20 November 2001, 12:40am IST
ANDALIB AKHTER.
Different faiths have different ways of observing fasts. in islam, fasting or roza in the holy month of ramzan has a special significance and has been regarded as a farz or duty. it is one of the five pillars on which the edifice of islam rests and it is only next in importance to namaz , the obligatory five-times-a-day prayers. it is the duty of every adult, sane and able muslim to keep a fast for a whole month. denial of the obligatory nature of fasting during this month amounts to disbelief. this obligation for a whole month is not intended to be a penance or punishment, or an attempt at futile self-mortification, but it is expected to make a person self-restrained and god-fearing. roza , in fact, is an act of obedience and submission to allah’s commands through the highest degree of commitment, sincerity and faithfulness to seek allah’s mercy and to atone for sins and errors. it is done out of deep love for god with genuine devotion, honest dedication and closeness to allah. but mere abstinence from dawn to dusk is not roza in the real sense. in general terms, roza means abstaining from food, drink and physical intimacy. however, when we study its inner concept, we realise it to be the fasting of the heart, from unworthy concerns and worldly thoughts, in total disregard of everything but allah. a true follower during the period of roza should restrain himself from viewing anything that is blameworthy or reprehensible, or that which distracts the heart and diverts it from the remembrance of god. the prophet said, ‘‘the furtive glance is one of the poisoned arrows of satan, on him be god’s curse. whoever forsakes it for fear of god, will receive from him, great and gracious is he, a faith the sweetness of which he will find within his heart’’. the fasting of the tongue requires guarding one’s tongue from lying, backbiting, scandal-mongering, obscenity, rudeness and controversy. we must observe silence and remember allah through the recitation of the koran. sufyan said that backbiting vitiated the fast. layth quotes mujahid , as saying, ‘‘two habits vitiate fasting: backbiting and telling lies’’. according to the prophet, fasting is a shield, and one should not use foul or foolish language, while fasting. if someone attacks you or insults you, say, ‘‘i am fasting, i am fasting’’. we must close our ears to everything reprehensible — for everything unlawful to utter is unlawful to listen to. that is why allah equated the eavesdropper with the profiteer. it is necessary to keep all the limbs and organs away from sin, like the hands and feet from reprehensible deeds, and the stomach from questionable food at the time of breaking the fast. the object of fasting is to induce moderation. the prophet said, ‘‘how many of those who fast, get nothing from it but hunger and thirst?’’ of what use is the fast as a means of conquering god’s enemy and abating appetite, if at the time of breaking it, it not only makes up for all that a person has missed during the daytime, but that he or she indulges by feasting? it has become the tradition to stock up foodstuff for ramzan , so that more is consumed during that time than in the course of several other months put together. it is well-known that the object of fasting is to experience hunger and to check desire, in order to reinforce the soul in piety. if the stomach is starved from pre-dawn to dusk, so that its appetite is aroused and its craving intensified, and it is then offered delicacies and allowed to eat its fill, its taste for pleasure is increased and its force exaggerated. passions are then activated which would have been silent under normal conditions. it is, therefore, desirable to cut down our intake of what we would consume on a normal night, when not keeping roza . what benefit would we get from the fast, if we consume more than what we would usually consume during day and night combined? when the fast is broken, our heart should beat with a mixture of fear and hope, as we do not know if our fast will be accepted or rejected by allah. this is how we should feel at the end of any act of worship we perform as we express our faith in god and sincerity of purpose. to seek god’s blessings through true devotion is an act of salvation.
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