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 (Awamir) and omission (Nawahi),
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’an:
“Whosoever purifies (the nafs) has achieved
success. And whosoever corrupts it has failed.”
(Qur’an, al-Shams, 91:9-10)
The implication of these verses of the
Qur’an 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’an.
After the migration from Makkah to
Madinah had been effected, and shortly after victory over the Quraish at Badr, Allah
Most High revealed the Surah entitled al-Anfal (the Spoils of War) in which He recalled the road which had
been travelled:
“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’an, al-Anfal, 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 Furqan, or
criterion, through which truth was distinguished from falsehood:
“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’an, al-Anfal 8:29)
He also declared:
“That it (the demonstration of power) might
serve to confirm Truth and expose falsehood, distasteful though it be to those
in guilt.”
(Qur’an, al-Anfal 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 Ramadhan, in which the battle of Badr
was fought, to reveal the verses of the Qur’an which promulgated the compulsory
fast of Ramadhan. It should be clear as daylight that the fast of Ramadhan 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 Ramadhan?
Would it not have enhanced their fortitude to resist the kuffar?
The fact that Allah Most High waited
for more than fourteen years, after the commencement of the revelation of the
Qur’an, to reveal the verses relating to the compulsory fast of Ramadhan, 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’an 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:
“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’an, al-Shams, 91:9-10)
This holds true as much for the social
order, the nation, and civilization, as for the individual.
The Qur’an 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.
To Be Continued ....
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