Indeed we are in a time when the believer is subjected to fluctuations and Allaah has stretched out for him his lifespan. Every day that we spend in this world is a treasure. It is a booty that we must gather as our provision and we must seek from it what we are able of deeds to the best of our ability. Allaah says: "Whosoever desires the reward of the Hereafter, We give him increase in his reward. And whosoever desires the reward of this world. We give him thereof and he has no portion in the Hereafter" (Q42[ash-Shural:20)
Shaban is the name of the (eigth) month of the Islamic lunar calendar, and it is so called because in this month the Arabs used to disperse (tashaaba) in search of water. Or it was said that it is so called because it shaaba (branches out or emerges) i.e., it appears between the months of Rajab and Ramadan. For this reason the pious predecessors would make a new start in Shaban and use it to prepare themselves for Ramadan.
This month of Shaban is often described as the month for the reciters (of Quran). It is also said that the previous month of Rajab is the month for planting seeds; the month of Shaban is the month in which you water the seeds and the month of Ramadan is the month of harvest; wherein the seeds bear fruit. How can we expect the seeds to bear fruit in Ramadan if we do not plant any seeds in the previous months. Shaban is an introduction to the month of Ramadan and just like Ramadan, fasting and recitation of the Quran has been prescribed within it in order to meet Ramadan by having ourselves prepared in obedience to the Merciful.
For such reasons amongst others, the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) would increase his fasting in this blessed month and utilise this time whereas many of us are heedless of its virtues. And remember who he was? The Messenger of Allaah, (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) who has been forgiven his "past and future shortcomings! Aishah (RA) said: "The Messenger used to fast until we thought he would never break his fast, and not fast until we thought he would never fast. I never saw the Messenger of Allah fasting for an entire month except in Ramadan, and I never saw him fast more than he did in Shaban." (Bukhari. and Muslim).
The Prophet himself did not leave us in the dark concerning the reason why he fasted a lot in the month of Shaban. Usamah ibn Zayd (RA) said: "I said, O Messenger of Allaah, I do not see you fasting in any other month like you fast in Shaban. He said, That is a month to which people do not pay attention, between Rajab and Ramadan, and it is a month in which deeds are lifted up to the Lord of the Worlds. I like for my deeds to be lifted up when I am fasting. (Nasai).
Ibn Rajab (RAH) added: "Fasting in Shaban is better than fasting in the Sacred Months, and the best of voluntary fasts are those that are (observed in the months) closest to Ramadan, before or after. The status of these fasts is like that of al-Sunan al-Rawatib which are done before and after fard (obligatory prayers) and which make up for any shortfall in the number of obligatory prayers. The same applies to fasts observed before and after Ramadan. Just as al-Sunan al-Rawatib are better than other kinds of voluntary prayers, so fasts observed (in the months) before and after Ramadan are better than fasts at other times.
The phrase "Shaban is a month to which people do not pay attention, between Rajab and Ramadan" indicates that because it comes between two important months, the Sacred Month of Rajab and the month of fasting, people are preoccupied with those two months and they do not pay attention to Shaban. Many people think that fasting in Rajab is better than fasting in Shaban, because Rajab is one of the Sacred Months, but this is not the case. By the same token, doing righteous deeds at times when people are distracted and negligent is more difficult. One of the indications of how virtuous a deed is, is how difficult it is. If everyone is doing a certain. action, it is easy, but if most people are negligent, this makes it more difficult for those who do remember Allah.
Muslim narrated from the hadeeth of Maqil ibn Yasar: "[The Prophet (PBUH) said:] Worship at times of tribulation (fitnah) is like Hijrah to me." (The phrase "worship at times of tribulation" refers to times of upheavals and trials, when people follow their own desires, and those who adhere to Islam are doing something difficult.) When Shaban began, if the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) still had some voluntary fasts outstanding that he had not fasted, he would make them up during Shaban so that his nafl fasts . would be complete before Ramadan came. Similarly, if he had missed some Sunnah prayers or he had missed Qiyam al-Layl (night prayer), he would make it up.
Aishah (RA) used to make the most of this opportunity to make up any obligatory Ramadan fasts that she had missed because of menstruation; during other months she was too busy with the Prophet (PBUH) to fast. We should also note here that anyone who has any missed fasts to make up has to make them up before the next Ramadan comes. It is not permissible to delay it until after the following Ramadan except in cases of necessity (such as a valid excuse that continues between the two Ramadans).
Whoever is able to make them up before the (second) Ramadan and does not do so, has to make them up after the- (second) Ramadan and in addition to that, he has to repent and to feed one poor person for each day that he missed. This is the view of Malik, al-Shafai and Ahmad. Another benefit of fasting in Shaban is that it is a kind of training for the Ramadan fast, in case a person finds it difficult to fast when Ramadan starts; if he fasts in Shaban he will have gotten used to fasting and he will feel strong and energetic when Ramadan comes.
Shaban is like an introduction to Ramadan and it has some things in common with Ramadan, such as fasting, reciting Quran and giving in charity. Salamah ibn Suhayl used to say: "The month of Shaban is the month of reciters (of the Quran)." Habeeb ibn Abi Thabit used to say, when Shaban came, "This is the month of reciters (of the Quran)." When Shaban came, Amr ibn Qays al-Malai used to close his store and devote his time to reading the Quran. Fasting at the end of Shaban The Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: "Do not pre-empt Ramadan by one or two days, except for those who have the habit of fasting regularly, in which case they may fast. "(Bukhari and Muslim).
Based on this hadeeth, there are three scenarios for fasting at the end of Shaban:
1. A person fasts at the end of Shaban with the intention of being on the safe side and not missing the first day of Ramadan. This is forbidden.
2. A person fasts with the intention of fulfilling a vow or of making up a day of Ramadan that he missed or as an act of expiation (kaffarah), etc. This is permissible according to the majority of scholars.
3. A person fasts a purely voluntary fast.
This is regarded as makrooh (disliked) by those who said that we should differentiate between Shaban and Ramadan by not fasting for a while. Among those who said this was al-Hasan. However, if it happens to coincide with a day when a person habitually fasts, then it is permissible to fast.
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited