The Political Framework in Islam
The political system of Islam is based on the three principles of towhid (Oneness of Allah), risala (Prophethood) and Khilifa (Caliphate).
Towhid means that one Allah alone is the Creator, Sustainer and Master of the universe and of all that exists in it - organic or inorganic. He alone has the right to command or forbid. Worship and obedience are due to Him alone.
No aspect of life in all its multifarious forms ¾ our own organs and faculties, the apparent control which we have over physical objects or the objects themselves ¾ has been created or a acquired by us in our own right. They are the bountiful provisions of Allah and have been bestowed on us by Him alone.
Hence, it is not for us to decide the aim and purpose of our existence or to set the limits of our worldly authority; nor does anyone else have the right to make these decisions for us. This right rests only with Allah. This principle of the Oneness of Allah makes meaningless the concept of the legal and political sovereignty of human beings. No individual, family, class or race can set themselves above Allah. Allah alone is the Ruler and His commandments constitute the law of Islam.
Risala is the medium through which we receive the law of Allah. We have received two things from this source: the Qur’an, the book in which Allah has expounded His law, and the authoritative interpretation and exemplification of that Book by the Prophet Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him), through word and deed, in his capacity as the representative of Allah. The Qur’an laid down the broad principles on which human life should be based and the Prophet of Allah, in accordance with these principles, established a model system of Islamic life. The combination of these two elements is called the shari’a (law).
Khilifa means "representation". Man, according to Islam, is the representative of Allah on earth, His vice-gerent; that is to say, by virtue of the powers delegated to him by Allah, and within the limits prescribed, he is required to exercise Divine authority.
To illustrate what this means, let us take the case of an estate of yours which someone else has been appointed to administer on your behalf. Four conditions invariably obtain: First, the real ownership of the estate remains vested in you and not in the administrator; secondly, he administers your property directly in accordance with your instructions; thirdly, he exercises is authority within the limits prescribed by you; and fourthly, in the administration of the trust he executes your will and fulfils your intentions and not his own. Any representative who does not fulfil these four conditions will be abusing his authority and breaking the covenant which was implied in the concept of "representation".
This is exactly what Islam means when it affirms that man is the representative (khalifa) of Allah on earth. Hence, these four conditions are also involved in the concept of Khalifa. The state that is established in accordance with this political theory will in fact be a caliphate under the sovereignty of Allah.
Democracy In Islam
The above explanation of the term Khilafa also makes it clear that no individual or dynasty or class can be Khalifa: the authority of Khilafa is bestowed on the whole of any community which is ready to fulfil the conditions of representation after subscribing to the principles of towhid and Risala. Such a society carries the responsibility of the Khilafa as a whole and each one of its individuals shares in it.
This is the point where democracy begins in Islam. Every individual in an Islamic society enjoys the rights and powers of the caliphate of Allah and in this respect all individuals are equal. No-one may deprive anyone else of his rights and powers. The agency for running the affairs of the state will be formed by agreement with these individuals, and the authority of the state will only be an extension of the powers of the individuals delegated to it. Their opinion will be decisive in the formation of the government, which will be run with their advice and in accordance with their wishes.
Whoever gains their confidence will undertake the duties and obligations of the caliphate on their behalf; and when he loses this confidence he will have to step down. In this respect the political system of Islam is as perfect a dorm of democracy as there can be.
What distinguishes Islamic democracy from Western democracy, therefor, is that the latter is based on the concept of popular sovereignty, while the former rests on the principle of popular Khilafa. In Western democracy, the people are sovereign; in Islam sovereignty is vested in Allah and the people are His caliphs or representatives. In the former the people make their own; in the latter they have to follow and obey the laws (shari’a) given by Allah through His Prophet. In one the government undertakes to fulfil the will of the people; in the other the government and the people have to fulfil the will of Allah.
The Purpose Of The Islamic State
We are now in a position to examine more closely the type of state which is built on the foundations of tawhid, Risala and Khilafa.
The Holy Qur’an clearly states that the aim and purpose of this state is the establishment, maintenance and development of those virtues which the Creator wishes human life to be enriched by and the prevention and eradication of those evils in human life which He finds abhorrent. The Islamic state is intended neither solely as an instrument of political administration nor for the fulfillment of the collective will of any particular set of people; rather, Islam places a high ideal before the state for the achievement of which it must use all the means at its disposal.
This ideal is that the qualities of purity, beauty, goodness, virtue, success and prosperity which Allah wants to flourish in the life of His people should be engendered and developed and that all kinds of exploitation, injustice and disorder which, in the sight of Allah, are ruinous for the world and detrimental to the life of His creatures, should be suppressed and prevented. Islam gives us a clear outline of its moral system by stating positively the desired virtues and the undesired evils. Keeping this outline in view, the Islamic state can plan its welfare programme in every age and in any environment.
The constant demand made by Islam is that the principles of morality must be observed at all costs and in all walks of life. Hence, it lays down as an unalterable policy that the state should base its policies on justice, truth and honesty. It is not prepared, under any circumstances, to tolerate fraud, falsehood and injustice for the sake of political, administrative or national expediency. Whether it be relations between the rulers and the ruled within the state, or the relations of the state with other states, precedence must always be given to truth, honesty and justice.
Islam imposes similar obligations on the state and the individual: to fulfil all contracts and obligations; to have uniform standards in dealings; to remember obligations along with rights and not to forget the rights of others when expecting them to fulfil their obligations; to use power and authority for the establishment of justice and not for the perpetration of injustice; to look upon duty as a sacred obligation and to fulfil it scrupulously; and to regard power as a trust from Allah to be used in the belief that one has to render an account of one's actions to Him in the life Hereafter.
Fundamental Rights
Although an Islamic state may be set up anywhere on earth, Islam does not seek to restrict human rights or privileges to the boundaries of such a state. Islam has laid down universal fundamental rights for humanity which are to be observed and respected in all circumstances. For example, human blood is sacred and may not be spilled without strong justification; it is not permissible to oppress women, children, old people, the sick or the wounded; women's honour and chastity must be respected; the hungry must be fed, the naked clothed and the wounded or diseased treated medically irrespective of whether they belong to the Islamic community or are from amongst its enemies. These, and other provisions have been laid down by Islam as fundamental rights for every man by virtue of his status as a human being.
Nor, in Islam, are the rights of citizenship confined to people born in a particular state. A Muslim ipso facto becomes the citizen of an Islamic state as soon as he sets food on its territory with the intention of living there and thus enjoys equal rights along with those who acquire its citizenship by birth. And every Muslim is to be regarded as eligible for positions of the highest responsibility in an Islamic state without distinction of race, colour or class.
Islam has also laid down certain rights for non-Muslims who may be living within the boundaries of an Islamic state and these rights necessarily form part of the Islamic constitution. In Islamic terminology, such non-Muslims are called dhimmis (the covenanted), implying that the Islamic state has entered into a covenant with them and guaranteed their protection. The life, property and honour of a dhimmis is to be respected and protected in exactly the same way as that of a Muslim citizen. Nor is there difference between a Muslim and a non-Muslim citizen in respect of civil or criminal law.
The Islamic state may not interfere with the personal rights of non-Muslims, who have full freedom of conscience and belief and are at liberty to perform their religious rites and ceremonies in their own way. Not only may they propagate their religion, they are even entitled to criticize Islam within the limits laid down by law and decency.
These rights are irrevocable. Non-Muslims cannot be deprived of them unless they renounce the covenant which grants them citizenship. However much a non-Muslim state may oppress its Muslim citizens it is not permissible for an Islamic state to retaliate against its non-Muslim subjects; even if all the Muslims outside the boundaries of an Islamic state are massacred, that state may not unjustly shed the blood of a single non-Muslim citizen living within its boundaries.
Executive And Legislature
The responsibility for the administration of the government in an Islamic state is entrusted to an amir (leader) who may be compared to the president or the prime minister in a Western democratic state. All adult men and women who subscribe to the fundamentals of the constitution are entitled to vote for the election of the amir.
The basic qualifications for an amir are that he should command the confidence of the majority in respect of his knowledge and grasp of the spirit of Islam, that he should possess the Islamic quality of fear of Allah and that he should be endowed with qualities of statesmanship. In short, he should have both virtue and ability.
A shoora(advisory council) is also elected by the people to assist and guide the amir. It is incumbent on the amir to administer his country with the advice of this shooraThe amir may retain office only so long as he enjoys the confidence of the people and must relinquish it when he loses that confidence. Every citizen has the right to criticize the amir and his government and all reasonable means for the ventilation of public opinion must be available.
Legislation in an Islamic state is to be carried out within the limits prescribed by the law of the shari’a. The injunctions of Allah and His Prophet are to be accepted and obeyed and no legislative body may alter or modify them or make any law contrary to them. Those commandments which are liable to two or more interpretations are referred to a sub-committee of the advisory council comprising men learned in Islamic law. Great scope remains for legislation on questions not covered by specific injunctions of the shari’a and the advisory council or legislature is free to legislate in regard to these matters.
In Islam the judiciary is not places under the control of the executive. It derives its authority directly from the shari’a and is answerable to Allah. The judges are appointed by the government but once a judge occupies the bench he has to administer justice impartially according to the law of Allah; the organs and functionaries of the government are not outside his legal jurisdiction, so that even the highest executive authority of the government is liable to be called upon to appear in a court of law as a plaintiff or defendant. Rulers and ruled are subject to the same law and there can be no discrimination on the basis of position, power or privilege, Islam stands for equality and scrupulously adheres to this principle in social, economic and political realms alike.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Islam, Democracy Not Incompatible
Is Islam compatible with democracy? The short answer is "yes." But since nobody is interested in the short answer, I will go for the long one.
The tragic events of Sept. 11 made Islam a globally debated topic.Muslims from all ranks and different parts of the world condemned the attacks.
Nevertheless, many scholars, politicians, journalists and evangelists inthe United States have been building on a "clash of civilizations"ideology.
Samuel Huntington asserts, for instance, that "Western ideas ofindividualism, liberalism, constitutionalism, human rights, equality, liberty,the rule of law, democracy and the separation of church and state have littleresonance" in Islamic culture. The Rev. Franklin Graham has condemned theentire faith of Islam as "wicked, violent and not the same asGod."
For such people, no positive relation could ever be found between Islamand democracy or civilization. Islam stands as separate culture.
