THE INNER REALITY OF FASTING
THE month of Ramazan is approaching—the month in which the Quran was revealed. The Quran makes special mention of its revelation in the month of Ramazan, while making it obligatory upon it's followers. This indicates that there is a close link between Ramazan and the Quran. In the words of the Quran: In the month of Ramazan the Quran was revealed, a book of guidance for mankind, with clear proofs and criteria distinguishing right from wrong. Therefore whoever of you is present in that month let him fast.
But he who is ill or on a journey shall fast
a similar number of days later on.
THE QURAN 2: 185
The revelation of the Quran started in 610 A.D., in the month of Ramazan according to the lunar calendar. The first revelation was made to the Prophet when he was in the cave of Hira, and it continued for the next 23 years, finally reaching completion in Medina.
The guidance given in the Quran is the best blessing to mankind from God, because it shows man the path to ultimate success.
The guidance given in the Quran is the best blessing to mankind from God, because it shows man the path to ultimate success. It tells man how to conduct himself so that in his eternal life he can gain entry into paradise. Paradise is the goal of man. Fasting is the path to it.
The month of Ramazan is an annual reminder of this blessing. The celebration of the revelation of the Quran is not observed in the usual way but by abstinence and being thankful to the Almighty. Fasting in this month is acknowledgment of the divine blessings. It is like saying, ‘O Lord I have heard and I accept it.’
The term Roza (fasting) is of Persian origin. In Arabic, it is known as Sawn meaning abstinence. Therefore, fasting is an exercise aimed at controlling our desires. In other words, it is the Art of Desire Management. Therefore, Roza literally means that every believer, in spite of being filled with desires, leads his life not by following his own whims and doing whatever he feels is correct—be it taking revenge, robbing, cheating indulging in corrupt practices, getting angry or being selfish—because all of these are actually desires; but by leading a life whereby these desires are wilfully managed. The essence of fasting thus is to eschew all evil ways throughout the year. The true fast is that from which one learns a lesson.
Also, this is a month during which the Quran should be read and understood. The Quran is specially recited in this month. At night the Quran is also recited during the Tarawih1 prayer. This month has been made special so that the blessings of God may be counted even more. When the Quran is read during the month of its revelation, it reminds us of the time when divine light from heaven fell upon the earth. Man remembers this and calls out, "O Lord, fill my heart with Your divine light and make me among those who are near you". When he reads about Hell and Paradise, his inner self cries out, 'O Lord, save me from Hell, and let me enter Paradise'.
The Quran is a reward to His servants from God. And fasting is acknowledgment of the reward.
In this way the Quran becomes a guiding force in man’s life. He earns his livelihood according to its dictates. He bathes in the ocean of its life to cleanse his soul.
The Quran is a reward to His servants from God. And fasting is acknowledgment of the reward. Through fasting man makes himself worthy of being thankful to God. He obeys the command of God and thus revels in the supremacy of God. Having gone through a month’s fasting, he creates an ability in himself to lead a life of piety as ordained in the Quran.
According to the Quran, there are two purposes of fasting:
To make one cautious in life.
To make one thankful to God.
THE QURAN, 2: 183 and 2: 185
Food and drink are man’s most basic necessities. When he is consumed by hunger and thirst, he understands how weak he really is; he realizes how much he is in need of God’s succour. In the evenings, after a whole day of fasting, people eat and drink their fill: that is when their hearts are flooded with a sense of gratitude to God for His having made complete provision for their needs. That is when they praise God and offer up their thanks to Him. This feeling of dependence on God’s bounty also makes them adopt a properly cautious attitude to life. The Prophet is reported as saying that God rewards good deeds from tenfold to 700-fold. His reward for fasting, which is especially for Him, will be countless. In another Hadith2 he is reported as saying, “There are many who fast and receive nothing in return, but hunger and thirst”.
What is the difference between one fast and another, while in appearance both are alike? In actual fact, the appearance is not all that there is to it. The act serves only as a symbol of the essence. One who observes fasting in its essence as well as in its outward form will deserve the promised reward. On the other hand, one who attaches importance to symbols alone, will have nothing to his credit when he comes before God. Fasting of the latter type is of no value in the eyes of God, since the true value of something which is symbolic in its nature, is always determined by the will to virtue which it represents.
The greater significance of fasting lies in its symbolism of an inner spiritual eagerness to make all kinds of sacrifices.
But there is much more to fasting than the caution and gratitude induced by the purely outward, physical forms of abstention. Its greater significance lies in its symbolism of an inner, spiritual eagerness to make all kinds of sacrifices. Obviously, one who refrains from taking food and water on specific days, but who goes throughout his life without any qualms about telling lies, persecuting his fellowmen, thwarting justice, and so on, has missed the whole point of the fast of Ramazan. He has concerned himself all along with outward forms and not with inner realities. Such a man cannot expect to find favour in the eyes of his fellowmen and will certainly incur the wrath of God, his Maker.
One who fasts in all sincerity takes care to cast his entire life in one consistent mould. In all of his affairs, he applies the constraints laid down by God. He checks himself from abusing others, stays his hand from persecution, and halts in his steps towards injustice. As the Prophet said, “Such a man can be likened to a tied-up horse which can go only as far as its rope permits: in that way, he cannot transgress.”
Fasting is an Exercise in Self-Discipline
During the month of Ramazan, the believer of his own free will, abstains
from food and drink in the day time. It is only after sunset that he
satisfies his hunger and quenches his thirst. In this way, he builds up
his self-control. By practising restraint for one month in a year, he is
able to lead a life of self-discipline in all matters for the rest of the year.
