I REMEMBER RAMADHAN not that long ago, in the height of the British summer. The longest fast stretched to 18 hours and 42 minutes. I remember the thirst, the way the day had to be paced slowly, hour by hour.
The night was just as intense. Iftar was joyful after such prolonged hunger and thirst. Taraweeh, shortly after, was a struggle on tired legs. Qiyam was prayed with sleep-deprived eyes, and suhur arrived almost as soon as iftar had ended. All of that was packed into less than five hours of the twenty-four.
Our sleep was disrupted. Parents still managed the school run. Workers still showed up to work. Students still sat exams. Life did not stop for Ramadhan in Britain.
It was a time of grit. Those summers taught us sabr. We showed up for Allah when the body was spent, and there was nothing left to give but devotion.
The Arrival of Rahmah
This year, it is different. Ramadhan arrives in mid-February. The first fast is less than twelve hours. The evening stretches before us, and the night is long.
The physical burden has been lifted by hours. But our deen teaches us that every change in circumstance is itself a form of trial. Allah reminds us in the Qur’an:
يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ بِكُمُ ٱلْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ ٱلْعُسْرَ
Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship. (al-Baqarah 185)
This seasonal shift is not accidental. It is a manifestation of rahmah, divine mercy. A deliberate gift of ease.
And yet, it poses a searching question: what do we do with mercy when it arrives?
Ease Reveals the Heart
When the fasts were long, patience was unavoidable. The day took everything from us. In that exhaustion, there was clarity; we knew we were giving our all.
But when the sun sets, and we still have energy left, the reality of our devotion is revealed. Ease shows what hardship concealed. No longer restrained by hunger or fatigue, we are free to choose how we respond.
Will we meet ease with gratitude, or with neglect?
Allah promises:
لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ
“If you are grateful, I will surely increase you.” (Ibrahim 7)
True shukr is not limited to words on the tongue. It is gratitude of the heart and gratitude of the limbs. It is honouring the time, strength, and clarity we have been given by using them in obedience to Allah.
The Gift of Time Returned
Shorter days invite us to move from merely surviving Ramadhan to truly thriving within it. This ease grants us the capacity to:
- Reclaim the family table: sharing calm, unhurried iftars with family, friends, and neighbours.
- Elevate our prayer: standing in ‘Isha and taraweeh with presence, reflecting on the verses rather than counting the rak‘at.
- Deepen our study and reflection: reading Qur’an at night with focus, allowing its words to settle in the heart rather than fighting sleep.
- Refine our character: showing patience and kindness at home and beyond, instead of irritability born of exhaustion.
- Perfect our dawah: connecting our cause to the cause of the ummah and striving to raise the Word of Allah together as one.
Time has returned to us. What we do with it is the test.
The Reality of “Five Before Five”
Yet this transition carries poignancy. Some of those who stood beside us during those long summer fasts, family members, friends, colleagues, are no longer here. They have returned to their Creator.
We have, if Allah allows, been granted another opportunity. They have not.
The Prophet ﷺ advised us: “Take advantage of five before five: your life before your death, your health before your illness, your free time before your busyness…” (Bayhaqi)
We are living in the “before.” If Allah wills, this Ramadan is our life. It is our health. It is our time.
And we do not know if it will come again.
Removing the Excuse
Let’s be honest with ourselves. If we possessed the discipline to fast nearly nineteen hours while carrying the full weight of our daily responsibilities, what is our excuse now?
This is not a rebuke; it is a reminder of our potential. We have already shown what we are capable of. We worried about those long summer Ramadhans, and yet Allah carried us through them.
Now He has made the path easier.
When Allah makes the path easier, He is not lowering the bar. He is removing the excuse.
Let us use this energy to be better in every sphere of life. Let the Qur’an settle deeper into our souls. Let the fasts sharpen our mindfulness of Allah. Let our du‘ā’ be unhurried, our repentance sincere, and our worship intentional.
The days may be shorter, but the opportunity for reward remains infinite.
Concluding Du‘ā’
O Allah, You gave us strength when the days were long, and You have now graced us with ease. Do not allow this comfort to make us complacent, nor this ease to make us heedless.
Bless our homes, our work, and our communities. Bless this Ummah. Accept our fasting, our prayers, and every sincere moment in between.
Have mercy on those who fasted with us in years past and are now in Your care.
O Turner of hearts, do not let us leave this month as the same people we were when it began. Transform us through Your mercy, and allow this Ramadan to draw us closer to You.
Āmīn.
Living For Islam 