In the name of Allah, the Most-Merciful, the All-Compassionate

"May the Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon You"

Bismillah Walhamdulillah Was Salaatu Was Salaam 'ala Rasulillah

As-Salaam Alaykum Wa-Rahmatullahi Wa-Barakaatuh

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Withholding from both the Material and the Non-Material Things that Disrupt the Fast – Shaykh al-Albaani

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Shaikh al-Albaanee, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said,

“Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, says in the Noble Quraan:

‘O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may become people having Taqwaa.’ [Sooratul-Baqarah (2): 183]

So in this Aayah, as will not be hidden to all those who are present, Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, informs the Ummah of Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم) , through this Aayah, that He has made Fasting obligatory upon them just as He had made its like obligatory upon the nations before us. This is a matter that is well-known to all of the Muslims who read this Aayah, and clearly understand its meaning. But what I wish to speak about is something else, a matter which very few of the general people notice – and this is the saying of Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, at the end of this Aayah: ‘…So that you may become people having Taqwaa.’

So Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, when He commands His believing servants, or obligates them with some Legislation, (then He) usually just mentions the command, without explaining the wisdom behind it. This is because the general wisdom behind Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, placing duties upon His servants is that He should test them by it, so that it should become apparent (as to) those who will obey Him and those who will disobey Him, the Exalted and Most High.

However in this Aayah, He mentioned something that is not found frequently in the Noble Quraan, which is that He mentioned the reason for the order to Fast, by His Saying:

‘…So that you may become people having Taqwaa.’

So the wisdom behind the Believers’ fasting is not just that they should prevent themselves from enjoyable and permissible good things, even though this is an obligation upon the fasting person – but this is not the only thing that is required and intended by this Fasting. Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, concluded His command to fast by saying:‘…So that you may become people having Taqwaa.’

Meaning: that the wisdom behind the prescription of Fasting is that the Muslim should increase in obedience to Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, in the month of Fasting, and become more obedient than he was before it.

Also the Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم) clearly stated and completely clarified this point of divine wisdom, by his (صلى الله عليه و سلم) saying, as is reported in the Saheeh of al-Bukhaaree (no. 1903), that he (صلى الله عليه و سلم) said, “Whoever does not abandon falsehood in speech and action, then Allaah has no need that he should leave his food and drink.”

Meaning: that Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, did not intend and desire, by the obligation of Fasting – which is to withhold for a stated time, well known to you all – that they should only withhold from eating and drinking. Rather they should also withhold from that which Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, has forbidden with regard to sins and acts of disobedience to Him; and from that is falsehood in speech and action.

So the Messenger (صلى الله عليه و سلم) is emphasizing the Aayah:‘…So that you may become people having Taqwaa.’

i.e. that you should, as an act of worship to draw you closer to Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, in addition to withholding from food and drink, also withhold from forbidden actions such as backbiting, carrying tales to cause harm to people, false witness, lying and so on, with regard to those forbidden manners that we are all aware of.

Therefore it is obligatory that all the Muslims should be aware that actions, which disrupt the Fast, are not just the physical acts, which are generally known, which are eating, drinking and sexual intercourse. The Fast is not just that you withhold from this. Therefore some of the scholars differentiate, and divide those things which disrupt the Fast into two categories, and this is what I intend by this talk of mine at this time that is blessed, if Allaah wills.

This is especially important since those who deliver Khutbahs and admonish the people during Ramadaan, when they speak about those things which disrupt the Fast, then they only speak about the material things, those things that we have just mentioned – eating, drinking and sexual intercourse. But what they should do, as sincere advisers and people who give reminder to the Muslims in general, is to concentrate a great deal upon the second category of things which disrupt the Fast. This is because the people have become used to thinking that Fasting is just to refrain from the first category, to withhold from the material things. But there is another category of things, which disrupt the Fast, which we are able to call the non-material things that disrupt the Fast. So you have just heard his (صلى الله عليه و سلم) saying, “Whoever does not abandon falsehood in speech and action, then Allaah has no need that he should leave his food and drink.”

Therefore every fasting person should examine himself and see: is he just withholding from the material things, or is he also withholding from those non-material things? Meaning: has he made his manners and behavior good when the blessed month of Ramadaan comes? If that is the case, then he has fulfilled the Saying of Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, at the end of the Aayah: ‘…So that you may become people having Taqwaa.’

But as for the one who restricts himself in his fasting to just withholding from food and drink, but who continues and persists upon the evil manners which he was upon previously, before Ramadaan, then this is not the Fasting that is desired and required from the wisdom behind the legislation of this noble month, which our Lord, the Mighty and Majestic indicates in His Saying:‘…So that you may become people having Taqwaa.’

So therefore we advise and remind our brother Muslims that they should remember this other category of things, those that are non-material, which disrupt the Fast, and it is something which the admonishers and those who seek to direct the people to the correct way rarely speak about, not to mention the general people, who are not aware of this category of things which disrupt the fast, i.e., the non-material things.

This is what I wanted to remind our brothers who are present in this fine gathering about, if Allaah wills, so that it may be a cause for their increasing in acts of worship, seeking to draw closer to Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, in this blessed month, the month of Fasting, which is such that we hope that Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, will guide and grant us all the success of fulfilling the due right of this blessed month, which is that we withhold from both the material and the non-material things that disrupt the Fast.

The above is posted from : (Beautiful Talk) Sunnahs Neglected in Ramadaan– Imaam Muhammad Naasir-ud-Deen Al-Albaanee rahimahullaah , Translated by Dawud Burbank rahimahullaah, Transcription Courtesy: ittibaa.com

Share this, Baarakallaah Feekum: [“One who guides to something good has a reward similar to that of its doer” - Saheeh Muslim vol.3, no.4665]

Compiled, edited and adapted by Khalid Latif, www.thekhalids.org

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