Ramadān - Ahmadiyya Gazette Canada

So Said the Promised Messiah asIn so far as I am concerned, I do not leave a fast unless it is likely to cause my death; I don’t feel inclined to leavea fast. These are blessed days and are the days of the showering of God’s blessings and mercy.Ramadān is a blessed month, a month of prayers.The Purpose of Fasting is Purification-Al-Hakam January 24, 1901-Al-Hakam January 24, 1901I have already spoken of the Salāt. Next in order is worship in the shape of the fast. It is a pity that some who callthemselves Muslims at this time desire to modify these forms of worship. They are blind and are not aware ofthe perfect wisdom of God Almighty. These forms of worship are essential for the purification of the spirit. Thesepeople seek to intervene absurdly in a sphere of which they have no knowledge and devise false schemes for theimprovement of a territory that they have not visited. Their lives are devoted to worldly affairs; of spiritual mattersthey have no notion. To be moderate in eating and drinking and to bear hunger and thirst are necessary for thepurification of the spirit and promote the capacity for visions. Man does not live by bread alone. To discard allthought of eternal life is to inviteDivine wrath. But it should beremembered that the fast does notmean merely that a person shouldabstain from food and drink overa certain period. During the fastone should be occupied greatlyDuring the fast one should be occupiedgreatly with the remembrance of God.with the remembrance of God. The Holy Prophet, peace be on him, occupied himself greatly with worshipduring the month of Ramadān. During that month one should discard one’s preoccupation with eating anddrinking and cutting asunder from these needs should address oneself wholly towards God. Unfortunate is theperson who is bestowed material bread and pays no attention to spiritual bread. Material bread strengthensthe body, and spiritual bread sustains the soul and sharpens the spiritual faculties. Seek the grace of God, as alldoors are opened by His grace. (Speech at the Annual Conference, 1906 pp. 20-21)The verse: The month of Ramadān is the month in which the Qur’ān began to be revealed (2.186); indicates thegreatness of the month of Ramadān. The Sufis have recorded that this is a good month for the illumination of theheart. One who observes the fast has frequent experience of visions in this month. The Salāt purifies the spiritand the fast illumines the heart. The purification of the spirit means that one may be delivered from the passionsof the self that incites to evil; and the illumination of the heart means that the gates of vision may be opened sothat one may be able to behold God.-Malfūzāt, Vol. IV, p. 256-257Pearls of Wisdom3