As we have remarked at the
beginning of this topic that fasting has not been once as a
strange thought or idea to the people but it has been well-known
even before man got used to practicing the principles and rules
of religions. All that Islam's message has done was to direct
this hypothesis in a way that can grant the "objectiveness" in
the worshipping practice. But at first we want to know what
'goal' is there behind fasting?! And for what purpose shall we
fast?
Fasting's apparent practice is to
avoid having food and drink and other kinds of pleasure starting
from early dawn – that is, before sun-rise down to sun-set – and
such state of being is reminiscent, to a great extent, with
slight differences, of what the other religions do. So what is
that which can distinguish Islam from the other religions if
Islam's goal is sheer avoidance of man from food, drink and
sexual practice - as all specialized people of language
know?
In reply to this question, Allah,
the Almighty, says, in His Quran: "O you who believe! Observing
As- Saum (the fast) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed
for those before you that you may become Al-Muttaqin (the
pious)." (Al-Baqarah:183).
And as piety is the goal of the
fasting one, practicing will differ much from the rest of
religions, so, when the human physical limbs fast from the
illicit morsel only, but also tries to avoid all that pollutes
the atmospheres of this uniquely divine practice i.e. fasting the
tongue from backbiting, lying and slandering for
instance.
There is a famous anecdote in
which the Messenger of Allah (P.B.U.H.) demands one of them to
have food with him after she had backbitten one of her co-mates –
makes this philosophy clear and strongly consolidates it for he
(P.B.U.H.) says: "How can you be fasting whereas you, meantime,
have eaten up the meat of your fellow creatures with a reference
from him to her backbite which Allah vigorously rejected in
ordinary times; so how would the case be in the hours of
fasting?
Sun -
22 Jamadilawal 1446H -
