Islam for Muslims
- THE FAITH OF MUSLIMS
- GOOD DEEDS IN PERSONAL LIFE
- GOOD DEEDS IN SOCIAL LIFE
The Essentials of Ramadan Fasting (Siam)
23: THE ESSENTIALS OF RAMADAN FASTING (SIAM)
Introduction: Every adult and sane Muslim male or female has ‘fard’ obligation to fast during the complete lunar month (29 or 30 days) of Ramadan. You cannot shift this compulsory fasting to any other month (with shorter days of December winter, as example) either in Islamic or any other calendar. Fasting requires an abstention from any sort of food, drink, smoke or sexual pleasure from pre-dawn to sundown. Accordingly, you can “eat and drink until the white thread of dawn appears distinct from its black thread (in nightly horizon); then complete your fast (during day) up to appearance of the night” (2:187).
Importance: Fasting is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and therefore it enjoys paramount importance. The Quran enjoins: “Ramadan is the (holy month) in which was sent down the Quran, as a guide to mankind. So every one of you who is present (at home) during that month should spend it in fasting. It is better for you that you fast (during this month), if you only knew” (2:185; 2:184). During Ramadan night, special prayer 'tarawih' (8-20 rakats) is added to nightly ‘isha’ prayer. Also there is provision for “sitting for retreat in the mosques” for last 10 days “when you cannot associate with your wives” (2:187).
Hadith: The Prophet ruled: (i) Fasting is like a shield from sins due to its strict control on your instincts. This is additional to God’s design to restrain Satanic influence in Ramadan so you can perform more of virtuous deeds. (ii) It erases the past record of your minor sins, in addition to your relief from major sin for not fasting unexcused. (iii) During Ramadan, some deeds have multiple blessings e.g. 70 times for nafl salat. Reward for fasting is said to be specially given by God probably for its invisible nature offering chance to avoid public show. (iv) During fasting, huge emphasis on doing good deeds like prayer, charity, Quranic recitation and refraining from vices like lying, stealing, backbiting, jealousy, quarrel etc. proves powerful for your spiritual elevation.
Prohibited Days: Ramadan month is designated only for current compulsory fasting and not for any previously missed compulsory or current optional fasting. Other fasting of the latter types could be performed at other times excluding 5 prohibited days: Id-ul-Fitr and 10th to 13th days of Jilhajj month.
Postponement: If you are really unable to fast due to good reasons like “if you are ill or on a journey” or fetal risk during pregnancy etc., then the “prescribed period (should be completed) days later” by exact number of days (2:185). Accordingly, the women should take early chance to make up their days missed on ground of menstruation and post-delivery bleeding. If you lose fasting ability for life due to genuine problems like old age or complex ailment, the solution is ‘fidya’ or properly feeding the poor two meals for each day of fasting. If you are not able to fast or have excuse not to, you should try to avoid eating in public at daytime in order to head off any negative influence.
Penalty for Unexcused Break: You must make intention for fasting. After start of fasting by making clear intention, if you playfully or willfully (without any good reason) break it through eating, drinking, smoking or sexual intercourse, you will face stiff penalty by making up for each missed day through fasting for 60 consecutive days. If you break fasting any single day within these 60 days, you have to start fasting all over. If you are not physically capable to complete 60 days in a row, the alternative will be charity of 120 square meals (equal to feeding 60 poor people 2 meals for one day or one meal for 120 poor for one day or one poor twice a day for 60 days and so on). You also have option to donate the monetary equivalents of above feeding expenses.
Invalidation: The fasting will break if you
(1) eat or drink even for good reasons like sickness, travelling etc.
(2) swallow even a small food particle released from between teeth
(3) swallow spittle that becomes reddish with high percentage of blood
(4) swallow vomit in small quantity or unwillingly in large measure (filling the mouth)
(5) eat ‘sehri’ after dawn or ‘iftar’ before sunset by misunderstanding the time
(6) get intravenous injection for nutritional purpose
(7) have water entered through nose or mouth with presence of your mind. Such invalidated fasting will be compensated at the rate of one for one.