In focusing on the compatibility between Islam and democracy, we firstneed to define what Islam is. The word itself signifies the believer's"move toward God," a feeling of being promoted to a higher existence.But Islam also has another meaning. The Quran commands Muslims to "Say: webelieve in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and Abraham, Ismail, Isaac,Jacob, and the tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus. . . . We make nodifferent between one and another of them: and we submit to Allah."(2:136).
This primary Islamic disposition is a fundamental foundation forplurality. The first Islamic state was established in Medina in 622. In theConstitution of Medina, Jewish tribes living in the town entered a pact as freeand equal partners, enjoying their religious autonomy and full human rights.Since that time, Islam has encountered various religious communities east andwest during its fast expansion. Muslims have been able to establish constitutionsof interfaith relations in conformity with their own worldview and inaccordance with their beliefs.
According to Muslim understanding, "democratic civility" isseen as a reproduction of the Islamic concepts of "shurah"(consultation), "ijima" (consensus ) and "ijtihad"(independent interpretive judgment).
The Quran laid down the principle of "shurah" to guide the community'sdecisionmaking process. The "ijima" adds another dimension byasserting that the principles of pluralism are compatible with divine guidance.Moreover, differences of opinion, which could come out of "ijtihad,"do not affect the eternal essence of the doctrine.
When Abu Bakr al-Siddiq was sworn in as the caliph and successor of theProphet Mohammed in 632 C.E., he addressed the people saying: "O people. Iwas entrusted as your ruler, although I am not better than any of you. Supportme as you see me following the right path and correct me when you see me going astray.Obey me as long as I observe God in your affairs. If I disobey Him, you owe meno obedience.
The weak among you are powerful (in my eyes) until I get them their due.The powerful among you are weak (in my eyes) until I take away from them whatis due others."
These brief reflections show that Islam began with a certain type ofdemocratic civility.
In closing, I quote a paragraph from an article written by DaleEickelman titled, "Islam and Ethical Pluralism." He argues,"Some contemporary Muslim intellectuals argue that Islam offers a timelessprecedent of peace, harmony, hope, justice and tolerance, not for Muslims butalso for mankind.”
Of course all this is not conclusive in addressing the issue ofcompatibility. But revealing the universal issues of our common humanity mightbe a significant "movement from inside to outside."
It calls for opening doors and windows. Thus, we could find anopportunity for human togetherness as Islam and democracy find a comfort zone.
Is Islam compatible with democracy? The short answer is "yes." But since nobody is interested in the short answer, I will go for the long one.
The tragic events of Sept. 11 made Islam a globally debated topic.Muslims from all ranks and different parts of the world condemned the attacks.
Nevertheless, many scholars, politicians, journalists and evangelists inthe United States have been building on a "clash of civilizations"ideology.
Samuel Huntington asserts, for instance, that "Western ideas ofindividualism, liberalism, constitutionalism, human rights, equality, liberty,the rule of law, democracy and the separation of church and state have littleresonance" in Islamic culture. The Rev. Franklin Graham has condemned theentire faith of Islam as "wicked, violent and not the same asGod."
For such people, no positive relation could ever be found between Islamand democracy or civilization. Islam stands as separate culture.
In focusing on the compatibility between Islam and democracy, we firstneed to define what Islam is. The word itself signifies the believer's"move toward God," a feeling of being promoted to a higher existence.But Islam also has another meaning. The Quran commands Muslims to "Say: webelieve in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and Abraham, Ismail, Isaac,Jacob, and the tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus. . . . We make nodifferent between one and another of them: and we submit to Allah."(2:136).
This primary Islamic disposition is a fundamental foundation forplurality. The first Islamic state was established in Medina in 622. In theConstitution of Medina, Jewish tribes living in the town entered a pact as freeand equal partners, enjoying their religious autonomy and full human rights.Since that time, Islam has encountered various religious communities east andwest during its fast expansion. Muslims have been able to establish constitutionsof interfaith relations in conformity with their own worldview and inaccordance with their beliefs.
According to Muslim understanding, "democratic civility" isseen as a reproduction of the Islamic concepts of "shurah"(consultation), "ijima" (consensus ) and "ijtihad"(independent interpretive judgment).
The Quran laid down the principle of "shurah" to guide the community'sdecisionmaking process. The "ijima" adds another dimension byasserting that the principles of pluralism are compatible with divine guidance.Moreover, differences of opinion, which could come out of "ijtihad,"do not affect the eternal essence of the doctrine.
When Abu Bakr al-Siddiq was sworn in as the caliph and successor of theProphet Mohammed in 632 C.E., he addressed the people saying: "O people. Iwas entrusted as your ruler, although I am not better than any of you. Supportme as you see me following the right path and correct me when you see me going astray.Obey me as long as I observe God in your affairs. If I disobey Him, you owe meno obedience.
The weak among you are powerful (in my eyes) until I get them their due.The powerful among you are weak (in my eyes) until I take away from them whatis due others."
These brief reflections show that Islam began with a certain type ofdemocratic civility.
In closing, I quote a paragraph from an article written by DaleEickelman titled, "Islam and Ethical Pluralism." He argues,"Some contemporary Muslim intellectuals argue that Islam offers a timelessprecedent of peace, harmony, hope, justice and tolerance, not for Muslims butalso for mankind.”
Of course all this is not conclusive in addressing the issue ofcompatibility. But revealing the universal issues of our common humanity mightbe a significant "movement from inside to outside."
It calls for opening doors and windows. Thus, we could find anopportunity for human togetherness as Islam and democracy find a comfort zone.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Ramadhan: A Universal Perspective for All
COMPARISON BETWEEN THE FASTING IN ISLAM AND OTHER RELIGIONS
“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
Fasting is an ancient practice that occurs in almost all the known religions though in different forms and with different meanings, meanings, rules and purposes.
Buddhists practice some periods of fasting, usually on full-moon days and other holidays. Depending on the Buddhist tradition, fasting usually means abstaining from solid food, with some liquids permitted. Theravadin and Tendai Buddhist monks fast as a means of freeing the mind. Some Tibetan Buddhist monks fast to aid yogic feats, like generating inner heat.
Jesus fasted 40 days before starting his mission. It is possible that he fasted on the Day of Atonement, which was an established tradition in Judaism. By the 4th century, there was no sign of 40 days of fasting in Christianity. There are traditions of fasting which differ greatly according to the country in which Christians live. The fast in Rome is different from the fast in Alexandria. Some abstain from meat, while others from fish and birds. Some will not eat fruits and eggs; some just fast on white bread. Some will abstain from all the above. Certain days had been made for fasting in later centuries to commemorate some events, such as the life of Jesus. There was a fast for three days in English law. During the time of Edward VI, James I, and the Elizabethan period, meat was prohibited during the fast, and James justified that saying:
“The fishing industry and maritime commerce must become encouraged and it must be profitable.”
Catholics fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and abstain from meat on all Fridays in Lent. For many centuries, Catholics were forbidden to eat meat on all Fridays. Since the mid-1960s, abstaining from meat on Fridays outside of Lent has been a matter of local discretion. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, two small meals and one regular meal are allowed; meat is forbidden. On Fridays in Lent, no meat is allowed. For the optional Friday fast, some people substitute a different penance or special prayer instead of fasting. The Lenten fast prepares the soul for a great feast by practicing austerity. The Good Friday fast commemorates the day Christ suffered.
For the Eastern Orthodox, there are several fast periods, including Lent, Apostles' Fast, Dormition Fast, and the Nativity Fast, and several one-day fasts. Every Wednesday and Friday is considered a fast day, except those that fall during designated "fast-free weeks.” In general, meat, dairy products, and eggs are prohibited. Fish is prohibited on some fast days and allowed on others.
Hindus commonly fast on New Moon days and during festivals such as Shivaratri, Saraswati Puja, and Durga Puja (also known as Navaratri). Women in North India also fast on the day of Karva Chauth. Fasting may involve 24 hours of complete abstinence from any food or drink, but is more often an elimination of solid foods, with an occasional drink of milk or water. It is believed to enhance concentration during meditation or worship, purify the system, and is sometimes considered a sacrifice.
Jews’ Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is their best-known fast day. The Jewish calendar has six other fast days as well, including Tisha B'Av, the day on which the destruction of the Jewish Temple took place. On Yom Kippur and Tisha B'Av, eating and drinking are forbidden for a 25-hour period, from sundown to sundown. On the other fast days, eating and drinking are forbidden only from sunrise to sundown. Atonement for sins and/or special requests to God.
For Mormons, the first Sunday of each month is a fast day. Individuals, families, or wards may hold other fasts at will. After the fast, church members participate in a "fast and testimony meeting." The fast is believed to result in closeness to God. Individual or family fasts might be held to petition for a specific cause, such as healing for one who is sick or help with making a difficult decision.
The Evangelical Protestant fast is done at the discretion of individuals, churches, organizations, or communities. Though some people abstain from food or drink entirely, others drink only water or juice, eat only certain foods, skip certain meals, or abstain from temptations, edible or not. Fasting haas become increasingly popular in recent years, with people fasting for spiritual nourishment, solidarity with impoverished people, a counterbalance to modern consumer culture, or to petition God for special needs.
Fasting is not a major part of the tradition for Mainline Protestants, but fasts can be held at the discretion of communities, churches, other groups, and individuals.
HOW IS FASTING IN ISLAM DIFFERENT FROM THAT PRACTICED IN OTHER RELIGIONS?
Unlike in some other religions, fasting in Islam is not a symbol of sadness, mourning, atonement for the sins, a reminder of disasters, or an exercise in self - mortification. Muslims perceive Islam as a triumph over the forces of evil. The month of fasting in Islam is a month of worship Muslims welcome each year with energy and happiness, and are saddened only when the month departs. Fasting has nothing to do with mourning. Fasting is for the living.
Islam does not teach fasting as an exercise in self-denial and punishment of the body and soul, as was commonly taught in medieval Europe. The laws that govern fasting are not extremely unbearable, the restrictions are not enforced 24 hours every day. Consider, for example, the sahuur (the meal before the commencement of the fast). The faster is allowed to delay and eat sahuur until he or she is certain that there are just a few minutes before morning prayer. Similarly, when it is time to break fast, the rule is to break as soon as the sun sets, with no delay. Besides, sleeping and resting during the day are all allowed. Working is not stopped and businesses are not closed down for the fast. In Judaism, working during the period of fast is prohibited. God said: “...God intends every facility for you. He does not want to put you to difficulties....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:185)
Fasting is not for any special classes of people as in some other religions. For the Brahmin class in the Hindu religion, fasting is mandatory only for the high priests. In the some Latin religions, it is only women who must fast and there are no exceptions.
