Rajab

Rajab (Arabic: رجب‎) is the seventh month of the Islamic calendar. The lexical definition of Rajaba is "to respect", of which Rajab is a derivative.

This month is regarded as one of the four sacred months in Islam in which battles are prohibited. The pre-Islamic Arabs also considered warfare blasphemous during the four months.

Rajab Is also regarded as the month in which ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib The first Shia Imam and Fourth Caliph of Islam was born inside the Kaaba, the most sacred place of worship of Muslims.

The month is also a prelude to the month of Ramadan, which follows after the intervening month of Sha'ban. Therefore, when Prophet Muhammad sighted the moon of Rajab, he used to pray to Allah in the following words:

اللّهمّ بارك لنا في رجب و شعبان وبلّعنا رمضان

Allāhumm-a bārik lanā fī rajab-a wa shaʻbān-a wa balligh-nā shahara ramaḍān-a

"O Allah, make the months of Rajab and Sha'ban blessed for us, and let us reach the month of Ramadan (i.e. prolong our life up to Ramadan, so that we may benefit from its merits and blessings)."