FOREWORD

Fasting in Ramadan, the ninth month of the Hijri calendar, is training in self-purification for a believer. Saum, the Arabic word for fasting means abstinence. Abstinence from food and water for a limited period is symbolic training in self-restraint. In this way, the month of Ramadan trains us to live a disciplined life.

Ramadan is a reminder to a sincere person that we are in the world of God, a world which has been created by God, not us. Its owner is God, not us. Here we cannot live according to our will. Here we cannot eat, drink or speak according to our will. Here we have to live in accordance with the will of the Creator. This kind of life is possible only when man apprehends God at the level of realization; when he discovers that in this world there is no place for those who lead a permissive (beqait) life. The secret of success in this world of God lies in leading a disciplined (paband) life.

Prophet Muhammad said, “There is purification for all things, and purification of the body is fasting.” (Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith No. 1745) Just as bathing purifies the body, so does fasting purify the soul. Ramadan is the month of purification of the soul in which man reassesses his life; reviews all his affairs; re-plans his religious and dawah life; essentially, purifies his heart and mind to build a new personality within himself.

This is the purification of the self and this is the real aim of Ramadan. One who spends the days and nights of Ramadan in this way is the one who has truly fasted. The true fast is that which is a source of purification of the self or the purification of one’s inner personality. Purification of the self is a continuous process in the life of the believer. But in the month of Ramadan, it is possible to perform this process of purification of the self with greater intensity. By purifying one’s self for one month in a year, one is able to lead a life of self-discipline in all matters for the rest of the year.

Wahiduddin Khan

10 April, 2021

New Delhi, India