4. In Judaism, the faster eats only after the break and there is no more food. The Arabs, before Islam, would not eat after sleeping. Islam, on the other hand, threw away all these human imposed restrictions. God said: “...And eat and drink, until the white thread of dawn appears to you distinct from it's black thread...” (Al-Qur`an, 2:187)
The person who makes a mistake in fasting is not punished, and the one who forgets and eats is forgiven.
Fasting in some other religions is based on a solar calendar, like the Gregorian calendar. This demands vast knowledge of calculation and astronomy in the making of a calendar. Besides, the months are fixed in a specific season, they do not rotate or change. Fasting in Islam is based on the lunar calendar and is tied to the sightings of hilal, the crescent, or new moon. God (SWT) states: “They ask you concerning the new moons. Say: They are but signs to mark fixed periods of time....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:189) And the hadith: “Eat until you see the crescent and break not until you see the crescent. If it is cloudy calculate the period of the month.” (Muslim and others)
This enables Muslims in every corner of the earth, east and west, north and south, and all in between, in remote villages, on mountains, in conditions of illiteracy or literacy, in jungles or deserts to start and end the fast all at the same time, without difficulty.
Why the moon instead of the sun as the basis for starting and ending fast? There are several reasons:
The lunar year is about ten or eleven days less compared to the Gregorian. Thus, if Ramadan 1990 began on March 27th, Ramadan in 1991 would begin around March 16th. Consequently, in the course of 36 years, every Muslim would have fasted every day of the year, the short days of the year, the long days of the year, the hot days and the cold days of the year. Muslims in different regions of the world would have had total equality in the number of days they fasted, and would have had an equal amount of seasonal and climatic changes. They would have an equal amount of cold or mild weather Ramadans.
If the fast were based on the Gregorian calendar, the Muslims in hot summer climates would have Ramadan during hot weather every year, forever. Some Muslims would have fasted long days while others short days, because Gregorian calendar months are fixed and immobile.
There is another interesting reason; fruits, vegetables for using the lunar calendar and some food items come in certain seasons. Fasting based on the lunar system means we may miss certain fruits in certain seasons, but by the end of the circle a Muslim would have tasted and tried different fruits during Ramadan, whereas fasting based on the Gregorian calendar would have prohibited some fruits during Ramadan, forever. This is why Muslims did not change the month of Ramadan, nor did they distort it by increasing or decreasing days, nor did they change it to different months.
This is why when God prescribed fasting, He says: “O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
THE BENEFITS OF FASTING
Fasting is an annual institution containing all conceivable attributes for human excellence. It is a training for the body and soul, a renewal of life, encouraging the spirit of selflessness.
Self-Restraint
God states: "O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you that you may (learn) self restraint." (Al-Qur`an, 2:183)
This verse indicates the first lesson or wisdom to be gained in fasting, is consciousness and fear of God. Fasting instills in the heart of the one who observes the fast the essence of consciousness of the Creator, moral courage both in secret and manifest, and guides the heart, the seat of emotions, from spoilage and moral indecency.
Behavior Modification
One of the most important things fasting affords the observer is helping him control or change his or her habits, the reason being human life is an embodiment of acquired habits. To change or control a habit is to wage a war on yourself. The fast is the training ground for the inevitable that will occur, the ‘accidents’ of life that never happen according to your plans or schedules. The believer who is observing his fast wages a war against the bad habits of his own soul.
How does the Ramadan fast help control one`s habits? Two of the most important habits are food and drink. An average person eats three meals a day, 21 meals a week. The way the fast is structured, with its basic and drastic alteration of eating habits, a faster takes light meals early in the morning and late in the evening.
If the believer can control these two habits, food and drink, it will undoubtedly be easy for him to control other habits, including the habits of smoking, drug abuse and illicit sex. Do you not see that, if you can control your tongue, hands and all other parts of your body, it will be easy for you to apply the same training for the rest of the year.
The believer who observes the fast learns to transcend idle talk and indecent acts.
Heath Care
It is a sentinel against disease, provided the faster follows the strict dietary rule: eat during fast breaking and avoiding over-eating.
God (SWT) states: "...Eat and drink, but waste not by excess, for God loves not wasters." (Al-Qur`an, 7:31)
A great deal of ailments originate from stomach indigestion. This is why the Messenger of God (saas) says: “The son of Adam will never fill a container with something worse and evil than his stomach. It will suffice him some morsels (food) that will keep him on his feet, otherwise, he should divide his stomach into three parts: one third for his food, the other for his drink and the other third for his breath.”
The stomach is the repository of harmful bacteria. Even in the age of sophisticated machines, you can hardly find a machine so fragile but yet so remarkably durable and efficient like the stomach. This is the machine that receives food particles, processes and refines them, and distributes the products to different parts of the body. This is a lifelong operation.
For the non-faster, the stomach will have no chance for rest. When the stomach is empty, as a result of fasting, it gets well-desired rest, to renew and rejuvenate its energy. With the fasting, the stomach is forced to go through a discharge whereby harmful residue are eliminated through perspiration as the body searches for food during fast.
During fast, the system of secretion is organized, and this in turn benefits the blood pressure, inhibiting hardening of the arteries. The heart and kidney functions are enhanced as the work load tapers off. The fast helps to correct the problem of obesity and diabetes. Doctors over the years have used fasting as a prescription for certain ailments.
An American physician published a report on fasting and its benefits saying: “It is mandatory on every person who is sick to restrain from food certain days in a year whether he be wealthy or poor because if bacteria can find food in abundance in the body, it will grow and multiply. But with fasting it becomes weak.''
Patience
Fasting helps in conditioning the heart, the soul, and the body on the virtues of patience, tenacity, and firmness in the face of adversity. Patience is the pinnacle of self-mastery, discipline and spiritual agility. Patience is to turn the phrase “I can't” into “I can.” With fasting, the difficult becomes easy. It is an inner and psychological demolition of things perceived by others as impossible.
Fasting helps in all these shades for the virtuous, patient person because if a believer can exercise patience - and forsake food and drink and the exhilaration we enjoy in them, marital association and the gratifying of other normal appetites for a whole day, for 29 to 30 days, as well as abstain from the vain and wicked habits of thinking and doing evil unto others no matter how small we think such evils are - the realization that the barrier between such habits and your consciousness of your Creator can easily be demolished and make you better in virtually every aspect of his life.
Social Outlook
Socially, fasting is an expression of solidarity with the poor, the family and the whole society. This is a period in which the rich can experience to some extent what it is to be poor and the pains the indigent suffers in normal living conditions. The process of disciplining resulting from Islamic fasting, instills in the rich the virtue of mercy, rahmah, which is very important in terms of social wellbeing and the proliferation of communal harmony.
“Those who are merciful to others, the Merciful will have mercy upon them,” the Messenger said.
Family Ties
Fasting strengthens family ties, especially in that the family is an endangered institution in western society. It helps the family gather together to break fast at iftar, and eat sahuur together at least twice a day for a month. The family members even does their prayers together.
Fasting enhances and energizes friendship, as Ramadan is known as the month of invitations and visitations. Friends, family members and neighbors extend invitations to each other to come to their homes to have Iftar together. During Ramadhan, the community gathers in mosques when they perform their congregational taraweeh prayers along or partake in other activities that may be held at that time.
COMPARISON BETWEEN THE FASTING IN ISLAM AND OTHER RELIGIONS
“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
Fasting is an ancient practice that occurs in almost all the known religions though in different forms and with different meanings, meanings, rules and purposes.
Buddhists practice some periods of fasting, usually on full-moon days and other holidays. Depending on the Buddhist tradition, fasting usually means abstaining from solid food, with some liquids permitted. Theravadin and Tendai Buddhist monks fast as a means of freeing the mind. Some Tibetan Buddhist monks fast to aid yogic feats, like generating inner heat.
Jesus fasted 40 days before starting his mission. It is possible that he fasted on the Day of Atonement, which was an established tradition in Judaism. By the 4th century, there was no sign of 40 days of fasting in Christianity. There are traditions of fasting which differ greatly according to the country in which Christians live. The fast in Rome is different from the fast in Alexandria. Some abstain from meat, while others from fish and birds. Some will not eat fruits and eggs; some just fast on white bread. Some will abstain from all the above. Certain days had been made for fasting in later centuries to commemorate some events, such as the life of Jesus. There was a fast for three days in English law. During the time of Edward VI, James I, and the Elizabethan period, meat was prohibited during the fast, and James justified that saying:
“The fishing industry and maritime commerce must become encouraged and it must be profitable.”
Catholics fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and abstain from meat on all Fridays in Lent. For many centuries, Catholics were forbidden to eat meat on all Fridays. Since the mid-1960s, abstaining from meat on Fridays outside of Lent has been a matter of local discretion. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, two small meals and one regular meal are allowed; meat is forbidden. On Fridays in Lent, no meat is allowed. For the optional Friday fast, some people substitute a different penance or special prayer instead of fasting. The Lenten fast prepares the soul for a great feast by practicing austerity. The Good Friday fast commemorates the day Christ suffered.
For the Eastern Orthodox, there are several fast periods, including Lent, Apostles' Fast, Dormition Fast, and the Nativity Fast, and several one-day fasts. Every Wednesday and Friday is considered a fast day, except those that fall during designated "fast-free weeks.” In general, meat, dairy products, and eggs are prohibited. Fish is prohibited on some fast days and allowed on others.
Hindus commonly fast on New Moon days and during festivals such as Shivaratri, Saraswati Puja, and Durga Puja (also known as Navaratri). Women in North India also fast on the day of Karva Chauth. Fasting may involve 24 hours of complete abstinence from any food or drink, but is more often an elimination of solid foods, with an occasional drink of milk or water. It is believed to enhance concentration during meditation or worship, purify the system, and is sometimes considered a sacrifice.
Jews’ Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is their best-known fast day. The Jewish calendar has six other fast days as well, including Tisha B'Av, the day on which the destruction of the Jewish Temple took place. On Yom Kippur and Tisha B'Av, eating and drinking are forbidden for a 25-hour period, from sundown to sundown. On the other fast days, eating and drinking are forbidden only from sunrise to sundown. Atonement for sins and/or special requests to God.
