INTRODUCTION
All praise is due to Allah, Subhanahu wa ta`ala, the Sustainer of the worlds. I pray that His peace and blessings descend upon the Most Noble of all the Messengers of Allah, Muhammad Bin Abdullah, sallallahu 'Alaihi wa salam, his family and companions.
Whenever the orbit turns and another month of Ramadan approaches, happiness and joy return to the Ummah, for with it come two of the greatest gifts of Allah, namely the fasting month of Ramadan and the celebration of the revelation of Al Qur'an
Fasting is an eloquent expression of Allah, leading this Ummah to the gates of His mercy, a key to unlocking the mysteries of His nearness. While humanity is divided on the basic elements of the notion of the Creator, a Muslim is far ahead of the rest of the world in this field and travelling at the speed of light to the neighborhood of the Throne of the Creator. Where else would you find a discipline that provides direct communication between the servant the Served? Where else would you have an act of 'Ebadah that enriches self-worth, self-strength, self-rebuilding, self discipline and control? Where else would one find a discipline that moves the believer from unauthentic to authentic as the institution of fasting? Where else would you find a discipline that enriches the vital needs of human being, both physical and spiritual? Praise be to Allah!
The institution of Fasting is a unique form of worship prescribed as part of an overall system of Islam. Its uniqueness mirrors the uniqueness of the human being, a creature of physical and spiritual parts whose excellence depends on the right proportion of these two parts. Too much of the physical material will ruin man, and too much of the spiritual will, too. Fasting orients the observer to the art of balancing the spiritual essentials with physical needs, a vivid proof that there is in all of us the will power, a pivotal element that controls our actions. This will be needed to help us curb the animalistic tendencies originating from the stomach, in full. It makes us forget about our beginning, it awakens the mind and kindles clear thinking and consciousness of Allah. Fasting is the sobering of a mind and reconstruction of our spiritual faculties.
Fasting has instilled in food and beverages a religious legitimacy, as its amount and the hour taken are expressed in terms of deen, and chewing and sipping at proper intervals equals praise and glorification of Allah. It makes the individual ready and primed to meet the Creator. You see, it has never been easy trying to gain access to the nearness of Allah, SWT, due to several considerable obstacles obstructing our view, mainly ignorance, multiple images or double vision, passive will power, time, place, culture, upbringing and prejudice. Fortunately, the gates that lead to the nearness of Allah swing both ways with the help of fasting.
Fasting cures the double vision that many people suffer in the realm of spirituality. The inauguration of Fasting eliminates the middleman, a spiritual broker, an insidious opinion held by some that a believer can only gain access to nearness to Allah through another, who is endowed with superpowers to reach Allah more easily. No, indeed, Allah is ineffable yet approachable. It is the sum and scope of Allah's 'Ebadah that clarifies all the acts of 'Ebadah including Salat. Fasting renders this magnificent and beautiful idea of Tawhid of Allah, there being no deity but Allah, and Muhammad being His Messenger, into an effective power charge, a potent and effective concept for focusing and organizing one's world view and epitomizing the religious and psychological orientation of the believer.
On the other hand, Ramadan was the host month for the inauguration of the final revelation, Al-Qur`an Al-`Azeem. Allah (SWT) bestowed this book upon humanity through His Messenger Muhammad bin `Abdullah. The reading of Al-Qur`an has been mandated by its Author, Allah himself, for the believers all the time, more so in the month of Ramadan, as this is reported from the Messenger. Muslims past and present have always mixed fasting with reading of Al-Qur`an. Perhaps the reason for this is that one of the objectives of Ibis (shaytan) is to hinder the believer from reading Al-Qur`an. But during Ramadan Shaytan himself is hindered from tempting the believer- for Al-Qur`an avails the reader a cherished privilege of directly conversing with the Creator of the Universe.
Thus, I included this vital discussion to help the reader with the rules that are essential for reading and reciting Al-Qur`an. Indeed, the spiritual training during the month of Ramadan can not be complete without a great deal of reading of the Book of Allah. This divine Book deals with the questions of total life: creed, moral instructions, administration of warnings, giving good news, lessons from historical events, interpretation of the material and natural phenomenon, inviting humanity to their Maker, and admonishing the unbelievers. Al-Qur`an is an exposition on the spiritual as well as physical doctrine in which every verse and sentence has an intimate bearing on the other verse and sentence. Ramadan affords a believer an opportunity to cross-reference his entire life with the reading of Al-Qur`an; and anyone who observes this practice during Ramadan has a better chance of graduating to a higher level of faith.
The third pillar of Islam, Zakat, is also discussed briefly and concisely in order to illustrate the basic Fiqh on Alms-giving. This is an opportunity that should not be lost on eligible Zakat payers: to mix Ramadan with mandatory gift giving so as to carry on the commands of Allah (SWT) and to combat greed of an affluent person and to help needy meet his essential needs, and thus build a bond of strong relationship in the Ummah.
Therefore, ESSENTIALS of RAMADAN, THE FASTING MONTH is a summary of the fundamental rules and laws on the Fiqh of Fasting, based on Al-Qur`an and the Sunnah of the Messenger (saas) to assist the reader in observing this special 'Ebadah of worship, as well as the traditionally related duties and obligations as mentioned earlier, Zakat and the reading of Al-Qur`an. All praise be to Allah the Most High in the beginning and in the end.
Tajuddin Bin Shu`aib, November 19, 1991/Ghumadal Awwal 13, 1412
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