2021 GAMP Ramadan lecture: COVID-19 prevention: Islam and the protocols

A fellow with the Ghana Academy of Muslim Professionals, GAMP, last weekend delivered a lecture on the Islamic viewpoint on health protocols in relation to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The lecture by Ustadha Hamdiya Suleiman was the second programme organized by GAMP as part of the 2021 edition of its Ramadan lecture series.

She delivered the lecture virtually to a limited audience that had gathered at the Cantonments Police Mosque whiles other invited persons joined via the Zoom meeting platform.

The umbrella theme for the 2021 lecture series was “Ramadan: A Mitigation For COVID-19 Challenges,” comprising four lectures in all.

GAMP is the new identity for the erstwhile Ghana Muslim Academy, GMA, a collective of Muslim professionals who champion the cause of Muslims across different sections of the Ghanaian society primarily in the area of education and social services.

Rayhann Shaban (Head of Dawah (Outreach) and Publications Committee, GAMP)

Below is the full text of her presentation:

All praise be to Allah Lord of the Universe, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful for allowing us to reach another Ramadan. May this Ramadan be better than our previous ones.

What are Viruses?

Viruses are microscopic parasites, generally much smaller than bacteria. They lack the capacity to thrive and reproduce outside of a host body.

Covid-19 is an acute respiratory illness in humans caused by coronavirus, capable of producing severe symptoms and in some cases death, especially in older people and those with underlying health conditions.

It was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, a city in China. In 2003, an outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) started in China and spread to other countries before ending in 2004.

The virus that causes COVID-19 SARS-COV-2 which caused a worldwide pandemic of respiratory illness is similar to the one that caused the 2003 SARS outbreak: both are different strains of coronaviruses. Much is still unknown, but COVID-19 seems to spread faster than the 2003 SARS.

Diagnosis may be difficult with only a physical exam because mild cases of COVID-19 may appear similar to the flu or a bad cold. A laboratory test can confirm the diagnosis.

COVID-19 symptoms include:

Cough

Fever or chills

Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

Muscle or body aches

Sore throat

Loss of taste or smell

Diarrhea

Headache

New fatigue

Nausea or vomiting

Congestion or runny nose

Also, COVID-19 can lead to severe respiratory problems, like kidney failure or death. And as of now, there is not a specific treatment for the virus.

Indeed our deen is complete. It encompasses all aspects of our lives. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said: "This day I have perfected for you, your religion and completed my favor upon you and have approved for you Islam as religion." (Quran chapter 5:3).

Imam Malik may Allah have mercy on him, made a comment on this ayah that whatever was not included in the deen on that day cannot be part of it anytime. Also, Allah Azza wa Jalla said: "We have neglected nothing in the Book." Quran Chapter 6:38.

This tells us that as Muslims whatever happens to us in our lives we refer back to the Quran and the Sunnah. Tests are part of our everyday life.

The Novel Coronavirus is the biggest test of our lives that really reminds us that we are not in control of anything. Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala said in Al-Baqarah 2:155: “And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient.

When the believer is tested he stays patient and Allah rewards him and elevates his status. The advent of covid-19 has been a blessing in disguise. Families got to stay together which is very rare.

The parents did not have to run out of the house, drop off children at school and go to work. Ramadan was beautiful because they got to do a lot of acts of worship and learned together.

Vulnerability

We find ourselves very vulnerable to this still unknown and rampaging virus due to our lifestyles and the conditions we find ourselves in. I will talk about 3 of the causes of these vulnerabilities and possible solutions.

1. Overcrowding

2. Salah (prayers)

3. Social gathering

Overcrowding

The whole world is vulnerable with the situation of overcrowding, but the situation is different for each. Whereas in countries like the United States, the situation of overcrowding is an avoidable choice, In Ghana and other developing countries, this is not the case.

Many people live in congested homes like the compound houses we all grew up in; with so many relatives living together. This makes it hard for one who is infected to isolate, and may end up spreading the virus to others.

The situation of the homeless and hawkers, "kaya ye" who left their own towns to the city for job opportunities end up sleeping in front of closed stores at the mercy of the weather and at the risk of spreading the virus to each other without knowing.

Abu Huraira may Allah be pleased with him narrated that, the messenger of Allah (SAW) said: "Do not put together a sick animal with the healthy ones.” This hadeeth applies to us as well, to isolate ourselves when we're sick especially when we are contagious.

The issue of overcrowding, in our peculiar situation, calls for the Government of Ghana to consider providing affordable homes to help ease the incidence of having many relatives in small habitats.

Lack of jobs in the towns and villages is what is driving these hawkers away from their towns into the Cities for jobs, the government and private sectors should consider opening up the economies of those towns and cities, not only will this provide jobs and hence discourage the hawkers from leaving their homes but also makes economic sense.

The more the city is choked, the more the resources of the city are stretched thin, and a potentially deadly situation if a more serious disease breaks out in the future.

Salah

We have been making salah together in our various masajid (mosques) throughout our lives. It is a requirement of our Deen, especially for the male. We found ourselves for the first time in our lifetime, being forced to pray the five daily prayers, Jumuah, Taraweeh, and the Eid prayers in our homes.

The annual pilgrimage to Mecca was affected and people could not go for Hajj, for the most part. Alhamdulillah as time passed by we had rules to start going to the masjid with a limited number of people, social distancing and wearing of masks.

As Muslims, this became a challenge, since social distancing does not allow standing shoulder to shoulder and toe to toe as required when in salah. We ended up with two schools of thought regarding this issue.

