Dhul hijjah or zilhijjah

Dhul hijjah or zilhijjah

Dhul Hijjah or Zilhijjah is the twelfth and last month of the Islamic Calendar based on lunar system. This is a very sacred month in the Muslim calendar, marking the end of the year. It is in this month in which the Hajj (pilgrimage) takes place.

"Dhu al-Hijjah" literally means "Possessor of the Pilgrimage." During this month pilgrims from all around the world congregate at Makkah, Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj. The actual pilgrimage rites take place on the 8th to 13th days of this month. Day of Arafah takes place on the ninth of this month. Eid al-Adha, the "Festival of the Sacrifice", begins on the tenth day and ends on the thirteenth of Dhul-Hijjah. [1]
Introduction
Dhul Hijjah is a great and sacred month in which the Hajj (annual Pilgrimage to Makkah) takes place. It is a month in which blessings are plentiful and Allah takes care of people’s needs. In it are the “ten nights” which Allah swears by in the Qur’an.Surah Fajr 89:1-3. The majority of Tafseer scholars have stated that Allah is referring here to the ten nights of Dhul Hijjah, Tafseer Ibn Kathir, Qur’an. Surah Fajr 89: 2.

The month of Dhul-Hijjah is a season of worship, and seasons of worship bring along blessings, benefits and opportunities to correct one's faith and make up for shortcoming. Every one of these special opportunities involves some kind of worship, which brings the slave closer to his Lord. And Allah bestows His blessings and Favors on whom He wills. The fortunate person is he who makes good use of these special months, days, and hours, while worshiping Allah. He is most likely to be touched by the blessings of Allah. [Ibn Rajab, al-Lataa'if pp. 8]
Sunnah
According to the Prophet Muhammad (May Allah honour Him and grant Him peace) the first ten days of this month are a special time for devotion. Even for those who are not traveling for the pilgrimage, this is a special time to remember Allah and spend extra time in devotion and good deeds. The first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah are called as layali ashra in the Qur’an. Surah Fajr 89: 2 and 11,12 and 13th of Dhul Hijjah are called as Ayyam e Tashreeq.
General Islamic rituals in Zilhijjah
⦁ 8th – 13th ⦁ Hajj is performed
⦁ 09 Dhul-Hijjah, Day of ⦁ Arafah
⦁ 10 ⦁ Eid al-Adha is observed by ⦁ Muslims
⦁ 11-13 Ayyam al Tashreeq (remaining 3 days of ⦁ Eid) ⦁ [2]
Importance
The month of Dhul-Hijjah is indeed a month of tremendous virtues and blessings. The First Ten Days of this month are especially significant and are among the most magnificent days in the Islamic calendar. It is reported from Ibn Abbas (R) that Prophet Muhammad (May Allah honour Him and grant Him peace) said: " There is no day wherein any good action is more beloved to Allah than these ten days (the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah)". The Sahabah (Companions of Prophet Muhammad (May Allah honour Him and grant Him peace)) enquired: "Not even Jihad in the path of Allah ? "(i.e., are actions performed in these days more beloved than even the act of Jihad)", with the exception of that person who left with his life and wealth (in the path of Allah) and did not return with any of it (i.e. he is martyred)". Sahih Al Bukhari, Vol 2:457
No days are as weighty with Allah and so liked by Him for good deeds than the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah ". Therefore in these days increasingly recite: "La ilaha illallah, Allahu Akbar, Alhamdulillah, Subhanallah."
These texts and others indicate that these ten days are better than all the other days of the year, with no exceptions, not even the last ten days of Ramadan. But the last ten nights of Ramadan are better, because they include Laylat al-Qadr ("the Night of Power"), which is better than a thousand months. Thus the various reports may be reconciled. (Tafseer Ibn Kathir, Vol 5/412)
The Prophet (May Allah honour Him and grant Him peace)encouraged people to do righteous deeds because of the virtue of this season for people throughout the world, and also because of the virtue of the place - for the Hujjaj (pilgrims) to the Sacred House of Allah.
‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar (R) reported that the Prophet (May Allah honour Him and grant Him peace)said: "There are no days greater in the sight of Allah and in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Him than these ten days, so during this time recite a great deal of Tasbeeh ("Subhan-Allah"), Tahleel ("La ilaaha ill-Allah"), Takbeer ("Allahu akbar") and Tahmeed ("Al-hamdu Lillaah")."Book of Musnad Ahmad, Vol 7:224
Fasting on Arafah
Abu Qatadah (R) is reported to have said that the Prophet (May Allah honour Him and grant Him peace) said: "Fasting on the day of `Arafah is an expiation (of sins) for two years, the year preceding it and the year following it, Sunan Nisa’i, Vol 4:205 and by Abu Dawud; classified by al-Albaani as saheeh in Saheeh Abi Dawud, Vol 2:462.

