Ramadan Articles - Fasting According to the Quran

Believers! Fasting is enjoined upon you, as it was enjoined upon
thosebefore you, that you become God fearing.Quran 2:183
Fasting is for a fixed number of days, and if one of you be sick, or
if one of you be on a journey, you will fast the same number of other
days later on. For those who are capable of fasting (but still do not
fast) there is a redemption: feeding a needy man for each day missed.
Whoever, voluntarily, does more good than is required, will find it is
better for him; and that you should fast is better for you, if you
only know.Quran 2:184
During the month of Ramadan the Qur'an was sent down as a guidance to
the people with clear signs of the true guidance, and as the Criterion
(between right and wrong). So those of you who live to see that month
should fast it, and whoever is sick or on a journey should fast the
same number of other days instead. Allah wants ease and not hardship
for you so that you may complete the number of days required, magnify
Allah for what He has guided you to, and give thanks to Him.Quran
2:185
1.Like most other injunctions of Islam those relating to fasting were
revealed gradually. In the beginning the Prophethad instructed the
Muslims to fast three days in every month, though this was not
obligatory. When the injunction in the present verse was later
revealed in 2 A.H., a degree of relaxation was introduced: it was
stipulated that those who did not fast despite their capacity to
endure it were obliged to feed one poor person as an expiation for
each day of obligatory fasting missed (see verse 184). Another
injunction was revealed later (see verse 185) and here therelaxation
in respect of able-bodied persons was revoked. However, for the sick,
the traveler, the pregnant, the breast-feeding women and the aged who
could not endure fasting, the relaxation was retained.
(See Bukhari, `Tafsir al-Qur'an', 25; Tirmidhi, 'Sawm', 21; Nasa'i,
`Siyam', 51, 62, 64; Ibn Majah, `Siyam', 12; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad,
vol. 3, p. 104; vol. 4, pp. 347 and 418; vol. 5, p. 29 - Ed.)
2.This act of extra merit could either be feedingmore than the one
person required or both fasting and feeding the poor.
3.Here ends the early injunction with regard to fasting which was
revealed in 2 A.H. prior to the Battle of Badr. The verses that follow
were revealed about one year later and are linked with the preceding
verses since they deal with the samesubject.
4.Whether a person should or should not fast while on a journey is
left to individual discretion. We find thatamong the Companionswho
accompanied the Prophet on journeys some fasted whereas others did
not; none objected to the conductof another. The Prophethimself did
not always fast when traveling. On one journey a person was so
overwhelmed by hunger that he collapsed; the Prophet disapproved when
he learned that the man had been fasting. During wars the Prophet used
to prevent people from fasting so that they would not lack energy for
the fight. It has been reported by 'Umarthat two military expeditions
took place in the month of Ramadan. The first was the Battle of Badr
and the second the conquest of Makka. On both occasions the Companions
abstained from fasting, and, according to Ibn 'Umar, on the occasion
of the conquest of Makka the Prophet proclaimed that people should not
fast since it was a day of fighting. In other Traditions the Prophet
is reported to have saidthat people should not fast when they had
drawn close. to the enemy, since abstention from fastingwould lead to
greater strength.
(See Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, vol. 3, p. 329, and vol. 5, pp. 205 and
209; Darimi, `Sawm', 41;Muslim, `Siyam', 92; Nasa'i, `Siyam', 47;
Bukhari, `Maghazi', 71; Muslim, `Siyam', 102; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad,
vol. 3, pp. 21, 35, .46; Tirmidhi, 'Sawm', 18; Nasa'i, `Siyam', 52;
Bukhari, `Jihad', 29; Muslim, `Siyam', 98; Abu Da'ud, 'Sawm', 42;
Muslim, `Siyam', 102, 103, 105; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, vol. 2, 99;
Tirmidhi, 'Sawm', 19 - Ed.)
The duration of a journey for which it becomes permissible for a
person to abstain from fasting is not absolutely clear from any
statement of the Prophet.
(cf. relevant Traditions Abu Da'ud, 'Sawm', 46, 47; Nasa'i, `Siyam',
54, 55; Malik, Muwatta', `Siyam', 21, 27 - Ed.)
In addition the practiceof the Companions was not uniform. It would
seem that any journey which is commonly regarded as such, and which is
attended by the circumstances generally associated with traveling,
should be deemed sufficient justification for not fasting.
Jurists agree that one does not have to fast on the day of commencing
a journey;one may eat either at the point of departure or after the
actual journey has commenced. Either course is sanctioned by the
practice of the Companions. Jurists, however, are not agreed as to
whether or not the residents of a city under attack may abstain from
fasting even though they are not actually traveling. Ibn Taymiyah
favors thepermissibility of abstention from fastingand supports his
view with very forceful arguments.
5.This indicates that fasting need not be confined, exclusively,
toRamadan. For those who fail to fast during that month owing to some
legitimate reason God has kept the door of compensation open during
other months ofthe year so that they need not be deprived of the
opportunity to express their gratitude to Him for His great bounty in
revealing theQur'an.
It should be noted here that fasting in Ramadanhas not only been
declared an act of worship and devotion and a means to nourishpiety
but has also been characterized as an act of gratefulness to God for
His great bounty of true guidance in the form of the Qur'an. In fact,
the best way of expressing gratitude for someone's bounty or
benevolence is to prepare oneself, to the best of one's ability, to
achieve the purpose forwhich that bounty has been bestowed. The Qur'an
has been revealed so that we may know the way thatleads to God's good
pleasure, follow that way ourselves and direct the world along it.
Fasting is an excellent means by which to prepare ourselves for
shouldering this task. Hence fasting during the month of the
revelation of the Qur'anis more than an act of worship and more thanan
excellent course of moral training; it is alsoan appropriate form for
the expression of our thankfulness to Godfor the bounty of the Qur'an.