For Mormons, the first Sunday of each month is a fast day. Individuals, families, or wards may hold other fasts at will. After the fast, church members participate in a "fast and testimony meeting." The fast is believed to result in closeness to God. Individual or family fasts might be held to petition for a specific cause, such as healing for one who is sick or help with making a difficult decision.
The Evangelical Protestant fast is done at the discretion of individuals, churches, organizations, or communities. Though some people abstain from food or drink entirely, others drink only water or juice, eat only certain foods, skip certain meals, or abstain from temptations, edible or not. Fasting haas become increasingly popular in recent years, with people fasting for spiritual nourishment, solidarity with impoverished people, a counterbalance to modern consumer culture, or to petition God for special needs.
Fasting is not a major part of the tradition for Mainline Protestants, but fasts can be held at the discretion of communities, churches, other groups, and individuals.
HOW IS FASTING IN ISLAM DIFFERENT FROM THAT PRACTICED IN OTHER RELIGIONS?
Unlike in some other religions, fasting in Islam is not a symbol of sadness, mourning, atonement for the sins, a reminder of disasters, or an exercise in self - mortification. Muslims perceive Islam as a triumph over the forces of evil. The month of fasting in Islam is a month of worship Muslims welcome each year with energy and happiness, and are saddened only when the month departs. Fasting has nothing to do with mourning. Fasting is for the living.
Islam does not teach fasting as an exercise in self-denial and punishment of the body and soul, as was commonly taught in medieval Europe. The laws that govern fasting are not extremely unbearable, the restrictions are not enforced 24 hours every day. Consider, for example, the sahuur (the meal before the commencement of the fast). The faster is allowed to delay and eat sahuur until he or she is certain that there are just a few minutes before morning prayer. Similarly, when it is time to break fast, the rule is to break as soon as the sun sets, with no delay. Besides, sleeping and resting during the day are all allowed. Working is not stopped and businesses are not closed down for the fast. In Judaism, working during the period of fast is prohibited. God said: “...God intends every facility for you. He does not want to put you to difficulties....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:185)
Fasting is not for any special classes of people as in some other religions. For the Brahmin class in the Hindu religion, fasting is mandatory only for the high priests. In the some Latin religions, it is only women who must fast and there are no exceptions.
4. In Judaism, the faster eats only after the break and there is no more food. The Arabs, before Islam, would not eat after sleeping. Islam, on the other hand, threw away all these human imposed restrictions. God said: “...And eat and drink, until the white thread of dawn appears to you distinct from it's black thread...” (Al-Qur`an, 2:187)
The person who makes a mistake in fasting is not punished, and the one who forgets and eats is forgiven.
Fasting in some other religions is based on a solar calendar, like the Gregorian calendar. This demands vast knowledge of calculation and astronomy in the making of a calendar. Besides, the months are fixed in a specific season, they do not rotate or change. Fasting in Islam is based on the lunar calendar and is tied to the sightings of hilal, the crescent, or new moon. God (SWT) states: “They ask you concerning the new moons. Say: They are but signs to mark fixed periods of time....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:189) And the hadith: “Eat until you see the crescent and break not until you see the crescent. If it is cloudy calculate the period of the month.” (Muslim and others)
This enables Muslims in every corner of the earth, east and west, north and south, and all in between, in remote villages, on mountains, in conditions of illiteracy or literacy, in jungles or deserts to start and end the fast all at the same time, without difficulty.
Why the moon instead of the sun as the basis for starting and ending fast? There are several reasons:
The lunar year is about ten or eleven days less compared to the Gregorian. Thus, if Ramadan 1990 began on March 27th, Ramadan in 1991 would begin around March 16th. Consequently, in the course of 36 years, every Muslim would have fasted every day of the year, the short days of the year, the long days of the year, the hot days and the cold days of the year. Muslims in different regions of the world would have had total equality in the number of days they fasted, and would have had an equal amount of seasonal and climatic changes. They would have an equal amount of cold or mild weather Ramadans.
If the fast were based on the Gregorian calendar, the Muslims in hot summer climates would have Ramadan during hot weather every year, forever. Some Muslims would have fasted long days while others short days, because Gregorian calendar months are fixed and immobile.
There is another interesting reason; fruits, vegetables for using the lunar calendar and some food items come in certain seasons. Fasting based on the lunar system means we may miss certain fruits in certain seasons, but by the end of the circle a Muslim would have tasted and tried different fruits during Ramadan, whereas fasting based on the Gregorian calendar would have prohibited some fruits during Ramadan, forever. This is why Muslims did not change the month of Ramadan, nor did they distort it by increasing or decreasing days, nor did they change it to different months.
This is why when God prescribed fasting, He says: “O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
THE BENEFITS OF FASTING
Fasting is an annual institution containing all conceivable attributes for human excellence. It is a training for the body and soul, a renewal of life, encouraging the spirit of selflessness.
Self-Restraint
God states: "O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you that you may (learn) self restraint." (Al-Qur`an, 2:183)
This verse indicates the first lesson or wisdom to be gained in fasting, is consciousness and fear of God. Fasting instills in the heart of the one who observes the fast the essence of consciousness of the Creator, moral courage both in secret and manifest, and guides the heart, the seat of emotions, from spoilage and moral indecency.
Behavior Modification
One of the most important things fasting affords the observer is helping him control or change his or her habits, the reason being human life is an embodiment of acquired habits. To change or control a habit is to wage a war on yourself. The fast is the training ground for the inevitable that will occur, the ‘accidents’ of life that never happen according to your plans or schedules. The believer who is observing his fast wages a war against the bad habits of his own soul.
How does the Ramadan fast help control one`s habits? Two of the most important habits are food and drink. An average person eats three meals a day, 21 meals a week. The way the fast is structured, with its basic and drastic alteration of eating habits, a faster takes light meals early in the morning and late in the evening.
If the believer can control these two habits, food and drink, it will undoubtedly be easy for him to control other habits, including the habits of smoking, drug abuse and illicit sex. Do you not see that, if you can control your tongue, hands and all other parts of your body, it will be easy for you to apply the same training for the rest of the year.
The believer who observes the fast learns to transcend idle talk and indecent acts.
Heath Care
It is a sentinel against disease, provided the faster follows the strict dietary rule: eat during fast breaking and avoiding over-eating.
God (SWT) states: "...Eat and drink, but waste not by excess, for God loves not wasters." (Al-Qur`an, 7:31)
A great deal of ailments originate from stomach indigestion. This is why the Messenger of God (saas) says: “The son of Adam will never fill a container with something worse and evil than his stomach. It will suffice him some morsels (food) that will keep him on his feet, otherwise, he should divide his stomach into three parts: one third for his food, the other for his drink and the other third for his breath.”
The stomach is the repository of harmful bacteria. Even in the age of sophisticated machines, you can hardly find a machine so fragile but yet so remarkably durable and efficient like the stomach. This is the machine that receives food particles, processes and refines them, and distributes the products to different parts of the body. This is a lifelong operation.
For the non-faster, the stomach will have no chance for rest. When the stomach is empty, as a result of fasting, it gets well-desired rest, to renew and rejuvenate its energy. With the fasting, the stomach is forced to go through a discharge whereby harmful residue are eliminated through perspiration as the body searches for food during fast.
During fast, the system of secretion is organized, and this in turn benefits the blood pressure, inhibiting hardening of the arteries. The heart and kidney functions are enhanced as the work load tapers off. The fast helps to correct the problem of obesity and diabetes. Doctors over the years have used fasting as a prescription for certain ailments.
An American physician published a report on fasting and its benefits saying: “It is mandatory on every person who is sick to restrain from food certain days in a year whether he be wealthy or poor because if bacteria can find food in abundance in the body, it will grow and multiply. But with fasting it becomes weak.''
Patience
Fasting helps in conditioning the heart, the soul, and the body on the virtues of patience, tenacity, and firmness in the face of adversity. Patience is the pinnacle of self-mastery, discipline and spiritual agility. Patience is to turn the phrase “I can't” into “I can.” With fasting, the difficult becomes easy. It is an inner and psychological demolition of things perceived by others as impossible.
Fasting helps in all these shades for the virtuous, patient person because if a believer can exercise patience - and forsake food and drink and the exhilaration we enjoy in them, marital association and the gratifying of other normal appetites for a whole day, for 29 to 30 days, as well as abstain from the vain and wicked habits of thinking and doing evil unto others no matter how small we think such evils are - the realization that the barrier between such habits and your consciousness of your Creator can easily be demolished and make you better in virtually every aspect of his life.
Social Outlook
Socially, fasting is an expression of solidarity with the poor, the family and the whole society. This is a period in which the rich can experience to some extent what it is to be poor and the pains the indigent suffers in normal living conditions. The process of disciplining resulting from Islamic fasting, instills in the rich the virtue of mercy, rahmah, which is very important in terms of social wellbeing and the proliferation of communal harmony.
“Those who are merciful to others, the Merciful will have mercy upon them,” the Messenger said.
Family Ties
Fasting strengthens family ties, especially in that the family is an endangered institution in western society. It helps the family gather together to break fast at iftar, and eat sahuur together at least twice a day for a month. The family members even does their prayers together.
Fasting enhances and energizes friendship, as Ramadan is known as the month of invitations and visitations. Friends, family members and neighbors extend invitations to each other to come to their homes to have Iftar together. During Ramadhan, the community gathers in mosques when they perform their congregational taraweeh prayers along or partake in other activities that may be held at that time.
Ramadhan: A Universal Perspective for All
COMPARISON BETWEEN THE FASTING IN ISLAM AND OTHER RELIGIONS
“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
Fasting is an ancient practice that occurs in almost all the known religions though in different forms and with different meanings, meanings, rules and purposes.
Buddhists practice some periods of fasting, usually on full-moon days and other holidays. Depending on the Buddhist tradition, fasting usually means abstaining from solid food, with some liquids permitted. Theravadin and Tendai Buddhist monks fast as a means of freeing the mind. Some Tibetan Buddhist monks fast to aid yogic feats, like generating inner heat.
