Post-fasting Period

One very significant thing about the month of fasting is that it affords a personal experience of the nature of hunger and thirst. Rich and poor alike go through this trial. And it is not a temporary, one-day rigour; it amounts to a special training course which one has to go through, without a break, for a whole month.

In this way, through fasting, one experiences what it is like to be in need. One finds out what hunger and thirst are like. The well-off who, in normal circumstances, are never obliged to suffer the pangs of hunger and thirst undergo this experience personally in the month of Ramazan. In this way, fasting brings everyone to the same level. The rich, for a time, descend to the level of existence which is the normal lot of the poor. Ramazan, as a training course, awakens the sense of humanity in all human beings. People are then able to share their feelings and have the urge to do the utmost to assist their fellowmen in distress. In this way, fasting for the month of Ramazan produces a general awareness of the necessity to extend a helping hand to others.

Video Transcript
Video Transcript

Introduction

Today is September 4, 2011. The month of Ramzaan ended four days ago and now we are in the post-fasting period.

Islam does not subscribe to rituals. Ramzaan therefore is neither a month of practicing an annual ritual nor  is  it  the  provider  of  mysterious  benefits  on  account  of  abstaining  from  food  and  water.  It  is  in reality, the month of training, one which would help man all round the year.

What is Ramzaan?

Ramzaan  is  not  about  forsaking  food  (tark-e-ta’am) but  about  minimizing  food  (taqleeq-e-ta’am).

Man  has  two  aspects  of  his  personality,  his body  (physical aspect)  and his  soul (spiritual  aspect).  As per  the  law  of  nature, if  you feed one aspect more,  the  other one  will  have to starve. In  other words, Ramzaan seeks to train  man in  being contented with limited  material provisions and inculcate in him an understanding of this principle of nature.

Differently put,  there  are  two  ways  of  leading  life.  One  is  to adopt the principle: simple  living,  high thinking, which advocates simplicity  in material  life and  leads  to  intellectual, spiritual  development. Contrary to this is the principle:

luxurious living, base  thinking, which symbolizes how leading a vile life renders one intellectually incapable. Ramzaan is the process of opting for one of these two courses of  leading life. If  you adopt the luxurious living  lifestyle, you become  an intellectual  dwarf. While  if you  lead  a  need-based  life  on  material  front,  it  allows  you  time  to  think,  study,  observe  and contemplate on the deeper meaning of life.

What is post-fasting period?

The post-fasting period signifies that the training received by man during the period of Ramzaan, will be  cascaded during the remaining  months of the year. That is, in material life,  he would agree on less so that it allows him time for contemplation. Unfortunately, the present-day Muslims train themselves in  extravagance  during  the  month  of  Ramzaan  and  it  is  for  this  reason  that  they  have  become intellectual dwarfs. Quran is a Book of contemplation can be understood by the following verse:

Believers, fasting has been prescribed for you, just as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may guard yourselves against evil. (2:183)

It must be noted  that “ guidance”  is  an intellectual virtue.  Now  question  arises  about  how a  physical action  (abstinence  from  food)  can  lead  to  intellectual  development?  In  other  words,  man  cannot become  intellectually  aware only  by  staying  hungry  or  thirsty.  There are  many  poor  people  who  do not have adequate meal provisions but it does not lead to their intellectual development. What then is the use  of abstaining from food and  water?  The  utility  is  very  practical  -  doing so  “saves  time” and allows man to contemplate, free of material worries.

Another verse in the Quran reads,

So that they may be rightly guided (2:183)

Similar question arises here about how staying hungry contributes to man being rightly guided?  Being rightly  guided  is  determined  by  our  thinking  process  and  as  such  spending  less  time  on  material requirements, allows us time to deliberate over and fathom deeper issues of life.

Lack of wisdom

The  actions  of  the  present-day  Muslims  are  devoid  of  wisdom.  This  is  because  the  hatred  residing within  their  hearts  has  killed  the  way  to  their  intellectual  development.  Let  me  explain  this phenomenon with an example.

An  Arab  magazine  published  an  article  on  “minorities.”  To  my  mind,  the  term  “minority”  reflects preposterous  thinking.  There  is  only nationhood, there  is  nothing  like  minority. The  magazine  wrote that Muslim minorities are under the scare of  assimilation.  This  is absurd  thinking  as it  is against  the law of nature. Muslims do not analyse their actions and words in the context of the Quran, which says,

Many a small group, by God’s command has prevailed against a large group. (2:249)

All Muslim thinkers raise a lot of hue and cry on the topic of “minority” whereas the Quran is against this thinking. According to the Quran, minority can be in an advantageous position as compared to the majority, only if they abide by the law of nature.

