives and control your tongue, keep away your eyes from that which you should not see and your ears from what you are not allowed to hear, and be kind to the orphans of other people so they may be kind to your orphans.
Repent to Allah from your sins and raise your hands to Him at the times of your prayers, for they are the best of times, when Allah looks with mercy at his servants.
He loves them when they call Him in supplication, answer them when they call Him, and grant their prayers when they pray to Him.
“O people! Truly your souls are pledged to your deeds, so deliver them by your repentance; and your shoulders are overburdened by your sins, so reduce their weight by lengthening your prostration.
Know that Allah, Whose remembrance is exalted, has taken an oath by His might that He will neither chastise the holders of prayers nor those who prostrate, nor terrify them with fire when the people rise for the Lord of the worlds.
“O people! Whosoever among you who breaks the fasting of a believer in this month will be like a man who frees a slave in the eye of Allah and all his previous sins will be forgiven.” When the Prophet was asked, “O Messenger of Allah, not all of us can do that,” he, peace be upon him and his household, answered, “Keep yourselves away from fire even by half a date, keep the fire away even by a drink of water!
O people! Whosoever of you be of good temper in this month will be allowed to pass the path on the day when the feet will slip, and he who treats his servants with ease in this month Allah will ease his account.
He who stops bothering others Allah will not be in wrath with him on the day when he meets Him.
Whosoever honours an orphan in this month Allah will honour him when he meets Him, and he who visits his relative Allah will visit him with His mercy, but he who breaks his relationship with his relatives Allah will keep His mercy away him on the day when he meets Him.
He who volunteers to stand in prayer in this month Allah will guarantee his safety from fire, and he who performs an obligatory act in it will have the reward of seventy obligatory acts in other months.
He who increases his greeting to me Allah will add to the weight of his scale on the day when the scales are light.
He who recites one verse of the Quran in this month will have the reward of him who recites the entire Quran in other months.
“O people! The gates of paradise are open in this month, so ask your Lord not to close them on you, and the doors of fires are closed, so ask your Lord not to open them on you.
The devils are in chain, so ask your Lord not to make them dominant over you.” The Commander of the Faithful then says, “I stood up and asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah! What are the best deeds in this month?’” The Messenger of Allah answered, “O Ali! The best of deeds in this month is to shun those things Allah the Exalted has prohibited.”
Then he wept. I asked “O Messenger of Allah! What makes you cry?” and he answered, “O Ali! I cry for what will be done to you in this month. I see that you are standing in prayer to your Lord, and the most wretched of all people, the brother of the slayer of the she camel of Thamud, will strike you on your head to dye your beard with the blood of your head.”
The Commander of the Faithful then asks, “O Messenger of Allah! Is that is done while my religious faith is intact?” Then he, peace be upon him and his household, said, “Yes! Your religion will be untouched.” Then he said, “O Ali! Whoever kills you kills me, whoever hates you hates me, and whoever abuses you abuses me, for you are as close to me as my soul; your soul is from my soul, and your nature is of my nature. Indeed Allah the Glorious and Exalted has created you and me and has chosen you and me, but He selected me for Prophethood and me you for Leadership. So whosoever denies your leadership has denied my Prophethood.”
