Dear sisters in Islam
Assalaamualaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,
Alhamdulillah, by the grace and mercy of Allah subhan wa ta’ala we are blessed with another beautiful Eid to enjoy and share with our loved ones. This day is a blessing in multiple ways. It is a gift for those who spent their days in abstaining from worldly desires and nights in worship and prayer to seek the pleasure of Allah subhan wa ta’ala. It is a day that creates beautiful memories and reunions with friends and family. It is a day spent in declaring the Greatness of our Almighty Lord and praising Him.
The day of Eid is also a day of reflection and this is closely tied to the blessings brought forth by this day. For those of us who failed to take advantage of this beautiful and unique opportunity of gaining Allah’s forgiveness and pleasure, this day should be filled with sincere concern over our loss. We were handed a platter full of good deeds and we chose to abandon it. We should reflect over this grave loss and strive to prepare ourselves for the next entire year to reap the fruits of next Ramadan while begging the most Merciful to grace us with many more such opportunities.
When we celebrate this day with our loved ones, we should also reflect upon the plight of those brothers and sisters who don’t have anyone to share their laughter and hugs with on Eid. There could be a brother who lost his entire family while escaping from a war torn land. There might be a sister who was banished from her house upon embracing Islam. We should especially make an effort to make this day a source of happiness and gratitude for such brothers and sisters.
The Takbeeraat of Eid should also compel us to reflect upon whether our hearts have truly surrendered to our Creator’s greatness or is it just the Ramadan hype that got us in the zone. As we recite the Takbeeraat, we should make a solemn pledge to continue with our efforts of seeking Allah’s pleasure throughout the year as we did in this month. His Greatness is not limited to this month alone and neither is His Mercy and Compassion. The empty prayer halls in masajids after Ramadan and the Mushafs locked away in cabinets after this month of Quran passes, will bear witness against us on the Day of Judgment. They will speak of our negligence in accepting the Greatness of our Lord. Lets make a sincere promise that we will call each other towards Allah’s pleasure throughout the year just as we sent reminders about Tilawah and Ibadah during Ramadan.
May Allah subhan wa ta’ala adorn our lives with many more Ramadans and increase us all in faith, knowledge, and action, Aameen.
Eid Mubarak to you all from ICNA Sisters’ wing
Wassalam
Sadia Salman
President ICNA Sisters’Wing
