FASTING AND POWER

The Strategic Significance of the Fast of Ramandān

 FAST AND POWER
The Strategic Significance of the fast of Ramandān

Imran N. Hosein

Masjid Jàmi’ah, City of San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago

Copyright © Imran N. Hosein
Email: ihosein@tstt.net.tt; inhosein@hotmail.com
Website: www.imranhosein.org

First Published 2011

SÕRAH AL-KAHF: Quartet of Books

Volume 1: Sūrah al-Kahf: Text Translation and Modern Commentary;
Volume 2: Sūrah al-Kahf and the Modern Age;
Volume 3: An Islamic View of Gog and Magog in the Modern Age;
Volume 4: Dajjāl the False Messiah or Antichrist.

Published by
Masjid Jāmi’ah, City of San Fernando.
70, Mucurapo Street,
San Fernando.
Trinidad and Tobago

Cover design by
Alicia Heraz
Email: aliciaheraz@gmail.com

Printed in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
 Contents

Preface 7
The imperative of power 9
Fasting in Islam – its basic objective 21
Fasting and internal spiritual power 26
Religion and the state 31
Morality and religion 33
Fasting in Islam – laws and linkages 41
Link with Judaism 47
Link with sex and chastity 67
Link with charity 72
Link with human rights, freedom and dignity 76
Between the two nights 81
Fasting and the physical body 85
Fasting and creativity 88
FAST AND POWER 

Sharing hunger with the destitute 89

Fasting and the value of food 90
The last word 91
Notes 94

6
 Preface

T his book was formerly published some fifteen years ago

with the title ‘The Strategic Importance of the Fast of Ramadān
and Isra and Miraj’. We have now separated the two topics and
are publishing them as two separate books.
We have changed the title of this book to Fasting and Power
in an effort to direct greater attention to the central thesis
presented, namely that the fast of Ramadān was sent down to
deliver power to the Muslims. We have also edited and added to
the original text.
Let us take the opportunity to remind those Muslims who
do not regularly recite the Qur’ān in Arabic from-cover-to-
cover, that Angel Gabriel (‘alaihi al-Salām) came to the Prophet
(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) every night during the entire month of
Ramadān and he would have to recite for the Angel all that was
revealed in the Book up to that time. He completed the whole
recitation during the month of Ramadan every year. However
in the last year of his life he recited the whole Qur’ān (i.e., all
that was revealed in the Book up to that time) twice for the
Angel.
FAST AND POWER 

If the reader has never so far recited the whole Qur’ān

from cover to cover we urge him or her to start to do so
without delay. And when he or she is finished – to then start
again, and when he or she is finished – to then start again! In
particular we urge that the recitation of the Qur’an be
commenced at the beginning of every month of Ramadan and
be completed once or twice before the end of the month.
Finally we pray that this book may be blessed to play a role
in mobilizing Muslims in such a way that the fast of Ramadān
may actually result in that input for power being achieved
individually and collectively, which may then find concrete
expression on the battlefield of Jihād as Islām responds to
barbaric oppression in the Holy Land in particular. Āmῑn!
There must be something special about Malaysia and Kuala
Lumpur that I should be blessed to complete the writing of a
book yet again in this city in blessed Ramadān.

Imran N. Hosein
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Ramadan 1432/August 2011


8
 The Imperative of Power

The Muslim world must be reminded that the Qur’ān

has ordered Muslims to build power with which to deter
enemies:

² ±°¯®¬«ª©¨ ‫ﱷ‬
¿¾ ½ ¼ » º ¹ ¸ ¶ µ ´ ³
ËÊÉ ÈÇÆ ÅÄÃÂÁÀ
‫ﱶ‬Ì
“Hence, make ready against them whatever power and
war mounts (i.e., military equipments) you are able to
muster, so that you might deter thereby the enemies of
Allah, who are your enemies as well, and others besides
them of whom you may be unaware, (but) of whom
Allah is aware; and whatever you may expend in Allah’s
cause shall be repaid to you in full, and you shall not be
wronged.”
(Qur’ān, al-Anfāl, 8:60)
FAST AND POWER 

P rophet Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is reported to

have warned that “each of you is a shepherd, and each of
you will be questioned concerning his flock of sheep.” If a
shepherd does not possess the knowledge required for rearing
sheep he may not know where he should take the sheep to
graze. When the sheep begin to stray he may not know how to
go after them and bring them back into the flock. And when
the wolves begin to circle the sheep, he may not know how to
protect the sheep. Indeed there are Muslim shepherds in North
America who are innocently leading their sheep directly to the
wolves. Such are the Muslim leaders who engage in amateur
Ijtihād and who then pronounce that bank interest is not Ribā
(usury) and hence Halāl. The situation in the world of Islam is
even worse. There are many Muslim countries today where the
shepherds have been dismissed and wolves are ruling over the
sheep!
The present book is written primarily for the benefit of the
shepherds of the Muslim community around the world. It is
our hope and prayer that they will subject it to careful and
critical attention, Insha’ Allah, and that it may be of benefit to
them. Amῑn.
The Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) also said that Islam was
built on a five-fold foundation. Amongst these five “pillars” is
the fast of Ramadān. In this paper an attempt is made to
demonstrate how the fast of Ramadān functions as a “pillar” or
a “foundation” of the house of Islam, rather than just a
“window” or a “door.”

10
 THE IMPERATIVE OF POWER

More than fifty thousand Muslim women in Bosnia in

Europe were raped and ravaged in the age of Pax Americana by
bitter enemies of Islam who behaved like a pack of mad dogs.
Concentration camps housed Muslim men in Bosnia. Muslims
were starved to death. Sarajevo was relentlessly bombarded for
more than two years. The world witnessed genocide in
Srebrenica when in July 1995 some 8000 Muslim Bosnians –
men and boys – were slaughtered by Serbian Armed Forces
under the command of a Serbian general.
The Muslims of Kashmir have been brutally oppressed and
terrorized for more than fifty years, ground to the very dust by
more than half-a-million Indian armed forces that are now
allies of Israel in the newly emerging Pax Judaica (that is
replacing Pax Americana). Kashmiri women, like their
counterparts in Bosnia, suffer the same rape in the broad
daylight of history from those who have very clearly identified
themselves as unrelenting enemies of Islam and Muslims.
In Palestine, Muslims have suffered such extreme
oppression at the hands and feet of racist Euro-Jewish Zionist
colonizers, and have been reduced to such a weak and helpless
situation that they were forced to resort to an intifada of
stones!
What has the world of Islam done about Bosnia, Kashmir,
Palestine, the NATO occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan and so
many other bleeding stab wounds on the body of the Ummah?
Muslims around the world have been agonizing while their
Excellencies, Majesties, Royal Highnesses, Presidents, Prime

11
FAST AND POWER 

Ministers and Ministers of Government who rule over the

Muslims, went home, had dinner, and went to sleep! Even
sincere Muslim leaders have simply been too weak to do
anything more than protest the hypocrisy of the West and the
indifference of fellow Muslim leaders.
The Muslim world must be reminded that the Qur’ān has
ordered Muslim to build power with which to deter enemies:

² ±°¯®¬«ª©¨ ‫ﱷ‬
¿¾ ½ ¼ » º ¹ ¸ ¶ µ ´ ³
ËÊÉ ÈÇÆ ÅÄÃÂÁÀ
‫ﱶ‬Ì
“Hence, make ready against them whatever force and
war mounts you are able to muster, so that you might
deter thereby the enemies of Allah, who are your enemies
as well, and others besides them of whom you may be
unaware, [but] of whom Allah is aware; and whatever
you may expend in Allah’s cause shall be repaid to you
in full, and you shall not be wronged.”
(Qur’ān, al-Anfāl, 8:60)

Muslims have also been ordered to respond to aggression:

K J I H G FE D C B A ‫ﱷ‬
Y XW V U T S RQ P O N M L

12
 THE IMPERATIVE OF POWER

cba` _^]\[Z
p o nm l k j ih g f e d
{ z y x w vu t s r q
e d c ba ` _ ~ } |
‫ﱶ‬f
“Permission [to fight] is given to those against whom
war is being wrongfully waged and, verily, Allah has
indeed the power to succour them…” “Those who have
been driven from their homelands against all right for no
other reason than their saying: “Our Sustainer is Allah!”
For, if Allah had not enabled people to defend themselves
against one another, all] monasteries and churches and
synagogues and mosques – in [all of] which Allah’s name
is abundantly extolled – would surely have been
destroyed [ere now]. And Allah will most certainly
succour him who succours His cause: for, verily, Allah is
most Powerful, Almighty, [well aware of] those who,
[even] if We firmly establish them on earth, remain
constant in prayer, and give in charity, and enjoin the
doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is
wrong; but with Allah rests the final outcome of all
events.
(Qur’ān, al-Hajj, 22:39-41)

And they have been ordered to liberate the oppressed:

13
FAST AND POWER 

K J IHGFEDCBA ‫ﱷ‬
WVUT SRQPONML
‫ [ \ ] ^ _ `ﱶ‬Z Y X
“And how could you refuse to fight in the cause of Allah
and of the utterly helpless men and women and children
who are crying, “O our Sustainer! Lead us forth [to
freedom] out of this land whose people are oppressors,
and raise for us, out of Thy grace, a protector, and raise
for us, out of Thy grace, one who will bring us succour!”
(Qur’ān, al-Nisā 4:75).

In the process of building power and using power for

performing such functions, Muslims would create conditions
which would facilitate the recognition of the Truth of Islam by
non-Muslim humanity:

¡  ~ } | { z y x w v‫ﱷ‬
¬« ª©¨§¦¥ ¤£¢
‫ ¶ ¸ﱶ‬µ ´ ³ ² ± ° ¯ ®
“And, lo, Allah gave you the promise that one of the two
[enemy] hosts would fall to you: and you would have
liked to seize the less powerful one, whereas it was
Allah’s will to prove the truth to be true in accordance
with His words, and to wipe out the last remnant of
those who denied the truth, so that He might prove the

14
 THE IMPERATIVE OF POWER

truth to be true and the false to be false, however hateful

this might be to those who were lost in sin.
(Qur’ān, al-Anfāl 8:7-8).

How do we restore power to the Ummah? What is the

Qur’anic view of power? Is wealth a foundation of power? If it
were, then the rich peoples’ army would not have been
defeated by the army of the refugees at Badr! Are weapons the
foundations of power? If they were then the well-armed force
of the Quraish would not have been defeated by the lightly-
armed Muslims at Badr! Nor would a super-power, the United
States of America, have been defeated in Vietnam.
What, then, are the foundations of power? Wealth, and
weapons technology (including nuclear weapons), and the
strength of numbers, are all important to power but do not
constitute the foundations. Our understanding is that the
foundations of power are located in freedom, knowledge,
values, faith, unity (and fraternity), discipline and leadership.
For example, the Muslim Community under the direct
leadership of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) was not given
permission to fight until they had power. But permission never
came while they were still in Makkah. It came only after the
Hijrah to Madinah and only after the conclusion of the Treaty
(Mῑthāq) of Madinah which gave to them political freedom.
That political freedom assured for them the freedom to submit,
individually and collectively, privately and publicly, to the
supreme authority of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’alah).