Jesus fasted 40 days before starting his mission. It is possible that he fasted on the Day of Atonement, which was an established tradition in Judaism. By the 4th century, there was no sign of 40 days of fasting in Christianity. There are traditions of fasting which differ greatly according to the country in which Christians live. The fast in Rome is different from the fast in Alexandria. Some abstain from meat, while others from fish and birds. Some will not eat fruits and eggs; some just fast on white bread. Some will abstain from all the above. Certain days had been made for fasting in later centuries to commemorate some events, such as the life of Jesus. There was a fast for three days in English law. During the time of Edward VI, James I, and the Elizabethan period, meat was prohibited during the fast, and James justified that saying:
“The fishing industry and maritime commerce must become encouraged and it must be profitable.”
Catholics fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and abstain from meat on all Fridays in Lent. For many centuries, Catholics were forbidden to eat meat on all Fridays. Since the mid-1960s, abstaining from meat on Fridays outside of Lent has been a matter of local discretion. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, two small meals and one regular meal are allowed; meat is forbidden. On Fridays in Lent, no meat is allowed. For the optional Friday fast, some people substitute a different penance or special prayer instead of fasting. The Lenten fast prepares the soul for a great feast by practicing austerity. The Good Friday fast commemorates the day Christ suffered.
For the Eastern Orthodox, there are several fast periods, including Lent, Apostles' Fast, Dormition Fast, and the Nativity Fast, and several one-day fasts. Every Wednesday and Friday is considered a fast day, except those that fall during designated "fast-free weeks.” In general, meat, dairy products, and eggs are prohibited. Fish is prohibited on some fast days and allowed on others.
Hindus commonly fast on New Moon days and during festivals such as Shivaratri, Saraswati Puja, and Durga Puja (also known as Navaratri). Women in North India also fast on the day of Karva Chauth. Fasting may involve 24 hours of complete abstinence from any food or drink, but is more often an elimination of solid foods, with an occasional drink of milk or water. It is believed to enhance concentration during meditation or worship, purify the system, and is sometimes considered a sacrifice.
Jews’ Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is their best-known fast day. The Jewish calendar has six other fast days as well, including Tisha B'Av, the day on which the destruction of the Jewish Temple took place. On Yom Kippur and Tisha B'Av, eating and drinking are forbidden for a 25-hour period, from sundown to sundown. On the other fast days, eating and drinking are forbidden only from sunrise to sundown. Atonement for sins and/or special requests to God.
For Mormons, the first Sunday of each month is a fast day. Individuals, families, or wards may hold other fasts at will. After the fast, church members participate in a "fast and testimony meeting." The fast is believed to result in closeness to God. Individual or family fasts might be held to petition for a specific cause, such as healing for one who is sick or help with making a difficult decision.
The Evangelical Protestant fast is done at the discretion of individuals, churches, organizations, or communities. Though some people abstain from food or drink entirely, others drink only water or juice, eat only certain foods, skip certain meals, or abstain from temptations, edible or not. Fasting haas become increasingly popular in recent years, with people fasting for spiritual nourishment, solidarity with impoverished people, a counterbalance to modern consumer culture, or to petition God for special needs.
Fasting is not a major part of the tradition for Mainline Protestants, but fasts can be held at the discretion of communities, churches, other groups, and individuals.
HOW IS FASTING IN ISLAM DIFFERENT FROM THAT PRACTICED IN OTHER RELIGIONS?
Unlike in some other religions, fasting in Islam is not a symbol of sadness, mourning, atonement for the sins, a reminder of disasters, or an exercise in self - mortification. Muslims perceive Islam as a triumph over the forces of evil. The month of fasting in Islam is a month of worship Muslims welcome each year with energy and happiness, and are saddened only when the month departs. Fasting has nothing to do with mourning. Fasting is for the living.
Islam does not teach fasting as an exercise in self-denial and punishment of the body and soul, as was commonly taught in medieval Europe. The laws that govern fasting are not extremely unbearable, the restrictions are not enforced 24 hours every day. Consider, for example, the sahuur (the meal before the commencement of the fast). The faster is allowed to delay and eat sahuur until he or she is certain that there are just a few minutes before morning prayer. Similarly, when it is time to break fast, the rule is to break as soon as the sun sets, with no delay. Besides, sleeping and resting during the day are all allowed. Working is not stopped and businesses are not closed down for the fast. In Judaism, working during the period of fast is prohibited. God said: “...God intends every facility for you. He does not want to put you to difficulties....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:185)
Fasting is not for any special classes of people as in some other religions. For the Brahmin class in the Hindu religion, fasting is mandatory only for the high priests. In the some Latin religions, it is only women who must fast and there are no exceptions.
4. In Judaism, the faster eats only after the break and there is no more food. The Arabs, before Islam, would not eat after sleeping. Islam, on the other hand, threw away all these human imposed restrictions. God said: “...And eat and drink, until the white thread of dawn appears to you distinct from it's black thread...” (Al-Qur`an, 2:187)
The person who makes a mistake in fasting is not punished, and the one who forgets and eats is forgiven.
Fasting in some other religions is based on a solar calendar, like the Gregorian calendar. This demands vast knowledge of calculation and astronomy in the making of a calendar. Besides, the months are fixed in a specific season, they do not rotate or change. Fasting in Islam is based on the lunar calendar and is tied to the sightings of hilal, the crescent, or new moon. God (SWT) states: “They ask you concerning the new moons. Say: They are but signs to mark fixed periods of time....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:189) And the hadith: “Eat until you see the crescent and break not until you see the crescent. If it is cloudy calculate the period of the month.” (Muslim and others)
This enables Muslims in every corner of the earth, east and west, north and south, and all in between, in remote villages, on mountains, in conditions of illiteracy or literacy, in jungles or deserts to start and end the fast all at the same time, without difficulty.
Why the moon instead of the sun as the basis for starting and ending fast? There are several reasons:
The lunar year is about ten or eleven days less compared to the Gregorian. Thus, if Ramadan 1990 began on March 27th, Ramadan in 1991 would begin around March 16th. Consequently, in the course of 36 years, every Muslim would have fasted every day of the year, the short days of the year, the long days of the year, the hot days and the cold days of the year. Muslims in different regions of the world would have had total equality in the number of days they fasted, and would have had an equal amount of seasonal and climatic changes. They would have an equal amount of cold or mild weather Ramadans.
If the fast were based on the Gregorian calendar, the Muslims in hot summer climates would have Ramadan during hot weather every year, forever. Some Muslims would have fasted long days while others short days, because Gregorian calendar months are fixed and immobile.
There is another interesting reason; fruits, vegetables for using the lunar calendar and some food items come in certain seasons. Fasting based on the lunar system means we may miss certain fruits in certain seasons, but by the end of the circle a Muslim would have tasted and tried different fruits during Ramadan, whereas fasting based on the Gregorian calendar would have prohibited some fruits during Ramadan, forever. This is why Muslims did not change the month of Ramadan, nor did they distort it by increasing or decreasing days, nor did they change it to different months.
This is why when God prescribed fasting, He says: “O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
THE BENEFITS OF FASTING
Fasting is an annual institution containing all conceivable attributes for human excellence. It is a training for the body and soul, a renewal of life, encouraging the spirit of selflessness.
Self-Restraint
God states: "O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you that you may (learn) self restraint." (Al-Qur`an, 2:183)
This verse indicates the first lesson or wisdom to be gained in fasting, is consciousness and fear of God. Fasting instills in the heart of the one who observes the fast the essence of consciousness of the Creator, moral courage both in secret and manifest, and guides the heart, the seat of emotions, from spoilage and moral indecency.
Behavior Modification
One of the most important things fasting affords the observer is helping him control or change his or her habits, the reason being human life is an embodiment of acquired habits. To change or control a habit is to wage a war on yourself. The fast is the training ground for the inevitable that will occur, the ‘accidents’ of life that never happen according to your plans or schedules. The believer who is observing his fast wages a war against the bad habits of his own soul.
How does the Ramadan fast help control one`s habits? Two of the most important habits are food and drink. An average person eats three meals a day, 21 meals a week. The way the fast is structured, with its basic and drastic alteration of eating habits, a faster takes light meals early in the morning and late in the evening.
If the believer can control these two habits, food and drink, it will undoubtedly be easy for him to control other habits, including the habits of smoking, drug abuse and illicit sex. Do you not see that, if you can control your tongue, hands and all other parts of your body, it will be easy for you to apply the same training for the rest of the year.
The believer who observes the fast learns to transcend idle talk and indecent acts.
Heath Care
It is a sentinel against disease, provided the faster follows the strict dietary rule: eat during fast breaking and avoiding over-eating.
God (SWT) states: "...Eat and drink, but waste not by excess, for God loves not wasters." (Al-Qur`an, 7:31)
A great deal of ailments originate from stomach indigestion. This is why the Messenger of God (saas) says: “The son of Adam will never fill a container with something worse and evil than his stomach. It will suffice him some morsels (food) that will keep him on his feet, otherwise, he should divide his stomach into three parts: one third for his food, the other for his drink and the other third for his breath.”
The stomach is the repository of harmful bacteria. Even in the age of sophisticated machines, you can hardly find a machine so fragile but yet so remarkably durable and efficient like the stomach. This is the machine that receives food particles, processes and refines them, and distributes the products to different parts of the body. This is a lifelong operation.
For the non-faster, the stomach will have no chance for rest. When the stomach is empty, as a result of fasting, it gets well-desired rest, to renew and rejuvenate its energy. With the fasting, the stomach is forced to go through a discharge whereby harmful residue are eliminated through perspiration as the body searches for food during fast.
During fast, the system of secretion is organized, and this in turn benefits the blood pressure, inhibiting hardening of the arteries. The heart and kidney functions are enhanced as the work load tapers off. The fast helps to correct the problem of obesity and diabetes. Doctors over the years have used fasting as a prescription for certain ailments.
An American physician published a report on fasting and its benefits saying: “It is mandatory on every person who is sick to restrain from food certain days in a year whether he be wealthy or poor because if bacteria can find food in abundance in the body, it will grow and multiply. But with fasting it becomes weak.''
Patience
Fasting helps in conditioning the heart, the soul, and the body on the virtues of patience, tenacity, and firmness in the face of adversity. Patience is the pinnacle of self-mastery, discipline and spiritual agility. Patience is to turn the phrase “I can't” into “I can.” With fasting, the difficult becomes easy. It is an inner and psychological demolition of things perceived by others as impossible.
