O you who believe! Observing Sawm (the fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become al-muttaqeen (the pious).

(Qur’an al-Baqarah: 183)

Dua to be read from the beginning of Rajab till Ramadhan

اللهم بارك لنا في رجب و شعبان و بلغنا رمضان

(مسند الإمام أحمد)

'Allahumma baa-rik-lanaa fee-rajab wa sha'baan wa bal-lig-naa ramadhaan.'
'O Allah, make the months of Rajab and Shabaan blessed for us, and let us reach the month of Ramadhan.'

When a person knows that he has to attend a special function, he begins to prepare if not weeks then many days in advance. He will prepare everything that is necessary for the function and will be well prepared for the day. He will make sure that he looks smart and clean and so on.

Similarly the month of Ramadhan is also a very special month for all Muslims and we all need to prepare for it well in advance. It is a month in which Allah sends down his mercy in abundance, he forgives thousands of people every night of the blessed month and he also grants extra reward for all good deeds! However, all these benefits can only be achieved if a person follows the commandments of Allah and the teachings of the beloved prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).

Naturally a person cannot change from one state of mind to the other, as Allah says in the Qur'an, “mankind was created weak” (An-Nisa':28), so in order to tread the path of piety a person needs to prepare himself or else he will not be able to stay on the path long enough. Many methods have been prescribed by scholars as well pious individuals of which I would like to mention a few;

1. If you are not regular with your Salah (prayers) then first of all try to perform the daily 5 compulsory Salah, and if you already perform your daily Salah then perform additional prayers alongside your daily Salah.
2.  Try to learn as many Duas (prophetic supplications) as you can in Arabic.
3. If you have any fasts or prayers to make up for from the previous years then try to complete as many as you can and this will also help you in getting ready for the fasting and the long prayers of Ramadhan.
4. If you are a smoker then Ramadhan is an ideal time to quit, so get yourself prepared to quit for life.
5. You should try to attend all the talks of your local scholars and get yourself spiritually prepared for the month of Ramadhan.
6. If you have any queries as to how you should go about in preparing yourself for the month of Ramadhan then speak to your local scholars and they will surely be able to help you.

These are only a few of the ways to prepare for the month of Ramadhan, but I hope that the readers of this article will search for more ways on how to prepare for this blessed month so that they can take maximum benefit and keep themselves charged up until the end of Ramadhan and also the months to come after Ramadhan.