[From a lecture by Javed Ahmed Ghamidi]
In Islamic Shariah, among the obligatory acts of worship, after prayer and zakat, there is the worship of fasting. According to the Holy Qur’an, this is not a new form of worship introduced after the advent of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). It is an ancient form of worship that was also obligatory for the communities before the Muslim Ummah. It is stated:
يٰٓـاَيُّهَا الَّذِيۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا كُتِبَ عَلَيۡکُمُ الصِّيَامُ کَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِيۡنَ مِنۡ قَبۡلِکُمۡ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَتَّقُوۡنَۙ.
Believers! The fast has been made obligatory upon you as it was made obligatory upon those before you so that you become fearful of God. (2:183)
Allah Almighty began the process of providing guidance to humanity from the time of the first human, Prophet Adam (PBUH). On that occasion, Allah Almighty made this promise:
فَاِمَّا يَاۡتِيَنَّكُمۡ مِّنِّىۡ هُدًى فَمَنۡ تَبِعَ هُدَاىَ فَلَا خَوۡفٌ عَلَيۡهِمۡ وَلَا هُمۡ يَحۡزَنُوۡنَ. If ever comes to you any guidance from Me, follow it because those who follow this guidance of Mine, their reward is Paradise. So, there they shall neither have any fear, nor shall they grieve.
(2:38)
The guidance in the form of Allah’s religion has been continuously conveyed to humanity through the prophets. The last prophet in this sequence was Muhammad (PBUH). He established the fundamental commands of the religion within his community as part of the prophetic tradition. Some of these were made mandatory upon this community through the Qur’an, while others were established through the approval of the Messenger (PBUH) himself. Among these fundamental commands, a way to fulfill the servitude to Allah has been designated in the form of prayer. Furthermore, instructions have been given for spending in the way of Allah, which have been referred to as infāq and considered among the acts of worship. Similarly, fasting for one month in the year has also been maintained as an act of worship.
Why has fasting been made obligatory and what is its purpose? This has been stated by the Qur’an itself in the words la’allakum tattaqun. This means that fasting has been prescribed for the servants so that they may develop Taqwa (God-consciousness).
The Meaning of Taqwa
Taqwa is a specific term in our religion. Its intent is precisely what we express in Urdu with the words ‘hudood ashnaai’ (awareness of boundaries). This means that while living in this world, a person should not remain carefree and fearless, should not adopt a careless and negligent attitude, but live with alertness, awareness, and vigilance. They should never fall into negligence regarding why they have been sent to this world, what their ultimate goal is, what situation they will face one day, and what constitutes true life for them. They should remain fully aware of these realities and not become heedless of them at any stage of life. When a person lives with this awareness and alertness, they do not fall into the servitude of their desires. This very alertness and awareness is called Taqwa.
The following are some prominent manifestations of Taqwa:
The servitude to Allah is Taqwa.
Taqwa is that a person lives in this world as an obedient servant to Allah. The real test for a person is whether upon receiving Allah’s blessings, they remain a grateful servant or adopt an attitude of ingratitude. When a person avoids disobedience, rebellion, and extremism, and respects the limits set by Allah, it is as if they are adopting taqwa. The meaning of this servitude is:
…In this connection, the servant attains tranquility through the remembrance of his Lord. He sees gratitude for His blessings surging within him like an overwhelming tide. He fears His displeasure, belongs solely to Him, lives by His trust, and entrusts every matter to Him. He surrenders his entire being to Him and remains content with His every decision. (Meezan 67)
The sense of accountability before Allah is Taqwa.
Taqwa is the awareness that a person should remain conscious at every moment of having to present oneself one day in the court of the Most Just of Judges. There will come a time when one will be held accountable for their responsibilities. It is this very sense of accountability that teaches a person how to navigate the thorny path of life cautiously, carefully gathering up their cloak. This awareness and this attitude, in essence, is Taqwa. A companion once asked Umar (RA) about the meaning of Taqwa. He responded by saying, “If you were to pass through a path filled with thorns, what approach would you take?” The companion replied, “I would gather up my cloak.” Umar (RA) then said, “That is Taqwa.”
Self-control is Taqwa.
Taqwa is the quality that enables a person to control the inclinations of the self that incite evil. This involves managing anger, maintaining emotions within limits, not becoming ensnared in reactive states, preventing hatred and bitterness from taking root, keeping material pleasures and desires within boundaries, and not allowing the demands of the belly and the desires of sexual nature to overpower one’s religious and moral existence. The decision should be made not to bow to the self, but to have the self bow to oneself. In essence, the purpose of taqwa is to suppress the self, not to destroy it. The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) articulated this truth excellently in response to a question. He said that every person has a devil attached to them. He was asked if he has a devil as well. He replied that yes, he does, but he has made him a Muslim. This illustrates that one should not strangle the self; rather, the self should be disciplined and brought within limits.
Living life with responsibility is Taqwa.
