Financial Guide for Ramadan

Ramadan is almost upon us, and it is month of rejuvenating our eman and reconnecting with the divine. And money is a critical part of that.

The Prophet ﷺ “mentioned a man who travels a great deal and becomes disheveled and covered with dust, who raises his hands to the heavens (and says), ‘O Lord, O Lord,’ when his food is haraam, his drink is haraam, his clothes are haraam and he has been nourished with haraam, so how can he receive a response?” (Muslim)

This hadith shows that not having our financial affairs in order is a blocker to us progressing spiritually. There is a barrier between us and Allah.

Here’s how to fix this, this Ramadan:

1. Career: Most of your money is going to be made via your career. So make sure your career has purpose. Watch this video we did.

2. Zakat: Give zakat thoughtfully and with a view to having maximum impact. Don’t just give it to make yourself feel better. Check out our Zakat Impact Fund and Calculator here.

3. Akhirah planning: Goes back to purpose but also make sure you’re prepared financially, emotionally, and Islamically. Doing a will is a key part of that. Reach our guide on this.

4. Pension: Muslims will lose £13bn over the next generation if we don’t get our pension sorted out. Check out our guide here to get sorted.

5. Diversified Investments: With inflation at 6%, over 20 years you will lose over 70% of your wealth by doing nothing. Protecting wealth is one of the maqasid of the sharia. To get started check out our course. 

6. Mortgages: Having a haram mortgage is, well, haram. You might be feeling guilty about it, but this Ramadan is the moment you decisively get rid of it. Explore some halal options instead.

7. Debt: you may have fallen into some haram debt (credit cards, pay day loans etc). This is the month you come up with a real gameplan to get out of this rut.

8. Haram business: you might be running a business that sells alcohol, or deals in interest. You’ve probably said things like “just another 2 years” or “I’ll ask forgiveness” or “everyone else is at it” or “it’s necessity isn’t it?”. No – this Ramadan make that decisive move to shift away. 

Don’t let haram dealings and negligence hinder or deprive you of Allah’s mercy this Ramadan!