Spirit of Ramadan

One needs to tie oneself willingly with the rope of God’s laws. Thus, one who fasts, imposes self-discipline and surrenders to the will of God. The rationale behind fasting for a month is made clear by psychological studies. It tells us that thirty days are required for a habit to be inculcated. It is not an overnight miracle but a lengthy process. The practice becomes a part of the personality only when it is observed every day for at least thirty days, and it is only then that it may continue for at least a year. In this way Ramadan is the month of awakening spiritual activism within oneself. THE SPIRIT OF RAMADAN The commencement of Ramadan is marked by the 9th month of the Hijri calendar. Roza, the term for fasting, is kept for one full month. Roza begins at dawn (Sehri) during which people consume food and water and after which they are not to partake of any of this for the rest of the day till the roza breaks at dusk (Iftaar). This schedule has to be followed for the entire month of Ramadan. According to the Quran, there are two purposes of fasting: One, to make one cautious in life and two, to make one thankful to God (The Quran, 2:183, 185). Food and drink is man’s most basic necessity. When he is consumed by hunger and thirst, he sees how weak he really is; he realizes how much he is in need of the succour of God. It is when man experiences this helplessness made manifest during the times when he feels hunger and thirst, that his true self meets God. Thus, it is the discovery of the real benefactor that brings along with it immense pleasure and satisfaction.