FASTING is a unique moral and spiritual characteristic of Islam. It does not mean just abstaining completely from food, drink, sex and smoking from the break of dawn till sunset during the whole month of Ramadan. Fasting is meant to teach us essential values such as patience, sacrifice and humility.
Ramadan is a great month in which Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) received the first verses of the Holy Qur’an through revelation. The first battle of Islam against the infidels took place in Ramadan.
It is a pity that some young Muslims do not know the holiness of this month. They turn it into a month of sleeping and laziness. Some of them spend the whole night playing cards or watching TV. They go to bed after sunrise and sometimes miss noon or afternoon prayers, which is a great sin. During Ramadan we should ask forgiveness for our past sins and help in refraining from evil thoughts and actions, pray for guidance in our daily lives, and do our best to purify ourselves through self-restraint and good deeds.
It is also a time when Muslims are to focus on spiritual cleansing and enlightenment, establishing a strong link between themselves and God through prayers, supplication, charity, good deeds, kindness and helping others. Muslims know that refraining from backbiting, telling lies, insulting others or hurting them is as important as refraining from food and drink during Ramadan. Jabir related on the authority of Anas that the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) once said:
“Five things break the fast: The telling of lies, backbiting, carrying tales, perjury, and the casting of covetous and lustful eyes.” In another Hadith, Abu Huraira reported Allah’s Messenger as saying, “He who does not abandon falsehood in word and action in accordance with fasting, Allah has no need that he should abandon his food and drink.”
For all these reasons Islamic fasting is unique and provides a number of benefits and blessings. It is different from the other fasts previously observed in terms of the number of days, the time and the manner of fasting itself.
WHEN Islam introduced this matchless institution of fasting, it planted an ever-growing tree of uncountable products and invaluable blessings. The spiritual benefits of the fasting include:
Teaching the principle of sincere love. We do fasting out of deep love for our Lord. A person who loves Allah is a person who really knows what love is.
It equips us with a creative sense of hope and an optimistic outlook on life as a whole. Because we fast with a sincere desire to please Allah with a view to attaining His Mercy and Grace.
It imbues us with a genuine virtue of effective devotion, honest dedication and closeness to Allah, because when we fast we do so for Allah and for His sake alone.
It cultivates in us a vigilant and clear conscience, since a person keeps to himself the fact that he is fasting. A Muslim fasts to please Allah and satisfy his/her own conscience by being faithful in secret as well as in public.
Fasting is an effective tool in applied moderation and will power. The man who observes fasting properly is certainly the one who could discipline his passionate desires and place himself above physical temptations. It is a practical training for us to endure the hardships of hunger and thirst. We also have a good chance to get rid of our bad habits.
It teaches us patience and unselfishness, because when we fast, we feel the sufferings and pains of deprivation. This makes us realize the severe effects of such pains on others, who might be deprived of essential commodities for days or weeks together. Such a person is much quicker than others in sympathizing with his fellow human beings and responding to their needs. This is an eloquent expression of unselfishness and genuine sympathy.
It provides a Muslim with a transparent soul to transcend, a clear mind to think and a light body to move and act. All this is never the transient effect of carrying an empty stomach. Medical instructions, biological rules and intellectual experience attest to this fact. Thus, we could say that fasting has many medical benefits.
It shows Muslims a new method of saving and sound budgeting, because when we eat less quantity or fewer meals we spend less money and effort.
It creates in us the real spirit of social belonging, of unity and brotherhood, of equality before Allah as well as before law. This spirit is the natural product of the fact that when we fast, we feel that we are joining the whole Muslim society in observing the same duty, in the same manner, at the same time, for the same motives and to the same end.
It is a prescription from Allah for self-reassurance and self-control, for maintenance of human dignity and freedom, for victory and peace. These results never fail to manifest themselves as a lively reality in the heart of the Muslim who knows how to keep his fasting. When he fasts in the proper manner, he is in control of himself, exercises full control over his passions, desires and resists all evil temptations. Thus, he is in a position to reassure himself, to restore his dignity and integrity and to attain freedom from evil. Once he obtains all these, he has established inner peace, which is the source of permanent peace with Allah and, consequently, with the entire universe.
It is a fact that the beauty of Islam lies in its moderation, balance, kindness and universality of which Ramadan is the most striking symbol. Ramadan is a month of mercy, forgiveness and blessings. It requires serenity, devotion, learning, politeness, generosity and reaffirmation of iman (faith) to be watchwords and hallmarks of a Muslim society. Fasting in Ramadan is not what is commonly known as “going on a diet”. Ramadan fasting has its rules and prohibitions, its own system and social goals. It is enjoined for the moral elevation and spiritual development of a person. It is not mere abstention from the “goodies”, and worldly pleasures. In fact, abstention from food and drink is only a step toward the higher goal of righteousness. The Holy Qur’an makes it obvious by prescribing Ramadan fasting as one of the cardinal principles of Islam. Allah does not want us to get involved in unnecessary hardships. All that Allah demands with regard to this sublime act of worship is the creation of a society, which follows His orders, and the righteous traditions of His Prophet. Hence the main object of Ramadan fasting is to promote righteousness, which is a progressive cultivation of spiritual values.
The Prophet is reported to have said that whoever abstains from food and drink but does not strive to safeguard himself against moral lapses, strives to no purpose. It was reported also that he said, “Whoever does not give up indecent speech and evil actions, Allah is not in need of his forsaking his food and drink.” So please be kind to all, go easy on the accelerator and be patient in all matters, for Allah is with those who are patient.
