Spirit Of Fasting By Ali Murtaza Zaidi | 7/20/2012

IN today`s world, the value of just about anything ismeasured not through logical thought,
but through its positive impact on life in general.This valuation is particularly important in
the acceptance of Islam. If the true spirit of Islam were alive, there would seldom be any
need to prove the attraction of the faith. The obvious benefits of following Islamic values
would have been enough to attract people towards it. Hence, the need of the time is to
revive the spirit of religion.In this regard, fasting is especially unique. Unlike other pillars of
Islam, it involves absolutely no physical movement of any kind. On the face of it, a man who
is fasting is no different from any other man. Yet, it is the intention and the spirit of fasting
that makes it so significant and so important that it was made mandatory for all the nations
that existed even before the arrival of Islam and to dedicate a whole month to its
performance.Clearly, if we lose the essence of fasting its effects would disappear and in that
case, fasting would be little more than an exercise in starvation. Unfortunately, this is the
prevalent trend in Pakistan and to change it, we need to concentrate and understand the
basis and spirit of fasting.The soul of fasting lies in control. Perhaps in all the teachings of
Islam there is none more important than control.When a person sacrifices his most innate
desires of food and water merely on the command of Allah, it trains him in the art of putting
the will of the Creator before his own. In essence, if humans can learn to control their
desires, their path to perfection and towards the ultimate objective of life becomes
easier.However, the common practices today deliver a message completely opposite to the
true message of control. Our emphasis today is on using Ramazan as an opportunity to
satisfy our material desires of taste and rest, which has destroyed the concept of enhancing
control through fasting.The act of ignoring one`sbody provides an opportunity to
concentrate on the soul.When we are liberated from the daily routines of material life, we
venture ahead and ponder over facts greater than matter and the material world, realities
like God, spirituality and the greater good. This ever-elusive need of a spiritual connection
exists in all of us, in every religion, whether it is the concept of soul-searching in Christianity
and Judaism or deep meditation in search of Nirvana for the Buddhist, or even arts and
music for spiritual satisfaction in non-religious people.Fasting is one such process which
allows the individual to concentrate, to meditate, to discover. This is the reason why the
concept of worship is glorified in the month of Ramazan by specific prayers and
supplications. This is the perfect time to plan and concentrate on the greater objectives of
life. Perhaps this is one of the wisdoms behind the practice of Aitekaf, when believers
seclude themselves and dedicate themselves to prayer and worship.Ramazan is not limited
to the development of an individual; it plays a vital role in the progress and advancement of
the society as a whole. The key to the development of any society is interconnection of
emotions and feelings between each and every member of society. Fasting plays an
important role in binding the whole society together. It helps those who have wealth and
material luxuries to understand what goes on with those that do not.Furthermore, as the
whole society collectively abandons the most basic need, it creates this unique sense of
brotherhood that invariably, we are all fighting the same battle, worshipping the same God.
Invariably, we are all one and the same. It is one of the reasons why acts of charity are so
abundant during Ramazan. People want to help others once they realise what the problems
of society actually are.However, the problem today lies in the maltreatment of fasting. Due
to this, its true spirit has almost ceased to exist. It seems that Ramazan has turned into just
another target for mass consumerism.Aren`t these glamorous and luxurious iftar and sehri
parties pushing aside the true essence of Ramazan and portraying its sacredness and piety
as something obsolete and dreary? In the absence of control and concept of obedience to

Allah and spirituality, gradually, the holy month of Ramazan is losing its sacredness and
turning into little more than a mere cultural event.The situation has gotten so out of control
that it is not uncommon to see banners at various malls advertising products with the line
`the true spirit of Ramazan` It is imperative now, more than ever, that we break this pattern
of decadence and destruction. We need to revive the original spirit of Ramazan and the key
to that lies in control and spirituality.Conceptual clarity behind the wisdom of fasting is the
first step towards the revival of Islamic values. This Ramazan, let us not divulge in
unnecessary luxuries and let us concentrate all our thoughts and struggles on control,
spirituality and obedience to Allah so that this holy month can shower on us its true and
most sacred bounties and blessings. The writer is a religious scholar.