15
FAST AND POWER 

Today that freedom has been lost. Muslims are now

obliged, even in the so-called Islamic Republic of Iran, to
submit to the supreme authority of enemies of Islam who
control the Security Council of the United Nations
Organization. That is the implication of membership in the
Zionist-created United Nations Organization.
But of greater importance to us in the context of this essay
is the realization that a Muslim cannot pursue an effort for
restoring external freedom unless he first has achieved
internal freedom. Only that Muslim is truly internally free who
lives for Allah (subhanahu wa ta’alah). Everything he does, he seeks
to please Allah Most High. It matters not whether the world is
pleased or displeased with him. What the world thinks of him
is irrelevant to how he determines the life he should live. Only
such a Muslim is free! Most Muslims alive today in the modern
world of Dajjāl, have become slaves of the worldly life i.e., al-
Duniyah. Some are slaves of their US Passports, Visa, Green
Cards, etc. Others have become slaves of their jobs or
businesses which give them a comfortable life. As a
consequence of that enslavement they lack the freedom to
wage a struggle against injustice and oppression even within
the world of Islam.
The Qur’ān has delivered a very stern warning to such
Muslims:

r q p o n ml k‫ﱷ‬

16
 THE IMPERATIVE OF POWER

y xw v u t s
cba` _~}|{z
‫ ﱶ‬m l k j i h gf e d
“Say: If it be that your fathers, your sons, your brothers,
your mates, or your kindred; the wealth that ye have
gained; the commerce in which ye fear a decline: or the
dwellings in which ye delight – are dearer to you than
Allah, or His Messenger, or the striving in His cause;
then wait until Allah brings about His decision: and
Allah guides not the rebellious.”
(Qur’ān, al-Tauba, 9:24)

Fasting is one of the most effective institutions for

realizing that freedom. It is of crucial importance that we
reflect upon the fact that the fast of Ramadān was not imposed
upon the Muslims until just before the battle of Badr when they
had to fight for the first time! That timing was not by accident!
In a Hadῑth Al-Qudsi, Allah Most High has declared:
“Fasting is for Me, and I will respond to it with any
reward (howsoever great) I choose to bestow.”
The lesson here is so simple and yet so powerful. If we can fast
for Allah it opens the way for us to live for Allah and for Allah
alone, regardless of the price we may have to pay. Only those
who live for Allah would die for Allah; and therein is located the
foundations of power.

17
FAST AND POWER 

Thus, what this essay does, most of all, is to provide for the
discerning reader a glimpse of how the fast of Ramadān
contributes towards the individual and collective realization of
all the foundations of power.
We must enter a note of warning concerning the
increasing number of secularized Muslims who are emerging
in our midst who are either careless and indifferent with
regards to the fast of Ramadān, or who do not consider it
necessary to observe the fast at all. Such Muslims should
understand, before it is too late, that it is in the nature of the
secular society to dilute, to weaken, and to eventually render
irrelevant, the distinction between the Truth (al-Haq) and
falsehood (al-Bātil), that which is permitted by Allah (al-Halāl)
and that which is prohibited by Allah (al-Harām), between
conduct which is virtuous (al-Ma’rūf) and conduct which is
sinful (al-Munkar).
Without being fully aware of it, the secularized Muslim
eventually lives a life which is in no way moulded and
conditioned by the rewards of Heaven (al-Jannah) and the
punishments of Hell (Jahannam). Indeed, secularized Muslims
eventually lose consciousness of what is sin.
In the secular society it is not the word of Allah Most High
which is the measure (al-Mizān) of all things. Rather man
positions himself at the centre of his universe, and he becomes
the measure of all things. He determines what is right and what
is wrong. His reason sits in judgment on anything which claims
to be the Word of Allah. And when the Word of Allah does not

18
 THE IMPERATIVE OF POWER

appear to conform to man’s rational predilections then the

word of Allah must either be rewritten, or rejected or, worse,
subjected to a progressive interpretation! This is called the
secularization of religion. And this is the terrible fate which
has befallen Judaism and Christianity in the modern western
civilization, and this fate arrived at the very doorstep of the
Muslims when European Judeo-Christian armies colonized the
world of Islam at the very point of a zealot’s sword.
This fate was inevitable for Jews and Christians because
they had distorted the revealed Truth. But it would be
inexcusable for Muslims because the revealed Truth in the
Qur’ān is protected by Allah Most High Himself. And the basic
understanding of that Truth is located in the explanations
provided by the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allah Most High be upon him), in his personal example
(Sunnah), and the model of a sacred society which he created!
In order to protect themselves from being completely
absorbed and integrated into the new sophisticated secular
Jāhiliyyah (i.e., ignorance of Truth revealed by Allah), such
secularized Muslims should make haste to learn the lesson that
Islam presents to humanity an alternative model of life and of
society, a model which is a rival to today’s secular model. In
Islam’s sacred model of living, this world acquires meaning
only with reference to that transcendental world from which
emerges Al-Haq, Al-Halāl and Al-Ma’rūf.
When we understand how this world relates to that world
then this world, also, becomes scared. Life becomes sacred. And

19
FAST AND POWER 

woman becomes sacred i.e., for men. Only then can we fathom
the status of woman in the sacred model of life. We can then
respond to the challenge posed by the secular model which, in
naïvely seeking to liberate woman, is presiding over the
greatest destruction of the peace and happiness of women ever
witnessed in history.
Through fasting we enhance our state of harmony with
the sacred life and the sacred world! The sacred life is a life
which is lived for the purpose of pleasing Allah Most High.
That is the way we should live. That is the road to power.
We pray that the reader may benefit from the information
and analysis presented here and, in particular, that secularized
Muslims who have stopped fasting may be persuaded to return
to the life of the sacred and to the institution of fasting which
does so much to remind us of the unseen world and to fortify
us with the values which come from that unseen world.
Without values the only future mankind can expect is one of
unhappiness and frustration, and tragedy after tragedy!
May Allah accept our humble service in the cause of His
Revealed Truth – Truth which can bring peace and
contentment, fulfilment and success to otherwise barren lives,
as well as to the now-collapsing social order.


20
 Fasting in Islam – Its Basic Objective

I n Sūrah al-Baqarah1 of the Qur’ān Allah Most High addressed

those who believe in that scripture as Divine revelation and
informed them of the promulgation of the compulsory fast for
them. The verse then disclosed that fasting was made
compulsory for all those religious communities which
preceded the community of Muslims who follow Prophet
Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam).

\ [ Z Y X W V U T S‫ﱷ‬
‫ﱶ‬a`_ ^]
“O you who have attained to faith! Fasting is ordained
for you as it was ordained for those before you, so that
you might remain conscious of Allah.”
(Qurān, al-Baqara, 2:183)

Thus the compulsory fast is found in the religious life of

Jews, Christians, Hindus, Buddhist and others.2 The verse then
ended by indicating that the objective for which the
compulsory fast was promulgated is the acquisition of piety
FAST AND POWER 

and godliness (Taqwa).

The Qur’anic viewpoint therefore, is that fasting has
always been an obligatory feature of the religious way of life.
By instituting the compulsory fast for the religious community
which followed Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allah Most High be upon him), the Qur’ān simply brought
religious life amongst Muslims into a state of conformity with
an essential requirement of the religious way of life.
When the Qur’ān went on to point out that the basic
objective of fasting was the acquisition of piety and holiness
(Taqwa), it followed that this must also have been the basic
objective of fasting in all previous religious communities
established by the thousands of Prophets and guides sent by
Allah Most High to every nation and tribe (Qur’ān, al-Ra’d, 13:7).
An immediate implication of this conclusion is that no
religion (which claims to be founded on the One Truth) can or
should condone the exploitation of the institution of fasting as
a political weapon or a form of protest. And yet, in 1986, the
Foreign Minister of Nicaragua, who was a Catholic priest,
completed three weeks of a fast-unto-death in a protest against
the policies of the government of the United States of America
towards the Sandanista government in Nicaragua. In much the
same way the Indian leader, Mohandas Gandhi, who was a
devout Hindu and a role-model of modern reform Hinduism,
used fasting as a political weapon in his struggle against British
rule in India.

22
 FASTING IN ISLAM – ITS BASIC OBJECTIVE

Piety and godliness, therefore, is the criterion with which

we judge the institution of fasting as it functions, not only in
the religious community established by Nabi Muhammad
(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), but in all other religions and religious
communities.
It is only when fasting inculcates piety and godliness that
it functions in accordance with its original purpose. When it
does not or, rather, no longer does, then a deviation has
occurred. And it behoves the followers of the deviant religion
to struggle to retrieve the original objective of fasting.
While the majority of Muslims, the world over, observe the
compulsory fast of Ramadān, we find in this age the unique
phenomenon of large numbers of Muslims who do not fast.
When we inquire into this phenomenon what we find is that it
has emerged almost exclusively as a result of a considerable
impact of modern Western civilization on such Muslims.
This is not surprising since modern Western civilization,
which is largely constructed on secular and materialistic
foundations, does not attach much practical value to piety and
God-consciousness. As a consequence one comes across people
who find it inconvenient to fast because it interferes with the
efficient fulfilment of their professional obligations. Indeed a
former President of Tunisia attempted to prohibit the
compulsory Islamic fast because he claimed that it had a
negative impact on productivity and thus constituted an
obstacle to economic growth and prosperity. Others who have
imprisoned themselves in the comforts and luxuries of modern

23
FAST AND POWER 

sensate culture (which is a feature of Western rather than

Christian civilization) find fasting to be either too rigorous or
just plain inconvenient. While we shall be attempting a
rational exposition of the benefits to be derived from fasting,
we should also urge such Muslims to take serious note of the
fact that fasting was made compulsory by Allah Most High
Himself.
Any Muslim who challenges the compulsory fast and holds
the view that he is under no obligation to fast would be in a
state of defiance and rebellion against Allah; and since Islam
connotes submission to the Will of Allah Most High, it should be
obvious that such a person would not be in Islam, in the true
sense of the word, and hence would not be a Muslim.
Indeed, such a Muslim places himself outside the religious
way of life altogether since the Qur’ān declares:

j i h g f e d c b a ` _‫ﱷ‬
‫ﱶ‬lk
“And whosoever desires a religion other than Islam,
never will it be accepted from him. and in the life to
come he shall be among the lost.”
(Qur’ān, aal-’Imrān, 3:85)

On the other hand, the Muslim who recognizes the

obligatory nature of fasting and yet does not observe the
compulsory fast because of laziness, inconvenience, or

24
 FASTING IN ISLAM – ITS BASIC OBJECTIVE

whatever reason is, in fact, committing a sin and must expect

to be punished by Allah Most High for it. Similarly, since
fasting was made compulsory for those religious communities
which preceded the advent of Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu
‘alaihi wa sallam), and since the previous divinely-revealed laws of
fasting were cancelled and abrogated and then replaced in the
Qur’ān with the Fast of Ramadān:

O N ML K J I H G F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
‫ﱶ‬VUT SRQP
“Any message which, We annul or consign to oblivion
We replace with a better or a similar one. Dost thou not
know that Allah has the power to will anything?”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:106)

It follows that the followers of those religions will also

incur Allah’s punishment if they, too, fail to observe the
compulsory fast of Ramadān.