Biographies - Maulana Tariq Jamil

MaulanaTariq Jamilis a well known scholar from Pakistan. He was born
to a fudel lord (famous but unkown to us) and his parents had
aspirations for him to become a doctor. After matriculation
(secondary school), he attended college in the city of Lahore. Here
he resided in hostel with some friends. One of the residents would
approach Maulana and talk to him about tabligh,however Maulana would
kick him out of the room.
There was also a disabledperson who lived in the hostel and Maulana
was touched and inspired by the dedication and devotion this person
would show in attendingSalah, despite living on the fourth floor. As
a consequence he first went to Jamaat for 3 days, and then spent more
time in Jamaat. After completing a periodof four months in
Jamaat,Maulana decided to leavehis medical studies and enrol for the
Alim course at Raiwind Madrassah. Asa result of leaving his medical
studies his parents disowned him. After 10 years of study Maulana
graduated as anAlim.
He has travelled accross the world to deliver speeches and has touched
the hearts of many, including Saeed Anwar, Junaid Jamshed and Yousuf
Youhana. Very recently (March 2010) Maulana suffered aheart attack
though he is recovering well at this moment in time.
May Allahgive long life and good health to MaulanaTariq Jamilin order
that the Ummah continue to benefit from him.

Biographies - Shaykh Husain Abdul Sattar

Shaykh Husain [may Allahpreserve him] was born in Chicago (USA) in
1972. After completing his primary education at schools in his
hometown near Chicago, he joined the University of Chicago where he
studied Biology, Arabic and Islamic Civilization. It wasduring this
period that he began his study of sacred knowledge, studying Arabic
grammar(nahw), Hanafi Fiqh and Usul al-Fiqh under ulama(scholars) in
Chicago. In 1994 Shaykh Husain also began training in tasawwuf
(Islamic spirituality) under Shaykh Zulfiqar Ahmad, one of the leading
shaykhs of tasawwuf.
After obtaining his undergraduate degree, Shaykh Husain enrolled in
the Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago. Along
with his medical studies, he continued his studies of sacred
knowledge. In his final year he took leave from medical school to
focus on his religious studies, traveling to Syria and then Pakistan,
where he studied a traditional curriculum for a number of years under
some of their greatest scholars.
Throughout his years of study, Shaykh Husain continued his training
under Shaykh Zulfiqar Ahmad. He was blessed with the close company of
his Shaykh, learning the science of the purification of the heart. The
deep taqwaand firm adherence to the sunnah and Shariah that
characterized his teacher were eventually transferred to the student
and Shaykh Husain was formally authorized in tasawwuf by Shaykh
Zulfiqar in July2001.
Shaykh Husain has completed medical school and currently works as a
Physician at the University of Chicago Hospitals. During his free
time, he teaches and lectures across the UnitedStates on various
subjectsof Islamic knowledge, including purification of the soul.
Shaykh Husain is presently engaged in editing and publishing the
translations of his teacher's books into English. In addition, he is
completing his own written works including the popular series,
"Fundamentals of Classical Arabic" and a manual on Hanafi fiqh
entitled, "The Stairs to Bliss." [forthcoming]

Biographies - Mufti Abdool Kader Hoosen

Mufti Abdool Kader Hoosen is the resident Mufti of Channel Islam
Internationalwhich is an extremely well known and successful radio
station. The current radiocoverage spans across 65 countries across
three continents. (Africa, Europe, Arab Peninsula – also available
over the internet).
Mufti Abdool Kader Hoosen:
"I was born in Heidelberg, Gauteng, South Africa on the 20th April
1957. After studying at the primary school in Heidelberg, my parents
Ismail and Halima Hoosen(Rahmatullahi Alayhim) motivated me to start
memorizing the Quraan Shareef. Thus I started myHifz in 1968 and
completed in 1970 under the tutorship of Hafiz Ebrahim Limalia.
In 1974, I pursued my Islamic studies in Karachi,Pakistan, as I wanted
to know what is the meaning of the Noble Quraan. Alhamdulillah, I
graduated in 1980 at Jamia Farooqia Karachi,Pakistan. In 1990 I
completed my MA with distinction at the Rand Afrikaans University in
Islamic studies.
I always yearned to teachat a Darul Uloom and in January 1981, I
started teaching at Darul Uloom Newcastle. The portfolios I held there
was vice principle, Mufti and Senior Lecturer on Tafseer, Quraan and
Hadith etc. After staying for 20 years in Newcastle,I joined Cii in
January 2001 as a resident Mufti. My wife, Fathima is a great
inspiration for me."
Some talks delivered by Mufti Abdool Kader Hoosen's can be heard and
downloaded from the Edarswebsite, whilst his radio programmes are
frequently aired on Cii. May Allahswt give good health and long lifeto
Mufti Abdool Kader Hoosen in order that the ummah continue to benefit
from his talks and knowledge. Ameen.