Taqwa implies that a person fulfills their responsibilities with dedication and sincerity. They should fulfill those rights that are incumbent upon them in their individual capacity. They should carry out those duties that are obligatory within the family. They should discharge the responsibilities demanded by society and the state, meaning a person should live in this world, earn their livelihood here, and play their active role here. Allah Almighty has created humans with this very nature. Instead of deviating from this nature, one should strive to fulfill its demands. This very effort and struggle is Taqwa.
The preservation of moral existence is Taqwa.
Taqwa is for a person to constantly guard their moral existence. It is this moral existence that distinguishes a human from animals. Allah Almighty has sent humans into this world with complete awareness of good and evil. At every turn in life, a person makes a good or bad decision with a clear understanding of good and evil. While making every good decision, one keeps in view those moral values and principles that are the honor of humanity and are ingrained in one’s nature by the Creator. Every person feels these as the voice of conscience within themselves. If they heed them, they are human; if not, then they are merely a two-legged animal and have no status beyond this.
The preservation and safeguarding of moral existence means that an individual should carefully consider whether an action is truly befitting of their stature before undertaking it. Their moral existence demands that they do not lie, deceive, betray trust, commit injustice, deprive others of their rights, or engage in unfairness. Moral existence requires them to fulfill responsibilities, grant rights, uphold truthfulness, love the creation of God, express gratitude for blessings, exercise patience in adversity, respect elders, and show compassion to the younger. In essence, they should always heed the voice of their conscience. If it advises against an action, they should refrain, and if it encourages an action, they should perform it with excellence.
Taqwa is not asceticism.
The trial for a human being is that they must live within their desires, emotions, and inclinations. All these elements present in human nature exert full force to keep them from staying on the path of moderation and balance. When a person fights against these, sometimes they reach the other extreme. This other extreme has been referred to as monasticism in religions. It has a significant and poignant history. It implies that when a person makes the pleasures of material life their primary goal, extraordinary corruptions arise from it. Similarly, when they attempt to escape from these pleasures by setting asceticism as their goal, immense corruptions also result from this.
Asceticism and renunciation of the world mean that a person decides once and for all to completely withdraw from worldly affairs. The things in this world that have been created as a test for them, they must abandon. Knowledge and intellect, wealth and riches, beauty and elegance, grandeur and power—essentially, any material aspects of life that might tempt a person to exceed their limits, they resolve to abandon entirely. They choose a life where they are minimally accountable to the instincts of the self.
When a person adopts this form of asceticism, it apparently brings satisfaction, as if they have chosen an easy path for themselves through the trials of the world. This decision is initially very difficult, but once it is made, it no longer retains the challenges experienced daily by a righteous individual.
Monasticism and renunciation of the world is a path that deviates from nature and religion. In contrast, the divine law teaches man the path of moderation and balance. What it trains a person in is not monasticism, but taqwa.
The Method for Attaining Taqwa
What is the method to attain the level of Taqwa? In this regard, two things should be considered:
One principle is to adopt a gradual approach in the attainment of Taqwa. This is also the wisdom of religion. God created human nature in such a way that if a person wishes to develop a particular capability or attitude, he cannot cultivate it immediately. Instead, through the continuous interplay of intention and action, he gradually adopts it. Thus, it is not possible for someone to make a list of virtues and instantaneously integrate them into their personality. It is akin to the impossibility of teaching a fifth-grade student the curriculum of the twelfth grade. In the acquisition of knowledge, one must inevitably establish progressive stages. Similarly, the learning of arts is accomplished through gradual practice and exercise. This is also the principle of religious and moral training. When the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was sent, God initiated the guidance process through the Qur’an. During this time, God did not hand over the entire book to him at once upon his prophethood but revealed the Qur’an gradually based on the needs of the message. Similarly, to reach the stage of taqwa, one should also adopt a gradual path.
Secondly, these three things must be included in your daily routine:
1. Congregational prayers should be performed in the mosque daily.
2. A few verses of the Qur’an should be recited daily with understanding.
3. Spend some time at least once a week in the company of a righteous servant of God.
The environment of the mosque, the direct reminder provided by the Qur’an, and the influence of the company of a righteous believer will play a fundamental role in nurturing the tree of taqwa.
Fasting is a training ground for Taqwa.
To instill the discipline of taqwa, the Shariah has specifically designated the worship of fasting. Once a year, a training period of 720 hours is established, and in an extraordinary manner, millions of people begin to undergo it. Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:
The worship of fasting… is a special form of worship for the training of taqwa, upon which the establishment and survival of the entire religion and law depends, and for whose bearers alone the Qur’an was indeed revealed as guidance… In other words… the true benefit of the Qur’an is exclusive to those people who possess the spirit of taqwa, and the specific means for the training of this taqwa is the worship of fasting. For this reason, the Lord, the Most Generous and Wise, has designated that month for fasting in which the Qur’an was revealed. In other words, it can be said that the Qur’an is the spring for this world, and the month of Ramadan is the spring season, and this spring season nurtures the crop that is taqwa. (Tadabbur-e-Qur’an 1/451)