25
 Fasting and Internal Spiritual Power

T aqwa possesses both a moral and a spiritual dimension. In

respect of its moral dimension it connotes moral rectitude
which is the fruit of a Divinely-grounded vigilance, on the one
hand, and the purification of the heart (Tazkiyah) on the other.
Moral rectitude manifests itself in acts of commission (Awāmir)
and omission (Nawāhi), i.e. performing virtuous acts required
by the moral code such as “giving alms to the poor,” on the one
hand, and refraining from evil acts (also prohibited by the
moral code) such as acts of bribery and corruption on the
other. Allah Most High declared in the Qur’ān:

‫ ﱶ‬i h g f e d c b a `‫ﱷ‬
“Whosoever purifies (the nafs) has achieved success. And
whosoever corrupts it has failed.”
(Qur’ān, al-Shams, 91:9-10)

The implication of these verses of the Qur’ān is that values

must be recognized as one of the foundations of power. Indeed,
there is a specific confirmation of such an implication in the
chronological sequence of the revelation of the Qur’ān.
 FASTING AND INTERNAL SPIRITUAL POWER

After the migration from Makkah to Madinah had been

effected, and shortly after victory over the Quraish at Badr,
Allah Most High revealed the Sūrah entitled al-Anfāl (the Spoils
of War) in which He recalled the road which had been
travelled:

I HGFEDCBA‫ﱷ‬
QP ONMLKJ
‫ﱶ‬T S R
“Call to mind (that time) when you were a small (band),
weak, helpless (and vulnerable) in (your) territory, and
afraid that (hostile) people would finish you off. Then
(Allah) provided you with (a way to) safety and refuge,
and empowered you with His aid, and provided you with
wholesome resources that you might be grateful.”
(Qur’ān, al-Anfāl, 8:26)

The power to which Allah Most High referred was of course

internal spiritual power, which was manifest in the battle of
Badr. And the manifestation of that power was of such strategic
importance in the Divine scheme that Allah went on to
describe it as the Furqān, or criterion, through which truth was
distinguished from falsehood:

utsrq p onml‫ﱷ‬
‫ { | } ~ _ﱶ‬zy x w v

27
FAST AND POWER 

“O you who have attained to faith! If you remain

conscious of Allah, He will endow you with a standard
by which to discern the true from the false, and will
efface your bad deeds, and will forgive you your sins: for
Allah is limitless in His great bounty.”
(Qur’ān, al-Anfal 8:29)

He also declared:

‫ ¶ ¸ﱶ‬µ ´ ³ ² ± °‫ﱷ‬
“That it (the demonstration of power) might serve to
confirm Truth and expose falsehood, distasteful though
it be to those in guilt.”
(Qur’ān, al-Anfāl 8:8)

What is of critical importance for our topic is the fact that

Allah Most High chose a moment shortly before the month of
Ramadān, in which the battle of Badr was fought, to reveal the
verses of the Qur’ān which promulgated the compulsory fast of
Ramadān. It should be clear as daylight that the fast of Ramadān
was instituted at that specific time that it might function as a
means through which the community might be empowered. If
not, how can we possibly explain the more-than 14 years long
delay in promulgating the institution of fasting? Would it not
have been beneficial to the oppressed Muslims of Makkah to
have been given the fast of Ramadān? Would it not have
enhanced their fortitude to resist the kuffār?
The fact that Allah Most High waited for more than

28
 FASTING AND INTERNAL SPIRITUAL POWER

fourteen years, after the commencement of the revelation of

the Qur’ān, to reveal the verses relating to the compulsory fast
of Ramadān, is a direct indication of the relationship which
exists between fasting and power.
There is a link between fasting and power. The link is that
fasting not only builds, but also, reinforces and consolidates
values, and values form an indispensable foundation of power.
Also, since no nation, society or civilization can ever rise to
greatness without establishing and sustaining the moral health
of its people, it follows that the institution of fasting in religion
plays a role of crucial importance in nation-building and in the
process of establishing a healthy and enduring society and
civilization. In fact the Qur’ān goes beyond this to claim that
survival, in the historical process, depends upon moral health.
It does so when it declares (as mentioned earlier) that:

‫ ﱶ‬i h g f e d c b a `‫ﱷ‬
“Those who purify themselves and permit the proper
growth and development of their moral being will
succeed (in history as well as in the Divine scheme of
things). Those, on the other hand, who corrupt
themselves and, in the process, obstruct the growth and
development of their moral being, will eventually
perish.”
(Qur’ān, al-Shams, 91:9-10)

This holds true as much for the social order, the nation,
and civilization, as for the individual.

29
FAST AND POWER 

The Qur’ān does not merely state this thesis as a fact; it

does more than that. It seeks to demonstrate the validity of the
thesis by inviting attention to the historical process at work in
the rise and fall of nations and civilizations. And in order to
facilitate that inquiry it narrates the history of certain nations
and tribes which perished because of moral corruption
consequent upon the collapse of values.


30
 Religion and the State

T he very survival of a nation or civilization is dependent on

the establishment and preservation of values and the
development of moral health. Religion, through its belief
system of the transcendental world, is the only source of
eternal values. There are no such things as secular values.
Religion, also, through such institutions as fasting, has a
glorious record of achievement in the moral struggle. As a
consequence there is an essential linkage between religion and
the State, a linkage which the State can only ignore at its own
peril.
The modern nation-state, built on the dual foundations of
secularism and nationalism, is incapable of redefining
secularism in such a way as would permit religion to function
as an effective moral force in the establishment of a healthy
social order. Similarly it finds itself increasingly incapable of
transcending narrow nationalisms to embrace a conception of
the unity and fraternity of all mankind in order that it may be
able to digest the claim of religion that moral values are not
only universal and absolute, but require a non-discriminatory
FAST AND POWER 

application amongst the many different peoples in the world.



32
 Morality and Religion

A lthough moral rectitude is an essential dimension of

Taqwa, we should note that it does not function as an end-
in-itself, nor does it function independently; rather it depends
on a metaphysic and serves goals which are essentially
transcendental. It is the spiritual dimension of Taqwa which is
really dominant. This is clear from the opening statement of
the second chapter of the Qur’ān which declares that the
Qur’ān provides (consequential) guidance for those who
possess Taqwa. It then goes on to identify the constituent
elements of Taqwa and singles out, as first in importance, belief
in the unseen transcendental world (al-Ghaib). Next comes the
establishment of continuous communion with Allah Most High
through regular prayer (Iqāmah al-Salāt) and through spending
freely to assist the needy and under-privileged with the
recognition of wealth as a gift from Allah Most High (Infāq).
Taqwa requires belief, not only in the Qur’ān, but also in all
other revealed religious scriptures. And since the Qur’ān does
not name all those scriptures, the true religious way of life
cultivates respect for all religious scriptures in the world
which claim a Divine origin, and requires belief in those
FAST AND POWER 

scriptures to the extent that one can recognize Truth in them.

And then the last constituent element of Taqwa is unshakable
faith in a life hereafter (al-Ākhirah):

X W V U T S R Q P O N M‫ﱷ‬
‫ﱶ‬ba`_^]\[Z Y
“And who believe in that which has been bestowed from
on high upon thee, [O Prophet,] as well as in that which
was bestowed before thy time: for it is they who in their
innermost are certain of the life to come!”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:3-4)

Taqwa is therefore initially dependent on the recognition

that this world in which we live is not the only world. There is
another world beside and beyond this world. Indeed, in
comparison with that world, which is permanent and abiding,
this world is temporary, transient and fleeting:

L K J I HG F E D C B A ‫ﱷ‬
‫ ﱶ‬R Q P O NM
“… for, [if they did, they would know that] the life of this
world is nothing but a passing delight and a play –
whereas, behold, the life in the hereafter is indeed the
only [true] life: if they but knew this!”
(Qur’ān, al-Ankabūt, 29:64)

34
 MORALITY AND RELIGION

It will not last forever. It will one day come to an end and
be transformed by its Creator into another world which will be
quite different from this one:

{ z y x wv u t s r q ‫ﱷ‬
‫|ﱶ‬
“[His promise will be fulfilled] on the Day when the
earth shall be changed into another earth, as shall be the
heavens and when [all men] shall appear before Allah,
the One who holds absolute sway over all that exists.”
(Qur’ān, Ibrahῑm 14:48)

Taqwa is dependent on the recognition that human beings

will survive their physical death and will, upon the
transformation of the world, be roused from the slumber of
their graves to be subjected to accountability for their conduct.
That day of accountability will witness the truth of all that
religion stood for, and hence it is called “the Day of Religion”
(Yaum al-Dῑn). On that day Allah Most High will sit in Judgment
over humanity and will reward and punish as appropriate.
Heaven exists for reward while hell exists for punishment.
Finally Taqwa is dependent on belief in the transcendent
unity of religious Truth (al-Dῑn) since it requires belief in all
divine scriptures and in all the Prophets. There can only be
One Truth since Truth is God, and God is One! This belief in the
unity and universality of Truth engenders a spirit of profound

35
FAST AND POWER 

respect for “Truth” which is located in a religious community

and scripture other than one’s own – even if it be a mere
remnant of the Truth!
When we study the history of the evolution of religion
what we find is that at its earliest stage religion was basically
concerned with the organization of society and the rules of
conduct conducive to the emergence of moral consciousness.
This appears to be the basic purpose fulfilled in the story of
Nabi Ādam and his wife Hawwa (Eve) in the Garden of Paradise.
The historical record indicates that symbolism played a
significant role in the pursuit of both these objectives.
Mythology was, perhaps, a failure to understand the true
meaning of religious symbolism.
At the next stage, religion concentrated on the
development of a religious psychology conducive to the proper
growth and development of moral consciousness.
At a still higher stage religion turned man’s attention away
from this world to an almost exclusive devotion of things
mystical and otherworldly.
In its final form, however, with the revelation of the
Qur’ān, it matured to deliver the simultaneous growth and
development of the physical, social, moral, aesthetic and
mystic dimensions of human consciousness. The conception,
however, of a life hereafter, of accountability, and of worship
of a single Deity who was both immanent and transcendent,
always formed part of religious truth even when it was only

36
 MORALITY AND RELIGION

implicitly stated. This was the ‘substance’ of Truth.

The final standpoint of religion regarding man’s earthly
life is that it should not be lived as an end-in-itself. Rather
believers were required to live in this world in the manner of a
traveller who is continuously conscious of the fact that his
destination lies in the next world.
Living for the next world implies, in fact, living for Allah
Most High And this brings us to yet another way at which the
Qur’ān looks at Taqwa. Religion, it would appear, evaluates all
human conduct on the basis of what will ‘reach’ Allah and what
will not. It is only the ‘substance’ of religion which reaches
Allah. Thus the Qur’ān declares:

 ÁÀ ¿ ¾ ½ ¼ » º ¹ ¸ ¶‫ﱷ‬
Ì Ë ÊÉ È Ç Æ Å Ä Ã
‫ﱶ‬Í
“It is not the flesh and blood (of the animals of sacrifice)
which reach Allah. Rather it is the Taqwa of your hearts
which reaches Him”
(Qur’ān, al-Hajj, 22:37)

And thus the basic objective of fasting is nothing less than

the penetration of the very substance and soul of religion. The
Taqwa which the believer acquires while fasting is, therefore,
something which reaches Allah Most High. But before this can
be achieved the human self must travel on a road which

37
FAST AND POWER 

progressively elevates it from the physical, to the rational and

moral, and finally to the spiritual dimension of its existence.
It must, first of all, come to grips with the purely carnal
self (Nafs al-Ammārah). This rebellious “wild beast” in man has
to be tamed and disciplined. And fasting is one of the most
effective means of controlling it.
It is in sexual immorality that the wild beast in man is at
its wildest and most destructive and for this reason religion
uses fasting for a direct attack on lust and carnal passion. This
is achieved in Islam though the prohibition of sexual relations
during the period of the fast each day and then virtually
recommending sexual relations during the night which follows
the day of fasting:

