Towards a 12-month Ramadan

Now, the holy month of Ramadan came to an end. It is time for reward and requital after, hopefully, passing the test successfully. Now, in the daytime, one can enjoy oneself, eat, drink, put on perfume and, if married, have sexual intercourse, but without extravagance. However, it is the divine norm for believers that the hardship and difficulty they may experience are always coupled with ease and relief. God says: "Surely, hardship is coupled with ease. Indeed, hardship is coupled with ease." (94: 5,6)

A Muslim should bear in mind that Ramadan is not intended for causing people to undergo suffering without a good reason or the feast is the end to which such a hard experience is brought. Ramadan is an intensive training period, which is supposed to make true believers of average Muslims. God says: "O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before, so that you may be pious." (2: 183)

Additional practices are introduced to insure that the spiritual aspect of man will be enhanced. Ramadan is such a refresher course that renews the faith and resolve of Muslims. A higher level of faith is required throughout the month to guarantee that one's faith will be affirmed or at least maintained throughout the year. Stricter rules are imposed so that the softer customary ones will be properly observed.

Ramadan is the Islamic yearly overhaul where Muslims have their defects and shortcomings repaired, spiritual performance improved and self-control tightened. It is such a time period where a Muslim is enabled to overcome the Devil and his own weaknesses. It is the time of spiritual immunization and moral reinforcement. It is the battle where he is well fortified and supported for an easy victory over sin and the innate human tendency towards disobedience.

Especially for those Muslims who do not have full self-control and cannot defeat Satan elsewhere in the year, Ramadan is prescribed as a divine assistance for more self-restraint and strength in the face of Satan and his followers. Throughout Ramadan, a Muslim is expected to fight against himself and the satanic insinuations to be better in the sight of God.

At the end of the month, a Muslim is supposed to be more able to confront the Devil and his own susceptibilities so that he will be a more devout servant of God and more efficient builder of this universe.

Hence, Ramadan should be viewed as only such an experience or training period from which he should benefit and avail himself as much as possible and whose positive outcome should be maintained throughout the year. Even the least faithful Muslims feel a transformation and change, albeit minimal, that indicates that improvement is possible and it is determination, which is lacking.

Thus, Ramadan is essentially designed to boost pluck and develop firm will so that it will be easy for even an average Muslim to develop a truly Islamic character and a more balanced personality. The holy month is ultimately aimed at proving the fact that the defeat of Satan, as well as human vulnerability, is something quite possible and it is man who decides to defeat or get defeated by him.

Finally, it is worth noting that just as body is developed by hard physical effort and bodily exhaustion as represented in workouts and vigorous exercises, soul requires equal spiritual effort and moral exhaustion for development.

Fasting: the Key to Self-restraint and Spiritual Transformation

It goes without saying that man, if good, is the most favorite being in this universe in the sight of God. God says: "Verily, we have honored the children of Adam…" (17:70) Man is the angel that can do evil and the Devil that can do good. He is put to the test and then he may prove the best of the whole creation or a devil shaped human being. It is choice that makes him either the best ever or otherwise the worst ever. If he opts to do good, he will be better than angels because he will become an angel by choice unlike the heavenly angels who are good and do good with no choice.

However, there are several enormous challenges that arise in man's way to superiority to all creatures of Allah. There is the Devil who vowed to lead all mankind astray. God says: "He said: 'then, by Thy Power, I will put them all in the wrong…'" (38: 82) There is always innate human vulnerability to sin thanks to the earthly shape of the soul which assumes the form of a physical body. Unfortunately, the above two effects often find their way to man. That is why most human beings are regretfully doomed.

Man is composed of four main components, two of which are favorable and the other two are not. Every body of us has spiritual, rational, physical and emotional components, with the first two conducive to superiority and the second two leading to inferiority, especially if heavily indulged. Hence, man is instructed to strike a balance between such components so that he may prosper in this world and the one to come.

Similarly, he is forbidden to pay more attention to the unfavorable components lest he should be misguided and inevitably lose way. It is driven home to him that such components have secondary roles to play in his life. They are to serve the other two components. So they should be given less attention. However, they should not be neglected for they can be favorable but only if they are rendered fully controllable and refined though they are still more associated with the worldly, transient aspect of man's structure.

Consequently, man is commanded to avoid such effects that may keep the stated components out of control or cause them to overshadow the more important components. A body of measures is prescribed for man to ensure that the two favorable components will be always in command of the other two components, not vice versa. Such measures are daily, weekly and periodical.

In particular, the daily prayers, for example, are offered to alert the favorable components and give them priority over the other less favorable components. Likewise, Friday prayers are observed to refresh the stated favorable components. Periodical practices include but are not limited to almsgiving, fasting and pilgrimage. There are so many exercises that are prescribed for man to make sure his body is subjected to his soul, not vice versa.

Fasting is one of the most effective means of resisting temptations and overcoming sensuality. More instrumental in restraining self and cultivating sentiment, fasting is recommended all along the line. Allah says: "O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before, so that you may learn self-restraint." (2: 183) Nevertheless, it is made obligatory during only one lunar month, namely Ramadan, throughout year. Beyond this month, fasting is still recommended as a supererogatory act.

Throughout the time of fasting, a Muslim is prohibited from yielding to the requirements of his body or responding to the dictates of his strong feelings. Abu Huraira reported that Prophet Muhammad said: "When anyone of you gets up in the morning in the state of fasting, he should neither use obscene language nor do any act of ignorance. And if anyone slanders him or quarrels with him, he should say: 'I am fasting, I am fasting.'" (Agreed upon hadith) A fasting Muslim should not have any drink, food, sexual intercourse, perfume or a nasty strong feeling no matter how much he is excited.

For a full month, a Muslim should do such a spiritual and rational exercise so that he will be enabled to have full control over his bodily desires and strong feelings. At the end of the month, he is supposed to be more able to control his body and affection throughout the year. Out of this month, a Muslim can still volunteer to offer fasting to reinforce and consolidate the self-restraint ability.

As a matter of fact, such a spiritual exercise is hard enough as a Muslim is required to abstain from doing even lawful things. In the daytime, he cannot have such enjoyment which is permissible at night and any time else in the year. He abstains from having such enjoyment by choice, under no duress or coercion.

By so doing, a Muslim grows more likely to be responsive to the divine guidance by doing which he is commanded to do and averting what he is forbidden to do. Thus, prosperous he will be in this world and the Hereafter.