Author: Muhammad Fatkhun Niam*
Every time we enter the new Hijriah year, Muslims welcome the arrival of the month of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic calendar. For some people, Muharram may only be understood as marking the turn of the year. In fact, this month has a special position in Islamic teachings and has long received great attention from scholars. The Ulama not only explain the origins of the name, but also explain the various virtues that make Muharram one of the glorified months in the Shari’a.
Also Read: The Glory of the Month of Muharram in Review of the Qur’an and Hadith
Ibn al-Jauzi explained that Muharram is a month that has a great position and is called al-Muharram because fighting in it is forbidden. He said:
The month of Muharram is a noble month, but it is called Muharram because fighting is prohibited in that month. It was narrated from a group of commentators in the words of the Almighty: “At dawn and ten nights” that it was the first ten days of the month of Muharram. Qatada said: The dawn he meant was the dawn of the first day. From the forbidden.¹
This information shows that the glory of Muharram is not only related to the prohibition of war, but is also connected by some commentators with the word of Allah SWT. in surah al-Fajr. Qatadah even interpreted the word al-fajr as dawn on the first day of the month of Muharram. However, it should be noted that this interpretation is one opinion among commentators, while the majority of tafsir scholars are of the opinion that what is meant by the first letter of Al Fajar is the first ten days of the month of Dzulhijjah.
Muharram is one of the four haram months established by Allah since the creation of the heavens and the earth. This decision was confirmed by the Prophet in the hadith:
Abdullah bin Abdul Wahhab told us: Hammad bin Zaid told us, on the authority of Ayyub, on the authority of Muhammad, on the authority of Ibn Abi Bakr: On the authority of Abu Bakra, on the authority of the Prophet Muhammad SAW, he said: “Times have changed as on the day Allah created the heavens and the earth, one year has twelve months, four of which are haram, three in a row: Dzul Qa’dah. Dzulhijjah and Muharram, and Rajab Mudar between Jumada and Sha`ban.
… Narrated from Abi Bakroh from the Messenger of Allah: Indeed, time has turned back to when Allah created the heavens and the earth. One year consists of twelve months, of which four months are haram. Three consecutive months, namely Dzulqa’dah, Dzulhijjah, and Muharram, and Rajab which is between the two Jumadil and Sya’ban. (HR. Al-Bukhari).[1]
Also read: 10 virtues of fasting in the month of Muharram
Sheikh abd Al Muhsin Al-Abbad explained the hadith:
The haram months are four months in one year: three months in a row, namely: Dzul Qa’dah, Dzul Hijjah, and Muharram, and one separate month in one year, namely Rajab…. Pre-Islamic people forbade fighting at that time and held it in high regard, and if they wanted to fight in a haram month, they postponed the sanctity of that month to another month. For example: they allow fighting in the month of Muharram and make Safar instead, and this action they call an-Nasa’i. The Almighty said: Evil deeds are an increase in disbelief. [التوبة:٣٧] They used to worship the sacred months, but they committed deception by deferring their purity to others, and it is said that when they changed them, the months became mixed with them.
Sheikh Abd al-Muhsin al-‘Abbad explained that four months of the year are considered haram months which are glorified. Three of them are in sequence, namely Dzulqa’dah, Dzulhijjah, and Muharram, while the other month is Rajab which is located separately in the middle of the year. Arab society during the Jahiliah era respected the forbidden months and did not fight in them. But when they wanted to go to war, they changed the rules by moving the honor of the forbidden month to another month. For example, they allow war in the month of Muharram and then replace it with the month of Shafar. This practice is known as an-Nasī’ (النسید) which was later condemned by Allah SWT. in His words:
“Indeed it is only an increase in disbelief.” [التوبة: ٣٧]
“Indeed, delaying (the haram month) increases disbelief. That is why the Prophet SAW said in Haji Wada’ that the order of time has returned to the way it was when Allah created the heavens and the earth.
In the hadith narrated by Muslim it is also stated:
Qutayba bin Saeed told me. Abu Awanah told us on the authority of Abu Bishr, on the authority of Humaid bin Abdul Rahman al-Himyari, on the authority of Abu Hurairah, who said: Rasulullah SAW said: The most important fast is after… Ramadan, Allah’s holy month. The most important prayer after the fardhu prayer is the evening prayer.[2]
This hadith shows that the most important sunnah fast after Ramadan is the fast carried out in the month of Muharram. Scholars recommend increasing fasting this month.
Also read: History of the Hijri calendar and the glory of Muharram
Ibn Hubayrah explains the above hadith:
“In this hadith there is evidence of the superiority of the month of Muharram, namely that it is the beginning of the year, so you should welcome it with worship, so that it is hoped that it can erase the remainder of the year, as we have mentioned about the superiority of dhikr at the beginning of the year.
