Principles of Islam
10. Fasting
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10. FASTING
Fasting, a form of divine worship is observed for
one month every year. During this fast man
abstains from food and water from sunrise to sunset
in obedience to the command of God. This act is
performed in order to reduce man’s materialism
and increase his spirituality, so that he may be able
to lead a truly spiritual life in this world. In the
process, he spends more time in the worship of
God.
Fasting awakens in man the feeling of gratefulness.
The temporary deprivation of food and water
stresses for him the importance of these things as
divine blessings. Then when he partakes of food
and water after having experienced hunger and
thirst, he can feel how truly precious is the food and
water provided to him abundantly by God. This
experience increases manifold his feelings of
gratitude to God.
Fasting produces moral discipline within man. By
restricting the basic things he desires, the devotee is
trained to lead a life of self-restraint and not of