Apart from man, there are in the universe innumerable other things, all of which—having no free will of their own—adhere strictly to God’s law. Man, however, is not in the same category as these things, for God has given him the freedom to choose the path he will tread. Notwithstanding this divine gift of freedom of will, it is still the desire of the Almighty that man should, by his own choice, tread the path of obedience.
By practicing restraint for one month in a year, man is able to lead a life of self-discipline in all matters for the rest of the year.
It is therefore to condition him to follow the path of restraint that the rule of fasting has been laid down. No mere annual ritual, fasting is a form of training undergone every ninth month of the lunar year. It is not just a matter of temporarily enduring hunger and thirst; it is a lesson in the permanent practice of patience and tolerance throughout life.
While on a fast, a man may have food and water before him but, despite his hunger and thirst, he will make no move to eat or drink. He exercises self-control. God desires that he should also exercise the same restraint whenever he has the opportunity to display his ego and his arrogance. He must not fall upon unjust ways just because the bait is tempting and all doors have been opened for him. If man is to earn God’s favour, he must eschew the path forbidden by Him, and set his feet firmly on the path of modesty and humility.
The path followed perforce by the universe has to be adopted by man of his own free will. That is why it is desirable that he should lead a life of self-imposed curbs. The unflinching self-restraint, which prevents him from eating or drinking while on a fast, is the virtue which will guarantee moral behaviour throughout his life.
Moral Piety
In the Hadith, Ramazan is called 'the month of patience' (Mishkat AlMasabih, 1: 613). This month is meant to serve as a training course which will enable the individual to lead a successful life in this world by keeping his negative feelings under control. Negative feelings, it must be remembered, present the greatest obstacle to human progress. Fasting is the pious way to solve this biggest of human problems.
Fasting creates an ability in man to lead a life of piety.
As the Hadith says:
There is a Zakat for all things,
and the Zakat of the body is fasting.
Mishkat Al-Masabih, 1: 639
Here, the expression Zakat is used in the sense of purification. There is, indeed, a way of purifying everything. Just as bathing purifies the body, so fasting purifies the soul.
According to another Hadith, the Prophet Muhammad observed:
Whenever one of you is invited to a meal
while he is on a fast,
he should inform his host that he is fasting.
Mishkat Al-Masabih, 1: 651
Yet another tradition of the Prophet gives this very sound advice:
Whenever one of you is on a fast,
he should be soft in his demeanour.
In the event of being abused or provoked,
he should simply say that he is on a fast.
Mishkat Al-Masabih, 1: 611
Leading a life of restraint for a whole month produces a transformation in one’s thinking. It enables one to offer a positive response even to another’s negative behaviour. Even strong abuse and other types of provocation will not goad the fasting believer into retaliating in a similar manner. Rather than sink to that level, he will simply explain that he is on a fast. His own heart tells him that by observing a fast he has pledged himself to piety and in view of that, he cannot contemplate any evil action.
In this way, fasting inculcates in man the necessity to abstain at all costs from anti-social activities, and from all ungentlemanly words and deeds. He is thus brought to a life of moral restraint in this world.
A Month of Sympathy and Compassion
According to a tradition, the Prophet Muhammad observed:
The month of fasting is the month of compassion.
Mishkat Al-Masabih, 1: 613
That is, it is a month in which people are helped and shown compassion. This is the human aspect of fasting. That is why the Prophet and his followers used to be generous in giving alms to the poor and needy during this period. No one who asked for anything was ever turned away without his needs being met.
One very significant thing about the month of fasting is that it affords a personal experience of the nature of hunger and thirst. Rich and poor alike go through this trial. And it is not a temporary, one-day rigour; it amounts to a special training course which one has to go through, without a break, for a whole month.
The unflinching self-restraint, which prevents him from eating or drinking while on a fast, is the virtue which will guarantee moral behaviour throughout his life.
In this way, through fasting, one experiences what it is like to be in need. One finds out what hunger and thirst are like. The well-off who, in normal circumstances, are never obliged to suffer the pangs of hunger and thirst undergo this experience personally in the month of Ramazan. In this way, fasting brings everyone to the same level. The rich, for a time, descend to the level of existence which is the normal lot of the poor. Ramazan, as a training course, awakens the sense of humanity in all human beings. People are then able to share their feelings and have the urge to do the utmost to assist their fellowmen in distress. In this way, fasting for the month of Ramazan produces a general awareness of the necessity to extend a helping hand to others.
This consciousness lasts for many months until, on the completion of the year, another month of Ramazan is before us once again to renew and refresh our humane inclinations.
The rationale behind fasting for a month is made clear by psychological studies. It tells us that for a habit to be inculcated, thirty days are required. It is not an overnight miracle but a lengthy process. The practice becomes a part of the personality only when it is observed every day for at least thirty days; and it is only then, that it may continue for rest of the year. Fasting is, therefore, a form of training to create the capacity in a man to become the most devoted worshipper. It makes him most grateful to God creating in him a fear of displeasing God. The very hardship of fasting carries a man from the material world to the plain of spirituality.
Leading a life of restraint for a whole month produces a transformation in one’s thinking. It enables one to offer a positive response even to another’s negative behaviour.
Therefore, Ramazan is a month of spiritual activism when devotees try to awaken their spirituality. It is a scheme to improve human beings. Fasting is for personality and intellectual development. This is done by desire management, experiencing helplessness, and connecting to God with true prayers. Fasting produces an atmosphere of generosity, well-wishing and compassion—an atmosphere in which people’s needs in society may be happily fulfilled. It is a means by which society may be turned into a truly human brotherhood. This eventually becomes a way of life for the whole year.
Disclosure of other's faults or secrets shows a mindless
callousness which breeds nothing but ill-will.