K J I HG F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
U T S R Q P ON M L
` _ ^ ] \ [ ZY X W V
l k j i h g f e d c ba
y x w v ut s r q p on m
f e d c b a ` _ ~ } |{ z
‫ﱶ‬j i h g

38
 MORALITY AND RELIGION

“It is lawful for you to go in unto your wives during the

night preceding the [day’s] fast: they are as a garment for
you, and you are as a garment for them…”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:187)

The partners would thus bring to bear on their sexual

conduct the moral and spiritual refinement acquired during
the day of fasting.
As the self turns away from such unbridled fulfilment of all
the demands of the wild beast in man such as adultery and
fornication (Zina), and turns towards that which can reach
Allah Most High, it is filled with regret for its past conduct and
reproaches itself in this respect.
This stage in the development of the self is termed Nafs al-
Lawwāmah by the Qur’ān. Finally, as the self purifies itself and
turns to Allah Most High, it acquires Taqwa which reaches
Allah ta’ālah. This is the stage of the beatified self (Nafs al-
Mutmai’nnah). This, indeed, is the stage of spiritual excellence
and it is here that religion really exists.
Throughout history the beatified self has merely tolerated
its own existence in this world. It really lived in a world which
transcended this world. Thus, turning away from the mundane
towards the sacred, away from the spatio-temporal towards
the transcendental, has been the fundamental objective of all
religions. However the Qur’ān did not permit a complete
‘turning away’ from this world. Rather it transformed this
world into a sacred world. It transformed sex into something

39
FAST AND POWER 

sacred. Work, also, became something sacred. The believer was

expected to live fully in this world and to strive to make a
success of his life in this world. There was no incompatibility
between living in this world and living for that world!
One cannot, however, really embark upon a journey
through which the true consciousness of living for that world
can be nurtured without mobilizing the ascetic element in
human nature. Fasting, with its denial of that which is
otherwise lawful, provides the perfect entreé to the ascetic life
and this, in turn, provokes the turning of the face to Allah Most
High.
Our conclusion is that power cannot be sustained without
values. And values all emerge from Truth! Therefore values
cannot be established or sustained without religion. For it is
religion, and religion alone, which can provide the
metaphysical or spiritual belief-systems which make the moral
quest possible!
When Muslims fast they should be constantly conscious of
the fact that religion is at work building and sustaining values
which, in turn, permit spiritual power to be established and
preserved. Spiritual power, in turn, plays a critical role in the
movement of history since time and again it validates Truth.
(Qur’ān, al-Anfāl, 8:8). History cannot end until spiritual power
reasserts itself in the Last Age (Akhir al-Zamān) to validate
Truth in Islam in a manner that is final and conclusive.


40
 Fasting in Islam – Laws and Linkages

T he compulsory fast of Islam is to be observed during

Ayyām M’adūda (a fixed period of time):

m l k j i h g f e dc b‫ﱷ‬
z y x wv u t s r q po n
‫ ﱶ‬g f e d c b a ` _ ~} | {
“[fasting] is during a certain specific number of days…”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah 2:184)

and the Qur’ān identifies this fixed time as the lunar

month of Ramadān in the Hijri calendar:

p onmlkji h‫ﱷ‬
| { z y x w v u ts r q
ª © ¨ § ¦¥ ¤ £ ¢ ¡  ~ }
µ´³²±°¯ ®¬«
FAST AND POWER 

‫ﱶ‬º ¹ ¸ ¶
“It was the month of Ramadān in which the Qur’ān was
[first] bestowed from on high … Hence, whoever of you
lives to see this month shall fast throughout it…”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah 2:185)

The compulsory fast commences when the new crescent

moon of Ramadān is visible, or when the month of Shabān
(which precedes Ramadān) has completed its thirtieth day,
whichever is first. The fast is observed daily from dawn to
sunset. During this time one must refrain from eating or
drinking anything. One must also refrain from sexual
intercourse. After the sun has set and the daily fast has ended,
one may partake of food and drink, and may engage in sexual
relations. The month-long fast ends when the new crescent
moon of Shawwal is visible or the month of Ramadān has
completed its thirtieth day, whichever is first.
In the very process of instituting fasting with an
imperishable link with the lunar month – a span of time
determined by nature – of which Allah Most High is the author,
the Qur’ān provides a built-in mechanism in religion which
safeguards against the process of the secularization of time.
The Qur’ān itself claims that it was revealed in the month
of Ramadān, and this was so momentous an occasion that the
believers were required to fast for the entire month in order to
show their gratitude to Allah Most High. And so Islam forged
an imperishable link between the revealed scripture (the

42
 FASTING IN ISLAM – LAWS AND LINKAGES

Qur’ān) and fasting. Now this is a matter of great importance

for, as we have already noted, the goal of fasting is Taqwa and
Taqwa ‘reaches’ Allah Most High. The Qur’ān, on the other
hand, is an unbroken link between man and Allah Most High. It
is the Word of Allah Most High and hence possesses the Divine
quality of uncreated eternity. Yet it exists in a living human
language (Arabic) and is thus readily accessible. The Qur’ān is,
therefore, a rope from Allah by holding on to which man can
either ascend to Allah, or be drawn to Allah:

k j i h gf e d c b a‫ﱷ‬
wvutsr q pon ml
d c b a ` _ ~ }| { z y x
‫ﱶ‬e
“And hold fast, all together, unto the rope of Allah, and
do not draw apart from one another…”
(Qur’ān, ālu-’Imrān, 3:103)

In the secular society the fast of Ramadān plays the

strategically important role of restoring the consciousness of
the existence of the unseen world and of the revelations which
have been sent from that world as guidance for mankind. Once
such Divine revelations are accepted by man, he is obliged to
submit to them.
We are also informed that the Qur’ān was revealed (or sent
down) on a single night in Ramadān, namely the ‘grand night’

43
FAST AND POWER 

or the ‘night of power’ (Lailatul Qadr). Now this is a matter of

tremendous importance. Ramadān is the month of the
compulsory fast, and Ramadān is also the month in which is
located the night when the Qur’ān was revealed. That night is
the night of power. There is, therefore, a clear link between
fasting and power, a link determined by Allah Most High
Himself Who chose Ramadān for the compulsory month-long
fast. Our view is that the power of that holy night is actually
spiritual power. And Allah Knows best!.
Historically, however, it is clear that the Qur’ān actually
reached the Prophet (through the medium of the archangel
Gabriel) in bits and pieces over a period of twenty-three years.
The explanation for this appearance of contradiction is that
when Allah said that He sent down the Qur’ān in Ramadān,
what He meant was that the Qur’ān was sent down to the
lowest heaven (al-Samā al-Dunya) in Ramadān during the “night
of power.” Indeed, it still exists there where its verses (Ayāt)
adorn the lowest heaven as lamps:

b a `_ ~ } | { z y x
e dc
“And, indeed, We have adorned the Samā nearest to the
earth with lights…” (a Samā is a world of space and
time that is located beyond/beside/parallel to the
material universe)
(Qur’ān, al-Mulk, 67:5)

44
 FASTING IN ISLAM – LAWS AND LINKAGES

Like all the other revealed scriptures, the Qur’ān is

described as a light from Allah Most High and therefore each
verse of the Qur’ān is a “light”:

‫ ﱶ‬Á À ¿ ¾ ½ ¼» º ¹ ¸ ¶ µ‫ﱷ‬
“Believe then, [O men,] in Allah and His Apostle, and in
the light [of revelation] which We have bestowed [on
you] from on high! And Allah is fully aware of all that
you do.”
(Qur’ān, al-Taghābun, 64:8)

It was, therefore, from the lowest heaven that the angel

Gabriel brought the Qur’ān piecemeal to the heart of the
Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) over a period of twenty-three
years. The first revelation came to the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa
sallam) on the ‘night of power’ when he was meditating in the
Cave of Hirā! Allah Most High chose to give to the night of the
first revelation the name ‘night of power’. He could have named
it the night of ‘Truth’, or of ‘Peace’, or of ‘Deen’. He did not!
Since He named it the ‘night of power’, the implication is that
the Qur’ān contains within it that through which power can be
acquired! We thus have linkages between fasting and power,
and between the Qur’ān and power – i.e., spiritual power!
In the establishment of a direct link between the month-
long compulsory fast of Ramadān and the continuous recitation
and study of the revealed scripture (Qur’ān), religion has, in
fact, reached a stage in its development never reached before.
No other religious community was ordered to fast for as long a

45
FAST AND POWER 

period as one month of every year. Nor was fasting so

organically linked to the recitation of the revealed scripture in
any previous religious community.3 Not only do Muslims recite
the Qur’ān while fasting but, in addition, they perform during
the nights of Ramadān, the prayers of the “night vigil” (Qiyām
al-Lail or Tarawῑh) in which the entire Qur’ān is sometimes
recited. This recitation, like all others in Salāt, is always
performed in the original Arabic text of the Qur’ān.
Although the Qur’ān recognized that other religious
scriptures also possess “light” (Qur’ān, al-Mā’ida, 5:47-49), and
hence can be used in conjunction with fasting for achieving
spiritual mobility, a major problem exists since people are
seldom in a position to recite their scriptures in the original
language in which they were revealed, and in which language
alone they possess ‘light’. Such scriptures no longer exist in
their original language, and when they do, the language is
either dead or archaic and hence not readily accessible to the
believing masses. Only a very tiny fraction of Christians today
have ever read the Hebrew Bible, for example.
In a very real sense, the Qur’ān is, perhaps, the only
revealed scripture which is readily accessible today to the
overwhelming majority of those who believe in it, accessible,
that is, in the original language and text in which it was
revealed. This supports the claim of the book to be the
revealed Word of the One and only God!


46
 Link with Judaism

R amadān is the month of collective spiritual retreat for the

entire community of Muslims. They are permitted to eat
and drink until the white thread of dawn is distinct from the
black thread (i. e., until the whiteness of the day is distinct from
the darkness of the night) and must then abstain from drink
and sex until sunset:

K J I HG F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
U T S R Q P ON M L
` _ ^ ] \ [ ZY X W V
l k j i h g f e d c ba
y x w v ut s r q p on m
f e d c b a ` _ ~ } |{ z
‫ ﱶ‬ji h g
FAST AND POWER 

“…and eat and drink until you can discern the white
streak of dawn against the blackness of night, and then
resume fasting until nightfall…”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:187)

Prior to the revelation of the Qur’anic verses relating to

fasting, Muslims fasted without taking an early morning meal.
Ibn Abbas (radiallahu ‘anhu) has commented on those Qur’anic
verses as follows:
“When the people offered the night prayer, they were
asked to abstain from food and drink and (intercourse
with) women. They kept fast till the next night.”
(Sunan Abu Dawood, Kitab Al-Siyam)

This was the way that the Jews and Christians fasted, for
the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) has said:
“The difference between our fasting and that of the
recipients of previous scriptures (Jews and Christians
being specifically referred to) is eating shortly before
dawn.”
(Mishkāt Al-Masābih, Kitab Al-Siyam)

The implication of the Hadῑth is that Jews and Christians

fasted without a morning meal, i.e., their fast commenced after
the evening meal and continued until the following sunset. In
all other respects their fast for a day was similar to the Muslim
fast.

