In order to see the missing significance of the days of Ramadhaan, one should do his best to strive against himself, to get rid of the burdens and veils that hinder him from spending, being devoted and drawing close to Allaah The Almighty. Let us see how the Messenger of Allaah, , and his Companions hastened to these things. In fact, they were in a far higher state. Whenever they were unable to find something to spend, they would weep and their eyes would overflow with tears, as described by Allaah The Almighty in His Saying (what means): {There is not upon the weak or upon the ill or upon those who do not find anything to spend any discomfort when they are sincere to Allaah and His Messenger. There is not upon the doers of good any cause [for blame]. And Allaah is forgiving and merciful. Nor [is there blame] upon those who, when they came to you that you might give them mounts, you said, "I can find nothing for you to ride upon." They turned back while their eyes overflowed with tears out of grief that they could not find something to spend [for the cause of Allaah].}[Quran 9:91-92] It was their habit that whenever they were unable to find something to spend in the cause of Allaah The Almighty, they would weep, and their eyes would overflow with tears. They did not only weep like the weepers of today, who weep for some time after which they would cease and return to their previous state of heedlessness and indulgence in food, drink and sexual intercourse. Rather, they wept and their eyes overflowed with tears, out of grief that they could not find anything to spend in the cause of Allaah The Almighty.

On the other hand, those who have enough means to spend withhold and refrain from spending. It is as if they wait to be replaced by their Lord with others and annihilated due to their greediness, stinginess and the fact that they do not deserve to be in the party of Allaah The Almighty. They did not deserve to be among those covered up with His care, of those selected to be worthy of this nearness and these acts of obedience, of those worthy of coming out after fasting in the state of righteousness referred to by Allaah The Almighty who Says (what means): {O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous.}[Quran 2:183]

The people who have attained the nearness of Allaah The Almighty  comes out of Ramadhaan righteous, with the signs of piety, forgiveness and emancipation from Hell visible on them. They come out more devoted to Allaah The Almighty, more ascetic in this world, more upright, more loving and much closer to his Lord, more observant of His commands and prohibitions, more kind-hearted, more tearful, and more submissive outwardly and inwardly. All of this indicates that a person has been forgiven, granted mercy or emancipated from Hell. He comes in a better state in terms of love for and remembrance of Allaah The Almighty and longing to meet Him.

Other duties pertaining to the last ten days include:

1-    I‘tikaaf (staying in seclusion)

2-    Exerting greater effort and care concerning the acceptance of deeds.

With the coming of these ten days and nights, striving begins in earnest where one stands in the presence of his Lord with full devotion, showing Him what causes his Lord to be pleased with him, gives him generously, loves him, draws closer to him, delivers him from his deplorable state, guards him, defend him and provides for him.

As these days come to an end, one should strive harder and draw closer (to his Lord), wishing that his outcome would appear and brighten his face. He should hope that his outcome would be good during those days, and dread failure and rejection of his deeds as stated by the Messenger of Allaah, : "‘Disgraced be the one who witnesses Ramadhaan without being forgiven! Disgraced be the one who witnesses Ramadhaan without being forgiven! Disgraced be the one who witnesses Ramadhaan without being forgiven, then, may Allaah keep him far (from Paradise) and admit him to Hell! Say Aameen!’I then said, ‘Aameen.’" [At-Tabaraani]

Once Ramadhaan is over, what do you do? You give up standing (at night in prayer), fasting, remembrance (of Allaah The Almighty) and recitation of the Quran. This is the dark state which afflicts the believers after Ramadhaan as if they have neither stood (in prayer), nor fasted, nor drawn closer to their Lord, nor recited the Quran. This state, then, requires the believers, in these days, to strive day and night in prayer, remembrance (of Allaah The Almighty) and recitation of the Quran.

The righteous predecessors in the past did not concern themselves with how much they spent and strove, in so much as whether or not it was accepted from them. In other words they spent their time, property, effort and souls, and towards the end they waited apprehensively, not knowing whether their deeds would be accepted from them. After one spends his day in fasting and night in standing (in prayer), after he spends his property and soul, and striving harder in all acts of obedience, he then stands waiting, wondering after all of this whether, his deeds will be accepted.