According to Ibn Hubayrah, this hadith shows the priority of Muharram as the beginning of the Hijri year. A Muslim is advised to welcome it with worship so that it is hoped that it will be a cause of goodness for the following months.[3]
Among the special features of Muharram is the special mention of this month by the Prophet as Syahrullah al-Muharram. Relying the name Muharram on Allah shows the glory and special position that this month has. Explaining this, Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali said:
The Prophet – peace and blessings be upon him – called Muharram the month of God, and added it to God indicating His glory and mercy. For God Almighty only bestowed upon Him the qualities of His creatures, as He bestowed upon Him Muhammad, Ibrahim, Ishaq, Jacob, and the other prophets, may Allah bless and peace be upon them, with His devotion, and bestowed upon Him His house and His she-camel.[4]
According to Ibn Rajab, Muharram’s reliance on Allah is a sign of very high glory. Because God only relies on Himself for things that have special privileges. Therefore, the mention of “Syahrullah” is one of the strongest arguments showing the greatness of Muharram compared to other months.
Also read: Practices in the month of Muharram, including fasting on Ashura
In fact, some scholars argue that Muharram is the most important month among the four haram months. Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali cited the opinion of al-Hasan al-Bashri who stated that Muharram is the most noble of the haram months. He also narrated the words of al-Hasan:
Scholars differ as to which holy month is the best: Al-Hasan and others say: The best of them is the month of God, Muharram. A group of scholars later preferred it. Narrated by: Wahb bin Jarir, on the authority of Qurra bin Khalid, on the authority of Al-Hasan. He said: Allah opens the year with a haram month and ends it with a haram month. There is no month in the year after Ramadan that is greater in the sight of Allah than the month of Muharram. It is called God’s deaf month because of the severity of its prohibitions.
It means:
“Scholars differ in their opinions regarding the most important haram months. Al-Hasan al-Basri and several other scholars are of the opinion that the most important thing is the Month of Allah, namely Muharram. This opinion is also chosen by some mutaakhkhirin scholars. Al-Hasan said: ‘Allah opens the year with a haram month and closes it with a haram month. There is no month of the year that is greater in the sight of Allah after Ramadan than Muharram. Because its honor is so strong, Muharram used to be called Syahrullah al-Aṣamm (Allah’s highly glorified month).”
This information shows that Muharram has a very special position in Islam. In fact, according to some scholars, after Ramadan there is no greater month in the sight of Allah than Muharram. Therefore, this month is the right momentum to increase worship and good deeds as the opening of the Hijriyah year.[5]
Apart from authentic hadiths about the virtues of fasting Muharram, there is also a history that mentions the great rewards of fasting in this month:
Muhammad bin Razin bin Jami’ al-Masri Abu Abdullah al-Mu’adil narrated to us, Al-Haytham bin Habib narrated to us, Salam al-Taweel narrated to us, on the authority of Hamzah al-Zayat, on the authority of Laith bin Abi Sulaim, on the authority of Mujahid, on the authority of Ibn Abbas, who said: Rasulullah SAW said: “Whoever fasts on the day of Arafah will get qadha for two years, and whoever fasts one day in the month of Muharram, then every day will get thirty days.[6]
Also read: Important events in the month of Muharram
Thus, Muharram is not just a marker of the turn of the Hijri year. It is a month that has been glorified by Allah since the creation of the heavens and the earth, including one of the sacred months that is revered, called “the month of Allah”, and is the best time to increase fasting after Ramadan.
Therefore, the arrival of the month of Muharram should be celebrated with more worship, reflection, dhikr, fasting and good deeds as a form of glorifying Allah’s will and an effort to start the year with obedience.
*Ma’had student Aly Hasyim Asy’ari Tebuireng.
[1] Muḥammad ibn Isma’il al-Bukhari, Saḥīḥ al-Bukhari Damascus: Dār Ibn Kathīr wa Dār al-Yamāmah, juz. 4, p. (1712)
[2] Abū al-Husain Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj al-Qushayrī al-Naysābūrī, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Maṭba’ah ‘Īsā al-Bābī al-Ḥalabī wa Syurakā’uh, al-Qahira (Cairo), 2nd century. 821
[3] Yaḥyā bin (Hubayrah bin) Muḥammad bin Hubayrah al-Dhuhlī, al-Ifṣāḥ ‘an Ma’ānī al-Ṣiḥāḥ, Dār al-Waṭan
Juz 8, p. 217
[4] 90
[5] 87
[6] Abū al-Qāsim al-Ṭabarānī, Al-Mu’jam al-Ṣaghīr (Beirut–Amman: al-Maktab al-Islāmī and Dār ‘Ammār), juz 2, p. 1
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