Fasting helps in all these shades for the virtuous, patient person because if a believer can exercise patience - and forsake food and drink and the exhilaration we enjoy in them, marital association and the gratifying of other normal appetites for a whole day, for 29 to 30 days, as well as abstain from the vain and wicked habits of thinking and doing evil unto others no matter how small we think such evils are - the realization that the barrier between such habits and your consciousness of your Creator can easily be demolished and make you better in virtually every aspect of his life.
Social Outlook
Socially, fasting is an expression of solidarity with the poor, the family and the whole society. This is a period in which the rich can experience to some extent what it is to be poor and the pains the indigent suffers in normal living conditions. The process of disciplining resulting from Islamic fasting, instills in the rich the virtue of mercy, rahmah, which is very important in terms of social wellbeing and the proliferation of communal harmony.
“Those who are merciful to others, the Merciful will have mercy upon them,” the Messenger said.
Family Ties
Fasting strengthens family ties, especially in that the family is an endangered institution in western society. It helps the family gather together to break fast at iftar, and eat sahuur together at least twice a day for a month. The family members even does their prayers together.
Fasting enhances and energizes friendship, as Ramadan is known as the month of invitations and visitations. Friends, family members and neighbors extend invitations to each other to come to their homes to have Iftar together. During Ramadhan, the community gathers in mosques when they perform their congregational taraweeh prayers along or partake in other activities that may be held at that time.
COMPARISON BETWEEN THE FASTING IN ISLAM AND OTHER RELIGIONS
“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
Fasting is an ancient practice that occurs in almost all the known religions though in different forms and with different meanings, meanings, rules and purposes.
Buddhists practice some periods of fasting, usually on full-moon days and other holidays. Depending on the Buddhist tradition, fasting usually means abstaining from solid food, with some liquids permitted. Theravadin and Tendai Buddhist monks fast as a means of freeing the mind. Some Tibetan Buddhist monks fast to aid yogic feats, like generating inner heat.
Jesus fasted 40 days before starting his mission. It is possible that he fasted on the Day of Atonement, which was an established tradition in Judaism. By the 4th century, there was no sign of 40 days of fasting in Christianity. There are traditions of fasting which differ greatly according to the country in which Christians live. The fast in Rome is different from the fast in Alexandria. Some abstain from meat, while others from fish and birds. Some will not eat fruits and eggs; some just fast on white bread. Some will abstain from all the above. Certain days had been made for fasting in later centuries to commemorate some events, such as the life of Jesus. There was a fast for three days in English law. During the time of Edward VI, James I, and the Elizabethan period, meat was prohibited during the fast, and James justified that saying:
“The fishing industry and maritime commerce must become encouraged and it must be profitable.”
Catholics fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and abstain from meat on all Fridays in Lent. For many centuries, Catholics were forbidden to eat meat on all Fridays. Since the mid-1960s, abstaining from meat on Fridays outside of Lent has been a matter of local discretion. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, two small meals and one regular meal are allowed; meat is forbidden. On Fridays in Lent, no meat is allowed. For the optional Friday fast, some people substitute a different penance or special prayer instead of fasting. The Lenten fast prepares the soul for a great feast by practicing austerity. The Good Friday fast commemorates the day Christ suffered.
For the Eastern Orthodox, there are several fast periods, including Lent, Apostles' Fast, Dormition Fast, and the Nativity Fast, and several one-day fasts. Every Wednesday and Friday is considered a fast day, except those that fall during designated "fast-free weeks.” In general, meat, dairy products, and eggs are prohibited. Fish is prohibited on some fast days and allowed on others.
Hindus commonly fast on New Moon days and during festivals such as Shivaratri, Saraswati Puja, and Durga Puja (also known as Navaratri). Women in North India also fast on the day of Karva Chauth. Fasting may involve 24 hours of complete abstinence from any food or drink, but is more often an elimination of solid foods, with an occasional drink of milk or water. It is believed to enhance concentration during meditation or worship, purify the system, and is sometimes considered a sacrifice.
Jews’ Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is their best-known fast day. The Jewish calendar has six other fast days as well, including Tisha B'Av, the day on which the destruction of the Jewish Temple took place. On Yom Kippur and Tisha B'Av, eating and drinking are forbidden for a 25-hour period, from sundown to sundown. On the other fast days, eating and drinking are forbidden only from sunrise to sundown. Atonement for sins and/or special requests to God.
For Mormons, the first Sunday of each month is a fast day. Individuals, families, or wards may hold other fasts at will. After the fast, church members participate in a "fast and testimony meeting." The fast is believed to result in closeness to God. Individual or family fasts might be held to petition for a specific cause, such as healing for one who is sick or help with making a difficult decision.
The Evangelical Protestant fast is done at the discretion of individuals, churches, organizations, or communities. Though some people abstain from food or drink entirely, others drink only water or juice, eat only certain foods, skip certain meals, or abstain from temptations, edible or not. Fasting haas become increasingly popular in recent years, with people fasting for spiritual nourishment, solidarity with impoverished people, a counterbalance to modern consumer culture, or to petition God for special needs.
Fasting is not a major part of the tradition for Mainline Protestants, but fasts can be held at the discretion of communities, churches, other groups, and individuals.
HOW IS FASTING IN ISLAM DIFFERENT FROM THAT PRACTICED IN OTHER RELIGIONS?
Unlike in some other religions, fasting in Islam is not a symbol of sadness, mourning, atonement for the sins, a reminder of disasters, or an exercise in self - mortification. Muslims perceive Islam as a triumph over the forces of evil. The month of fasting in Islam is a month of worship Muslims welcome each year with energy and happiness, and are saddened only when the month departs. Fasting has nothing to do with mourning. Fasting is for the living.
Islam does not teach fasting as an exercise in self-denial and punishment of the body and soul, as was commonly taught in medieval Europe. The laws that govern fasting are not extremely unbearable, the restrictions are not enforced 24 hours every day. Consider, for example, the sahuur (the meal before the commencement of the fast). The faster is allowed to delay and eat sahuur until he or she is certain that there are just a few minutes before morning prayer. Similarly, when it is time to break fast, the rule is to break as soon as the sun sets, with no delay. Besides, sleeping and resting during the day are all allowed. Working is not stopped and businesses are not closed down for the fast. In Judaism, working during the period of fast is prohibited. God said: “...God intends every facility for you. He does not want to put you to difficulties....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:185)
Fasting is not for any special classes of people as in some other religions. For the Brahmin class in the Hindu religion, fasting is mandatory only for the high priests. In the some Latin religions, it is only women who must fast and there are no exceptions.
4. In Judaism, the faster eats only after the break and there is no more food. The Arabs, before Islam, would not eat after sleeping. Islam, on the other hand, threw away all these human imposed restrictions. God said: “...And eat and drink, until the white thread of dawn appears to you distinct from it's black thread...” (Al-Qur`an, 2:187)
The person who makes a mistake in fasting is not punished, and the one who forgets and eats is forgiven.
Fasting in some other religions is based on a solar calendar, like the Gregorian calendar. This demands vast knowledge of calculation and astronomy in the making of a calendar. Besides, the months are fixed in a specific season, they do not rotate or change. Fasting in Islam is based on the lunar calendar and is tied to the sightings of hilal, the crescent, or new moon. God (SWT) states: “They ask you concerning the new moons. Say: They are but signs to mark fixed periods of time....” (Al-Qur`an, 2:189) And the hadith: “Eat until you see the crescent and break not until you see the crescent. If it is cloudy calculate the period of the month.” (Muslim and others)
This enables Muslims in every corner of the earth, east and west, north and south, and all in between, in remote villages, on mountains, in conditions of illiteracy or literacy, in jungles or deserts to start and end the fast all at the same time, without difficulty.
Why the moon instead of the sun as the basis for starting and ending fast? There are several reasons:
The lunar year is about ten or eleven days less compared to the Gregorian. Thus, if Ramadan 1990 began on March 27th, Ramadan in 1991 would begin around March 16th. Consequently, in the course of 36 years, every Muslim would have fasted every day of the year, the short days of the year, the long days of the year, the hot days and the cold days of the year. Muslims in different regions of the world would have had total equality in the number of days they fasted, and would have had an equal amount of seasonal and climatic changes. They would have an equal amount of cold or mild weather Ramadans.
If the fast were based on the Gregorian calendar, the Muslims in hot summer climates would have Ramadan during hot weather every year, forever. Some Muslims would have fasted long days while others short days, because Gregorian calendar months are fixed and immobile.
There is another interesting reason; fruits, vegetables for using the lunar calendar and some food items come in certain seasons. Fasting based on the lunar system means we may miss certain fruits in certain seasons, but by the end of the circle a Muslim would have tasted and tried different fruits during Ramadan, whereas fasting based on the Gregorian calendar would have prohibited some fruits during Ramadan, forever. This is why Muslims did not change the month of Ramadan, nor did they distort it by increasing or decreasing days, nor did they change it to different months.
This is why when God prescribed fasting, He says: “O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you may (learn) self restraint.” (Al-Qur`an, 2:184)
THE BENEFITS OF FASTING
Fasting is an annual institution containing all conceivable attributes for human excellence. It is a training for the body and soul, a renewal of life, encouraging the spirit of selflessness.
Self-Restraint
God states: "O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you that you may (learn) self restraint." (Al-Qur`an, 2:183)
This verse indicates the first lesson or wisdom to be gained in fasting, is consciousness and fear of God. Fasting instills in the heart of the one who observes the fast the essence of consciousness of the Creator, moral courage both in secret and manifest, and guides the heart, the seat of emotions, from spoilage and moral indecency.
Behavior Modification
One of the most important things fasting affords the observer is helping him control or change his or her habits, the reason being human life is an embodiment of acquired habits. To change or control a habit is to wage a war on yourself. The fast is the training ground for the inevitable that will occur, the ‘accidents’ of life that never happen according to your plans or schedules. The believer who is observing his fast wages a war against the bad habits of his own soul.
How does the Ramadan fast help control one`s habits? Two of the most important habits are food and drink. An average person eats three meals a day, 21 meals a week. The way the fast is structured, with its basic and drastic alteration of eating habits, a faster takes light meals early in the morning and late in the evening.
If the believer can control these two habits, food and drink, it will undoubtedly be easy for him to control other habits, including the habits of smoking, drug abuse and illicit sex. Do you not see that, if you can control your tongue, hands and all other parts of your body, it will be easy for you to apply the same training for the rest of the year.
The believer who observes the fast learns to transcend idle talk and indecent acts.
