The Arrival of God’s Guest

*A Community in Waiting*

The people of faith stand upon the heights of their homes and mosques. Even if their feet cannot reach the mountain peaks, the flight of their yearning is no less than the loftiest summit. They stand at the zenith of their aspirations, eyes fixed upon the vastness of the sky, hearts attuned to a sacred vibration—awaiting that auspicious hour when it will raise its head upon the horizon, when the Guest of God will descend upon our thresholds, and when the light of awakening will dawn upon our slumbering destinies.

*The First Glimmer*

Suddenly, a fine line of light appears upon the hem of the horizon, and hearts receive the glad tidings of the Beloved’s arrival. It is as though the heights of heaven have drawn near to the earth, and a venerable caravan from the celestial realm is descending upon our settlements. Blessed is that assembly of loyalty adorned by your arrival! Blessed is that spectacle which binds the servant to the majesty of the Divine!

*A Spring Like No Other*

Then spring arrived in such a manner
That the sun and the moon became mere onlookers.

This month descends from the expanses of the Throne, passes through the celestial spheres, and enters the realm of dust. And we become the very embodiment of restlessness to welcome it. If the wings of celestial birds and the pinions of the archangels were to combine, they would still fall short of encompassing the joy that surges through hearts at the arrival of this blessed month.

An unfamiliar light settles within hearts; eyes gleam, a veil of tranquillity spreads across faces, and a hymn of gratitude is woven into every movement. It is as though man has transcended his limited existence and begun to breathe a different atmosphere—as though the soul has rediscovered its lost direction.

*A Salutation to the Month*

Salutations be upon this month—the herald of grace and mercy.
Salutations be upon it—the manifestation of beauty and excellence.
Salutations be upon it—the boundless treasury of generosity and benevolence.
Salutations be upon it—which bestows hours of closeness and whispered prayers.
Salutations be upon it—which makes tears an act of worship and supplication the greatest truth of life.

*A Humble Plea*

O Month of God! We stand before you burdened by the weight of our faults, holding the lamps of hope in our hands. Our laps may be empty, but our eyes are raised towards your grace. Come, and create spring in our desolate hearts; shower the rain of mercy upon our arid land.

*The Joy of Union*

What cheerful delight, O companion, in separation from the Beloved;
The heart’s gaiety is offered as a sacrifice to the pain of parting.

The crescent moon appears, the door of union opens, and a long chapter of separation closes. The restlessness of hearts finds repose. The soul, which for ages wandered in an unrecognised thirst, hears the sound of a familiar spring. The cold sighs of autumn withdraw, and a spring arrives that brings more joy to hearts than any flower. The call to prayer fills the air, and the recitation of the Qur’an feels as though drops of light are raining upon the earth.

*The Garden in Bloom*

When the garden learned of your whereabouts from the morning breeze,
The nightingale was enraptured, and the bud blossomed too.

*The School of Devotion*

Ramadan is the school of servitude, and fasting is its first lesson. Here, man is taught to stand against his own desires. A seal of silence is placed upon the lips, the rebellion of the tongue is restrained, and the ego—yesterday a ruler—today becomes obedient.

Man comes to realise that he is in need of bread, yet not its prisoner; a seeker of water, yet not its slave. When the stomach empties, the heart begins to fill; when the body weakens, the will grows strong. This hunger is not merely of the body—it is the awakening of the soul, reminding man of his true station.

*The Ascent of the Soul*

The soul of the fasting person gradually rises above the densities of the world. Neither thirst unsettles him nor hunger disturbs him. A new insight is born within his being. When he sees his ego brought under control, he realises that true strength lies not in surrendering to desire, but in mastering it.

The angels gaze with wonder upon this form of clay, witnessing how it journeys towards the light, and how this particle of dust converses with the sun of Truth.

*The Hour of Iftar*

When the hour of iftar arrives, it is no mere breaking of the fast with a date; it becomes a moment perfected by gratitude and thanksgiving. How exquisite is the water with which the fasting person breaks his fast! Beside it, even the Fountain of Life seems insignificant.

The servant becomes the guest of his Lord. No matter how compassionate the physicians of the world may be, any remedy not sealed by the Lord’s approval is, to us, an enemy of the wound. Hands raised in supplication do not return empty. One door closed upon desire is replaced by countless doors of mercy. The servant becomes certain that his small sacrifice has been accepted by infinite grace, and that his simple act has been transformed into a means of divine pleasure.

*The Essence of Fasting*

The reality of fasting is not merely to remain hungry throughout the day. If it is not accompanied by the reformation of the heart, the purity of the gaze, and the honesty of the tongue, it remains little more than hardship.

Fasting teaches modesty, truthfulness in silence, and sincerity in solitude. The believer does not count his deeds, nor does he display them. He receives this month as one welcomes a beloved, and when the thought of its departure arises, a gentle sadness envelops the heart—a sadness perfumed with love.

*The Month of Patience*

This is the month of patience. Glad tidings to the one who chooses obedience within it, for his reward will not be measured by any dominion of this world. His recompense lies in the hand of God Himself.

Every worldly glory is fleeting, but the reward of obedience endures. For the fasting person, there is a special gate through which he will enter, and a Paradise prepared for his arrival—where there is no separation, no fear, no decline, and no anxiety.

*A Confession of Need*

O Master of the month of Ramadan! We do not claim that there is no sinner greater than us, for even in such a confession there lingers a trace of self-display, and the odour of distinction taints sincerity. We are only aware of the frailty of our condition.

We possess just enough awareness to know that we are the embodiment of need, and You are the embodiment of self-sufficiency; that we are the embodiment of error, and You are the embodiment of concealment and pardon; that we are the form of weakness, and You are the boundless source of power. Our foreheads are bowed in remorse, and at the threshold of Your grace the lamps of hope still flicker.

*A Final Invocation*

O month of Ramadan! Come, so that the ruins of our hearts may be inhabited by the sound of your footsteps. Kindle within us a lamp that will tear through the thick darkness of our sins; bring forth a dawn in whose light the rebellion of the ego surrenders of its own accord.

Grant our intentions the firmness of rock; bestow upon our hearts that tenderness which transforms tears into worship and silence into supplication. Introduce us to such delight in nearness to our Lord that every worldly attraction becomes utterly insignificant.

We have awaited you long, praying for your arrival in the desert of our deprivation. Now that you have risen upon our horizon, clothed in light, transform us so completely that when the hour of your departure comes, our identity is renewed—our hearts no longer what they were, our intentions purified, our gazes freed from the fog of the world.

*A New Birth*

Ordain it so that when you bid us farewell, we may have discovered within ourselves the secret of a new birth—emerging from the darkness of sin into the light of repentance; awakened from heedlessness, standing in the dawn of consciousness.

So that your departure is not a loss, but a trust that burns like an everlasting lamp within us; that a new insight is born in our hearts, a new purity in our deeds, and a new direction in our lives.

Dr. Mohammed Akram Nadwi
Oxford

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