When not Breaks: Fasting will not break if you
(1) absent-mindedly take food or drink regardless of quantity but as you remember you instantly stop and try to get it out
(2) swallow spittle
(3) sleep or have night pollution
(4) “approach to your wife during nights” (2:187)
(5) oil your body or take showers
(6) use cosmetics or scent
(7) bleed outside body or bleed inside mouth if not swallowed
(8) unwillingly swallow vomit in small quantity
(9) take external medication, inhaler or injection for medical reasons.
Nightly Prayer: Tarawih: It is highly rewarding to offer ‘tarawih’ prayer at the nights of Ramadan. This is, however, sunnat-e-muakkada (emphasized sunnat) and not ‘fard’ and nor is it an integral part of fasting. So you will reasonably be cleared of ‘fard’ obligation if you perform fasting even without pairing with ‘tarawih’. The Prophet practiced this prayer preferably in 20 rakats and sometimes as low as 8 on excuses. Given this range of choices, you should perform at least 8 if you are not able to complete 20 for good reasons.
Nightly Prayer: Tahajjud: The most suitable period for optional prayers is the night specially the “small hours of the morning” (17:79). God likes your “prostration or standing (in adoration)” (39:9) at nightly hours when the surrounding remains quiet and peaceful needed for your attention and devotion and the risk of public show is very minimum. More importantly, your sacrifice of “separating body limbs from (cozy) beds of sleep” deserves profitable reward (32:16). Such late night prayers is the “most potent for governing (your soul)” and good for “reforming your speech” (73:6). Such nightly prayer named ‘tahajjud’ was “additional prayer” specially assigned to the Prophet who used to pray “half or little less of night” and “at the retreat of the stars” (17:79; 73:3; 52:49). This was in his spiritual preparation for upcoming “weighty revelations” that eventually elevated him to a “Station of Praise and Glory” promised by God (73:5; 17:79).The merits of prayers are remarkably higher in selected holy nights that include but are not limited to ‘Qadr’, ‘Hajj’ (Arafa), two Eid festivals, Ashura, and Juma. It may be reminded that in Islamic tradition, the night comes before the day i.e. holy Juma night is between Thursday and Friday.
Night of ‘Qadr’: The night of ‘Qadr’ (the ‘night of power’) is the crown jewel of Ramadan which marks the descent of Quran and therefore have a huge lead over any other nights. This night has been enormously honored by adding the 97th chapter ‘Qadr’ named after it. Praying at this blessed night is declared directly by God Himself as “better than a thousand months (83 years and 4 months)” (97:3). Noteworthy is that 1000 was the highest number known at that time among the early Arabs and the word “better” points to an infinitely higher supremacy. This night is a divine grace as well as a good make-up for those who live a short life or face shortage of fund to travel to Mecca for prayer at Baitul Haram with 100,000 times soab. God also added another layer of its importance by making “herein distinct every affair of wisdom” (44:4). Most scholars explain this as crucial decisions about birth, death, livelihood etc. made for the following year but some analysts attribute this to Shab-e-barat of mid-Shaban month. This position almost certainly appears to be wrong in the absence of any Quranic evidence about that. By contrast, logic dictates that important decisions are likely to be made on the night of Shab-e-Qadr that God certified as most important.
However, such enormity of blessings cannot be a compensation for any missing (qaza) compulsory deeds. As other side of the same coin, sinning at this night may have negative multiplier effect or at least an boundless loss in blessings. The Quran purposively left us in the dark about the exact date of ‘Qadr’ night. In order to maximize chance to avail, you should act upon the Prophetic hints by praying at all of last 10 Ramadan nights or at least 5 odd nights of these days including the more probable 27th.
Conclusion: You should follow the above mentioned rules in order to make your fasting qualitative and acceptable to God.