New Age Islam

Every year just ahead of Ramadan, we enter into the Islamic month of Sha’ban full of divine bounties, spiritual blessings and moral virtues. But instead of giving it a pass, as we Muslims casually do, we should recall the prime objective of Sha’ban being prelude to Ramadan, that is, to reclaim our true selves; our true nature upon which we were created. It also provides us with an abundant opportunity to spiritually prepare and mentally ready ourselves to benefit optimally from the rich harvest of Ramadan. Let us not forget what the Prophet (pbuh) would say in every month of the Sha’ban: "O Muslims! A noble and generous month has come to you. A month in which a night is better than one thousand months, and this month is the month of charity, patience, and mercy. In this month the gates of Paradise become wide open and the gates of Hell are shut, and the devils are chained." (An-Nasa'i)
http://newageislam.com/islam-and-spiritualism/d/87489