Haafidh Ibn Rajab al-Hanbalee (d.795) [May Allaah have Mercy on him] says in his book Lataa'if al-Ma'aarif (Pg. 114-120)
It has been narrated on the authority of Aboo Hurayrah [May Allaah be Pleased with him] who said that the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “All of the actions of the children of Aadam are for him and can be rewarded tenfold to seven hundred times, and Allaah, the Most High, said, ‘Except fasting, that is for Me and I Will Reward it. He leaves following his desires, food, drink all because of Me.’ The fasting person has two times where he is extremely happy; when he breaks his fast and when he meets his Lord. Verily, the smell that comes from the mouth of the fasting person is better with Allaah than the perfume provided by musk.”
It has been narrated on the authority of Aboo Hurayrah [May Allaah be Pleased with him] who said that the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “All of the actions of the children of Aadam are for him and can be rewarded tenfold to seven hundred times, and Allaah, the Most High, said, ‘Except fasting, that is for Me and I Will Reward it. He leaves following his desires, food, drink all because of Me.’ The fasting person has two times where he is extremely happy; when he breaks his fast and when he meets his Lord. Verily, the smell that comes from the mouth of the fasting person is better with Allaah than the perfume provided by musk.”
[Narrated by Bukhaari (1894) and Muslim (1151)]
In another narration the wording states, ‘All of the actions of the children of Aadam are for him except for fasting, it is for Me…’
In another narration narrated by Bukhaaree and Imaam Ahmad in his Musnad, it states; ‘Every deed has a reward but fasting is for Me and I will reward it…’
Perhaps, the first version of the narration gives an exception to fasting, which is that all ones good deeds are multiplied from tenfold to seven hundred times more, however fasting is the only exception to this multiplication, fasting can be rewarded and multiplied without any limit. This is especially the case as Allaah, the Exalted and the Glorified, has said that Fasting is for Him and He will Reward it, thus this reward has no limit.
Furthermore, fasting is from the different types of patience, and Allaah, the Most High, says about the reward for the patient;
“Only those who are patient shall receive their rewards in full, without reckoning (or limit)”
[az-Zumar 39:10]
This is why this month has been named by the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] as the month of patience. In another hadeeth, he [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, “Fasting is half of patience.” [Narrated by at-Tirmidhee]
Patience is of three types: being patient in being steadfast on obeying Allaah, patience in staying away from acts of disobedience to Allaah and having patience on what Allaah has Decreed for you, from the tests and trials of life. Fasting, however, combines all three types of patience. So one must be patient and striving in worshipping Allaah,
He must be patient with himself in not following his desires and he must be patient in what is decreed upon him during this fasting, so he will become hungry, thirsty, his body will become weak etc. So fasting combines the various forms of patience, and this is from the most virtuous deeds one can do.
As for good deeds, Allaah, the Most High, rewards the person who remains steadfast on doing good deeds for the act of doing the good deed and everything that is connected to it;
“That is because they suffer neither thirst nor fatigue, nor hunger in the Cause of Allah, nor they take any step to raise the anger of disbelievers nor inflict any injury upon an enemy but is written to their credit as a deed of righteousness. Surely, Allah wastes not the reward of the Muhsinun” [Tawbah 9:120]
It was also narrated by Ibn Khuzaymah in his Saheeh in the Chapter of Virtues of Ramadhaan, and the Hadeeth can be authentically attributed to the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him], that he said, “It is the month of patience and the reward of patience is Jannah.”
It is also narrated that Ibn ‘Umar said, “The reward for fasting is not known except to Allaah, the Glorified and the Exalted.” [Narrated by at-Tabaraanee but it is more correct to say that this narration is Mursal (the chain stops at a Taabi’ee)]
Based on this, your deeds may be multiplied due to the virtue of a particular place, such as having multiplied reward for being in Makkah or Madeenah as it has been narrated in the authentic Hadeeth, ‘A prayer in my Masjid is better than any other masjid by one thousand times except Masjid al-Haraam.’
It has also been narrated; ‘Fasting is multiplied in the Haram in Makkah’ as was narrated by Ibn Majah but this narration is weak. There is also another weak narration from the route of Ibn ‘Abbaas [May Allaah be Pleased with him] , ‘Whoever reaches Ramadhaan in Makkah and he fasts it and stands during its nights reciting what is made easy for him from the Book of Allaah, then he will have one thousand times the reward because of the month of Ramadhaan than any other time or place.’
The reward for deeds can also be multiplied due to the virtue of time, like the month of Ramadhaan or the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah. It has been narrated about the virtues of the month of Ramadhaan in the Hadeeth of Salmaan al-Farsee [May Allaah be Pleased with him] where it states, ‘One who performs a voluntary good deed during Ramadhaan, then its reward is like that of an obligatory good deeds was performed in any other month. And one who performs an obligatory deed in Ramadhaan then its reward is as if he has performed seventy obligatory deeds in any other month.’
It is also narrated by Anas [May Allaah be Pleased with him] as was recorded by at-Tirmidhee, that he asked the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him], ‘Which charity is the best?’ He [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] replied, “Sadaqah in Ramadhaan.”
It is also narrated that the Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be Upon him] said, as was recorded in the two Saheehs, “Performing ‘Umrah in Ramadhaan brings the same reward as Hajj.” In another narration, “Hajj performed with me.” In another narration, “The deeds of the person fasting will be multiplied.”
It has been narrated from Aboo Bakr bin Abee Maryam that his teachers used to say, “If one of you reaches Ramadhaan, then make sure you are constant in giving in charity because it is multiplied to an extent that you have given charity in the path of Allaah. And make Tasbeeh (to say Subhaan-Allaah) because it is multiplied to thousands like it.”
It is also narrated that Nakhaa’ee said, “Fasting a day in Ramadhaan is better than fasting a thousand days outside of Ramadhaan. Making Tasbeeh in Ramadhaan is better than a thousand Tasbeeh in outside of Ramadhaan. A Rak’ah in it is better than a thousand Rak’ah outside it. So if one is doing all of this whilst fasting, then all these deeds will have a reward that will be multiplied because of the virtues of this time, the month of Ramadhaan.”
Fasting is one of the pillars of Islaam, Allaah, the Most High, has made it obligatory for His Slaves to fast and Has Built Islaam upon it. Therefore, fasting brings about a multiplication of reward, because of the honour given to this time of year, this month is a month that one gets closer to Allaah, he increases in Taqwaa and thus, his reward is multiplied even more so than those nations that fasted before us.
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