Fath al-Rabbani

Benefits: … If a person develops an inclination towards recitation due to a lecture or personal study, he should begin his practice by reciting a quarter or half of a juz (section of the Qur’an), then gradually increase the amount. If someone develops an inclination to fulfill the rights of neighbors, he should maintain his motivation by fulfilling the rights of one household, then gradually, according to his ability and time, expand this practice. This is the rule regarding every act of worship, except for obligatory acts of worship (fara’id). What happens among us is that when people develop an inclination in one way or another, they begin to practice in such large quantities that by the fourth or fifth occasion, they become afflicted with boredom and weariness and abandon the practice altogether.

Dear readers! If you reflect, you will notice that as soon as the month of Ramadan begins, people develop a great enthusiasm for righteous deeds, especially for the five daily prayers and the Tarawih prayer. However, by the fifth or sixth day of Ramadan, most people, and especially the youth, have lost that enthusiasm. What is the reason for this? It is precisely that steadfastness is not acquired with gentleness; people suddenly attack a large quantity of righteous deeds, but their temperament and nature are not so capable as to support them. Thus, after four or five days, that same corrupt nature prevails, and it seems as if despair has overtaken the people and that the mercy of Allah Ta’ala is not encompassing them.