The believers do so after a period of great striving rather than after their indulgence, negligence, sleep and laziness. It was their habit to hasten to good, as clarified by Allaah The Almighty. They used to hasten to Allaah The Almighty in spending their property and soul; and if they found nothing to spend for the sake of Allaah The Almighty, they would weep and their eyes would overflow with tears, out of grief over finding nothing to spend. Then, towards the end of their deeds, the first thing, as described by Allaah The Almighty, to possess their hearts, worry them, and make them sleepless, was whether or not their deeds had been accepted. In relation to this Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {And they who give what they give while their hearts are fearful because they will be returning to their Lord.}[Quran 23:60]

‘Aa’ishah  asked whether they are those who neither pray nor fast, but the Prophet  said: "No! They are those who pray, fast, give in charity, and do such-and-such (righteous) deeds, and then feel afraid that they would not be accepted from them." [At-Tirmithi and Ibn Maajah] It is the explanation of the words of Allaah The Almighty who Says (what means): {Indeed, Allaah only accepts from the righteous [who fear Him].} [Quran 5:27] Ramadhaan has been opened so that one would fear Allaah The Almighty. So, who has attained that righteousness that comes at the end of his deeds and say that his deeds have been accepted, and that he has to wait for the reward of Allaah The Almighty?

It was narrated by Al-Haafith Ibn Hajar on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar  both, that he said, "Were I to know that Allaah The Almighty accepted from me of my deeds (even as little as) an atom's weight, or (as small amount as) a Dirham in charity, nothing absent would have been dearer to me than death." [Fat-h Al-Baari] In confirmation of that, Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Indeed, Allaah only accepts from the righteous [who fear Him].} [Quran 5:27]

It may be argued that if this is the case, nothing remains for him in this world. He worked to attain the forgiveness and mercy of Allaah The Almighty and emancipation from Hell, perchance Allaah The Almighty would accept his deed, turn to him in repentance, and deliver him from the Fire: {So he who is drawn away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise has attained [his desire].} [Quran 3:185] If he has attained his desire, then, why would he like to stay in this world?

He does all of this in the world just for the sake of the moment when: {Indeed, Allaah only accepts from the righteous [who fear Him].} [Quran 5:27]

This is why they were mainly concerned with the acceptance of the deed after striving their utmost in it. This is the very state in which the believers in should be in these days: to consider what they have sent forward of deeds to be fit for the forgiveness, and whether or not these deeds would be accepted. This is confirmed by the Messenger of Allaah  in his statement: "Disappointed and lost is the one who witnesses Ramadhaan without his being forgiven." [At-Tabaraani] This is the one whose deeds were neither accepted nor were a cause of forgiveness.

During this Ramadhan do not let the sweetness of our deeds vansh into the night, leaving only emptiness. 

When one contemplates the texts on fasting, its wisdom and goals in Shariah, and looks at the reality of the Muslim communities, one realizes a wide gap between the reality and our obligations. Remember that Ramadhan is a bounty that Allah blessed His servants with, to strengthen their faith, and increase their piety (Taqwa). Allah said:

“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become pious.” (Al-Baqarah 2:183).

This article is an attempt to present the essential causes of this gap, and to some remedies. primary reason for the gap is ignorance about the goals of fasting and the wisdom behind it. Many Muslims ignore the purpose and wisdom of fasting. Fasting is done merely to conform to the social environmet without contemplation. If one is not aware of the divine wisdom of Shariah and its fruits in this world and in the hereafter, one will not apply it in the right way.

Achieving Taqwa:

Taqwa is one of the most important wisdom of fasting. Fasting brings on Taqwa as it lessens the desire of the stomach and mutes the sexual appetite. Whoever fasts frequently would overcome these two desires more easily. This deter against committing abominations and sins and assist in controlling life leading to Taqwa.

Strengthening willpower and acquiring patience:


The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam called Ramadhan the month of patience as it increases one’s will power to control his desire and the selfishness of his soul. This training allows him to be strong in following Allah’s commands. The most important being to carry the Message and propel it forward. The person trains himself to be patient in obeying Allah by stopping at the limits set by Allah both by way of action and abstention. Allah said:

“These are the limits set by Allah, so approach them not.” (Al-Baqarah 2:187)

Fasting is pure worship:


 The fact that he is abstaining from food and drink both in public and in secret shows his honest faith and strong love of Allah, and his knowledge and feeling that Allah is all-knowing of everything. For this reason Allah has made the reward for fasting greater than for any other type of worship. Allah said in the hadith Qudsi:

“Every deed of the son of Adam will be multiplied [in rewards], the good deed by ten of its like, up to seven hundreds, up to whatever Allah wills, except fasting, it is for Me and I will reward it. He abandons his desire and his food for My sake..” (Related by Muslim)

lbn al-Qayyim said: “…And people may see that a person is not eating in front of them, but the fact that he is really abandoning his food and his desire for the sake of God is a thing that nobody can find out about, and that is the essence of fasting.” (Zaad al-Ma’ad 2/29).

