Fasting is a bounty, grace and gift of Allah Ta’ala to His slave. It has not been made obligatory for going
without meals. It has been enjoined upon those who have faith so that they can attain the pleasure of Allah
Ta’ala and become pious. It energizes the strength of servitude to Him. It is sustenance for the spiritual
strength to be fortified.

The essence of fasting is stated in the Holy Qur’an in the following Verse wherein Allah Ta’ala states, “O Believers! Fasting has been made obligatory upon you as was made obligatory upon those before you, so that you may become pious. [ S u r a h 2 , V e r s e 1 8 3 ] According to Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh (Radiallahu Ta’ala Anh) hunger is a cause of trouble to the body but a source of life to the heart and soul. Eating to one’s fill strengthens the stomach but hunger strengthens the inner and natural state. He who endeavours hard to strengthen the inner state is dearer and a special slave of Allah Ta’ala. He is protected against worldly worries and concerns. Hunger is the food of sincere men, religion of the disciples and the imprisonment of Shaitaan.

Rasoolullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) is reported to have said, “The stomach of a hungry person is dearer to Allah than seventy wise pious people.” Hazrat Shaikh Bishr Haafi (Radiallahu Ta’ala Anh) once said, “Hunger cleanses the heart of malice, kills desires, makes one the heir of the refinement of knowledge and reveals its mysteries.”

The essence of fasting is to weaken the forces which are Shaitaan’s means of leading us back to evil. It is therefore essential to cut down one’s intake from what one would consume on a normal night, when not fasting. No benefit is derived from the fast if one consumes as much as one would usually take during the day and night combined. There is no receptacle more odious to Allah Ta’ala than a belly stuffed full with lawful food. Of what use is the fast as a means of conquering Allah Ta’ala’s enemy and abating appetite, if at the time of Iftaar one not only makes up for all one has missed during the daytime, but also indulges in a variety of extra foods? It has become the custom these days to stock up for Ramadaan with all kinds of foods, and emphasis is placed so much on food that womenfolk spend most of their days preparing for Iftaar rather than making Ibaadat. A certain Saint of Allah Ta’ala once said that a sin is written for one whose efforts during the day are made only to prepare for breaking fast.

Eating ravenously diminishes the importance of fasting. Fasting basically aims at curbing the desire and the lower self, training them to observe temperance. This is how desire and the lower self are restrained, curbed, tamed and coached into meritorious habit of feeling content during fasting and observing temperance in food, controlling the tongue and restraining other behaviour for putting oneself into accord with Allah Ta’ala’s will.

Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh (Radiallahu Ta’ala Anh) states, “The heart of the hungry is sharper and his instinct healthier and more purified than those of others, especially one who does not drink much water and cleanses the lower self with the help of spiritual endeavour. A hungry man’s body is modest and heart humble and Allah fearing. Hunger kills the power of desiresHazrat Sufyaan Thauri (Radiallahu Ta’ala Anh) said, “The fasting person who slanders others gets his fast adulterated.” Hazrat Shaikh Abu Talib Makki (Radiallahu Ta’ala Anh) is of the opinion that Allah Ta’ala has declared the acts like listening to lies and talking evil, synonymous and tantamount to eating out of forbidden as Allah Ta’ala states in the Holy Qur’an, “They are habitual listeners of lies, great devourers of the things forbidden.” [ S u r a h 5 , V e r s e 4 2 ] 

May Allah Ta’ala grant us the Taufeeq to understand the true essence of Ramadaan and to focus our attention on Ibaadat and becoming pious rather than on food and worldly affairs, Ameen