With Ramadhan around the corner, many of us will be thinking of how to make the most of the month of mercy. However, did you know, immediately before Ramadhan, we have a time so rich in opportunity that it has been described as ‘water-laden clouds’ that fall on freshly planted seeds? This is Rajab and Sha’ban. If we want the goodness of Ramadhan to rain upon us, we must seize the opportunities that the days, before it, bring.

As we emerge from a difficult Winter of lockdown, the first buds of Spring restore our hope for better seasons ahead. Just as the earth begins to blossom with new life, we must revive our spiritual hearts by planting the necessary seeds.

“Rajab is the month to sow the seeds. Sha’ban is the month to irrigate the crop and Ramadan is the month to reap the harvest.”
- Abu Bakr b. al-Warraq al-Balkhi

With sacred days of Rajab passing and Sha’ban soon to follow, let us use this time to both ‘sow’ and ‘water’ our intentions for Ramadhan by giving relief to our vulnerable brothers and sisters on our doorstep.

The better we irrigate our seeds during Rajab and Sha’ban, the stronger and more blessed our experience of Ramadhan will be. Sha’ban is the month where our deeds are raised to Allah, yet it is often a time people overlook. By honouring Sha’ban as it deserves, we gain the additional reward of remembering Him in a time when people are heedless:

“It is a month people neglect between Rajab and Ramadan, and it is a month in which the deeds are raised to the Lord of the Worlds, so I love for my deeds to be raised while I am fasting.”
- (an-Nasa’i)

Life under lockdown crushes struggling families

After a year of life under the pandemic, with events and normal fundraising activity suspended, HHUGS have an endured a challenging year. Moreover, for the families already in financial difficulty, they have now been pushed to the brink. They are often challenged with debt as single mothers struggle to support their family without their husbands. The Zakah funds that sustain much of our core support to families are now entirely depleted.

With a family member in prison, HHUGS families were no strangers to isolation prior to the pandemic, but their loneliness has plummeted to despair during the lockdown. The prison visits that provided momentary relief for families torn apart have been suspended. Any small doors to relief they provided for children missing fathers and spouses separated have been closed until further notice. With job losses, as well as benefit cuts and caps, increased fuel and utility bills continue to put families under severe pressure.

“I was then hit by a benefit cap which left me with not enough to look after my 3 children and my husband was recalled to prison at the same time. I became very lonely, especially in a new area in a new home with no support network. Lockdown has made my depression much worse.”

Restore Honour & Dignity for Families
This Sha’ban:

• Feed & Shelter Families in Need
  Essential support for families struggling with rent payments, utility bills and essential groceries for the household.
  £250 to Feed a Family for the month
  £500 to Shelter a Family
  

  “I was finally speaking to someone who genuinely cared about what I was going through and wasn’t afraid to talk to me. They sent me food vouchers immediately which was such a relief because I could finally buy food for me and my baby.”

• Ramadhan Iftar Food Packs
  £50 small pack, £100 large family pack
  Prepare for and elevate your own Ramadhan by helping others to have a dignified Ramadhan, free of financial anxiety.


• Remind families they are not alone with Ramadhan Gift Boxes for those who feel even more neglected and isolated than any other time of year. Allow them to herald the blessed month as a time of happiness with just £35 per family.
  

  “Every occasion like Eid, Ramadan, masha’Allah. The children are waiting. They are like “it’s from HHUGS! It’s from HHUGS, it’s from HHUGS! What’s this for me?! And especially when they see their names, it’s like family. They’re so happy”

Why Giving this Sha’ban is So Important

Increasing in your good deeds during Sha’ban means you will:

• Make your good deeds a strong habit to purify you and allow you to reach Ramadan with stronger eeman


• Excel and focus on greater goals in Ramadhan by raising the bar during Sha’ban. The key to achieving great goals is to work in stages and remain consistent. If you are already reading a page of Qur’an a day during Sha’ban, it will not be a huge jump to read 5 pages during Ramadhan. If you began to give a small amount of daily sadaqah during Sha’ban, you won’t feel the pinch by increasing your giving during Ramadhan. Whichever habits you set into place during Sha’ban can be maximised during the month of Ramadhan with more ease.


• Begin Ramadhan with a clean slate. Sadaqah extinguishes sins so enter this month in the best state possible.


• Don’t rely on Ramadan alone. This year has seen us lose many loved ones from our community as death feels ever-present. We have no guarantee that we shall live to welcome Ramadhan, so it makes sense to prepare now and begin to bank those good deeds.

Uplift vulnerable families during days when your deeds are raised to Allah. Welcome Ramadhan in the best of ways with HHUGS.

O Allah! Bless us in Rajab and Sha’ban, and allow us to reach Ramadhan.