48
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

With the revelation of the new Shari’ah (Sacred Law) the

Muslims were now required to fast from dawn to sunset for the
entire month of Ramadān. They were specifically permitted to
take a morning meal and were specifically permitted to go to
their wives during the nights of fasting:

K J I HG F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
U T S R Q P ON M L
` _ ^ ] \ [ ZY X W V
l k j i h g f e d c ba
y x w v ut s r q p on m
f e d c b a ` _ ~ } |{ z
‫ ﱶ‬ji h g
“It is lawful for you to go in unto your wives during the
night preceding the [day’s] fast: they are as a garment for
you, and you are as a garment for them. Allah is aware
that you would have deprived yourselves of this right,
and so He has turned unto you in His mercy and
removed this hardship from you. Now, then, you may lie
with them skin to skin, and avail yourselves of that
which Allah has ordained for you, and eat and drink
until you can discern the white streak of dawn against
the blackness of night, and then resume fasting until

49
FAST AND POWER 

nightfall; but do not lie with them skin to skin when you
are about to abide in meditation in houses of worship.
These are the bounds set by Allah: do not, then, offend
against them – [for] it is thus that Allah makes clear His
messages unto mankind, so that they might remain
conscious of Him.”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:187)

This change from the previous law of fasting to the new

(as well as other such changes) is referred to in the Qur’ān as
Naskh (abrogation or supersession):

N ML K J I H G F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
‫ﱶ‬VUT SRQPO
“We do not abrogate any Ayah (revelation) or cause it to
be forgotten but (that) We (replace it) with that which is
superior to it or similar to it.”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:106)

No verse of the Qur’ān itself was ever abrogated, and since

revelation came down declaring that religion had been
perfected, it follows that no abrogation of the Qur’ān at any
time in the future is possible. Abrogation was always with
reference to previous revelations. Secondly, when a previous
Shari’ah law was abrogated in the Qur’ān the abrogation
applied to all of mankind. Hence that abrogated law lost its
operational validity for those previous communities who

50
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

followed it.
In the chronological sequence of the revelation of the
Qur’ān there appears to be a direct link between the revelation
of the verses relating to the promulgation of the fast of
Ramadān, on the one hand, and the relations between Muslims
and Jews (as well as Christians) on the other.
It is significant that fasting was not made obligatory on the
Muslims during the thirteen years which were spent in
Makkah prior to the Hijrah. Yet we know that the verses of the
Qur’ān pertaining to fasting had already been sent down to the
lowest heaven on the night of power:

‫ ﱶ‬F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
“Behold, from on high have We bestowed this [divine
writ] on Night of Power.”
(Qur’ān, al-Qadr, 97:1)

It was therefore on the basis of deliberate Divinely-

ordained chronological sequence that this particular
revelation (and all other revelation) was sent down at the time
when it was sent down.
The point we are about to argue is that the chronological
sequence, as it pertains to fasting, was clearly determined by
the Jewish attitude towards the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)
and his message. Consider the following events.
On arrival in Madinah, after the Hijrah, the Prophet

51
FAST AND POWER 

(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did two things which were profoundly

significant for Christians and Jews.
Firstly, he performed his prayers (Salat) while facing in the
direction of Jerusalem, and ordered all his followers to do
likewise. The Jews held Jerusalem to be their Divinely-ordained
spiritual capital and hence it became the direction to which
they turned in prayer (Qiblah). The Christian attachment to
Jerusalem was no less profound. In turning towards their
Qiblah in prayer, the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)
dramatically impressed upon the Jews and Christians that he
worshiped of the same one God whom they worshiped. He also
directed dramatic attention to his link with the following:
 his link with the Prophets David and Solomon (‘alaihim
al-Salām) who, as Prophet-Kings, had established the
holy city of Jerusalem;
 his link with the Temple built by Solomon; and

 his link with the Rock (al-Sakhrah) which Jews and

Christians held to be sacred because of their belief that
it was associated with the momentous sacrifice of
Abraham (‘alahi al-Salām).
Our analysis is that this act of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa
sallam) was supposed to facilitate their assessment and
acceptance of his claim to be the Prophet about whom both
Moses and Jesus (‘alaihim al-Salām) had spoken. But Allah Most
High knows best!

52
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

It is also interesting to note that Europe as well, developed

mysterious obsessive bonds with Jerusalem and the Holy Land
and that those mysterious bonds are now taking mankind to a
disaster that will end all disasters. Those mysterious bonds
caused a European Pope (all Popes are mysteriously European)
to launch European crusades or Holy Wars to wrest control
over Jerusalem from Muslims.
Secondly, he fasted with the Jews on the days when they
fasted and in accordance with the Law of Fasting in the Torah.
Thus, as stated earlier, the fast commenced after the night
prayer and did not end until the next night. And during the
time of fasting, food, drink and sexual relations were
prohibited.
The Jewish law can still be located today in the Torah
where, in respect of The Day of Atonement (YoumKippur), it
states as follows:
“It shall be as Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you
shall practice self-denial (i.e., fasting); on the ninth day
of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you
shall observe this your Sabbath.”
Leviticus (23:26-32)

The decision by the Prophet to fast with the Jews served to

reinforce the previous decision (to pray in the direction of
Jerusalem) in impressing upon the Jews in Madinah (and
Christians in Palestine, Syria, South Arabia, and Abyssinia) that
he worshiped the same God that they worshiped and that he

53
FAST AND POWER 

recognized the Torah as Divine revelation.

Our assessment is that this act of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi
wa sallam) was also supposed to facilitate Jewish assessment and
acceptance of his claim to be the Prophet for whom they were,
in fact, waiting. But Allah knows best!
Fully seventeen months elapsed, after the arrival of the
Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in Madinah, before the Jewish
rejection of the Prophet and their open animosity towards him
(as well as Islam and the Muslims) became manifest. The event
which triggered their open hostility, and which exposed in
public what was concealed in their hearts for some time, was
the conversion to Islam of their learned Rabbi, Abdullah Ibn
Salaam (radiallahu ‘anhu).
Abdullah Ibn Salaam had come with his entire family to
the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and had taken the Shahadah,
thus recognizing Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) as the
awaited Messenger of Allah whom the Jews were expecting. In
doing so he affirmed that Allah Most High had chosen, as His
final messenger, one who was not a Jew. The implication of this
was that Allah Most High, in His final chapter of revealed
Truth, had chosen a prophet from the seed of Ishmael rather
than Isaac. With the acceptance of the Prophethood of
Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) by their own learned Rabbi,
the moment of bitter truth had arrived for the Jewish people.
In the act of accepting Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alahi wa sallam) as a
true Prophet like onto Moses and Abraham (‘alaihim al-Salam),
their Rabbi, Abdullah bin Salām, implicitly admitted that the

54
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

Torah contained lies. (See our book entitled: ‘The Religion of

Abraham and the State of Israel – A View from the Qur’ān’.)
It was indeed a bitter Truth, and it confirmed Allah’s stern
warning when He established His Covenant with Abraham
(‘alaihi al-Salām). They were warned that if they engaged in
wicked conduct they would lose their covenanted status and as
a consequence Prophets would no longer emerge from their
seed. Here is what the Qur’ān has to say about that event in
which Allah Most High established His Covenant with Abraham
(‘alaihi al-Salām) making him the Imām or leader of mankind:

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‫ « ¬ ﱶ‬ª © ¨ § ¦¥ ¤ £ ¢¡
“I will make thee an Imām (leader) to mankind”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:124).

When Allah Most High spoke these words to Abraham

(‘alaihi al-Salām) he responded by asking whether Imāms/Prophets
would also arise from his seed:
“and also (Imams) from among my offspring!”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:124).

Allah Most High responded by implicitly confirming that

Prophets would emerge from Abraham’s seed, but He went on
to warn that His Covenant would exclude those whose conduct
was wicked:

55
FAST AND POWER 

“My Covenant will not include the wicked (from your

offspring).”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah 2:124)

By the time of the birth of Nabi Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi

wa sallam) the majority of the Jewish people had committed
numerous acts of wickedness, and Allah Most High recounted
in the Qur’ān some of those acts of wickedness:

ÌËÊ ÉÈÇÆÅÄ ÃÂÁ ‫ﱷ‬

CBA ÔÓÒ ÑÐÏÎÍ
P O NM L K J I H G F E D
[ZYXW VUT SRQ
g fedcba`_^] \
v u t s r q po n m l k j i h
ji h g f e d c b a ` _ ~ } | { z y x w
yx w v u t s r q p o n m l k
¥ ¤£¢¡~}|{ z
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¾ ½ ¼ »º ¹ ¸ ¶ µ ´ ³ ²

56
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

‫ﱶ‬Á À ¿
“…We commanded them: Transgress not in the matter
of the Sabbath,” and we took from them a solemn
covenant. (They have incurred divine displeasure) in
that they broke their Covenant; in that they rejected the
signs of Allah; that they slew the Messengers (of Allah) in
defiance of right; that they said: “Our hearts are enfolded
in covers (which preserve Allah’s Words – We need no
more); nay, Allah has set a seal on their hearts because of
their blasphemy, and little is it they believe; that they
rejected faith; that they uttered against Mary a terrible
false charge; that they said (in boast) “We killed the
Messiah Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah …
Because of the wickedness of the Jews We have made
unlawful for them (many) good things which previously
had been lawful for them. (We have done this also)
because they obstructed (and led astray) so many from
the Path of Allah. And (because) they took usury (Ribā)
although they were prohibited from doing so; and
because they cheated people of their wealth…”
(Qur’ān, al-Nisa 4:154-161)

It was because of that wickedness which had defiled the

descendants of Isaac (‘alaihi al-Salām) that Allah Most High had to
turn to the descendants of Ishmael (‘alaihi al-Salām) for the last
Prophet. Abdullah Ibn Salām (radiallahu ‘anhu) was able to swallow
pride and embrace the Divine verdict against the Jews when he

57
FAST AND POWER 

recognized Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) as the Prophet of

Allah. The Qur’ān affirms that the Jews, also, were all able to
recognize that which their Rabbi affirmed:

J I HG F E D C B A ‫ﱷ‬
‫ﱶ‬PONMLK
“The people of the Book know this (that Muhammad is
the Messenger of Allah) as they know their own sons”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:146)

What they could not swallow was the fact that he was not
a Jew but an Arab. Had he been a Jew they would have accepted
him. Although this, also, was not certain, since both John and
Jesus were Israelites, and they were both rejected.
When Abdullah Ibn Salām (radiallalhu ‘anhu) took the
Shahadah and recognized Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) as
the Prophet of Allah, he asked the Prophet to conceal the
information until the Jews had been questioned concerning his
status. The Prophet acceded to his request and kept the
information secret. He then questioned the Jews concerning
Abdullah Ibn Salaam. They replied: “He is our Rabbi, the most
learned and respected of us all.” Then Abdullah came before
them and announced that he had recognized Muhammad
(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), the Arab, as the Prophet of Allah. The
Jews responded by cursing their Rabbi and insulting him. They
poured out all their pent up and concealed hatred for the
Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). They resorted to such tactics of

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 LINK WITH JUDAISM

deception against the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) to which

even pagan Makkah had never resorted. They sent some of
their Rabbis to feign conversion to Islam so that they could
penetrate the ranks of the Muslims and plant from within their
ranks the seeds of doubt and suspicion concerning the Prophet
(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). They also sent a young Jew to recite the
events of the Day of Bu’ath when the Aws defeated the Khazraj.
The youth performed so well that he succeeded in arousing the
old tribal passions and very soon the two tribes were facing
each other ready for armed conflict.
It was the timely intervention of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi
wa sallam) which averted what would have been a great tragedy.
Allah responded to Jewish acts of wickedness, including the
targeting of Muslim solidarity described above, with
revelations which condemned them in very harsh language.
We quote the Qur’ān at length so that readers may study these
verses and so clearly recognize the great divine anger against
the Jews:

