All praises are for Allah, who is the most powerful, most merciful and the greatest. The merciful lord chose a day for the perfection of his Din (religion) which is known by the name of A’rafah. “This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favour upon you and have approved for you Islam as religion.” (Surah al Maa’idah 5:3) The day is 9th of Dhul-Hijjah which marks the gathering of all the Hajj pilgrims in the area of A’rafah to supplicate before Allah. The blessed Prophet of Allah delivered his last sermon at the same place and indicated the perfection of the religion by Allah. Regarding the said day, Allah mentions it in another verse of Surah Burooj. By the sky containing great stars. And [by] the promised Day. And [by] the witness and what is witnessed” (85: 1-3) It was reported from Abu Hurayrah (RA) that the Prophet (PBUH) said:“The promised day is the Day of Resurrection, the witnessed day is the Day of ‘Arafah, and the witnessing day is Friday.” (Tirmidhi) Given the significance of this blessed day, it’s highly recommended to observe Fasting on A’rafah. The virtues of fasting on this day is proven from the blessed messenger of Allah himself. When asked about fasting on the day of Arafah, he said: “It expiates the sins of the past year and the coming year.” (Muslim). Apart from fasting, making Dua(supplication) on this day is more beloved to Allah. “The most excellent dua is the dua on the Day of Arafah, and the best of what I and the prophets before me have said, is “There is nothing that deserves to be worshiped in truth except Allah, He is Alone and has no partner, to Him belongs the dominion and to Him belongs all praise, and He is All-Powerful over all things.” (Muwatta) Let’s not miss this opportunity to please the Almighty and make best use of the virtuous day!