However,  instead  of  making  their  mindset  basis the teachings  of the  Quran  and Hadith,  the  present-day  Muslims  let  media  determine  their  thought  process.  Media  is  an  industry  of  sensationalizing negative news; media propagated ideas should therefore not lead to the formation of a mindset.

Minority is in an advantageous position

I understood  the above  Quranic  verse  through  Arnold  Toynbee s  explanation.  In  his  book,  Toynbee has explained that in a society where minority and majority exist, there exists constant challenge. The process  of challenge  makes minority  a creative  minority because a challenge-response mechanism is activated  within  them.  The  constant  struggle  to  outperform  allows  them  to  unleash  their  untapped potential.  For example, iron does not exist in nature as is; its  ore does. It is  man who extracts the  ore and  processes  it  to  make  iron.  Similarly,  man  is  an  ore  himself,  and  the  process  of  pressure  and challenge, awakens his thinking process. This verse of the Quran is a source of a big hope for man but those  who  lead  extravagant  lives  and  do  not  devote  time  for  intellectual  development  cannot understand  this  lesson.  So,  while  media propagates  despair and  negative  thinking,  Quran  propagates hope and positive thinking.

Ramzaan  therefore  presents  a  complete  philosophy  of  life  and  teaches  that  while  leading  an excessively material life leads to animalization of man; leading a simple life makes man a super-man.

Present day Muslims and western civilization

All  the  present-day  Muslims  consider  western  civilization  as  their  enemy.  Such  thinking  is  highly absurd.  Western  civilization  has  certain  cultural  aspects  like  nudity  etc  but  another  aspect  is  its technological  advancement;  Muslims  have  failed  to  differentiate  between  the  two.  Differentiating these two aspects allows one to realize that communication for example - a technology provided to us by  the  advancement  of  the  Western  civilization  -  is  a  boon,  which  has  led  to  global  dawah  work.

Doing  dawah work at  a global scale was a mere  dream but today it  is  reality.  Such  positive  thinking emerges  when  man  understands  the  wisdom  of  Ramzaan  in  the  true  sense.  That  while  it  seeks abstinence  from  food, sleep and water – the basic needs  of man –  doing  so allows him  time  to  delve over deeper realities of life.

According to a Hadith, Prophet Muhammad said,

He succeeds, who found Islam, received need-based provisions and he agreed upon it [Woh shakhs kamyaab ho gaya, jis ne Islaam ko qabool kiya aur usko rizq mila baqadr-e zarurat aur w ho us par raazi ho gaya] (Abu Daw ud)

This is a very important Hadith. Let me explain its meaning in detail. Finding Islam is not ritualistic, it is a process. It means that one thinks, becomes a seeker and discovers the religion of God. As a result of  discovering the divine truth, he becomes so thrilled  that  he no  longer seeks  material comforts. He leads a simple, need-based life and yearns for greater spiritual development. I am reminded of an instance here.

A person  said to me, “Jab Allah ne paisa diya hai toh kyun araam araish ki zindagi naa guzarein, “When God has bestowed all provisions upon us, why must we refrain”  I  said  to  him,  “from  leading  a  luxurious  life? Has  God  given  you  money  so  that  you  become  an intellectual  dwarf?

He  did  not  have  an  answer.  The  following  Arabic  couplet  aptly  describes  the situation of such people Razina qismat-al jabbar-e fina, Lana ilm-un wa-lil juh-ha’ali ma’lu (Ima’am Shafai) Hum allah ki is taqseem par raazi ho gaye, ki us ne hum k o ilm diya aur jaahilon ko maal [We accept this division of God that he gave knowledge to us and luxury to the fools] In other words, those leading a luxurious life, immerse them in many indulgences  and as such get  not time to lead a thoughtful and simple life.

Creation Plan of God

The creator of the present-world is God and therefore man must understand the Creation Plan of God. God granted freedom to man in this world and gave him the right to use and misuse his freedom. This is  a  challenge  that  presents  itself  before  man  because  no  one  can  lead  an  ideal  and  defect-free  life; man  must  abide  by  the  law  of  nature.  Unwillingness  to agree  to  the  Divine  Plan  warrants  that man may create another  world for himself.  Comfortable  lives have made people intellectually dwarf.  The unrest in the Arab countries or the  in-fighting in Palestine is a result of  their absurd  policies and lack of due planning. According to the Quran Prepare any strength you can muster against them, and any cavalry with which you can overawe God’s enemy and your own enemy as well. (8:60)

This strength is referred to in the Quran as, quwwat-e-murhiba’a.

