Ramadan Articles - Ramadan: A School of Piety - IV

Ash-Shaafi'isaid,"I recommend people to be excessively generous in the
month of Ramadan, following the example of the Messenger of Allaah.
Furthermore, people have a need for such charity since many of them
are too busy with fasting and praying to earn their livelihood in that
month."
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Maryam narrated that hisShaykhs)teachers( used to
say,"When the month of Ramadan begins, spend generously for the virtue
of spending is multiplied in it in much the same way as the spending
in the cause of Allaah The Almighty; and glorifying Allaah The
Almighty once in it is better than a thousand times in other months."
Zayd ibn Khaalidnarrated that the Prophet,, said:"Whoever gives food
to a fasting person to break his fast will have a reward like his,
without that detracting from the reward of the one who fasted."]Ahmad
and others[
Once, one of our righteous predecessors was asked about the wisdom
behind legislating fasting, and he replied,"It is to make the rich
taste hunger so that he does not forget the one who is hungry."
Ibn Rajabsaid,"Whoever cannot reach the rank of giving preference to
others overhimself, he should not fail to reach the rank of those who
give comfort or sympathy."
Ibn 'Umarused to fast and never break his fast except with the poor.
If his wife prevented him from doing that, he would not have dinner
that night.
One of the righteous people liked to eat a specific kind of food while
he was fasting. However, when it )this food( was placed before him at
the time of breaking his fast, he heard someone saying,"Who will lend
to the King, the most Sincere, the ever Rich?"He said,"His slave who
is devoid of rewards."So he got up, took the plate and gave it to him
and slept on an empty stomach.
A poor man came to Imaam Ahmadand asked for something, so he gave him
two loaves which he prepared for breaking his fast. Then he slept
while he was hungry and woke up fasting.
Performing'Umrah)minor pilgrimage( inRamadanalso has special merit; it
was narrated by Al-Bukhaari and Muslim that Ibn 'Abbaassaid,"The
Messenger of Allaahasked an Ansaari woman:"What preventedyou from
performing Hajjwith us?"She replied, 'We have a camel and thefather of
so-and-so and his son )referring to her husband and son( rode itand
left one camel for us to use for irrigation.' Hesaid )to
her(:"Perform'Umrah when Ramadan comes, for 'Umrah in Ramadan is equal
to Hajj)in reward(,"or said something similar."
We have to learn from this month to have patience in abstaining from
matters prohibited by Allaah The Almighty such as backbiting, ill
speech, evil deeds, hearing and looking at evil. The Messenger of
Allaah,, said:"Whoever does not give up false speech and false conduct
and acting upon intolerance, Allaah is not in need of his leaving his
food and drink )i.e. Allaah will not accept his
fasting.(."]Al-Bukhaari[
Actually, the true meaning of fasting is not merely to abstain from
eating and drinking but it is a school where the soul learns to stay
away from lawful things, until one get used to doing so.Thus, staying
away from evils and sins would be much easier to handle. There is a
well-known saying that reads,"Fasting is not to abstain from eating
and drinkingbut it is to abstain from ill and obscene
speech."Al-Haafith Abu Moosa Al-Madeeni said: It )thisHadeeth( meets
the conditions set by Imaam Muslim.
Some of our pious predecessors said,"The easiest form of fasting is to
abstain from drinking and eating."
Jaabirsaid,"If you fast, then let your ears, eyes and tongue abstain
from lying and all other evil matters."
Ibn Rajabsaid,"The secret behind this is that seeking the pleasure of
Allaah The Almighty through abstaining from lawful things cannot be
perfected except by seeking His pleasure through abstaining from
prohibited things. Therefore, it was mentioned and Allaah knows best
in the Noble Quran the prohibition of eating up one another's property
unjustly )in any illegal way, e.g., stealing, robbing, deceiving(
aftermentioning the prohibition of drinking and eating for the fasting
person during theday in Ramadan."
Showing patience while abstaining from certain physical needs, such as
drinking, eating, sexual intercourse and other things, during the days
ofRamadanand throughout the whole month, will cultivate patience in
you – the patience needed to abstain from what Allaah The Almighty has
prohibited and to remainobedient to Him throughout your life.
Additionally, once we learn patience concerning fulfilling the orders
of Allaah The Almighty from that month and patience concerning
abstaining from what Allaah The Almighty has prohibited, we will
attain piety that Allaah The Almighty wanted for us from ordaining
fasting for us. Allaah The Almighty Says)what means(:}O you who have
believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those
before you that you may become righteous.{]Quran 2: 183[
Therefore, the issue of fasting is not concerning merely hunger or
thirst; rather, it is a training course for performing the acts of
worship and fulfilling the commands of Allaah The Almighty.
The injunction of hastening in breaking the fast and delaying
theSuhoor)pre-dawn meal( and encouraging others in doing so is indeed
a reminder for the one who has a sound heart and is heedful. Imaam
Ahmadnarrated from Abu Tharrthat the Messenger of Allaah,, said:"My
nation will always retain goodness as long as they hasten in breaking
the fast and delay the Suhoor."