Prescribed deeds on first ten days
Concerning the types of worship to be performed during these ten days: one must understand that these days are a great blessing from Allah to His slave, which is appreciated properly by the actively righteous deeds. Therefore the good deeds which the Muslim should strive to do during the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah are:
Fasting: It is Sunnah to fast on the ninth day of Dhul-Hijjah, ⦁ Sunan Nisa’i, Vol 4:205.
⦁ Recitation: Takbeer Tashreeq is the recitation of ⦁ Allahu akbar, ⦁ La ilaha illa hu Wallahu akbar, Allahu akbar wa lillahil hamd after every fardh salaah commencing from the ⦁ Fajr of the 9th of Dhul Hijah until after Asr of the 13th of Dhul Hijjah. (Shami vol. 1 pg. 406)
⦁ Sacrifice: “And mention the name of Allah on appointed days, over the beast of cattle that He has provided for them (for sacrifice)..." [Qur’an. Surah Hajj 22:28]. The majority of scholars agree that the "appointed days" are the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, because of the words of Ibn ‘Abbas (R) be pleased with him and his father): "The ‘appointed days’ are the first ten days (of Dhul Hijjah)."
⦁ Performing ⦁ Hajj and ‘⦁ Umrah. One of the best deeds that one can do during these ten days is to perform Hajj to the Sacred House of Allah (Glory be to Him).
⦁ Sincere ⦁ repentance. One of the most important things to do during these ten days is to repent sincerely to Allah (Glory be to Him) and to give up all kinds of disobedience and sin. ⦁ [3]

ii. Source: Source Link
Fasting on Aashooraa

The Style of the Quran
In some passages of the Quran, God takes oaths by His marvelous creation to strengthen an argument or to dispel doubts in the mind of the listener,
“By the sun and its brightness,
by the moon when it follows it,
by the day when it displays it,
by the night when it covers it,
by the sky and He who constructed it,
by the earth and He who spread it,
by the soul and He who proportioned it...”
Sometimes God takes an oath by Himself:“But no, by your Lord, they will not (truly) believe until theymake you, (O Muhammad), judge concerning that over which they dispute among themselves and then find within themselves no discomfort from what you have judged and submit in (full, willing) submission.” (Quran 4:65)

iii. IslamWay.net and IslamWeb.net

The Third Virtue of the Day of Arafah:

Allah swore by the day of Arafah in the quran two times. This shows the greatness of the day.
⦁ 1- The first oath Allah made was in Surat Al-Burooj (The Mansions of the stars) and we will stop at the benefits of every point in the verses.
⦁ 2- The Second oath was made in surat el Fajr
⦁ The First Oath.. (The Mansions of the stars - Al-Burooj ) Allah the all Mighty said: {وَالسَّمَاء ذَاتِ الْبُرُوجِ (1) وَالْيَوْمِ الْمَوْعُودِ (2) وَشَاهِدٍ وَمَشْهُودٍ (3) قُتِلَ أَصْحَابُ الْأُخْدُودِ} {By the heavens holding the big stars and by the promised day (i.e. the day of resurrection), and by the witnessing day (i.e. Friday and by the witnessed day, the day of Arafat, (Hajj), and the ninth of Dhul Hijja) Cursed were the people of the ditch (the story of the boy and the king)} [Al Buruj: 1-4].)
⦁ Al-Burooj: Stars and Planets Al Buruj means all the stars and planets. We find in the stars the meaning of glittering, light and height. Don't you think so? What meaning do the heavens have?
⦁ Allah swears by the heaven because it is a great thing but why the heavens? Why didn't He say the heaven only like when He said: {وَالسَّمَاء وَالطَّارِقِ} {By the heaven and Atariq, (the night comer, i.e. the bright star)} [Atariq: 1],
⦁ No, He said here {وَالسَّمَاء ذَاتِ الْبُرُوجِ} {By the heaven, holding the big stars} that have the bright stars. The promised day: The day of resurrection day The promised day means the day of resurrection according to Abu Hurairah, may Allah bless him, that the prophet, peace be upon him, said: «The promised day is the day of resurrection; the witnessing is the Friday»
⦁ [Narrated by Termethei and classified as correct by Al Albani]. What is the connection between the four? When Allah says: "By the heaven holding big stars. the promised day, the witnessing day". He all Mighty swears that this happened as if like you saying: "By Allah, By Allah, by Allah "cursed were the people of the ditch".
⦁ He all Mighty swears by what He wants of His creations and universe. He swears by the heaven, by the day of resurrection, by Friday and by the day of Arafat that the people of the ditch were killed.
⦁ Can anyone see the connection between these meanings? Height, sublimity and light. Aren't there people who will pass by the straight path like the bright planet (Who are those?). Those are people of high grades, people of heaven, people of sublimity on the day of resurrection. What did they do?
⦁ Allah swore by those two days because they're the best days of the week and year. The greatest day of the week is Friday and the greatest day of the year where sins are forgiven is the day of Arafat. Isn't it true? The witnessed is the day of Arafat which is the day of freedom from hellfire so how do you get there?,
⦁ This needs diligence and sacrifice... Did you get the equation?, Or do you need me to repeat? Duty: Reaching Sublimity Do you need to reach sublimity, want to be amongst the people with the complete light in the day of resurrection.
⦁ This needs: You need to glorify those glorious days, it is said the Greatest swears by the great, Our Lord the all Mighty is great and will not swear by anything unless it is really great. So, that is why they are important days.
⦁ Thus, glorify these days, take great care of yourself during these days and appreciate them a lot, the Friday of the week and the day of Arafat (And by the witnessing day, and by the witness day).
⦁ And you will not gain that without making an effort and a sacrifice like the story of the ditch. The people were killed, thrown in fire and burnt and that didn't force them to change their religion. Then we need to sacrifice... Wondering what are you willing to sacrifice? Would you sacrifice by your life?, Time? Or what?, What are you willing to sell?, Yourself? Allah is buying, are you selling?, "Selling his soul so freeing it from hellfire".

