In fact, today, misconceptions, whims and innovations are the fatal and destructive diseases of our societies. Creating innovations in the religion, believing in them and acting accordingly is not only a crime but also a sin and disobedience of Almighty Allah, through which we choose our own destruction both in this world and in the hereafter. On the other hand, it is the nature of human beings that Allah made them capable of using their common sense and searching for the reality of such beliefs and misconceptions in order to distinguish the right path from the wrong one in this temporary life and to save themselves from hell-fire in the afterlife.

The Month of Safar
Safar is the second month of the Islamic lunar calendar. Literally, it means empty or a house that is empty from items and goods. It also means empty handed. The Arabs (the pagan people of Makkah) believed in the sacredness of the holy months. The Arabs knew the sacredness of Dhul-Qa’dah, Dhul-Ḥijjah, and Muḥarram and thus refrained from war & battle throughout this period. They did not indulge in war or any other crime in these months. However, as soon as the month of Safar started, they used to leave their houses empty and do their best to go to war and do raids to collect as much war-booty as they could. They used to wait for such holy months to be over so that they can be free from all sorts of restrictions and avail the opportunity to indulge in robbery, theft and war. Therefore, as soon as Muharram was over, and Safar began, they would start committing crimes – thefts, robberies, fighting other tribes, leaving their homes vacant, etc., which is why the month was named Safar.

There is a common belief that the month of Safar was named as such due to the fact that in the pre-Islamic times, people used to travel extensively during this month to gather food and other necessities, leaving their houses empty. This relates back to the word “Safar” which when translated from Arabic means empty.

The month of Safar is regarded as a month of ill-fortune and bad luck. The pre-Islamic Arabs believed Safar to be a serpent that dwells in the stomach of man. It stirs to life in this month and causes various types of illnesses and diseases. Thus, people are more prone to fall ill in this month.

What’s more striking is that some Muslims, even today, believe in this myth of the 14th century. The Meccans, during the Jahiliyyah period, were so skeptical about the month of Safar that they labelled this month as the month of misfortune. Therefore, the Meccans were not engaging in any good activities during the month, especially during the first 13-days of the month.

As Muslims, we cannot blame a certain time for a calamity or ill-fortune. Everything that occurs is from Allah. There is no such a thing as evil time or a month of bad luck. We create our own evil with our own superstitious.

There are no particular practices of this month in the light of the Quran and Sunnah, therefore a person should continue his or her daily routine practices. And as for the virtues of this month, it is the second month of the Islamic calendar. There is no bad luck or ill-omen in this month as most of the people think.