Rang-o-Noor (BY SA'DI)

FLIGHT O THE SOUL

May Allah bless all of us with the blessings and light of Ramzan! It is the fourth day of fasting today and there is great peace and calm in the atmosphere everywhere. Ramzan-ul-Mubarik is, no doubt, Allah's month of great blessings, great light, and great peace. May Allah bless us and absolve us in this month!

The Things That Disconnect from Allah:

Three things disconnect a man from Allah (i) over-eating, (ii) over-intermixing (iii) and over-talking.

Allama Ibn-e-Qayyim writes in "Zad-ul-Ma'ad"

Over-eating, over-intermixing and over-talking are the things that affect inner concentration and hence man is disconnected from Allah and begins to stray. (Zad-ul-Ma'ad)

It is Allah's blessing that He gave us Ramzan-ul-Mubarik and fast in which we can treat our these three ailments and purify our soul. Hence it is necessary for us to eat less, talk less and bridle our tongue.

The Holy Prophet said: Fasting is a shield until it is torn. (Nisai) He was asked: Torn with what?" Said: "With lie or backbiting."

O Muslims! Ramzan is all light. So devote each of its minute to Allah and bridle your tongues.

The Impact of Ramzan Lasts the Whole Year:
Ramzan-ul-Mubarik is very precious. It is Allah's favour and blessing upon the slaves. Therefore, the people who spend Ramzan in a proper way, their whole year rather entire life is spent properly. The people who spoil Ramzan-ul-Mubarik, their whole year is spoilt and Satan puts them into disgrace and sin. Hazrat Mujaddid Alf-Sari has written a very strange point. If we perceive this point and read it again and again, we will not bother to spoil even a moment of Ramzan-ul-Mubarik. He writes:

"This month has special relation with the Noble Quran and due to this relation, the Noble Quran was revealed in this month. This month is the collection of every kind of blessing. All the blessings that man gains all the year round, are just like a drop of water in comparison with an ocean in Ramzan. The peace of mind in this month is sufficient for the peace of mind for the entire year and distraction of mind in this month envelops the whole year. Lucky are the people with whom this month gets pleased and unsuccessful and unfortunate are the people with whom this month gets offended and they are deprived of all blessings." (Epistles)

This has also been pointed out in the writing that maximum blessings of Ramzan-ul-Mubarik are gained through maximum recitation of the Noble Quran. Hence, the Noble Quran should be recited well whole-heartedly i.e. recitation during the day time, listening to it in the Taravih at night and reciting those verses and Surahs while working during day time that we remember. What shall we gain if we talk five minutes? If we recite a Surah "Yaseen" during that time, we shall be given great treasures for the Hereafter. The reward for every worship in Ramzan increases to seventy percent. Hence, O Muslims, love the Noble Quran, and recite it well.

Do One Deed at Least:

The reward of Nafle reaches to a Farz and that of a Farz reaches to seventy Faraiz in Ramzan. There is no doubt in it. Why do we not gain so much reward? Do make arrangements for Taravih in Ramzan and the Ghair Muakada Sunna and Nafle after every prayer which will become Forty Nafle. Allah-o-Akbar! We will gain eighty Sajdah in Ramzan. How much reward of these Sajda's, how much light and how much closeness to Allah, which cannot be described in words. If not more, we should do one thing at least. We should offer daily and pray to Allah to grant us with the power to spend Ramzan according to His will and absolve us. This brief activity will prepare us for the big one. Think please, how great reward is there for those who revive the duty of Jihad in Ramzan and work for it i.e. the superior most job in the superior most month. Allah-O-Akbar! The most excellent battle i.e. the battle of Badr also took place in it. This battle is an excellent example, clear proof and a shining guiding star for the Muslims till the Last Day.

A Great Mistake:

Ramzan-ul-Mubarik is the month of patience and the reward for patience is Paradise. It is said by the Holy Prophet that the object of Ramzan-ul-Mubarik is correction of the Self i.e. the Muslims gain piety in it. Hazrat Maulana Abul-Hasn Ali Nadvi writes:

This (Fasting) is actually a moral training from where when man emerges, he holds the bridle of his wishes in his hands. Wishes do not rule over him rather he rules over the wishes. When he gives up Mubah and Pure things for Allah, why will he not try to avoid the prohibitions and the unlawful? The man who can give up cold drink and pure foods in obedience to Allah, how he can bother to look to the illegal and filthy things and this is :

