Ramadan Reflections #5: The Ones Who Took All the Good
🌙 Ramadan Reflections is a series of short essays where reflection turns into practice, and the heart returns to Allah.
A man once asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ:
“Among those striving in the path of Allah, who are the best?”
He replied:
“Those who remember Allah the most.”
The man asked again:
“Which of those who fast are the best?”
He replied:
“Those who remember Allah the most.”
Then the man mentioned prayer. Zakat. Hajj.
And every single time, the Prophet ﷺ gave the same answer:
“Those who remember Allah the most.”
Abu Bakr (ra) then said to ‘Umar (ra):
“The people of remembrance have taken all the good.”
And the Prophet ﷺ responded:
“Yes, indeed.”
(Hadith Ahmad 15553)
SubhanAllah! 😃
The hidden multiplier
Notice something remarkable!
The Prophet ﷺ was not asked about small deeds. He was asked about the greatest acts in Islam:
Striving in the path of Allah
Fasting
Prayer
Zakat
Hajj
Yet the answer did not change.
Not “those who strive the hardest.”
Not “those who fast the longest.”
Not “those who give the most.”
But those who remember Allah the most.
It is as if dhikr is not a separate deed — it is the spirit inside every deed.
Without remembrance, actions remain movements.
With remembrance, actions become alive.
Ramadan without dhikr is just hunger
This hits differently in Ramadan.
We can fast perfectly.
We can pray every night.
We can attend every gathering.
And yet… the heart may still be somewhere else.
Dhikr is what keeps the heart awake inside the action.
When you feel hunger and whisper “Ya Allah” — that is dhikr.
When you break your fast and say “Alhamdulillah” with awareness — that is dhikr.
When you pause before speaking and remember Allah is watching — that is dhikr.
And suddenly, the ordinary becomes worship.
Why remembrance changes everything
Because remembrance anchors the heart.
Without it, the ego quietly takes credit.
Without it, routine takes over.
Without it, the deed becomes about performance.
But when the heart is remembering, something shifts:
You are not fasting for discipline.
You are fasting before your Lord.
You are not praying to complete a task.
You are standing before the One who created you.
You are not giving charity to feel generous.
You are giving because everything you have already belongs to Him.
Dhikr redirects the center.
“They took all the good”
Abu Bakr’s comment is striking.
“They have taken all the good.”
Why?
Because remembrance keeps the heart present inside the deed.
A person who remembers Allah while fasting gets the reward of fasting and the reward of remembrance.
A person who remembers Allah while praying gets the reward of prayer and the reward of remembrance.
It multiplies everything it touches.
And perhaps that is why the Prophet ﷺ confirmed it so firmly:
“Yes, indeed.”
A small Ramadan practice
Instead of adding more deeds, try adding more remembrance inside the deeds you are already doing.
Before eating:
Bismillah — with awareness.
After eating:
Alhamdulillah — with awareness.
During the day:
Quietly repeat SubhanAllah, Alhamdulillah, Allahu Akbar.
Not mechanically.
Presently.
Because Ramadan is not only about what you do.
It is about whether your heart is there when you do it.
If the people of dhikr “took all the good,” then perhaps the real question for us this month is simple:
Is my heart remembering?
May Allah make us among those who remember Him often — in hunger and in fullness, in action and in silence. 🤲
Ameen.
Series: Ramadan Reflections