FASTING IS FOR ALLAH ONLY

“Oh, ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you so that you may learn self-restraint. Fasting for a fixed number of days; but if any of you is ill or on a journey the prescribed number should be made up from days later for those who can do it…” (2:183-184) Allah also says, “The month of Ramadan, that in which the Qur’an was revealed a guidance and a distinction [right and wrong]. Therefore, whoever of you is present in the month has to fast therein and whoever is sick, or on a journey, then he has to fast a like number of days. Allah desires ease for you, and He does not desire hardship for you…” (2:185)

“Brothers and sisters, according to the teachings of the Qur’an and Hadith all Muslims have to fast during Ramadan and whoever fails to fast without a reasonable excuse is committing a grave offense and a heinous sin.

The excuses are:

1)    To have not reached puberty, (or 18 years of age by some jurists).

2)    To be sick.

3)    To be on a journey.

4)    Having a young baby who could not live without the milk of its mother.

5)    A woman in menses.

6)    Having post-natal blood flow. The people who have these excuses are required to fast a like number of days except the non-pubert youth.

Brothers and sisters, our Prophet (pbuh) said “Allah (awj) says, all deeds of a person is for him but [obligatory] fasting is for me and I give the reward for it.  Fasting is an armor, and when one is fasting let him not utter immodest or foul speech, nor let him act in an ignorant manner. And if someone quarrels with him, let him ay I am fasting, I am fasting.” (Bukhari, Muslim)       

This hadith draws our attention to several important points, one of them is what Allah says, all deeds of a person is for him but [obligatory] fasting is for me”. This means that when you pray, fast and give zakat and so on, Allah puts all the rewards of your good deeds on one side and the rewards of your fasting on the other side. And when people with whom you have dealt badly in this life ask Allah on the Day of Judgment to give them their rights from you,* Allah will take some of your rewards, not from fasting but from the other side of your good deeds and give it to them. And when other people do the same, all of your rewards on this side finish Allah will not give them your reward of fasting. He (shwt) will save this reward for you and pay Himself the rights of these people instead of you. This is the meaning of the saying “all deeds of a person is for him but [obligatory] fasting is for me.”    

The second point is this, the Hadith states that fasting is an armor or protection from doing bad and getting involved in forbidden things. So whoever’s fasting keeps him away from sins and what Allah forbids should know that his fasting is acceptable. And whoever did not achieve this purpose did not respect his fasting and should know that his fasting is merely a formality…”

__________________________________

*Abu Huraira (rah) reported Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) as saying, “he who done a wrong affecting his brothers honor or anything else must ask for his forgiveness for it now before he will have neither dinar or dirham (i.e., the day of Judgment), if he has done any good deeds, the amount of his wrongdoing will be subtracted from them, but if has no good deeds it will be taken from the evil deeds of the victim and laid upon him.” (Bukhari)

Glossary:

(Shwt)         soob-hana-hu-wat-ta-ala

(Awj)           as-wa-jall

PURE FASTING

“Abu Huraira (rah) reported Allah's Messenger (pbuh) as saying, “If anyone does not abandon falsehood (and actions in accordance with it), Allah has no need of his giving up his food and drink during fasting.” (Bukhari) This is because Allah has ordered us to abandon during Ramadan the food and drink which is normally lawful during the year, to strengthen us and our will in order to be able to abandon what is unlawful during other times of the year. But if we are still unable to abandon what is unlawful, what is the use of abandoning our food and drink that is lawful?? So Brothers and Sisters, intend to do what Allah (awj) has ordered you to do. Abandon what is prohibited during the year, not only during Ramadan, but during the whole year, as you abandoned your food and drink during Ramadan.

Ramadan is then a trial or a lesson, so that you will know from it how to lead yourself to the right path. But when you find yourself astray you have to know that your fasting is formal, because you did not abandon falsehood in action in accordance with it (the fast) during Ramadan. 

The Prophet (pbuh) also said, “He who breaks his fast one day without a reason or real excuse, will lose the reward which he will never obtain the equivalent of even if he were to fast his entire age (lifetime).” (Abu Dawud) All Muslims must take care of Ramadan and be keen on fasting everyday in it as long as you have no lawful or valid excuse and you are able to do it. Abu Huraira (rah) reported Allah's Messenger as saying, “The religion of Islam will continue to prevail as long as the Muslims hasten to break the fast when Maghrib comes because the Jews and Christians used to delay in breaking the fast.” (Muslim)

When we know the Islamic directions and follow them we will be pure Muslims. But if we do not know these directions or follow them after knowing about them, we will look like some other people of another religion or people who have no religion at all. In either case we will not be like or look like the people of Islam. This last tradition can be taken as another sign which shows that the nature of fasting of the People of the Book was the same as ours but they changed their religion after some time...”

COMMENTARY

Among the Mustahabs and Adab (etiquette) connected to this worship that add perfection and blessings to it are:

1)                  To break the Fast before saying the evening prayer (Maghrib).

2)                  To break the Fast with a small amount of dates, water or milk.

3)          After the prayer is made, then a full meal is taken. This is done,“because it will take long to eat the food at the table especially in Ramadan, the iftar must be made with a little food and the supper must be had after the evening prayer so that the prayer will be performed early and the meal will be eaten with ease and without haste, thus the fast will be broken early and the prayer will be performed early.”

4)       There is also the practice of waiting until the Adhan has been completed before breaking the fast when in the Masjid. At this point some people may object to this practice by stating the Ahadith in the above Khutbah and others where the Prophet (pbuh) exhorted the Muslims to hasten breaking the fast. Without doubt these Ahadith are sound and well known.  However, as is the case with Al-Qur’an, it is the correct interpretation that is as important as the Ahadith itself reflected in the prohibition of misinterpretation of the sacred texts.

In the above mentioned Ahadith, “it has been made Sunnah to make haste for the iftar (breaking the Fast) and to make sahur late perhaps because it shows that man is incapable and needy. As a matter of fact worships are intended for showing incapability and need.” The practice of waiting until the Adhan has been called before making iftar would not violate this Sunnah as it would take only a few minutes for the Adhan to be completed while the criteria for hastening is to break the fast before the appearance of the stars after sunset. “The fast should be broken immediately after sunset and not deferred to the appearance of the stars as it is the common practice of the Jews and Christians" “To make haste for the iftar make the iftar before the stars are seen.”

For my brothers and sisters who are aware of the subject of Ada and Qada (times for the obligatory prayers) in the works of the fuqaha (fiqh scholars) (naturally based on Qur’an and Sunnah) the time of Esha is when the stars begin to be seen.  

● The quotations can be found in Se'adet-I-Ebediyye, Endless Bliss, Fifth Fascicle, Huseyn Hilmi Isik pgs. 38-39