A Muslim receives a great spiritual boost during Ramadan, and this boost serves as a foundation upon which he can build a life filled with goodness and faith, if he continues on this path. However, maintaining this requires effort and determination, as souls may experience a decline in motivation after seasons of worship. Therefore, Muslims need certain aids to help them remain steadfast and continue performing righteous deeds after Ramadan. Among these aids are:
- Realizing the Value of What One Gained in Ramadan
Ramadan was an opportunity to increase acts of worship, accumulate good deeds, and cultivate the soul with noble qualities. It should not be viewed merely as a passing station but rather as a means to launch into a life filled with obedience. If a Muslim has struggled against his desires and disciplined himself to adhere to worship during Ramadan until he became accustomed to it, then this is a great achievement. It would be unwise to squander it. Instead, he should seize and build upon it, ensuring that his acts of righteousness become permanent.
- Seeking Help from Allah, the Lord of the Worlds
The hearts of people are in the hands of the Most Merciful; He turns them as He wills. Allah stabilizes whom He wills and guides them to the straight path. Thus, He has instructed us to seek His assistance, as He says: “Our Lord, do not let our hearts deviate after You have guided us, and grant us from Yourself mercy. Indeed, You are the Bestower.” (Aal `Imran: 8)
Moreover, in Musnad Ahmad, it is narrated from Aisha, the Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to frequently say: “O Changer of the hearts, make my heart firm upon Your religion.” Therefore, seeking help from Allah is the path to remaining steadfast in His obedience.
- Keeping Righteous Companions and Avoiding the Negligent
Righteous companionship helps a Muslim remain steadfast after Ramadan and prevents him from abandoning righteous deeds. This is because people may experience a decline in worship after Ramadan, and it is in such times that good companions play a crucial role in encouraging one another to stay committed. A person is influenced by those around him. If he keeps righteous company, they will help him avoid sin and continue in goodness. Additionally, righteous companions remind a person when he forgets or gets distracted from worship.
On the other hand, those who are heedless of the remembrance of their Lord are a source of misguidance and deviation. Their companionship leads to negligence in fulfilling religious duties. Allah has commanded us to be with the righteous and to distance ourselves from the heedless: “And keep yourself patient [by being] with those who call upon their Lord in the morning and the evening, seeking His countenance. And let not your eyes pass beyond them, desiring adornments of the worldly life, and do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance and who follows his desire and whose affair is ever [in] neglect.” (Al-Kahf: 28)
Righteous companionship is one of the greatest aids to steadfastness. The abundance of worshippers in Ramadan made it easier to perform acts of obedience, but the real challenge comes after Ramadan when one may feel lonely or distracted. For this reason, the righteous have always relied on companionship to help them remain steadfast in worship. In Hilyat al-Awliya, it is narrated that Jafar, a companion of Muhammad ibn Wasi’ (may Allah have mercy on him), said: “Whenever I felt hardness in my heart, I would take one look at the face of Muhammad ibn Wasi`.”
This indicates that righteous companionship is an aid to devotion and worship.
- Understanding That Steadfastness in Worship After Ramadan is a Sign of Acceptance
Scholars have affirmed that one of the signs of the acceptance of a righteous deed is that it leads to further righteousness. In Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, `Urwah ibn al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “If I see a man performing a good deed, I know that he has other good deeds as well, for one good deed leads to another. And if I see him committing a sin, I know that he has other sins as well, for one sin leads to another.” This proves that if Allah accepts a good deed from His servant, He grants him success in continuing and maintaining it. This is one of the greatest motivations for remaining steadfast after Ramadan.
- Being Cautious Not to Destroy What Has Been Built
During Ramadan, a Muslim was keen to strengthen his connection with his Lord through prayer, continuous charity, sincere fasting, and refined character. It would be foolish to build such a magnificent structure in Ramadan only to demolish it afterward when one is most in need of it. Allah warns against such behavior: “And do not be like the woman who untwisted her spun thread after it was strong.” (An-Nahl: 92) That is, do not ruin your good deeds after perfecting them. Allah has also provided a parable in the Quran to criticize those who abandon righteousness after being guided: “And recite to them the story of the one to whom We gave Our signs, but he detached himself from them; so Satan pursued him, and he became of the deviators.” (Al-A`raf: 175)
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also warned against abandoning acts of worship after becoming accustomed to them. In Sahih al-Bukhari, Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-`As (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: “O 'Abdullah! Do not be like so-and-so; he used to get up at night for optional prayer but abandoned it later.” Furthermore, in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: “The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performed his actions regularly.”
That is, he remained constant in performing righteous deeds and did not dedicate them to only specific days, months, or years.
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