Ramadan gives us the great gift of piety (Thaqwa). It is the highest of all virtues in the Islamic scheme of things. Allah says in the Qur’an: “It is He who made the night and day to follow each other for such as have the will to celebrate His praises or to show their gratitude” (25:62).

Life and death and the succession of nights and day have a purpose and that is to test us and to give us an opportunity to express our thanks and gratitude to our Creator and Sustainer. The month of Ramadan comes and goes. We must examine ourselves now and see what we have learned and achieved during this month. The test of success of this month lies in the effects it has left upon us.

1. Discipline:

We learn in this month how to control ourselves for the sake of Allah. In dawn and dusk, we pursue a strict schedule of eating and drinking. We are continuously aware that even in our ordinary activities as eating and drinking, we must remain under Divine injunctions. We change our habits in our daily routines, because we understand that we are not the servants and slaves to our habits, but always the servants of Allah. Then after Ramadan, we have to keep this spirit of discipline in other modes of our life and must continue with our submission to the commands of Allah.

2. Renewal of devotional Life

Ramadan renews our eagerness for the devotion to Allah. In this month, we are more careful of our daily prayers and have special prayers at night. There is no religion without prayer and Muslims learn in this month how to strengthen and dig out their religious life.

3. Renewal of the link with the Quran

Ramadan and the Qur’an are linked together from the beginning. It was in this month that this divine message was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (PBH). Fasting prepares the believers’ hearts to learn the word of Allah. It is the most suitable condition for our spiritual and mental communication with the Qur’an. The Muslim community pays more attention to the Quran in the blessed month of Ramadan. This renewed relation with the Quran must help us to follow its messages.

4. Renewal of the Identity of Muslim community

Ramadan is not an individual experience only, but it is an experience in community. The whole Muslim fasts together in the same month. We identify with one another in our obedience to Allah. This gives us a new sense of togetherness and association. Ramadan teaches us that the Muslim Ummah is the community of piety and devotion to Allah and its members derive their strength from each other in deeds of piety and virtue. The bonds that are based on piety and virtue are the strongest bonds and it is these bonds that prove good for mankind. Ramadan leaves a mark of all these values upon the Muslim community.

5. A Fresh Sense of Care and Sympathy

Fasting in the month of Ramadan helps us to understand the suffering and the pains of the poor and needy. By our voluntary hunger and thirst, we realize what it means to be deprived of basic necessities of life. Ramadan is called the month of charity and sympathy. We learn how to be more kind and generous in this month. For, a person can experience the hardship of the poor. He should then be thankful to Allah who has blessed him with His bounty while others are deprived. This should make him more sympathetic and willing to share this bounty. The poor rediscovers that fasting helps a person be more devoted to worship. More able to concentrate and meditate. He should then be able of this devotion all year long, a blessing he should thank Allah for.

6. Acquiring strength and endurance

It has been discovered that depriving the body of food for a period of time helps its defense and endurance mechanism. This in turn this protects the body from certain diseases.

7. Piety

To summarize all the moral and spiritual gifts of Ramadan, we can say that Ramadan gives us the great gift of Thaqwa. Thaqwa is the core of Islamic life. It is the highest of all virtues in the Islamic system of things. It means, God-consciousness, piety, fear and awe of Allah and it signifies submission to Allah and total commitment to all that is good and rejection of all that is evil and bad”.

In fact, the one, who is abstaining from food and drink both in public and in secret, shows his honest faith and strong veneration towards Allah, and his knowledge and feeling that Allah is all-knowing of everything. For this reason Allah has made the reward for fasting greater than for any other type of worship.

Five Groups

Ramadan is the month of fasting, standing, generosity, self-evaluation, patience and the Qur’an. Indeed, there are many groups regarding the month of Ramadan.

The first group is a group that sees Ramadan as a time of limits and preventions; a time of prohibitions from desires and lust. They do not comprehend the benefits of Ramadan. You will find them sluggish and tired. They fast with great difficulties while continuing in backbiting, lying and other sins. They see the fast as nothing more than an impediment in front of their desires.

As for the second group, it is a group that sees the month of Ramadan as a month of food and drink. Most of their time is consumed going and coming from the grocery store purchasing food for themselves, families and guests. Ramadan doesn’t increase them except in hunger. We know that consuming lots of foods will cause tiredness and laziness. The worst thing that the sons of Adam (A) can fill is their stomachs.

As for the third group, they know nothing of Ramadan except that it is obligatory. Neither the days nor the nights are spent in worship rather they might not even perform the five daily prayers. They awaken with Allah’s displeasure and sleep with Allah’s displeasure.

As for the fourth group, it is a group who does not remember Allah except and until the month of Ramadan. They attend the Jumu’ah prayer, frequent the Masjid and the women wear the hijab for the duration of Ramadan. And when the month is over all of those good deeds come to end, that is until the next Ramadan.

As for the fifth group, this group is a group who cannot wait for the arrival of Ramadan. And when it comes they roll up their sleeves even more and they work as hard as they can. This month revives and strengthens them.