Ramadan: From Passionate to Compassionate -I

“O ye who believer! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed To those before you, that ye may (learn) Self-restraint (Fasting) for a fixed number of days; But if any of you is ill, or on a journey,

The prescribed number (should be made up) from days later,

For those who can do it (with hardship), is a ransom, The feeding of one that is indigent. But he that will give more, of his own free will- It is better for him.

And it is better for you that ye fast If ye only knew”. (Surah 2: Al Baqarah, 183-184).

Islam proceeded step by step and by degrees in the imposition of most of its obligatory duties and Fasting was no exception. The Noble Prophet (pbuh) advised Muslims to observe fasts for three days in a month but this was not obligatory. Then in the second year of Hijra, the Command (2:183) about fasting in the month of Ramadan was revealed. Verse 185 in Surah Al Baqarah was revealed next year. The first Commandment about fasting contained in vv. 183-184 was revealed in the second year of Hijrah before the battle of Badr. The subsequent verse which superseded it was revealed a year later but was inserted here because it dealt with the same matter.

Siyam or Fasting during the month of Ramadan is Third Pillar of Islam. Muslims wait all year long for the arrival of this month of Ramadan. FASTING MEANS from dawn until sunset eating, drinking and sexual intercourse is forbidden. Ramadan is the month of patience. A person who is ready to be patient, not to eat while he is hungry, not to drink while he is thirsty, not to lean to his lusts, such a person is a noble individual. Such a person will be given paradise by Allah(SWT) as a gift, as a merit of award.

To train yourself to abstain from the essentials of life is not an easy act. It needs a strong personality to dictate self-control, self-discipline and self-restraint. Fasting develops self-control and helps Muslims overcome selfishness, greed, laziness and other faults. It is an annual training program to refresh us for carrying out our duties towards Allah. A person who can restrain himself, for the love and pleasure of Allah, deserves a reward from the Creator Himself. The hardship of fasting brings the glad tidings that the fasting undertaken for the sole purpose of pleasing Allah is sure to be accepted by the Most Merciful Lord.

Fast in which the spirit of Fasting is not observed is only an exercise in starvation but not really a Fast at all. The Prophet (pubh) said “whosoever does not give up telling lies, or acting in a false manner, Allah has no need for his giving up his eating or drinking.”

The basic purpose of Fasting is to suffuse us with the quality of taqwa. The term “taqwa” implies fear and precaution and in Islamic terminology it means fear of Allah or God Consciousness and avoidance of disobedience to Him. Literally, taqwa means: Godliness, devotees or piety. According to the scientific meaning, it signifies a screen between two things. Thus, if the servant submits himself to Allah’s will by carrying out all obligatory duties with which he has been commanded and abstains from that which Allah has prohibited, then his obedient actions have placed a screen between himself and Allah’s punishment. That is called

taqwa. In our life journey we face innumerable temptations and we must shun them and stick scrupulously to the path of righteousness and truth- that is what constitutes taqwa, and for generating this taqwa. Taqwa is attained through knowledge which is coupled with true faith (iman). If we do not possess knowledge, we cannot really show piety. To obey the commands of Allah and to carry out His laws constitutes

taqwa. Fasting has been made obligatory on us. We are made conscious about the needs and deprivation of those who are more in need than ourselves. This heightening of one’s sense of sacrifice is the opposite of selfishness and of a desire to exploit or oppress someone for the sake of gain. Allah (SWT) does not need our hunger, but fasting helps us to develop and refine our reflex about right and wrong, our sense of love and gratitude. Ramadan teaches us how to control our animal passions, how to bring them under discipline. The end result is manifestation of a human personality that loves Allah and loves His creation, that fears none but Allah, that draws all its strength from Allah and Allah alone.

Ramadan is also the month of the Qur’an, the month in which the Qur’an was revealed. The moral and spiritual climate of Ramadan helps the flourishing of the Qur’anic message which the ambiance is of goodness, humility, righteousness, love for good and aversion for evil.

BENEFITS OF SIYAAM:

Besides the feeling of hunger and thirst, fasting teaches us to control the love of comfort. It helps us to keep our sexual desires within control. Siyaam builds and nourishes the soul of the fasting Muslim. The fasting person enriches his fasting by the remembrance of Allah, the recitation of the Qur’an, the night prayers, Zakah, Sadaqah(charity), and by refraining from sins and obscenity. The fasting person lowers his gaze and suppresses his desires. He guards his tongue from vain talk and obscenities. He guards his hands and legs from the prohibitions of Allah. He employs his hands and legs in the good and various deeds. Siyaam is not the mere refraining from eating and drinking, it is also refraining from vanity and obscenity. Siyaam builds a strong will and nourishes the truthful zeal in the soul. This is achieved when the fasting person struggles to work for his livelihood and resists his desires and temptations. Siyaam builds the strength to bear difficulties and hardship and instills the character of perseverance. The fasting person by depriving himself from food and drink, and other necessities of life becomes capable of controlling his desires, capricious whims, and temptations. The purpose of fasting is to enable a Muslim to control his passions, so that he becomes a person of good deeds and intentions. If one fasts from dawn to sunset, but continues to be abusive to one’s spouse and children, tell lies, swears wrongly under oath, commits zina, cheats one’s children by not giving them what is duly theirs of nafaqah in the form of care and love and indulgence in other wrongful acts, then the objective of fasting has not been achieved. Anger, a common human weakness, can also be brought under control by fasting. A Muslim should keep away from all bad actions during his fast. He should not lie, break a promise or do any deceitful act. Fasting in Ramadan helps one to develop good habits and suppress or eliminate bad habits such as smoking, drinking coffee, tea, etc. One can avoid or cut down on excessive consumption of food.

A fasting person has feelings of sympathy for the poor. The sense of compassion springs from the feeling of pain. Fasting is a practical means to develop compassion for other people’s sufferings. The Prophet Muhammad(pbuh) himself was very generous during Ramadan.

Ramadan instills unity and equality among all the members of the Muslim ummah. The Muslims fast during the same month, perform qiyaam al lail during the nights of this month and all seek the night of Qadr. They offer zakat-ul-fitr at the end of the month and celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr together. By doing this together during this month of Ramadan, the ummah becomes like one body living in harmony. The fasting person is alert and cautious not to fall into something that might spoil his or her fasting or seek the wrath of Allah.

To Be continued