Fasting

And this act of worship instills the care of the poor Muslims in the self, in addition to piety, so do not spend the day of your fasting thinking about your iftar [meal that breaks the fast] and the kind of food you will have in it, so when you feel hunger when you are fasting remember how many Muslims spend most the days of the year hungry, and do not be from those who ﴾And when it is said to them, “Spend from that which Allah has provided for you,” those who disbelieve say to those who believe, “Should we feed one whom, if Allah had willed, He would have fed? You are not but in clear error .”﴿^[1] And feeding some poor ones is not the only thing you are capable of doing, rather we all have to work to lift the poverty off of those Muslims, who today represent the majority of the Islamic nation, which is rich with all kinds of resources, from agricultural lands to minerals and oil . And if what was in the land of Muslims was being spent on the Muslims according to the Islamic jurisprudence, the Muslim today would be one of the richest people, but unfortunately today, the rich Islamic lands have been taken over by tyrants who do not care except for the plundering of its resources, the building of the palaces, debauchery, and the drinking of alcohol . One of those tyrants travels to one of the countries of the west and with him are seven massive airplanes, and two hundred tons of food supplies, accessories, and others such as servants and others upon whom he spends enough to feed a city from the Islamic cities in which people are starving . And one of them spends on some means of media that which is enough to feed the believing people whom he dominated by bloodshed, all this for the sake of covering his darkened face and his mouth which drips with the blood of the believers so that he can remain in domination over the Muslims, even if for one more day to plunder the money, and eat lots of food, may Allah never make his stomach satisfied . O beloved ones, in fasting there is reflection and pondering about the conditions of the Muslims . And in fasting there is jihad against the self, Satan, the desires, and the ornaments of this world . And in fasting there is love for the sake of Allah, and hate for the sake of Allah, and in the heart of a fasting one there is mercy for the believers, and sternness for the disbelievers and hypocrites, so be careful not to let your fasting

be [only] hunger and thirst . It is narrated from the Messenger of Allah pbuhap : ﴾There is so little of fasting and so much of hunger .”﴿^[2] And the Prince of Believers pbuh said, ﴾How many of those fasting do not gain anything from their fast except thirst, and how many night-worshippers do not gain anything from their night-worshipping except fatigue . The sleeping of the wise ones and their iftar is best .”﴿^[3] And it is narrated that the Messenger of Allah pbuhap said to Jabir bin Abdullah al-Ansari, ﴾O Jabir, this is the month of Ramadan, whoever fasts in its day and supplicates in its night, and spares his stomach and sexual desires, and guards his tongue, leaves his sins the way he leaves the month .” Jabir said, “What a beautiful saying it is,” so the Messenger of Allah pbuhap said, “O Jabir, and what difficult conditions they are .”﴿^[4] And perhaps the most important act of worship which is associated with the month of fasting is the reading of the Quran, so work on reflecting upon the Quran and studying the Quran, so you can live the life of the happy ones, and die the death of the martyrs . The Messenger of Allah pbuhap said, ﴾There will come a time upon the people where nothing of the Quran remains except its drawing .”﴿^[5] And how many copies are there of the Quran today, and how many are those who recite the Quran today, and praise be to Allah, but do we reflect upon the Quran? Do we hold the manners of the Quran? Do we think about its verses? Are we servants of Allah? Are we disbelievers in the tyrant as we were commanded to be in the Quran? Are we of certitude? The Almighty said, ﴾And if there was any Quran by which the mountains would be removed or the earth would be broken apart or the dead would be made to speak, [it would be this Quran], but to Allah belongs the matter entirely .﴿^[6] Subhan Allah, all this is in the Quran and we are heedless about the Quran!! We belong to Allah and unto Him we shall return . And do we think that we reflected upon the Quran whereas we panic due to the

smallest calamity that happens to us? For in the Quran there are countless lessons in patience and reliance upon Allah in Surat ash-Shuara (The Poets), ﴾61 And when the two companies saw one another, the companions of Moses said, “Indeed, we are to be overtaken!” 62 [Moses] said, “No! Indeed, with me is my Lord; He will guide me .”﴿^[7]Did we reflect upon the meaning of these verses?? The companions of Moses pbuh are confirming that they are falling in the hands of Pharaoh and his soldiers, and Moses pbuh is confirming that Allah will guide him and save him from the Pharaoh and his soldiers: ﴾with me is my Lord; He will guide me .”﴿ Did you ever use this verse as a weapon to defeat your enemy with, as Moses did pbuh ?!