Heath Care
It is a sentinel against disease, provided the faster follows the strict dietary rule: eat during fast breaking and avoiding over-eating.
God (SWT) states: "...Eat and drink, but waste not by excess, for God loves not wasters." (Al-Qur`an, 7:31)
A great deal of ailments originate from stomach indigestion. This is why the Messenger of God (saas) says: “The son of Adam will never fill a container with something worse and evil than his stomach. It will suffice him some morsels (food) that will keep him on his feet, otherwise, he should divide his stomach into three parts: one third for his food, the other for his drink and the other third for his breath.”
The stomach is the repository of harmful bacteria. Even in the age of sophisticated machines, you can hardly find a machine so fragile but yet so remarkably durable and efficient like the stomach. This is the machine that receives food particles, processes and refines them, and distributes the products to different parts of the body. This is a lifelong operation.
For the non-faster, the stomach will have no chance for rest. When the stomach is empty, as a result of fasting, it gets well-desired rest, to renew and rejuvenate its energy. With the fasting, the stomach is forced to go through a discharge whereby harmful residue are eliminated through perspiration as the body searches for food during fast.
During fast, the system of secretion is organized, and this in turn benefits the blood pressure, inhibiting hardening of the arteries. The heart and kidney functions are enhanced as the work load tapers off. The fast helps to correct the problem of obesity and diabetes. Doctors over the years have used fasting as a prescription for certain ailments.
An American physician published a report on fasting and its benefits saying: “It is mandatory on every person who is sick to restrain from food certain days in a year whether he be wealthy or poor because if bacteria can find food in abundance in the body, it will grow and multiply. But with fasting it becomes weak.''
Patience
Fasting helps in conditioning the heart, the soul, and the body on the virtues of patience, tenacity, and firmness in the face of adversity. Patience is the pinnacle of self-mastery, discipline and spiritual agility. Patience is to turn the phrase “I can't” into “I can.” With fasting, the difficult becomes easy. It is an inner and psychological demolition of things perceived by others as impossible.
Fasting helps in all these shades for the virtuous, patient person because if a believer can exercise patience - and forsake food and drink and the exhilaration we enjoy in them, marital association and the gratifying of other normal appetites for a whole day, for 29 to 30 days, as well as abstain from the vain and wicked habits of thinking and doing evil unto others no matter how small we think such evils are - the realization that the barrier between such habits and your consciousness of your Creator can easily be demolished and make you better in virtually every aspect of his life.
Social Outlook
Socially, fasting is an expression of solidarity with the poor, the family and the whole society. This is a period in which the rich can experience to some extent what it is to be poor and the pains the indigent suffers in normal living conditions. The process of disciplining resulting from Islamic fasting, instills in the rich the virtue of mercy, rahmah, which is very important in terms of social wellbeing and the proliferation of communal harmony.
“Those who are merciful to others, the Merciful will have mercy upon them,” the Messenger said.
Family Ties
Fasting strengthens family ties, especially in that the family is an endangered institution in western society. It helps the family gather together to break fast at iftar, and eat sahuur together at least twice a day for a month. The family members even does their prayers together.
Fasting enhances and energizes friendship, as Ramadan is known as the month of invitations and visitations. Friends, family members and neighbors extend invitations to each other to come to their homes to have Iftar together. During Ramadhan, the community gathers in mosques when they perform their congregational taraweeh prayers along or partake in other activities that may be held at that time.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Nikmatnya Ramadan
"Sebagai muslim yang sejati, kedatangan dan kehadiran Ramadhan yang mulia pada tahun ini merupakan sesuatu yang amat membahagiakan kita. Betapa tidak, dengan menunaikan ibadah Ramadhan, amat banyak keuntungan yang akan kita peroleh, baik dalam kehidupan di dunia maupun di akhirat kelak.
Disinilah letak pentingnya bagi kita untuk membuka tabir rahsia puasa sebagai salah satu bahagian terpenting dari ibadah Ramadhan. Dr. Yusuf Qardhawi dalam kitabnya Al Ibadah Fil Islam mengungkapkan ada lima rahsia puasa yang dapat kita buka untuk selanjutnya boleh kita rasakan kenikmatannya dalam ibadah Ramadhan
1. Menguatkan Jiwa
Dalam hidup hidup, tak sedikit kita dapati manusia yang
didominasi oleh hawa nafsunya, lalu manusia itu menuruti
apapun yang menjadi keinginannya meskipun keinginan itu
merupakan sesuatu yang bathil dan mengganggu serta
merugikan orang lain. Kerananya, di dalam Islam ada
perintah untuk memerangi hawa nafsu dalam erti berusaha
untuk mengendalikannya, bukan membunuh nafsu yang
membuat kita tidak mempunyai keinginan terhadap sesuatu
yang bersifat duniawi. Manakala dalam peperangan ini
manusia mengalami kekalahan, malapetaka besar akan terjadi
kerana manusia yang kalah dalam perang melawan hawa nafsu
itu akan mengalihkan penuhanan dari kepada Allah Swt
sebagai Tuhan yang benar kepada hawa nafsu yang cenderung
mengarahkan manusia pada kesesatan. Allah memerintahkan
kita memperhatikan masalah ini dalam firman-Nya yang
ertinya: Maka pernahkah kamu melihat orang yang menjadikan
hawa nafsunya sebagai Tuhannya dan Allah membiarkannya
sesat berdasarkan ilmu-Nya.
Dengan ibadah puasa, maka manusia akan berhasil
mengendalikan hawa nafsunya yang membuat jiwanya menjadi
kuat, bahkan dengan demikian, manusia akan memperoleh
darjat yang tinggi seperti layaknya malaikat yang suci
dan ini akan membuatnya mampu mengetuk dan membuka
pintu-pintu langit hingga segala doanya dikabulkan
oleh Allah Swt, Rasulullah Saw bersabda yang ertinya: Ada
tiga golongan orang yang tidak ditolak doa mereka:
orang yang berpuasa hingga berbuka, pemimpin yang adil dan
doa orang yang dizalimi. (HR. Tirmidzi)
2. Mendidik Kemahuan
Puasa mendidik seseorang untuk memiliki kemahuan yang
sungguh-sungguh dalam kebaikan, meskipun untuk
melaksanakan kebaikan itu terhalang oleh berbagai perkara.
Puasa yang baik akan membuat seseorang terus
mempertahankan keinginannya yang baik, meskipun peluang
untuk menyimpang begitu besar. Kerana itu, Rasulullah Saw
menyatakan: Puasa itu setengah dari kesabaran.
Dalam kaitan ini, maka puasa akan membuat kekuatan rohani
seorang muslim semakin prima. Kekuatan rohani yang prima
akan membuat seseorang tidak akan lupa diri meskipun telah
mencapai keberhasilan atau kenikmatan duniawi yang sangat
besar, dan kekuatan rohani juga akan membuat seorang
muslim tidak akan berputus asa meskipun penderitaan yang
dialami sangat sukar.
3. Menyihatkan Badan
Disamping kesihatan dan kekuatan rohani, puasa yang baik
dan benar juga akan memberikan pengaruh positif berupa
kesihatan jasmani. Hal ini tidak hanya dinyatakan oleh
Rasulullah Saw, tetapi juga sudah dibuktikan oleh para
doktor atau ahli-ahli kesihatan dunia yang membuat kita
tidak perlu meragukannya lagi. Mereka berkesimpulan bahwa
pada saat-saat tertentu, perut memang harus diistirahatkan
dari bekerja memproses makanan yang masuk sebagaimana juga
mesin harus diistirahatkan, apalagi di dalam Islam, isi
perut kita memang harus dibagi menjadi tiga, sepertiga
untuk makanan, sepertiga untuk air dan sepertiga untuk
udara.
4. Mengenal Nilai Kenikmatan
Dalam hidup ini, sebenarnya sudah begitu banyak kenikmatan
yang Allah berikan kepada manusia, tapi banyak pula
manusia yang tidak pandai mensyukurinya. Dapat satu tidak
terasa nikmat kerana menginginkan dua, dapat dua tidak
terasa nikmat kerana menginginkan tiga dan begitulah
seterusnya. Padahal kalau manusia memperhatikan dan
merenungi, apa yang diperolehnya sebenarnya sudah sangat
menyenangkan kerana begitu banyak orang yang memperoleh
sesuatu tidak lebih banyak atau tidak lebih mudah dari apa
yang kita peroleh.
Maka dengan puasa, manusia bukan hanya disuruh
memperhatikan dan merenungi tentang kenikmatan yang sudah
diperolehnya, tapi juga disuruh merasakan betapa
besar sebenarnya nikmat yang Allah berikan kepada kita.
Hal ini kerana baru beberapa jam saja kita tidak makan dan
minum sudah terasa betul penderitaan yang kita alami, dan
pada saat kita berbuka puasa, terasa betul besarnya nikmat
dari Allah meskipun hanya berupa sebiji kurma atau seteguk
air. Disinilah letak pentingnya ibadah puasa berguna mendidik
kita untuk menyedari tinggi nilai kenikmatan yang Allah
berikan agar kita selanjutnya menjadi orang yang pandai
bersyukur dan tidak mengecilkan erti kenikmatan dari Allah
meskipun dari segi jumlah memang sedikit dan kecil. Rasa
syukur memang akan membuat nikmat itu bertambah banyak,
baik dari segi jumlah atau paling tidak dari segi rasanya,
Allah berfirman yang ertinya: Dan (ingatlah juga), tatkala
Tuhanmu memaklumkan esungguhnya jika kamu
bersyukur, pasti Kami akan menambah (nikmat) kepadamu,
dan jika kamu mengingkari (nikmat-Ku), maka sesungguhnya
azab-Ku sangat pedih.
5. Mengingat dan Merasakan Penderitaan Orang Lain
Merasakan lapar dan haus juga memberikan pengalaman kepada
kita bagaimana beratnya penderitaan yang dirasakan orang
lain. Sebab pengalaman lapar dan haus yang kita rasakan
akan segera berakhir hanya dengan beberapa jam, sementara
penderitaan orang lain entah bila akan berakhir. Dari
sini, semestinya puasa akan menumbuhkan dan memantapkan
kesedaran kita kepada kaum muslimin lainnya yang
mengalami penderitaan yang hingga kini masih belum
diatasi.
