By Shaykh Syed Anisul Haque
7 March 2025

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All praise is to Allah, the Creator of the heavens and the earth. I thank Him, seek His forgiveness, and seek refuge in Him from the evil of our souls and the consequences of our deeds.

Ramadan has arrived, and with it comes the chance to renew our faith and strengthen our connection with Allah. In our first Jumu‘ah of this blessed month, I wanted to reflect on what makes Ramadan so special and how we can truly benefit from these precious days ahead.

Ibn Al-Jawzi (d. 597 AH), may Allah have mercy on him, compared the twelve months of the year to the sons of Ya‘qub (peace be upon him), with Ramadan being like Yusuf among his brothers. Just as Yusuf was the most beloved son to Ya‘qub, Ramadan is the most beloved month to Allah. And just as Allah forgave the eleven brothers through the du‘a of one brother, Yusuf (peace be upon him), He can forgive our eleven months of sins through our sincere du‘as in Ramadan. This gives us hope and reminds us of the opportunity we have during these blessed days.

During Ramadan, we engage in many forms of worship – reading Qur’an, praying Taraweeh, giving charity. But fasting remains the core of this month. Allah tells us clearly why fasting matters:

Fasting is about more than just feeling hungry. It’s about training ourselves to control not just our eating but also our anger, jealousy, and other negative traits. If we don’t watch these aspects, we miss the real purpose of fasting, the chance to inculcate virtues beloved to Allah. Our Prophet Muhammad ﷺ warned us:

Whoever does not give up false statements, evil deeds, and speaking bad words to others, Allah is not in need of his leaving his food and drink.

I worry when I see Muslims behaving badly during Ramadan. Recently, a video showed Muslims fighting with each other during the Holy Month. Every Ramadan, we see similar incidents of people who fast and pray Taraweeh but still fall into sin.

This seems odd when we remember the hadith that tells us during Ramadan:

The gates of Heaven are opened, the gates of Hell are closed, and the devils are chained.

Imam Al-Qurtubi (d. 671 AH) explains this by suggesting that perhaps this protection mainly covers those who observe the proper conditions of fasting. Or maybe only some devils are chained, not all of them. He also reminds us that even with devils chained, we still have our bad habits and our lower selves to battle with. When we slip into sin during Ramadan, we need to look within ourselves rather than blame outside forces.

Our Prophet ﷺ taught us that “Fasting is a shield.” It protects us from sin and bad behaviour. When someone tries to provoke us, we should simply say: “I am fasting.” This helps us develop self-control that benefits us all year round.

The blessings of fasting are many. It’s interesting that doctors now recommend what they call ‘intermittent fasting’ for health conditions like diabetes and heart disease. Similarly, economists recognise that if the wealthy gave 2.5% of their wealth, as we do with zakat, it would help balance economies and reduce poverty. Even the miswak that our Prophet ﷺ recommended is sold in pharmacies as “the magic toothbrush” because research has confirmed its benefits.

As Muslims, we don’t need to wait for science to validate our practices. We follow Allah’s guidance first, knowing His wisdom covers both our spiritual and physical needs.

One of the most important lessons of fasting is how it connects us with people who have less than we do. When we feel hungry before iftar, we get a small taste of what many people feel regularly – those who don’t know where their next meal will come from. Our Prophet ﷺ advised us to “look at those below you and do not look at those above you, lest you belittle the favours of Allah.”

We should remember that charity starts at home. Many Muslim families here in the UK struggle to make ends meet. The number of Muslims using food banks is higher than many realise. We can help them this Ramadan by providing iftar, keeping in mind the Prophet’s ﷺ promise: “Whoever gives food for a fasting person to break his fast will have a reward like theirs, without reducing their reward at all.”

Allah has promised a special reward for fasting. In a Hadith Qudsi, Allah says: “Every act of the son of Adam is for him except fasting; it is for Me, and I will give the reward for it.” The person who fasts enjoys two special moments of happiness: the joy of breaking the fast and the joy of meeting Allah with all the fasts they kept.

As we go through this Blessed Month, let’s make our fasting complete – not just keeping our stomachs empty but also guarding our tongues, eyes, and limbs from sin. May Allah accept our fasting, forgive our sins, and grant us the full rewards of Ramadan.

Ameen.

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