But, now we have made this month, the month of "Drinking and eating." O Allah pardon! Every one talks of eating and drinking only. Ever new kind of Sehri and Iftari. New items for eating in bazaars and ever new leaflets to eat things. How strange Satanic deceptions! The whole month is passed in buying, cooking and eating and the last days in shopping for the Eid. How great bad luck! The precious month of Ramzan in which we can gain the blessings of Paradise is spent in preparing ever new dishes. Pardon! O Allah Pardon! Imam Ghazali writes:

"The fifth decorum is to take care of legal earning for breaking the fast and not to eat so much that there may leave no chance for eating anymore because nothing is more undesirable to Allah than eating to the neck. If the faster makes good the loss of the day's hunger and eats all that he was to eat whole day, what help he will gain in overpowering Allah's enemy and subduing his sexual power. These habits have grown so firm in the Muslims that goods for Ramzan are collected much advance and so fine food is eaten in Ramzan that is not eaten in other days. The object of fasting is to remain empty-belly and control wishes so that the capacity of piety may be gained. Now if the belly is kept deprived of eating from morning to evening, and it is filled with different foods after subduing sex and putting hunger into trial, the wishes and enjoyment of the Self will not lessen. They will increases more. It is very much possible that even dormant wishes may arise. The spirit of Ramzan is to weaken these powers which the devils use as their tools and this thing can be gained by lessening diet i.e. eating less in the evening than as is eaten in other days. If someone calculates and eats the whole food in the evening, he will gain nothing from fasting.

It is also included in the etiquettes not to sleep so much during the day time so that one may experience hunger and thirst also, feel the weakness of capacities and thus purity may be created in the heart. In the same way, keeping the belly so light at night so that business in Tahajjud and Nawafil may become easy and Satan dare not come near and the sight of Alam-e-Qudas may be possible through this purity of heart. (Ahya-ul-'Uloom)

It is also correct that momin's food is increased in Ramzan. The Muslims sympathise with one another well and make others break the fast due to which the eatables increase than these days. The easy solution is that we would enhance our worship and labour. The man, who recites one Parah, should recite five or ten Parahs. All these things should be increased in daily routine. (1) (3) Request for Paradise (4) Avoidance from hell.

Nawafil should also be increased. The same quantity of food that you eat in the house, should also be sent to the Mujahideen, Muhajireen and the poor. In this way, the account will be settled and abundance of things at Sahri and Iftari will not spoil our fasting. Imam Ibn-e-Qayyim writes:

Fasting has great efficacy in the protection of outer parts and inner capacities. It protects man against the evils that are created due to the abundance of filthy material in they body. (Zad-ul-Ma'ad)

At another place, he writes:

In this connection it (fasting) is bridle for the pious people, shield for the Mujahideen and training for the dear ones. (Zad-ul-Ma'ad)

It means all the Muslims need the fast whether Mujahid or saint. Its object is gained when food is lightened. Hence, O Muslims, gain the enjoyments of fasting and this enjoyment lies in remaining hungry not in eating so much that the belly may become stiff.

Flight of the Soul:

Every living person has two things: one is soul and second is body. Keep it in mind, our soul is from above. O, Yes, from Allah, from the unknown, from the Qudus. Allah says:

"And I sent soul in him from My own side." Our body is made of the soil; the slippery, gummy, clinging soil. So, there is in man the capacity to slip. He falls at worldly things and clings to everything.

We created him from clinging soil:

Now let us move ahead. Man's soul wants to take him up and join him with Allah because it has come from the above. Therefore, the people whose soul is correct and powerful, yearn to meet Allah and are anxious to go to heaven when they recall the blessings of Paradise. But the people, whose soul is in the grip of the body, remain busy in fulfilling physical needs like the beasts. You may also see the people who do not feel any longing for Paradise the whole life even for a moment nor do they love union with Allah. These people earn and eat only and fall on the worldly things. So, if you have grasped this point, let us move ahead.

If man strengthens his soul, he can achieve the status of angels rather sometimes far excels them. If he remains busy in fulfilling the needs of the body, he is worse than beasts. Allah says:

"The Pagans make merry, eat and drink as the beasts eat. Their abode is hell."

Allah is kind to us Muslims that He gave us Ramzan-ul-Mubarik and Fast. Owing to this Fast, man's soul overpowers his body and lifts him up i.e. to Emam, to progress and to Paradise. Therefore, we should offer thanks for the blessings of Ramzan and Fast and strengthen our souls the maximum by gaining maximum gains from this sacred season. There is a Hadith Qudsi. Allah says:

"Fast is for Me and I am its reward." Allah-o-Akbar!

The reward that Allah has stored for the fasting people is that He Himself will give it to them. How great reward it must be! How great and delicious! O Allah bless us all with it! Bless us all!

Translated by: Abdullah