Benefits Of Ramadan

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ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Benefits Of Ramadan

#1

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Fri Jun 19, 2015 5:55 pm

The purpose of Abstaining from Lawful things? Benefits of Ramadan

Should we call it the month of fasting or the month of abstinence? Well, our scholars say that "the word saum means "to abstain from something" and according to the Fiqh it means abstaining from eating, drinking, sexual acts and all evil actions with the intention of pleasing Allah, from true dawn to sunset." This definition needs further explanations.

1. All those who are fasting are required not to eat and drink from dawn to dusk. They can eat during night.
2. Only the married couples are required not to indulge in conjugal relations during the time of fasting.
3. Physical intimacy between unmarried male and female members of the Muslim community is prohibited regardless of the month.
4. Intention to please Allah is not confined from dawn to dusk. It is a part of one's life.
5. Avoiding evil is also not confined to dawn to dusk in the ninth lunar month of Islamic calendar. It is a commandment that is valid for all time and all months.

So what is so significant with this month of abstinence?

The main purpose is to empower each individual to take control of him or herself and ensure that they emerge stronger in every aspects of their life. So Ramadan is not the peak of one's commitment to Islam. It is the beginning as it prepares those who abstain for the next 11 months as well to live a meaningful and disciplined life.

Before the season begins for National Football League or Baseball or Basketball, the players go through a vigorous and rigorous training schedule to prepare them for the season. Similarly, those abstaining have a month long training to prepare them for the rest of the year.

There are two aspects to the abstinence.
1. Physical endurance
2. Spiritual enhancement

Physical endurance is a very subjective issue. For instance those living in Australia or South Africa would have 9 to 10 hours fasting in 2015 and it would not be as hard for them to abstain from food and drink as it would be for people in Nordic countries. Depending on the climatic conditions one lives, the physical endurance would be different for different people. So one cannot say that the fasting was primarily for the purpose of physical fitness or detoxification.

We cannot also argue that it is to help us go through the feelings of those who live in constant poverty and hunger. The fact of the matter is that despite whatever we say, we hardly care for finding a solution to poverty and hunger. Every year Muslims spend millions of dollar in serving food to those who are already fed. During the last 1400 years we have not found any institutional solution to hunger as the gap between poor and rich has been on the rise in Muslim majority countries. If going through the hunger and thirst was meant to help us identify with poverty struck people, then we did not fulfill the purpose, not only us but the very learned and very pious as well.

Let us understand the real purpose of abstinence as described by the Quran that reminds us that "you may act responsibly or become conscious of Allah." Being conscious of Allah means we adhere to his guidance in all aspects of life and we respect the fellow human beings as we are required to do. It means living a disciplined life in this world.

Hence, the Prophet was very clear about the purpose of abstinence. He recognized that people will abstain from food and drink and will go through the cycle of hunger and thirst and he advised that unless there is a qualitative change in the behavior, attitude and action, abstinence from food or water would not be considered valid act of worship.

Thus the prophet said that those who lie, who backbite, who make false oaths, who complain all the time and who lustfully look at their fellow human beings would lose the essence of abstinence as the saum would become invalid for them.
It is a simple statement that fasting is more than physical endurance. It is spiritual mainly. It is for this reason that those abstaining are advised to spend most of their time in reflecting on the message of the Quran.

It is a ritual on the part of Muslims to finish reading or listening to the entire Quran during this month regardless of their level of understanding. Sometime, even those who recite the Quran in their melodious voice do not understand what they are reciting. The guidance comes when we know what the guidance is and what it is all about. So we need to focus on the process of understanding the Quran in whatever language we speak or understand in addition to our readings in Arabic language.

If we find an improvement in our behavior and attitude towards ourselves and others, and if we find ourselves a better person, the purpose of this training would be served and the reward for this would be immense in this life and the life hereafter. Otherwise, it would be just a ritual and rituals often do not produce desired results.

http://aslamabdullah.blogspot.in/2015/0 ... l.html?m=1

JavedhJuma
Posts: 403
Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2014 2:47 pm

Re: Benefits Of Ramadan

#2

Unread post by JavedhJuma » Sat Jun 20, 2015 5:34 pm

Beatiful and very meaningful article. Thanks for sharing.

ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Re: Benefits Of Ramadan

#3

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Mon Jun 29, 2015 7:06 pm

Ramadan meal at Dallas homeless shelter a feast of traditions

Residents at the Dallas Life homeless shelter were pleasantly surprised that Friday’s dinner wasn’t the usual chicken or beef stew.

Instead, it was a traditional Ramadan meal of queema (a ground beef dish), matar palau (seasoned rice with peas) and a chicken paratha roll.

Volunteers with the international nonprofit Who Is Hussain spent their Friday preparing 250 meals although many hadn’t had anything to eat since 4 a.m. They have been fasting from sunup to sundown since June 17 in observance of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The nonprofit is dedicated to spreading awareness about the life of Hussain ibn Ali, a revered seventh-century imam who was a grandson of the prophet Mohammed.

Malahat Kizilbash, a Who Is Hussain Texas representative, has spent the past month organizing Friday’s meal.

“This is all in the spirit of Ramadan,” she said. “Ramadan is all about giving and self-control.”

Who Is Hussain originated in London in 2012, but the organization spread quickly throughout the world.

Dallas Life, in the Cedars area of southern Dallas, houses homeless people and provides 10-month programs that help residents get back on their feet. Residents work for four hours at the shelter every day, and the rest of the time is devoted to GED courses, job search assistance and spiritual counseling.

READ MORE :-

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/religion ... itions.ece

ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Re: Benefits Of Ramadan

#4

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Thu Jul 02, 2015 6:58 pm

An Appeal To Non Muslims

Markandey Katju

Everyone should keep one day roza on 4th July
.

There has been going on for quite some time an effort by many people all over the world, including many in India, to demonize Muslims, and portray them as people who do nothing except acts of terrorism like throwing bombs and shooting people as happened in the attack on the Twin Towers in New York, attack on Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai, attack on cartoonists in Charlie Hebro in Paris, and elsewhere. I am a humble disciple of the great French political philosopher Rousseau who believed that people are good by nature, unlike Hobbes who believed that they are evil. So I believe that 99% people of all communities, whether Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, etc are good by nature, but they get defamed by the 1% wicked and bigoted people.

So to bring all communities together I have appealed to non Muslims all over the world to ​keep one day roza on 4th July this year. This is only a symbolic gesture by non Muslims to show their respect to, and solidarity with, our Muslim brethren. I will also appeal to non Hindus to observe one day's fast on Navratri. In fact earlier Hindus used to participate in Eid and Muharram, and Muslims in Holi and Diwali. The Mughals, Muslim Nawabs etc were thoroughly secular, and used to organize Ramlilas and participate in Holi, dussehra etc. It was the British divide and rule policy which made us hostile to each other ( see online in this connection History in the Service of Imperialism by B.N. Pande ).

My appeal, which is on my facebook page, is given below:

An Appeal to all non Muslims to observe roza on 4th July After discussing with many friends in the Bay Area in California, I hereby appeal to all non Muslims all over the world to observe one day roza on Saturday, 4th July as a token of respect for and solidarity with our Muslim brethren during the holy month of Ramzan. The exact time before which sehri (breakfast) must be taken, and of iftaar, (the time in the evening after which alone dinner can be taken) may be ascertained from some Muslim friend.

These timings change by one minute every day, and must be strictly observed. I may mention that in India for several years I have been keeping one day roza during Ramzan. The wife of my friend Asif Azmi, who is like a younger brother to me, and lives in Delhi, telephones me very early in the morning when it is still dark and informs me that the time by which I must do my sehri is approaching. So I quickly eat some bread and drink a lot of milk and water, because I can have none thereafter till the time of iftaar.

This year I will have iftaar at the residence of a Muslim lady in Fremont, California, USA with a group of about 25 others, Muslims and non Muslims. The lady has very kindly consented to have the iftaar at her residence, and provide food for all of us. The other non Muslims can form groups and have iftaar at a place of their choice on 4th July. Please note that you must not eat or drink after the time of sehri is over, and before the time for iftaar. This is absolutely crucial.

If this succeeds, it will be a historic step at removing misunderstanding between different communities. When Navratri begins, I will appeal to non Hindus to keep one day fast during that period. It is clarified that by keeping one day roza a non Muslim does not become a Muslim, just as by keeping one day fast during Navratri a non Hindu does not become a Hindu. It is just symbolic of showing respect to other communities.

http://www.outlookindia.com/article/an- ... ims/294745