The fun in Ramadan

By Wahab Abdulah

The non-Muslims could not possibly imagine the joy that Muslims feel in Ramadan. The wealthy and the poor, the environment and economy including all strata of the society are inundated in the spirit of Ramadan.

Apart from the spiritual blessings which every Muslim yearns for, the spirit of giving and care for the have-nots enliven the society and every Muslim is happy. The giver gives cheerfully while the receiver receives with joy.

Overtly or covertly, this is the rahma of Allah on us. No amount of words can describe how important Ramadan is or the blessings and the benefits we, as Muslims, take from it.

Feeling of festivity

No words can describe how good it feels to complete a day’s fast or the joy and the feeling of festivity when each day’s fasting is over with gifts exchanging hands.

We cannot pretend not to know that there are many Muslims in our environment whose fast will not end. In fact, thousands are starving merely because they have no food to either commence fasting or break their fast. We cannot pretend not to know the extent of poverty in this country.

So not only giving our time to Allah, but also giving our material goods to others is a way of celebrating Ramadan. It really costs us very little to give out of our plenty to those who have nothing. By doing so in Ramadan, we learn to thank Allah for all His blessings on us. We can go round, identify the needy and help them. We can arrange sahur and iftar for fellow Muslims through Mosques, communities and individual.

There was a time a ‘man’ was craving for food to break his fast. As the food was being presented to him – when it was time to break his fast – he heard someone saying, ‘Who will give to the rich, the reliable and the Self-Sufficient One?’ The righteous man answered, ‘His servant who is deprived of all good. He then rose up, took the plate of food and gave it to the beggar and passed his night in hunger.’ It does not matter whether you have so much or not, feeding of people in Ramadan is a huge ibadaa that attracts great reward. The Qur’an amplifies this episode by saying: “And they give (others) preference over themselves, even though they were in need of that. And whosoever is saved from his own covetousness, such are they who will be successful.” (Al-Hashr: 9)

 

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