Ramadhán
by Dr Hossam Roushdi
Royal Holloway College/Univ. of London /UK
[Arabic
Introduction]
Good days are about to befall us and Ramadan is approaching soon - a time for worship and piety. One must ponder, how quickly time has passed and memories have returned. Time passes at a tremendous pace, and is forever in motion day and night. If one looks back (whether he is 20, 30, 40, older or younger) he cannot but feel that the days and night he lived have intermingled and became a shrivelled, vague block that passed and will never return. The sense of time is strange, on the day people meet their creator, they will feel that their lives were an intermingled shrunk entity that has passed.
“He will say ‘What number of years did you stay on earth?’ They will say ‘We stayed a day or part of a day: but ask those who keep account’ he will say ’Ye stayed not but a little if ye had only known.’ ” [quote Súra and verse]
This meaning is also repeated in Surah Taha (102-104)
“the day when the trumpet will be sounded: That day we shall gather the sinful blear-eyed In whispers will they consult each other: ‘Ye tarried not longer than ten (days).’ We know but what they will say – when their leader (most eminent in conduct) will say ‘Ye tarried not longer than a day’.
In actual fact a human being lasts on Earth for a long time – a child grown up and a youth grows old – and yet whenever you look behind you always see the past as a small shrunken entity – but you need to remember that everything is on record.
“For we were inclined to put on record all that ye did”.
Time is a human being,s most precious asset. It can either be a friend or a foe; a friend if well utilized and a foe if wasted.
As Ramadan is approaching we need to reflect on three issues:
1. The relation between body and soul (The Islamic philosophy)
2. The value of Qur’án especially in Ramadan
3. How to spend time in Ramadan
Islam has clearly identified the relation between body and soul. Fasting is a process of taming human desires – the strongest of which is food and sex. Humanity can tumble if it fails to identify its stance on both these issues. There are two distinct philosophies that control human behaviour:: a materialistic philosophy and a spiritual one.
The followers of the materialistic philosophy live from day to day and they seek pleasure without control. Once a height is achieved they then seek a higher peak. Human desire can be like a rabid dog, and those people are always longing for more, The Holy Qur'án has warned them:
“Leave then to enjoy
(the good things in life) and please themselves, let (false) hope amuse them:
soon will knowledge (undeceive them).
They
spend their lives chasing their pleasure, and on the day of reckoning they will
pay dearly
“That was because Ye were inclined to rejoice on Earth in things other than the truth and that ye were inclined to be insolent”.
On the other end of the scale is the spiritual philosophy. This is based on suppressing human instincts and desires and seeking to worship of God by suppressing physical, bodily needs. The Christian Church did this in older times.
Islam on the other hand offers respect to both body and soul and allows for bodily desires but within a given framework – also within marriage. Muslims can worship God and enjoy food and clothing with modesty.
The prophet said:
“Eat, drink, be well dressed, give charity – without excess or show-off”. So Islam has created a perfect harmony between body and soul – Islam is body and soul – life for the hereafter.
The human soul carries a great deal of respect in the Islamic philosophy.
“Behold they Lord said to the angels: I am about to create man from clay. When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of my sprit fall ye down in obeisance unto him”.
The prostration was after God breathed into him his soul – before he was equipped with feelings, realisation and understanding he was just clay – hence human values is in the breath of God.
Human beings fall into two categories – one that realises the honour bestowed unto them by their creator, and respects that honour, and another that neglects ie, hence God says;
“Man! What has seduced thee from they Lord most Beneficent. Him who created and fashioned thee in due proportion and gave thee a just bias. In whatever form he wills does he put thee together”.
Human civilization has either denied the presence of God, or acknowledged his presence in ridiculous forms, such as in the Old Testament where God is portrayed eating a meal prepared by Abraham when he slaughtered a calf and invited God to eat from it?
Such naïve portrayals have led some intellectuals to atheism and the complete denial of Gods presence, and others to be misled to man-made religions. The weakness of the Muslim Ummah has led to its failure in delivering the perfect culture that acknowledges body and soul, life and the hereafter and offers a balanced approach to the human rights within the guidelines of the creator. That is the Islamic culture. The result was what God described in Surah Al-Room
“By God that is the standard religion but most among mankind understand not”.
A lot of Muslims do not realise the greatness of this book in our hands – The Holy Qur'án. God has placed the sending of the Qur’án on par with the creation of the Heavens and Earth and in Surah Tabarak 2 and Al-Ghoufran we see another analogy.
“Blessed
he in whose hands is dominion and he over all things hath power”.
“Blessed is he who sent down the criterion (Qur’án) may be an admission to all creatures on par” [check translation here]
When God swears by the vast distance and the positions of galaxies and stars to emphasis the greatness of the Qur’án – these are just some of the examples of the Ayas in the Qur’án emphasizing its greatness and values.
Ramadan is the month of the Qur’án – it is the month the Qur’án was sent down and Prophet Mohamad (P.B.H) used to double his reading and studying of the Qur’án during this month.
“Can he who was dead to whom we gave life and light whereby he can walk amongst men, be like him who is in the depth of darkness from which he can never come out?”. This light is The Holy Qur'án.
The days in Ramadan are spent fasting – taming the body, and the nights of Ramadan should be spent with the Qur’án – reading it, listening to it, understanding it and allowing it to shine its light into our souls to guide us to the straight path.
Let’s make a resolution for this Ramadan, not to waste our time and try to make maximum benefit from this holy month. Let’s try to read at least one Juz’ per night so as to read the whole Qur’án during this month.
Let’s try to study one or two Ayas per day, and start implementing what we learned to our lives, eventually we will achieve the full harmony between body and soul and achieve happiness in life and the hereafter.
“Taha. We have not sent down the Qur’án to be for thy distress” [Yusu Ali] Another interpretation implies that Qur’án is the means to attain happiness. It is the way to reach a perfect balance for body and soul, and finding contentment in life.
[closing du’ah]
Aqeemus Salaah!
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