Shafey Danish
The pavements in the Muslim localities are lined with makeshift shops, suddenly the mosques are full, and topis are being worn as if they are the next big thing in fashion.
Yes, the month of Ramazan is once more upon us. The holy month, the month of fasting and feasting – as the tired hackneyed phrase correctly puts it – and the month that precedes the biggest festival of the Muslims, Eid ul Fitr.
Ramazan, as a cultural phenomenon, is strange, one hardly knows how to classify it.
On the one hand it is a month of severe austerities, in which even normal interactions take on a more somber aspect. Not only is one not allowed to eat and drink, even talking too freely is also forbidden. All forms of recreation, including music, is a strict no no and one must spend the nights and days preferably in prayers.
This is one aspect of Ramazan.
The other aspect, is the one that deals with the commercial and the cultural part of it. This is the part of the dates and sherbets, of the wayside stalls that mushroom overnight, of the lightings, and – near Eid – of the festooned streets.
The commercial aspect is easy enough to understand. The sudden change in the eating habits offers a readymade market to the sellers of foodstuffs. As Eid approaches, shops selling clothes and accessories also come up. Money is spent by both the rich and the poor, as far as their means permit it, unstintingly. Those who are poor save for it, and put off shopping for the year round to buy during Eid. Thus it is the biggest spending occasion for the Muslims.
So side by side with the practicing of austerities; shopping and preparing for Eid also goes on.
Then again, since people fast the whole day, they want to have something special to break their fast. Dates is of course is one of the favorites, but along with it many other dishes are also made.
These have their regional variations, but by and large they consist of fried foodstuffs – pakodas, pyazus, samosas, puris, etc – and fruits.
This rather uncommon, and even lavish eating – the iftar is a veritable feast – the rituals of going to the market and shopping for Eid; gives the month its air of festivity.
All of this of course begs the question as to what happens to the avowed purpose of the fasting, that of spiritual regeneration. Does it really rejuvenate the believers spiritually?
Well, there is no discernable change in the community in the month following Ramazan that could indicate a heightened sense morality. Whatever spiritual capital is earned, one is inclined to think, is spent in the heady celebrations of Eid; and what is left after that is not enough to last for a year.
But within this broad trend there are individual – rare no doubt – who do benefit, who go back to their normal life the better for having fasted.
Why fast
The Quran says that fasting teaches us taqwa. The word Taqwa means fear of Allah and abstaining from things not permitted. It is necessary to understand the concept of Taqwa to understand the philosophy behind fasting.
There is a well known story of a scholar who was entrusted with some work by the King. One night when he was ending his day’s work, he was visited by a friend. The scholar asked him to wait a while, he then put out the lamp that was burning and lit another one. The friend was understandably surprised, “What was the need to put out the oil lamp?” “Oh,” the scholar replied, “the oil in that lamp was brought from the King’s money, so I use it only to do the king’s work.”
This in effect is Taqwa. It means being cautious and careful about what you do and don’t. It is the root cause of spirituality as it makes you constantly conscious of the presence of Allah. It keeps you from sins and makes you hasten towards doing good.
Apart from this overarching aim, Allah also promises to forgive the sins of all those who fast and give them a place in Paradise. The Prophet said, “He who fasts during Ramazan with pure faith and seeks reward from Allah will have his past sins forgiven. He who spends nights in Ramazan praying will have his past sins forgiven, and he who passes ‘Laylatul Qadr’ in prayer, seeking reward from Allah will have his sins forgiven.”
Allah’s wisdom is limitless and one may not be able to grasp all the profundities behind fasting. But as far as our own intelligence goes, one can discern some benefits entirely of the worldly kind.
Fasting creates empathy with the hungry and the needy, by simulating the conditions that they undergo. Fasting has the effect of cleansing the body and strengthening it. Fasting falls in line with Islam’s other efforts to bring the rich and the poor on the same plane.