L K J I H G F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
UTS RQ PONM
` _ ^ ]\ [ Z Y X WV
mlkjihgfe dcba
x w vu t s r qp o n

59
FAST AND POWER 

dcba`_~}|{z y
on m l k j i h g f e
{zy xwvutsrqp
¥¤£¢¡ ~}|
®¬«ª© ¨§¦
¸ ¶ µ´ ³ ² ± ° ¯
À ¿¾ ½ ¼ » º ¹
CBA ÈÇ ÆÅÄÃÂÁ
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WVUTS RQPON
a ` _ ^ ] \ [ Z YX
n m l k j i h g fe d c b
z y x w v u ts r q p o
e dcba`_~} |{
onml kjihgf

60
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

wvut srqp
£ ¢ ¡ ~ } | { z y x
¯ ®¬ « ª © ¨ § ¦ ¥ ¤
‫ﱶ‬³ ² ± °
And whenever there came unto them a [new] revelation
from Allah, confirming the truth already in their
possession – and [bear in mind that] afore-time they
used to pray for victory over those who were bent on
denying the truth: whenever there came unto them
something which they recognized [as the truth], they
would deny it. And Allah’s rejection is the due of all who
deny the truth. Vile is that [false pride] for which they
have sold their own selves by denying the truth of what
Allah has bestowed from on high, out of envy that Allah
should bestow aught of His favour upon whomsoever He
wills of His servants: and thus have they earned the
burden of Allah’s condemnation, over and over. And for
those who deny the truth there is shameful suffering in
store. For when they are told, “Believe in what Allah has
bestowed from on high,” they reply, “We believe [only] in
what has been bestowed on us” – and they deny the truth
of everything else, although it be a truth confirming the
one already in their possession. Say “Why, then, did you
slay Allah’s prophets afore-time, if you were [truly]
believers?” And indeed, there came unto you Moses with

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FAST AND POWER 

all evidence of the truth – and thereupon in his absence,

you took to worshipping the (golden] calf, and acted
wickedly. And, lo, We accepted your solemn pledge,
raising Mount Sinai high above you, [saying,] “Hold fast
with [all your] strength unto what We have vouchsafed
you, and hearken unto it!” [But] they say, “We have
heard, but we disobey” – for their hearts are filled to
overflowing with love of the [golden] calf because of their
refusal to acknowledge the truth. Say: “Vile is what this
[false] belief of yours enjoins upon you – if indeed you
are believers!” Say: “If an afterlife with Allah is to be for
you alone, to the exclusion of all other people, then. you
should long for death – if what you say is true!” But
never will they long for it, because [they are aware] of
what their hands have sent ahead in this world: and
Allah has full knowledge of evildoers. And thou wilt most
certainly find that they cling to life more eagerly than
any other people, even more than those who are bent on
ascribing divinity to other beings beside Allah: every one
of them would love to live a thousand years, although the
grant of long life could not save him from suffering [in
the hereafter]: for Allah sees all that they do. Say [O
Prophet]: “Whosoever is an enemy of Gabriel” – who
verily, by Allah’s leave, has brought down upon thy heart
this [divine writ] which confirms the truth of whatever
there still remains [of earlier revelations], and is a
guidance and a glad tiding for the believers: “whosover is
an enemy of Allah and His angels and His message-

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 LINK WITH JUDAISM

bearers, including Gabriel and Michael, [should know

that,] verily, Allah is the enemy of all who deny the
truth.” For, clear messages indeed have We bestowed
upon thee from on high; and none denies their truth save
the iniquitous. Is it not so that every time they made a
promise [unto Allah], some of them cast it aside? Nay,
indeed: most of them do not believe.
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:89-100)

Allah Most High also warned the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa

sallam) and the Muslims concerning the Jews:

µ´³²±°¯ ®¬«ª‫ﱷ‬
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ÓÒ Ñ ÐÏ Î Í Ì Ë Ê ÉÈ Ç
‫ﱶ‬Û Ú Ù Ø × Ö Õ Ô
“Hence, judge between the followers of earlier revelation
in accordance with what Allah has bestowed from on
high, and do not follow their errant views; and beware of
them, lest they tempt thee away from aught that Allah
has bestowed from on high upon thee. And if they turn
away [from His commandments], then know that it is
but Allah’s will [thus] to afflict them for some of their
sins: for, behold, a great many people are iniquitous
indeed”.

63
FAST AND POWER 

Do they, perchance, desire [to be ruled by] the law of

pagan ignorance? But for people who have inner
certainty, who could be a better law-giver than Allah?
(Qur’ān, al-Māida,5:49-50)

It was shortly after this, in the month of Shabān in the

year 2 A.H., after the Muslims had prayed in the direction of
Jerusalem for seventeen months, that Allah Most High sent
down the revelation ordering the Muslims to pray in the
direction of the Ka’aba in Makkah. Allah ta’ālah explained the
purpose of the change in Qiblah, that the whole question of the
orientation in prayer was intended by Him to sift the true
believers from the apostates and those engaged in deceptive
conduct:

ba`_ ^]\[Z‫ﱷ‬
o n m l k j i h g fe d c
| { z y x w vu t s r q p
j i h g f ed c b a ` _~ }
‫ﱶ‬k
“And thus have We willed you to be a community of the
middle way, so that [with your lives] you might bear
witness to the truth before all mankind, and that the
Apostle might bear witness to it before you. And it is only
to the end that We might make a clear distinction

64
 LINK WITH JUDAISM

between those who follow the Apostle and those who

turn about on their heels that We have appointed [for
this community] the direction of prayer which thou [O
Prophet] hast formerly observed: for this was indeed a
hard test for all but those whom Allah has guided aright.
But Allah will surely not lose sight of your faith – for,
behold, Allah is most compassionate towards man, a
dispenser of grace.
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:143)

And it was in that same month of Shabān (just one month

before Ramadān) that Allah Most High also revealed the verses
which promulgated the compulsory fast of Ramadān for the
Muslims.
Henceforth whenever a Muslim turned in prayer towards
Makkah instead of Jerusalem, and fasted from dawn to sunset
during the month-long fast of Ramadān rather than from
sunset to sunset as prescribed in the Torah, his direction of
prayer and his new fast symbolised his separation as a Muslim
from the community of Jews with which Muslims had
previously combined in a single Ummah.
The institution of Naskh (i.e., divine abrogation and
cancellation of revelation and its replacement with that which
is better or similar) was used to create a new religious
community with a separate identity from the communities of
Jews and Christians. Hence every Ramadān should witness a
renewal of Muslim resolve to recover and preserve their own

65
FAST AND POWER 

Muslim identity separate and different from Jews and

Christians and from the rest of mankind. Modern western
civilization has done everything it could possibly do to try to
destroy that separate Muslim identity. The western weapon
used in that attack is the secular model of society. Nothing has
been more frustrating for Singapore, for example, than its
failure to create a new Singaporean identity for Singapore’s
Muslim community that would eclipse and super-cede their
unique Muslim identity. The glorious fast of Ramadān has
played, and continues to play. a crucial role in ensuring that
failure.


66
 Link with Sex and Chastity

I n their month-long retreat during the fast of Ramadān

Muslims are specifically permitted, as we noted earlier, to
engage in sexual relations with their wives during the night
which follows the day of fasting. This union of husband and
wife during the nights of Ramadān injects a spiritual content
into sexual relations and then elevates that spiritualized sex to
a status worthy of participation in a spiritual retreat. What
Islam achieves here is nothing less than revolutionary, for the
satisfaction of the sexual needs of man have almost universally
been held to be incompatible with his highest spiritual
strivings. The religious mind through the ages has maintained
an aloofness from sex-life which it has either held in contempt
or reluctantly tolerated. Islam makes a break with the
immediate past and works for the integration of man’s sex life
into the period of his most intense and sustained spiritual
mobilization. In doing so it spiritualized the sex bond and
established a philosophy of sex which is the sine qua non for the
emancipation of woman in this modern age.
So long as sex is considered to be incompatible with man’s
FAST AND POWER 

spiritual strivings, woman’s status in society will always be

problematic. Such a philosophy of sex, which excludes sexual
life from the world of the sacred, and which recognizes no
reality for woman beyond her material reality, eventually
causes man to approach woman for the satisfaction of lust and
base carnal passion. When so ever this occurs the mind creates
an image of woman as a toy, a plaything, and an object to be
used and abused; and herein lies the explanation for the
continued exploitation of woman in the modern world. The
feminist movement in the Western world seems to have
completely overlooked this aspect of the problem.
As soon as sex is spiritualized, as it is in the fast of
Ramadān, man approaches woman with light rather than lust.
And in the flame of spiritual illumination sex attains a status
which is truly sacred, a gift from Allah Most High through
which a man and woman attain peace, tranquillity, intense
pleasure and contentment and most important of all, a union
and unity which facilitates the approach to The One. It is in
this context that we can properly examine the statement of the
Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam):
“Three (things) have been made dear to me (by Allah) in
this world of yours – women, and fragrance (of
perfume); and prayer has been the cooling of my eyes.”
(Ahmad and al-Nasa’i)

Shaikh Muhiyuddin Ibn ‘Arabi, in his famous work Fusūs

Al-Hikam, comments on this saying of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi

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 LINK WITH SEX AND CHASTITY

wa sallam) in some detail:

“Then Allah drew forth from him (namely man) a being

in his (i.e., man’s) own image, called woman, and
because she appears in his own image, man feels a deep
longing for her, as something yearns for itsel … Thus
women were made beloved to him”.4
Ibn ‘Arabi also directs our attention to woman as medium
in which, and through which, man can contemplate Allah Most
High:
“When a man loves a woman, he seeks union with her,
that is to say the most complete union possible in love.
And there is in the elemental sphere no greater union
than that between the sexes. It is precisely because such
desire pervades all his parts that man is commanded to
perform the major ablution (i.e., to take a bath after
sexual intercourse). Thus the purification is total, just as
his annihilation in her was total at the moment of
consummation. Allah is jealous of His servant that he
should find pleasure in any but Him, so He Purifies him
by the ablution, so that he might once again behold Him
in the one in whom he was annihilated, since it is none
other than He whom he sees in her.”5
Indeed woman is the most perfect such medium, according
to Ibn ‘Arabi:
“Contemplation of the Reality without formal support is
not possible, since Allah in His Essence, is far beyond all

69
FAST AND POWER 

need of the Cosmos. Since, therefore, some form of

support is necessary, the best and most perfect kind is the
contemplation of Allah (Most High) in women.”6
It is important that we should note that the Prophet
(sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “Three things have been made dear to
me…” He did not say: “Three things did I love.” The implication
is that it was the Divine will which ordained that women be
loved more than all else in the world. The reason, as Ibn Arabi
explains, is that of all the Ayāt or signs of Allah Most High
which exist in the world, woman is the closest Ayah of Allah to
man. She is the closest “window” to heaven! Hence man should
approach woman with the respect which is due to the sacred.
And, through woman, he should seek to approach his Lord.
This is not to say that the celibate is incapable of spiritual
progress. It is rather a view to the effect that in negating sex in
order to pursue spiritual growth, man is, in fact, disregarding
an in-built mechanism in his own nature which so balances the
physical and the spiritual as to allow the one to contribute to
the growth of the other.
Finally we may note that the spiritualization of sex, which
is initiated in fasting, makes a significant impact on sexual
morality since it establishes the firmest possible foundations
for chastity. It is in the context of the permission to approach
wives during the nights of Ramadān that the Qur’ān finds it
appropriate to observe that:

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 LINK WITH SEX AND CHASTITY

K J I HG F E D C B A‫ﱷ‬
U T S R Q P ON M L
` _ ^ ] \ [ ZY X W V
l k j i h g f e d c ba
y x w v ut s r q p on m
f e d c ba ` _ ~ } | { z
‫ﱶ‬ji hg
“They (your wives) are apparel for you, and so are you
for them.”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:187)

Thus when a husband goes to a woman other than his wife

or wives for his sexual satisfaction, he deprives his wife of her
clothing and thus subjects her to a certain kind of nakedness
with all its attendant vulnerability and embarrassment.
Chastity is an imperative for stable and happy family life. And
this is the foundation of the stable family unit without which
an enduring civilization cannot be established.