Arafah and the First Ten Days of Dhul-Hijjah

⦁ In the Holy Qur'an, Allah the Exalted says (interpretation of the meaning) {By the dawn. By the ten nights} [Al-Fajr 89:1-2].
⦁ Many scholars have said that this refers to the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, and the fact that Allah swears by them means that they are indeed significant and worth the attention of every Muslim.
⦁ The Prophet (peace be upon him) says, "There are no days in which good deeds are more beloved to Allah than these days." The Prophet was asked, "Not even jihad for the cause of Allah?" He replied: "Not even jihad for the cause of Allah, except for a man who goes out (for jihad) with his money and his own self then does not return with any of that." [Bukhari]
⦁ Some of the recommended acts of worship during these days include:
⦁ · Fasting - We are told to do good deeds during these days and fasting is one of the best deeds as is stated in a hadith qudsi: 'All the deeds of the son of Adam are for him, except for fasting, which is for Me and I am the One Who will reward him for it.'" (Bukhari).
⦁ Also The Messenger of Allah said: "No servant (of Allah, the Most High) fasts one day in the Path of Allah, except that Allah, the Most High, removes his face from the Fire because of it (the distance of travelling) seventy years."
⦁ · Qiyam al layl - (prayer at night) The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that fasting each of these days is equivalent to fasting a year, while qiyam during each night equals qiyam for a year. [Tirmidhi] ·
⦁ Performing a lot of Tahleel (saying "La illaha illa Allah"), Takbeer ("Allahu Akbar") and Tahmeed ("Alhamdu Lillah") Abdullaah ibn 'Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "There are no days greater in the sight of Allaah and in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Him than these ten days, so during this time recite a great deal of Tahleel ("La ilaaha ill-Allaah"), Takbeer and Tahmeed." (Ahmad) Men should say these out loudly and women should recite them quietly. Men should recite them loudly in the mosque, in the street, in the market, the street and in any place that its allowed to remember Allah.
⦁ There is sound evidence that Ibn 'Umar and Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with them) used to go out in the marketplace during the first ten days of Dhu'l-Hijjah, reciting Takbeer, and the people would recite Takbeer when they heard them.
⦁ · Repentance (Tawbah) : Even though repentance is to be done at all times, people's hearts tend to turn towards worship during these special occasions, so it is important to ask for forgiveness during these times (as well as at all other times) and this repentance combined with the good deeds done during these days can insha'Allah lead a reformation in the Muslim to not repeat their sins and continue to good.
⦁ Arafah, which is the ninth day of the month of Dhul-Hijjah, is the greatest day of the entire year. Fasting that day (for those not performing Hajj) is strongly recommended, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught us that "Fasting the day of Arafah causes forgiveness of the sins of the previous year and coming year" [Muslim].
⦁ I remember reading the story of a lady who reverted to Islam a couple of years ago, and how eager she was to encounter the day on which fasting results in forgiving two whole years. Another hadith tells us that forgiveness on Arafah is for those who take control of their hearing, sight and tongue. For this reason, it is good to perform i'tikaf (remaining in the mosque) on the day of Arafah. Arafah is also the best day of the year for reading Qur'an.
⦁ The tenth day of Dhul-Hijjah is Eid ul Adha on which fasting is forbidden. All Muslims should take great care to make sure that they use their special opportunities given by Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala) to us, and not miss them as once they are gone it will be regretted.
⦁ When our life will end, only Allah knows so we should try to get as much rewards as possible, especially on the days when the reward is multiplied by many times. Never think you have done enough good, my brother and sisters, for never can you do enough good for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
⦁ I pray to Allah to guide us to the very best during these days. Ameen.

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