"Awal Ramadhan adalalh rahmat, tengahnya adalah pengampunan dan akhirnya adalah pembebasan dari api neraka""Ramadhan is a month whose beginning is mercy, whose middle is forgiveness and whose end is freedom from fire" The saying of The Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu 'Alaihi wassalam.
Considering the inherent logical sequence of the above saying of the Prophet Muhammad s.a.w, we cannot exempt from fire without first being forgiven by Allah, and to be forgiven we must be graced by Allah's mercy.
Stage One
If we only deprive our bodies of food, drink and sexual appetite (sexual intercourse) we cannot expect to receive mercy from Allah . Ramadhan is a true school of transformation in which in the process we purify our soul through fasting. One must plead for mercy and sincerely cry to receive it as without it we are blocked in the first step and our chances of exempted from fire will be gloomy.
Stage Two
The second one third of the Ramadhan is forgiveness. We must beg for Allah forgiveness. Allah Subhanahu Wataala will forgive and have mercy upon the person who after having sin renders taubah (repentance). We must say Istigfar day and night and we must afraid that if Allah doesnt forgive we will surely be among the loser. Repentance is the process of confessing to Allah our sins and to regret such commission which haven not been rendered. Here again Allah will assessing the degree of sincerity in our repentance. Allah will not look for lip service but for soul service.
Stage Three
This last stage is the freedom from fire. One should intensify supplication for the last third for Ramadhan. Fulfill the requirement of taqwa. If we remained guided in our life then we will admitted to paradise. Ask Allah for steadfastness upon it until we meet out death. Insya Allah