One school of thought insists on sticking to the sunnah of closing the gaps between us in order not to leave room for shaitan. The other school of thought opined that it is okay to practice social distancing for our own protection.

In line with that opinion, last year's Hajj was socially distant. I believe that since the rule does not change how we make salah it is not a problem and hoping to go back to our normal salah soon.

Those who insist on sticking with the prayer as it is, should ensure that they wear their masks and also use their personal prayer rugs when praying at the masjid, so we can reduce the likelihood of spreading the virus.

Social gathering

Don't we all miss that? It was like a huge part of us was taken away. This is where we get to enjoy each other's company. The walima (wedding), the aqeeqah (outdooring), adua iftar (breaking fast) etc are no longer like the ones we used to have.

The rule is to stay six feet away from each other and keep our masks on wherever we go in a crowded area. It is so easy to contract this virus. I know we usually find ourselves in social gatherings and not observing the six feet rule.

We can therefore still have a limited number of people to do things when necessary, or have it virtually since it's becoming the norm. People use zoom for schools, weddings, meetings, lectures and other programs, and for the most part it's very convenient as we are experiencing in this very Ramadan Lecture series.

How do we protect ourselves from this virus?

We are still struggling to protect and prevent ourselves from getting infected by the virus. Thousands of people have lost their lives and we continue to lose loved ones, though not at the scale of the first few months.

The Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said: " If you hear about an epidemic in a city, you do not enter it and those in it must stay”; hence preventing the spread of the disease. I remember when we had to make a decision on whether to go to my cousin's nikah (marriage) in New York and they had their first case of the virus.

A few days later it started to get worse prior to the wedding. So we decided not to go. Subhanallah! Most of our people that went to the nikah ended up getting it and some lost their lives including one of my uncles. Social distancing was not adhered to.

We are in difficult times but we should not despair from Allah's mercy. We should remember to be consistent in saying our morning and evening adhkar (remembrance) which prevents us from so many bad things that are seen and unseen that may befall us.

A typical example of a dua we should always say is: "O Allah, I seek refuge in you from leprosy, madness, elephantiasis and evil disease". (Sunan Abi Dawud).

Washing of hands is required as a preventive measure for Covid-19 and any other virus. As Muslims cleanliness is core in our deen.

We wash our hands and other parts of our body all the time before we pray. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said: “O you who have believed, when you rise to (perform) prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the elbows ankles”. (Quran chapter and wipe your heads and your feet to your 5:6).

He subhanahu wa ta'ala again said “Allah loves those who repent and loves those who are purified”. Also, Abu Huraira narrated that the Messenger of Allah said on the Day of Resurrection, my Ummah will be called "those with the radiant appendages'' because of the traces of wudu or ablution. Therefore whoever can increase his radiance should do so.

Vaccine

Scientists worked so hard to come up with vaccines, currently there are three in the United States; Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson. Other countries have theirs as well, like AstraZeneca by the British while still many more countries are coming up with other brands. The issue of inequality is rearing its head in the issue of vaccines as the developed countries buy all the vaccines and leave the under-developed with little to nothing. The World Health Organization, will have to change this and ensure that all the countries of the world are equally prioritized with a plan to supply vaccines to every country, rich or poor. The world has become a global village, as such, the developed world is not safe if the under-developed world is not safe.

More than 637 million people have been vaccinated worldwide and still counting. So far these vaccines are proving to be safe.

Yet in spite of the safety of these vaccines, some people are skeptical about it, some of whom use other reasons best known to them, including some of our brothers and sisters in Islam. Our Prophet may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him said: "Seek cure oh servant of Allah, indeed Allah did not send down a disease except that he has a cure for it except old age".

One of the main objectives of shariah is to protect human lives. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said: "Whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land - it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely. (Al Maidah 5:32)

During the first migration to Abyssinia whose king was a Christain. He welcomed them very well and whatever rule they had in the land they followed it. So we have to follow the rules of the land wherever we are. We are asked to put on our masks and be socially distant when in crowds, we should do so.

If people cannot afford to buy a mask they can buy handkerchiefs, and use them as face masks, or have people sew it and wash them for reuse. The Muslim women should also use the niqab as a preventive measure since it is recommended while others said it's obligatory.

The Fulanis can also use their "rawani" the turban as we call it, as a face mask. Also, I'd like to reiterate on the need for the government to build affordable housing for people to be able to rent and also create more job opportunities in the rural areas to decongest the cities.

In the United States for instance, people lost their jobs and homes due to COVID-19 and paying rent was a problem. The government provided stimulus for every resident that paid taxes. It may not be enough but at least they tried to take care of their people. Let’s also take care of our people as best as we can.

In conclusion, I would like to recommend that we take our famous black seed. The Prophet Muhammad, may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him, said that the black seed is a cure for everything except death.

Let's try to take our vitamins D, ginger, lemon and Zinc or get it through our fruits and vegetables to boost our immune system. The Prophet may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him also said to tie our camels and put our trust in Allah. Talking about tying our camels, let me share with you what our daily routine is like in school.

We fill out a covid-19 survey before going to school.

Wear our masks and shields

Wash and sanitize our hands, many times throughout the day, all the while still maintaining social distancing, and each desk in the class has a shield around it.

The above is by no means full-proof, but we are “tying our camel”, while putting our trust in Allah. Let’s be innovative and do all we can to protect ourselves and our loved ones.

Anything I said that is good is from Allah and anything I said that is not good is from myself. Subhanakallahumma wa bihamdika wa ashhadu an lailaha illallah wastaghfiruka wa atubu ilaik.