71
 Link with Charity

I n much the same way that the Qur’anic stamp of approval

for sexual relations during the nights which follow the days
of fasting leads to the spiritualization of sex and chastity, so
too, does the Qur’anic exemptions from the compulsory fast
for those who are ill or on a journey, permitting them to make
up for the missed days after Ramadān, lead to a certain
religious pragmatism, realism, and moderation. When religion
ceases to be realistic and practical it soon loses its appeal to the
masses. It is precisely for this reason that the Qur’ān
comments, in the context of the exemptions:

onmlkji h‫ﱷ‬
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 LINK WITH CHARITY

“Allah intends ease for you: He does not want to subject

you to difficulty.”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah 2:185)

Those, on the other hand, who are permanently incapable

of fasting either because of the nature of their illness or
because of the disabilities of old age, are permitted to feed the
poor in lieu of fasting. And this reference to charity brings us to
the social dimension of fasting. Ramadān is the month when
Allah Most High is most charitable to His creatures. Thus the
Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is reported to have said:
“‘Arfaja said: We were with ‘Utbah ibn Farqad while he
was discussing Ramadān. A companion of the Prophet
entered upon the scene. When ‘Utbah saw him, he
became shy and stopped talking. The man [the
companion] spoke about Ramadān, saying “I heard the
Messenger of Allah say during Ramadān: “The gates of
Hell are closed, the gates of Paradise are opened, and the
devils are in chains. An angel calls out : ‘O you who
intend to do good deeds, have glad tidings. O you who
intend to do evil, refrain, until Ramadān is completed.”
(Ahmad and Nasa’i)

Indeed during Ramadān:

“…some are freed from the Hell by Allah Most High, and
that happens every night.”
(Tirmidhi)

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FAST AND POWER 

This generosity and charity from above also found

expression in the life of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) who,
according to Ibn Abbas (radiallahu ‘anhu),
“When the month of Ramadān began, set every prisoner
free and gave to every beggar.”
As a consequence, spending freely of one’s substance in
charity is an integral part of the institution of fasting in Islam.
It is significant that the compulsory fast of Ramadān was not
promulgated by the Qur’ān until the Muslims had migrated
from Makkah and had settled themselves as an organized
community in Madinah. This was so precisely because fasting
in Islam is not a strictly private affair but has a social function
to perform in alleviating the condition of the poor, the
destitute, the under-privileged, and the weak in the society. So
integral is this care for the poor and needy to the religious way
of life that the Qur’ān considers its neglect to be a repudiation
of religion:

] \ [ Z Y X W V‫ﱷ‬
gf edcba`_^
rqpon mlkjih
‫ﱶ‬uts
“Have you observed the one who repudiates religion?
Such is the (man) who repulses the orphan (with
harshness) and encourages not the feeding of the

74
 LINK WITH CHARITY

indigent. So woe to the worshipers who are neglectful of

their prayers. Those who want (but) to be seen (of men)
but refuse (even) small kindnesses.”
(Qur’ān, al-Ma’ūn 107:1-7)

It should be clear that the institution of fasting in Islam

makes a vitally important contribution to Islam’s championing
of that noble cause. Indeed what Islam accomplishes in the
institution of fasting is nothing less that the spiritualization of
charity, for this is the implication of the linking of charity with
fasting.
The momentum generated in the month of Ramadān in
respect of the spiritualization of charity, is enhanced at no less
a place than the House of Allah itself (the Kaaba in Makkah),
when during Hajj and Umrah, the pilgrim who is forced by
illness to shave his hair before the completion of the rites, is
required to compensate for this either by fasting or by feeding
the poor (Qur’ān, al-Baqarah 2:196). Thus even in the House of
Allah Himself, fasting and charity have the same status.
In a contemporary world in which European ‘aid’ as a form
of imperialism and a weapon of enslavement is so common,
Islam’s spiritualization of charity is sorely needed. (See John
Perkins book: ‘Confessions of an Economic Hitman’.)


75
 Link with Human Rights,
Freedom and Dignity

T he Qur’ān states that the Divine compensation which is

exacted for accidental homicide by a Muslim of a Muslim
includes freeing of a believing slave or, for those who find this
beyond their means, fasting for two months.

L K J IH G F E D C B A ‫ﱷ‬
VU T S R Q P O N M
b a ` _ ^ ] \ [ Z Y XW
l k j i h g f e dc
v u t sr q p o n m
` _ ~ }| { z y x w
‫ ﱶ‬ba
“And it is not conceivable that a believer should slay
another believer, unless it be by mistake. And upon him
 LINK WITH HUMAN RIGHTS, FREEDOM AND DIGNITY

who has slain a believer by mistake there is the duty of

freeing a believing soul from bondage and paying an
indemnity to the victim’s relations, unless they forgo it by
way of charity. Now if the slain, while himself a believer,
belonged to a people who are at war with you, [the
penance shall be confined to] the freeing of a believing
soul from bondage; whereas, if he belonged to a people to
whom you are bound by a covenant, [it shall consist of]
an indemnity to be paid to his relations in addition to
the freeing of a believing soul from bondage. And he who
does not have the wherewithal shall fast [instead] for two
consecutive months. (This is) the atonement ordained by
Allah: and Allah is indeed all-Knowing, Wise.”
(Qur’ān, al-Nisā’, 4:92)

Hence the freeing of slaves is invested with a special

degree of spirituality in Islam since it is equivalent in status to
prolonged fasting. This is an achievement of great significance
indeed for it permits the process of the dismantling of the
institution of slavery to proceed in a manner which ensures
the full rehabilitation of the freed slaves.
The negative after-effects of slavery and, in particular, the
damage to the human personality, are still very visible in the
western hemisphere more than a century after the abolition of
slavery in Western civilization. The descendants of freed slaves
in the United States of America are yet to be successfully
integrated into the American society. The explanation of this
pathetic situation lies in the fact that slavery was abolished in

77
FAST AND POWER 

response to basically economic compulsions with no effort

whatsoever to restore the slave’s humanity, human rights and
human dignity. Western critics of Islam would hasten to scurry
around searching for whatever can be used to conceal or
distort the noble words of Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alahi wa
sallam) when he ordered:

“Give your slave to eat from what you eat, and give him
clothes to wear which you wear.”
(Bukhari)

Humanitarianism appears to have played a minor role in

the whole affair. No evidence exists of any significant spiritual
motivation in the dismantling of the institution of slavery in
western civilization. (See the excellent work of Dr. Eric
Williams, entitled Capitalism and Slavery.)
We wish to suggest that this is the basic reason why
western civilization has been able to live with, or at least to
tolerate Western-imposed apartheid on the soil of the very
continent from which the West enriched itself by enslaving a
free people. In other words, apartheid is a manifestation of the
spiritual bankruptcy of secular western civilization.
In India, on the other hand, the caste system imposes a
very real form of slavery on millions of people in that hapless
country. It is of crucial importance to note that there is a form
of colour discrimination which is involved in the caste system.
The fair-skinned Aryan is never at the bottom of the social
order. That is reserved for the dark-skinned indigenous

78
 LINK WITH HUMAN RIGHTS, FREEDOM AND DIGNITY

Indians. Although the caste system has been denounced by

many great Hindu spiritual and religious leaders and Hindu
reform movements, as well as being made illegal by the Indian
constitution, it continues to survive and to impose terrible
sufferings on low caste and casteless Hindus to this day. In
Christianity as in Hinduism, there appears to be no basic
linkage between fasting on the one hand, and the recognition
of human freedom and dignity on the other. And it is the
consequent inability to mobilize the spiritual consciousness
and bring it to bear on such social problems as caste in India,
apartheid in South Africa, and the integration of the
descendants of freed slaves into American society which
explains the continued existence of these manifestations of
social cancer.
Islam’s basic achievement really lies in the functional
linkage it has established between fasting, on the one hand,
and charity, chastity and recognition of human freedom and
dignity, on the other. The one envelops the others in a spiritual
embrace of profound practical consequences.
When Muslims were ruled by those who lived lives faithful
to Islam, one could not distinguish in Muslim society between
the ex-slave and those who had never been enslaved. Freed
slaves were integrated into Muslim society to such an extent
that an ex-slave sometimes rose to become ruler of the
Muslims.
It is only in this evil age of the ascendancy of a Zionist
Judeo-Christian alliance which has taken control of the world

79
FAST AND POWER 

through modern western civilisation, that Muslims are

subjected to rulers who rule over them on behalf of their
enemies. As a consequence Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia
can boast of their high standard of living that rests on the
foundations of slave wages. Indonesian maids who are paid the
wages of a slave, and Bangladeshi, Filipino, Indonesian and
Pakistani labourers who also work for slave wages, now blot
the fair face of Islam.


80
 Between the Two Nights

T he Mi’raj or ascension of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)

to the special Divine presence has historically been
recognized to have taken place on Rajab 27. This date appears
to be linked in the Islamic calendar to Ramadān 27, the likely
day of the “night of power,” or the Lailatul Qadr. It seem that this
period of two months is a special season in which the collective
spirituality is progressively enhanced until finally the
individual effort of even the average worshiper elevates him to
eligibility for some form of religious experience. This, in turn,
launches him on a path of spiritual growth.
The progressive enhancement begins on Rajab 27, when
the worshiper refreshes his memory about the Prophet’s Mi’rāj
and reminds himself that the five daily prayers (Salāt) which
were brought down from above in the Mi’rāj, is the vehicle for
his personal Mi’rāj. He thus pays serious attention to improving
the quality of his Salāt. This involves, most of all, developing a
devout frame of mind.
In the month of Shabān he follows the example of the
Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and fasts time and again to build
FAST AND POWER 

the momentum with which to prepare the body and the mind
for the rigors of the fast of Ramadān. Thus the preliminary fast
of Shabān is added to (Salāt) and worship moves into a higher
gear. On Ramadān 1, not only does the compulsory fast for all
adult Muslims begin but, also, there is Qiyām al-Lail or the
prayers of the night-vigil, when long passages of the Qur’ān are
recited. Fasting, the night time prayer vigil and the recitation
of the Qur’ān have a dramatic impact in effecting a substantial
qualitative improvement of worship.
When, on Ramadān 21, the withdrawal from worldly affairs
and seclusion in the Masjid (I’tikāf) for ten days commences, the
worshipers reach a pitch or intensity of worship which makes
this period most spiritually conducive for religious experience.
As he withdraws from the Dunya the veils begin to fall from off
his eyes and heart and as a consequence he now perceives the
reality of things and of the world.
Finally comes Ramadān 27, the night of power (Lailatul Qadr)
when Allah Most High sends down the angels and Gabriel for
every errand:

‫ [ \ ] ﱶ‬Z Y X W V U T‫ﱷ‬
“…In hosts descend in it the angels, bearing divine
inspiration by their Sustainer’s leave; from all [evil] that
may happen…;”
(Qur’ān, al-Qadr, 97:4)

i.e., to bestow, perhaps, the supreme gift of Mi’rāj (i.e. a direct

82
 BETWEEN THE TWO NIGHTS

visionary experience of the unseen worlds) to all those who

have deserved it or who have earned it.
When the Qur’ān asserts that the night of power is superior
to a thousand months:

‫ ﱶ‬S R Q P O N M‫ﱷ‬
“The Night of Destiny is better than a thousand
months.”
(Qur’ān, al-Qadr, 97:3)

the implication is, perhaps, that the direct visionary

experience of the unseen worlds which can best be
experienced on that night is better than an entire life-span (a
thousand months standing for an average life-span) lived
without it.
There are profound psychological and sociological lessons
to be learnt from Islam’s fast of Ramadān. The enhanced
collective spirituality of Ramadān, for example, literally reaches
down to embrace even the weakest of the believers and to
assist and strengthen their resolve to observe the fast.
Secondly, with the institution of the fast of Ramadān and
its attendant charity, prayers, and the recitation of the Qur’ān,
Islam takes the believer to the third stage of the process of
religious development, the stage of total conformity and
harmony with the externally imposed sacred law.
In the first stage, we should recall, the individual was

83
FAST AND POWER 

invited to enter into Islam and to submit publicly to the Truth.