Oleh kerana itu, sebagai simbol dari rasa kesedaran itu,
sebelum Ramadhan berakhir, kita diwajibkan untuk
menunaikan zakat agar dengan demikian setahap demi setahap
kita dapat mengatasi persoalan-persoalan umat yang
menderita. Bahkan zakat itu tidak hanya bagi kepentingan
orang yang miskin dan menderita, tapi juga bagi kita yang
mengeluarkannya agar dengan demikian, hilang kekotoran
jiwa kita yang berkaitan dengan harta seperti gila harta, dan sebagainya.
Allah berfirman yang ertinya: Ambillah zakat dari sebahagian
harta mereka, dengan zakat itu kamu membersihkan dan
mensucikan mereka dan mendoakan untuk mereka.
Sesungguhnya doa kamu itu (menjadi) ketenteraman
jiwa bagi mereka. Dan Allah Maha Mendengar lagi Maha
Mengetahui.
Sambut dengan Gembira
Kerana rahsia puasa merupakan sesuatu yang amat penting
bagi kita, maka sudah sepantasnyalah kalau kita harus
menyambut kedatangan Ramadhan tahun ini dengan penuh rasa
gembira sehingga kegembiraan kita ini akan membuat kita
dapat melaksanakan ibadah Ramadhan nanti dengan ringan
meskipun sebenarnya ibadah Ramadhan itu berat.
Kegembiraan kita terhadap datangnya bulan Ramadhan harus
kita tunjukkan dengan berupaya semaksima mungkin
memanfaatkan Ramadhan tahun ini sebagai momentum untuk
mentarbiyyah (mendidik) diri, keluarga dan masyarakat
kearah pengukuhan atau pemantapan taqwa kepada Allah Swt,
sesuatu yang memang amat kita perlukan bagi meraih
keberkatan dari Allah Swt
"Sebagai muslim yang sejati, kedatangan dan kehadiran Ramadhan yang mulia pada tahun ini merupakan sesuatu yang amat membahagiakan kita. Betapa tidak, dengan menunaikan ibadah Ramadhan, amat banyak keuntungan yang akan kita peroleh, baik dalam kehidupan di dunia maupun di akhirat kelak.
Disinilah letak pentingnya bagi kita untuk membuka tabir rahsia puasa sebagai salah satu bahagian terpenting dari ibadah Ramadhan. Dr. Yusuf Qardhawi dalam kitabnya Al Ibadah Fil Islam mengungkapkan ada lima rahsia puasa yang dapat kita buka untuk selanjutnya boleh kita rasakan kenikmatannya dalam ibadah Ramadhan
1. Menguatkan Jiwa
Dalam hidup hidup, tak sedikit kita dapati manusia yang
didominasi oleh hawa nafsunya, lalu manusia itu menuruti
apapun yang menjadi keinginannya meskipun keinginan itu
merupakan sesuatu yang bathil dan mengganggu serta
merugikan orang lain. Kerananya, di dalam Islam ada
perintah untuk memerangi hawa nafsu dalam erti berusaha
untuk mengendalikannya, bukan membunuh nafsu yang
membuat kita tidak mempunyai keinginan terhadap sesuatu
yang bersifat duniawi. Manakala dalam peperangan ini
manusia mengalami kekalahan, malapetaka besar akan terjadi
kerana manusia yang kalah dalam perang melawan hawa nafsu
itu akan mengalihkan penuhanan dari kepada Allah Swt
sebagai Tuhan yang benar kepada hawa nafsu yang cenderung
mengarahkan manusia pada kesesatan. Allah memerintahkan
kita memperhatikan masalah ini dalam firman-Nya yang
ertinya: Maka pernahkah kamu melihat orang yang menjadikan
hawa nafsunya sebagai Tuhannya dan Allah membiarkannya
sesat berdasarkan ilmu-Nya.
Dengan ibadah puasa, maka manusia akan berhasil
mengendalikan hawa nafsunya yang membuat jiwanya menjadi
kuat, bahkan dengan demikian, manusia akan memperoleh
darjat yang tinggi seperti layaknya malaikat yang suci
dan ini akan membuatnya mampu mengetuk dan membuka
pintu-pintu langit hingga segala doanya dikabulkan
oleh Allah Swt, Rasulullah Saw bersabda yang ertinya: Ada
tiga golongan orang yang tidak ditolak doa mereka:
orang yang berpuasa hingga berbuka, pemimpin yang adil dan
doa orang yang dizalimi. (HR. Tirmidzi)
2. Mendidik Kemahuan
Puasa mendidik seseorang untuk memiliki kemahuan yang
sungguh-sungguh dalam kebaikan, meskipun untuk
melaksanakan kebaikan itu terhalang oleh berbagai perkara.
Puasa yang baik akan membuat seseorang terus
mempertahankan keinginannya yang baik, meskipun peluang
untuk menyimpang begitu besar. Kerana itu, Rasulullah Saw
menyatakan: Puasa itu setengah dari kesabaran.
Dalam kaitan ini, maka puasa akan membuat kekuatan rohani
seorang muslim semakin prima. Kekuatan rohani yang prima
akan membuat seseorang tidak akan lupa diri meskipun telah
mencapai keberhasilan atau kenikmatan duniawi yang sangat
besar, dan kekuatan rohani juga akan membuat seorang
muslim tidak akan berputus asa meskipun penderitaan yang
dialami sangat sukar.
3. Menyihatkan Badan
Disamping kesihatan dan kekuatan rohani, puasa yang baik
dan benar juga akan memberikan pengaruh positif berupa
kesihatan jasmani. Hal ini tidak hanya dinyatakan oleh
Rasulullah Saw, tetapi juga sudah dibuktikan oleh para
doktor atau ahli-ahli kesihatan dunia yang membuat kita
tidak perlu meragukannya lagi. Mereka berkesimpulan bahwa
pada saat-saat tertentu, perut memang harus diistirahatkan
dari bekerja memproses makanan yang masuk sebagaimana juga
mesin harus diistirahatkan, apalagi di dalam Islam, isi
perut kita memang harus dibagi menjadi tiga, sepertiga
untuk makanan, sepertiga untuk air dan sepertiga untuk
udara.
4. Mengenal Nilai Kenikmatan
Dalam hidup ini, sebenarnya sudah begitu banyak kenikmatan
yang Allah berikan kepada manusia, tapi banyak pula
manusia yang tidak pandai mensyukurinya. Dapat satu tidak
terasa nikmat kerana menginginkan dua, dapat dua tidak
terasa nikmat kerana menginginkan tiga dan begitulah
seterusnya. Padahal kalau manusia memperhatikan dan
merenungi, apa yang diperolehnya sebenarnya sudah sangat
menyenangkan kerana begitu banyak orang yang memperoleh
sesuatu tidak lebih banyak atau tidak lebih mudah dari apa
yang kita peroleh.
Maka dengan puasa, manusia bukan hanya disuruh
memperhatikan dan merenungi tentang kenikmatan yang sudah
diperolehnya, tapi juga disuruh merasakan betapa
besar sebenarnya nikmat yang Allah berikan kepada kita.
Hal ini kerana baru beberapa jam saja kita tidak makan dan
minum sudah terasa betul penderitaan yang kita alami, dan
pada saat kita berbuka puasa, terasa betul besarnya nikmat
dari Allah meskipun hanya berupa sebiji kurma atau seteguk
air. Disinilah letak pentingnya ibadah puasa berguna mendidik
kita untuk menyedari tinggi nilai kenikmatan yang Allah
berikan agar kita selanjutnya menjadi orang yang pandai
bersyukur dan tidak mengecilkan erti kenikmatan dari Allah
meskipun dari segi jumlah memang sedikit dan kecil. Rasa
syukur memang akan membuat nikmat itu bertambah banyak,
baik dari segi jumlah atau paling tidak dari segi rasanya,
Allah berfirman yang ertinya: Dan (ingatlah juga), tatkala
Tuhanmu memaklumkan esungguhnya jika kamu
bersyukur, pasti Kami akan menambah (nikmat) kepadamu,
dan jika kamu mengingkari (nikmat-Ku), maka sesungguhnya
azab-Ku sangat pedih.
5. Mengingat dan Merasakan Penderitaan Orang Lain
Merasakan lapar dan haus juga memberikan pengalaman kepada
kita bagaimana beratnya penderitaan yang dirasakan orang
lain. Sebab pengalaman lapar dan haus yang kita rasakan
akan segera berakhir hanya dengan beberapa jam, sementara
penderitaan orang lain entah bila akan berakhir. Dari
sini, semestinya puasa akan menumbuhkan dan memantapkan
kesedaran kita kepada kaum muslimin lainnya yang
mengalami penderitaan yang hingga kini masih belum
diatasi.
Oleh kerana itu, sebagai simbol dari rasa kesedaran itu,
sebelum Ramadhan berakhir, kita diwajibkan untuk
menunaikan zakat agar dengan demikian setahap demi setahap
kita dapat mengatasi persoalan-persoalan umat yang
menderita. Bahkan zakat itu tidak hanya bagi kepentingan
orang yang miskin dan menderita, tapi juga bagi kita yang
mengeluarkannya agar dengan demikian, hilang kekotoran
jiwa kita yang berkaitan dengan harta seperti gila harta, dan sebagainya.
Allah berfirman yang ertinya: Ambillah zakat dari sebahagian
harta mereka, dengan zakat itu kamu membersihkan dan
mensucikan mereka dan mendoakan untuk mereka.
Sesungguhnya doa kamu itu (menjadi) ketenteraman
jiwa bagi mereka. Dan Allah Maha Mendengar lagi Maha
Mengetahui.
Sambut dengan Gembira
Kerana rahsia puasa merupakan sesuatu yang amat penting
bagi kita, maka sudah sepantasnyalah kalau kita harus
menyambut kedatangan Ramadhan tahun ini dengan penuh rasa
gembira sehingga kegembiraan kita ini akan membuat kita
dapat melaksanakan ibadah Ramadhan nanti dengan ringan
meskipun sebenarnya ibadah Ramadhan itu berat.
Kegembiraan kita terhadap datangnya bulan Ramadhan harus
kita tunjukkan dengan berupaya semaksima mungkin
memanfaatkan Ramadhan tahun ini sebagai momentum untuk
mentarbiyyah (mendidik) diri, keluarga dan masyarakat
kearah pengukuhan atau pemantapan taqwa kepada Allah Swt,
sesuatu yang memang amat kita perlukan bagi meraih
keberkatan dari Allah Swt
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