Relieving Muslims from life’s distractions:


 Eating, drinking, and socializing all distract a person and weaken ties with Allah. It is by the Mercy of Allah that Muslims are ordered to fast so as not to be bothered by the intrusion of these activities. Nor by the thought about them nor the anticipation for them when devoting themselves to the all types of worship Either reading the Qur’an, offering additional prayer or making I’tikaf. For this reason the Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said:

“Fasting is a shield, and a secure fortress against Hell fire” (Related by Ahmad).

Discovering Allah’s Blessings:

 A person experiences the hardship of the poor. He should then be thankful to Allah Who has blessed him with His bounty while others are deprived. This should make him more sympathetic and willing to share this bounty. The poor rediscovers that fasting helps a person be more devoted to worship. More able to concentrate and meditate. He should then be able of this devotion all year long, a blessing he should thank Allah for.

Acquiring strength and endurance:

It has been discovered that depriving the body of food for a period of timehelps its defense and endurance mechanism. This in turn this protects the body from certain diseases.

Remember that fasting is not only dependent on abstentions:


Many believe that fasting consist onlyof certain abstentions, forgetting that Allah established certain acts of worship with fasting. Among which are:

Qiyamul-layl:


The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said:

“Whoever performed the night prayer during Ramadhan out of belief and anticipating God’s rewards, will be forgiven his previous sins.” (Related by Muslim).

Performing Umrah: The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said: “An Umrah during Ramadhan is like a Hajj with me.” (Related by al-Hakim).

Offering Iftar (meal) to those who fasted.

The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said: “Whoever feeds a fasting person has the same reward as him, except that the reward of the fasting person will not be diminished.” (Related by Ahmad).

Reading and completing the Qur’an:

The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said:

“Fasting and [reading] Qur’an will intercede for the person: fasting will say: O Lord I forbade him eating and drinking so let me intercede for him, and the Qur’an will say: I deprived him from his night sleep so let me intercede for him,” he then said: “So they will intercede.” (Related by Ahmad).

The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam used to recite the whole Qur’an to Angel Jibreel each Ramadhan.

Giving in charity:


Ibn Abbas radhiallahu anhu said: “The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam was the most generous among people, and he was more generous during the month of Ramadhan.” (Related by Muslim).

I`tikaaf:

which is to confine oneself in the masjid for prayer and invocation leaving the worldly activities. Ibn Abbas radhiallahu anhu said:

“The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam used to perforrn I’tikaf during the last ten days of Ramadhan.” (Related by Muslim).

It is surprising that many people have abandoned I’tikaf though the Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam never abandoned it from the time he arrived to Madinah until he died.

Supplication:


In the verses dealing with fasting, Allah said:

“And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad) concerning Me, then answer them, I am indeed near to them. I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me.” (Al-Baqarah 2: 186).

This is an encouragement for the fasting person to increase his invocation. The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said: “Three invocations will be answered: The invocation of the fasting person, the invocation of the oppressed, and the invocation of the traveler.” (Related by Muslim).

Repentance:


Ramadhan is the time of repentance and return to Allah, for it is a time when the devils are chained, and when many people are saved from hell fire every night by the grace of Allah.

Applying oneself in all good deeds in the last ten days of Ramadhan:

Aysha radhiallabu anha said: “When the last ten days come, he sallallahu alayhe wa sallam would pray most of the night and wake his family, and apply himself, and tighten up his loincloth.”, and she also said: “The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhe wa sallam used to strive in the last days of Ramadhan more than he did during the other days.” (Related by Muslim).

Abstaining from vain talk:

Sins decrease the reward of fasting although they do not annul it. The Prophet sallallahu alayhe wa sallam said: “Fasting is not [only] abstaining from eating and drinking, but abstaining from vain and obscene talk, so if someone insulted you or wronged you say: I am fasting.” (Related by al-Hakim) and he also said: 

‘Whoever does not abandon lying, then Allah does not need him to abandon his food and drink.” (Related by al-Bukhari).