Magnificent Preparation

الْعَظِيمُ

Al-‘Aẓīm — The Magnificent

وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ وَالْأَرْضُ جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ...

And they esteem not Allah as He hath the right to be esteemed, when the whole earth is His handful on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens are rolled in His right hand. Glorified is He and High Exalted from all that they ascribe as partner (unto Him)

Surah Az-Zumar (39:67)

النية

Today, I will prepare for Ramadan with the seriousness of someone who knows they are preparing to meet Al-ʿAẓīm.

تأمّل

Al-ʿAẓīm at cosmic scale is manifest in the sheer size of creation — a universe 93 billion light-years across, containing more stars than grains of sand on earth. And the One who made all of that is the same One you are preparing to worship in Ramadan. The magnificence of the Creator should magnify the quality of your preparation. You are not getting ready for an ordinary month — you are getting ready for a meeting with Al-ʿAẓīm.

في هذه الآية

The earth entirely — al-arḍu jamīʿan — in His grip. The entire planet is a handful for Him. You have not yet comprehended His magnificence.

دعاء

Said in every rukūʿ — glorifying the Magnificent. Preparation for Ramadan begins with recalibrating your sense of who you are worshipping.

حديث

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'If you knew what I know, you would laugh little and weep much.'

— Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 6485, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 426