In other words, defence is justified only  if  the  defending  party  assesses  its  strength  vis-à-vis  its  opponents  and  evaluates  its  positive result;  otherwise  a  unilateral  compromise  is  the  only  solution.  This  is  an  important  teaching  of  the Quran but the entire Muslim world is bereft of its understanding.

It  means  that  if  you  have  developed  complaint  against  someone,  do  not  react  at  the  spur  of  the moment.  Such  situations  demand  a  thorough  analysis,  which  must  begin  by  a  gauging  an understanding  of strength on both sides. Defence is allowed only if you  are in a position to produce a positive result and overcome  your enemy.  For  example, through  the example of  Queen  of Sheba, the Quran  tells  man  to  learn  to  assess  his  own  strength  and  then  decide  the  course  of  action.  K nowing well  that  she  cannot  wage  a  war  against  King  Solomon,  Queen  of  Sheba  reconciled  with  him  and ensured harmony in her region.

She said, ‘Surely, when mighty kings invade a country, they despoil it and humiliate its noblest inhabitants – these men will do the same – but I shall send them a present and see with what reply my envoys will return (Quran, 27:34)

Conclusion

My  analysis  of the present-day Muslims  has led me to understand  that  they are a case  of  intellectual dwarfism.  The  basis  of  their  mindset  is  media  and  not  the  Quran.  During  the  post-fasting  period therefore,  man  must  re-assess  and  revisit  his  thinking  process;  undertaking  an  objective  assessment will allow him to re-plan. I recall an example here. A  Muslim publication published, “ Humari  policy  ehtajaaj (protest) ki  policy  hai”  [Our policy  is  that of protest). This is an absurd policy and inculcates Satanic behavior because Satan was the first one to protest  before  God!  When  God  asked  angels  and  jinns  to  bow  before  man,  Satan  refused  to  accept what was ordained citing that he is superior to man Satan replied, ‘I am better than he is; You created me from fire, while You created him from clay.’ (7:12)

The  life  of the Prophet Muhammad is a  clear  example of  patient behavior.  When  the  Prophet was  in Mecca,  there  existed  over  three  hundred  and  sixty  idols  inside  the Kaaba but  no  protest  was undertaken  to  remove  them.  Muslims  on  the  contrary,  follow  a  path  of  impulsiveness  and  reaction because they do not know the art of analysis.

Fasting aims to enhance man s intellect and reduce his material requirements. According to a Hadith

It is not possible to lead a luxurious life and become a high thinker (Allah ke bande, luxurious life nahin jeete) (Musnad Ahmad)

In other words, if man seeks to increase his intellect, he must lessen his material needs. In the present world, when man seeks to make his house a departmental store, the month of Ramzaan teaches man to “minimise”  his material needs so that he is able to cast his energies for enhancing his intellect. According to a Hadith,

Shopping centre is the worst place on Earth (Muslim)

This  Hadith  strongly  discourages  spending  time  at  shopping  centres  because  they  distract  mans attention to material allurements and depart his thinking away from deeper realities.

It is  a  common  observation  that  while  falling  from  a  mountain  water  paves  its  way  through  the topography  it passes; water  does  not think before  flowing  down.  But this is not  the  case of man;  his situation  alone does not  decide  his  way.  Man  must  think and  formulate  his opinion  basis the  result; result  is  the  ultimate  criterion.  This  is  a  difficult  exercise  as  it  seeks  man  to  be  bias-free. Unfortunately, the present-day Muslims no longer have this mindset. They follow emotions instead.

Aetakaaf – an act of thinking about Quran and Hadith in a detached manner, which is practiced  in the last  few  days  of  Ramzaan  marks  the  culmination  of  the  month  of  fasting.  Such  thinking  can  be practiced  at home as well. I have undertaken aetakaaf, my whole life by detaching from the  situation and think - to think about God, hell and paradise, and the life to come.

Man  must strive to develop his mind and embark  upon thinking process. This is the  only  criterion of leading  a correct life. All those who are listening  to me,  must strive to inculcate wisdom (baseerat) – the  most  precious  thing  that  man  can  acquire.  Wisdom  can  be  attained  through  contemplation  and thinking only; which requires man to decrease his material indulgences. This is the teaching imparted by  the  month  of  Ramzaan  - to  seek  material  contentment  and  spiritual  idealism. This  is  the way of Islam and this is the law of nature for successful living.

May God give us the wisdom to follow this path and inculcate the spirit of Ramzaan within us.

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QURANIC VERSES1:7
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