In the second stage, on the other hand, the process witnessed
the internalization of the externally proclaimed belief. This
was the stage of faith or Imān. With the achievement of stage
three or al-Ihsān, and with the possible vision of the unseen
worlds, the believer now acquires the capacity to see with the
internal eye what previously could not be seen. Thus it is that
the Fast of Ramadān delivers the capacity for internal intuitive
spiritual insight with which to penetrate the reality of things
and not to be deceived by appearance. Such a capacity
constitutes a vital dimension of power.


84
 Fasting and the Physical Body

W e eat and drink for energy, which we then burn up when

working or playing. When we generate greater amounts
of energy than we actually use we then end up with excess
energy and this is stored in the body as fat. There are two ways
through which we can get rid of fat, and that is either by
rigorous exercise which burn up a lot of energy rapidly, or by
fasting. When we fast we still need energy to meet our daily
requirements. When the source of energy through food and
drink is limited the body uses its stored energy. In this way we
get rid of excess fat.
By reducing or eliminating excess body fat every year
during the fast of Ramadān fasting makes an important
contribution to physical health. It should be obvious, however,
that this elimination of excess fat will not be achieved if one
fasts for the whole day and then, at the time of breaking the
fast, eats three times as much food as one would normally eat.
In fact this overeating after a long day of fasting can have a
distinctly negative impact on health.
The human body, like a motor car, needs to be serviced at
FAST AND POWER 

regular intervals. By changing spark plugs, points, condenser,

oil, oil filter, etc. and then “tuning” the engine, the car works
better and more efficiently. There is, in addition, an increase in
the life of the car. Similarly, the human body needs to be
serviced and Islam achieves the servicing of the body during
the fast of Ramadān. While fasting, a number of bodily organs
(particularly the digestive organs) are rested and thus serviced.
This servicing restores human health and increases man’s
longevity.
Physical strength cannot be sustained without good
health, and fasting is essential for the maintenance and the
preservation of good health. Indeed fasting helps in the cure of
many illnesses! The question is: Does Islam establish a link
between physical strength and power? And the answer is: Yes,
it does! When the Israelites questioned the Divine choice of
Saul (or Talūt) as their king on the grounds that he was not a
man of wealth, Allah Most High responded and pointed out
that Saul was eligible for the status conferred upon him
because he possessed knowledge and (physical) strength:

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86
 FASTING AND THE PHYSICAL BODY

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“And their prophet said unto those elders: “Behold, now
Allah has raised up Saul to be your king.” They said:
“How can he have dominion over us when we have a
better claim to dominion than he, and he has not [even]
been endowed with abundant wealth?” [The prophet]
replied: “Behold, Allah has exalted him above you, and
endowed him abundantly with knowledge and bodily
perfection. And Allah bestows His dominion upon whom
He wills: for Allah is infinite, all-Knowing.”
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:247)



87
 Fasting and Creativity

I n order to realize his potential, man must achieve in his life-

pattern a balance between continuity and change. As soon as
he becomes stuck in a permanent syndrome of routine and
habits, he shuts out from his life fresh and new vistas, and that
expansion of the mind and the spirit which exists within him
as a potential realization. A temporary change from daily
routine to something different can release creative energy,
refresh the mind, and restore strength and vitality to a body
which may have become tired and stuck in a daily routine.
In the fast of Ramadān the believer experiences just such a
change. The change is effected in the realm of man’s biological
existence and interferes with the daily routine in respect of
food, drink and sex. The change is so fundamental, so
disruptive of daily routine, that the believer lives a different
life in Ramadān. This movement from routine not only
refreshes the body and restores vitality but, more importantly,
releases creative forces with the potential of penetrating
worlds that were hitherto inexperienced and unexplored by
the believer, worlds which transcend his normal experience.
 Sharing Hunger with the Destitute

A bstinence from food and drink from dawn to sunset forces

on the believer the personal experience of hunger and
thirst. In the crucible of personal experience he learns of that
suffering which the poor and destitute must bear. As a
consequence of the acquisition of that understanding of
poverty, the believer’s heart and mind is opened for the
development of greater sympathy for the poor and greater
feelings of charity, kindness, and generosity. And these surely
are virtues which lift men and societies to honour and
greatness in the march of history.

 Fasting and the Value of Food

A bstinence from food and drink form dawn to sunset and

the consequent experience of the pangs of hunger and
thirst impresses upon the consciousness of the believer the
value of food and drink. Food and drink or sustenance is not a
thing to be taken for granted, not a thing to be wasted. Rather
it is providence (Rizq) and hence sacred. The spirituality
generated during the long day of fasting invests the food and
drink with which the fast is broken with what can most
appropriately be termed sacramental value.
Respect for food and drink in turn protects one from the
abuse of food and drink – as well as over – indulgence in either
or both. That the world is in need of proper respect for food is
demonstrated year after year in some of the most affluent
countries in the world where food is destroyed in order to
prevent prices from tumbling in a market which is over-
supplied.7

 The Last Word

T he Ummah of the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is in a very

sorry state today. Despite the Divine command to build
power to the maximum extent possible the Ummah is weak and
helpless, as weak, helpless and vulnerable as it was in Makkah.
At that time the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) led the
community, with Allah’s help, to that state of power with which
they succeeded in defeating the enemy at Badr.
Today’s Ummah has a primary obligation to restore power!
There is no other subject more important to Muslims today
than the restoration of power, that power which can function as
an effective deterrent to the enemy, which can be used for
responding to aggression and for liberating the oppressed and
tyrannized, and through which the Truth can be seen more
clearly by mankind to be Truth. These are the functions of
power as established in various ayaat of the Qur’ān. If that power
is not restored then the consequence for the world of Islam
will be more Bosnias, Kashmirs, and Palestines. There will be
universal Fasād (corruption and disarray) on earth and the
misery will fall on all, not just on the guilty:
FAST AND POWER 

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By Allah’s will they routed them; and David slew
Goliath; and Allah gave him power and wisdom and
taught him whatever (else) He willed. And had not Allah
checked one set of people by means of another, the earth
would indeed be full of mischief: but Allah is full of
bounty to all the worlds.
(Qur’ān, al-Baqarah, 2:251)

The Muslims, however, will face the brunt of the suffering.

To avert that fate which is already at our doorstep, we need to
restore power.
We learn from the Seerah that the foundations of power
must first be established before we can actually take the
battlefield. This is the significance of the thirteen years in
Makkah, the Hijrah, and the first year in Madinah. The
foundations of power are freedom, knowledge, values, faith, unity and
fraternity, leadership, and discipline. A study of the main points
made in this paper reveal that the institution of the collective
fast of Ramadān makes a significant contribution towards
developing and sustaining all those foundations of power, – but

92
 THE LAST WORD

most of all internal freedom.

Our appeal to the intellectual, moral, and spiritual guides
of the contemporary Ummah is to direct urgent attention to
the following:
1. Articulate the relationship between fasting and power;
why else, indeed, did Allah Most High delay the
promulgation of the new Shari’ah regarding fasting
until just before the first Ramadān in Madinah?
2. Work for the recognition of the strategic input which
the fast of Ramadān is supposed to make in the
development of power; this input being located in the
development of values, in winning inner freedom, in
facilitating the penetration of the transcendental
foundations of knowledge, in strengthening faith, in
uniting the community, in developing a life of self-
discipline, etc.
3. Mobilize Muslims in such a way that the fast of
Ramadān may actually result in that input for power
being achieved individually and collectively which
may then find concrete expression on the battlefield of
Jihād as Islām responds to barbaric oppression in the
Holy Land in particular. Āmῑn!


93
 Notes

1
It is interesting to observe that after the opening chapter of
the Holy Qur’ān, which is itself named ‘Opening Chapter’, the
next chapter is entitled the Chapter of the ‘Cow’. While the
choice of this name is linked to the worship of the cow in
Jewish history which is found in the chapter (Qur’ān, al-Baqarah,
2:67-71), it also has great significance for Hindus who consider
the cow to be a holy animal. Now the choice of the cow, which
performs the wondrous feat of eating grass and producing
milk, as a holy animal, can be considered to have been a
preliminary step in the evolution of the religious copiousness,
leading eventually to the recognition of all animals as sacred.
Similarly the choice of the Ganges as a holy river and Bharat as
a holy land would lead eventually to the recognition of
everything in this universe as holy and sacred. And this is a
position which can only truly be sustained with the
recognition of the world as real and as Allah’s creation.
Secondly, the world and all it contains must be recognized to
be functioning as a medium which leads the developed
religious consciousness to Allah Most High. And this, of course,
 NOTES

is the position of Islam itself which embraces a spiritual

interpretation of the universe, a universe which overflows
with the ‘Signs of Allah’ (the Ayāt Allah). And the Signs of Allah
Most High lead directly to Allah Himself.
2
David is mentioned in the Bible as having fasted for seven
days (Samuel 12:16-17). Moses fasted in order to show gratitude to
Allah for the deliverance of the Israelites from Pharaoh and
also for the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:29). Jesus Christ not
only kept fasts but also commanded his followers to fast
(Mathew 6:15-17, Luke 5:33-35, Acts 13:23). May Allah’s blessings be
upon them all.
3
Muslims, indeed, are so fond of reciting the Qur’ān while
fasting that the writer was amazed when, as a young student
just arrived in Cairo, he found so many people reciting the
Qur’ān while traveling in crowded buses to work in the
mornings of Ramadān. Some, in fact, were standing in those
packed buses with one hand clasping the Qur’ān and the other
holding the rail.
4
Ibn Arabi., The Bezels of Wisdom, translated by R.W.J. Austin
(London: SPCK, 1980) p. 274
5
Ibid., p. 274
6
Ibid., p. 275
7
Even among Muslims the respect for food is now sometimes
lacking which is a thing unknown in the past in Islamic
civilization. The writer recalls with horror the spectacle of

95
FAST AND POWER 

Arab students dining in the common hall of the Karachi

University Student Hostels and, upon the completion of their
meal, wiping their hands clean with the soft flat bread which
was prepared for their meals. In addition there are restaurants
in the Muslim world which now have to put up notices
warning customers that they would be fined if they waste food.

96