Month of Ramadan in Islam
Islam means the submission to the will of Allah who is the Creator and the sustainers of the World. It is the religion of all the Prophets from Adam to Mohammad (Peace be upon them). All the Prophets including Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Jesus, Ishmael, and all the others according to the Holy Quran and to their way of life are Muslims. This means that they submitted themselves to the will of Allah the Lord of the universe.
Islam is a way of life for every thing in life. It is other meaning is peace, as in Arabic the word Salam means peace. It is not only spiritual way of life but it determines all aspect of life aiming to create a peaceful and equal society on the earth if it is implemented. Islam implementation is not only for life but it seat the way for the salvation from the Hell punishment in the Hereafter which means the entry into Paradise. In Islam this life is a temporary and very short life seating the way for the real life and in this context our life is nothing but a test. Only those who are among the submitter to the will of Allah and among the Muslims will be able to pass the test and succeed to enter the Paradise according to Islam and the real teaching of all of the Prophets.
According to the Holy Quran Allah created the Jin (created from fire or energy) and Ins (or mankind – created from earth soil) for his worship only. It is therefore all acts, works, deeds, and every thing in the life of a real Muslim is nothing but worship to Allah. Islam seat out a self – disciplinary mechanism for each Muslim making him or her to be good for the oneself, the parents, the relatives, the neighbours, the society, the whole mankind, the other creatures, the environment, the earth, the whole universe and the Hereafter. In Islam it is not only the regular daily Prayers considered as worshiping but the whole life is worship to Allah. One of the most important worship in Islam is the Fasting during the month of Ramadan which is the ninth month in Islamic calendar. During Ramadan the Holy Quran was sent down from Heaven a guidance unto men, a declaration of direction, and a means of Salvation. Ramadan is a time for worship and contemplation.
Fasting in Ramadan is a highly disciplinary method for self and mass disciplines. It is not abstinence from food, drink, smoke and the sexual relations between Dawn and Sunset only but it is abstinence from bad deed and habits while doing good deeds only. Good deeds including for example; helping the poor, giving charity, being good to parents and others, not telling lies, avoid any kind of sin however small it is, performing prayers, reading the Holly Quran, doing their own work in a good way, and so on. Eating, drinking what is not forbidden food and drink and sexual relations between husband and wife is allowed again after Iftar which is the feast breaking after sunset. Fast is resumed next morning at Dawn.
According the Holy Quran: (One may eat and drink at any time during the night "until you can plainly distinguish a white thread from a black thread by the daylight: then keep the fast until night).
There is one night in Ramadan called Lay-lat-alqdr or the Night of Power which is described by Allah in the Holy Quran as it is better than one Thousand months. It is during the last 10 days of the month yet exactly not known which one of these 10 days. During this night Allah forgives those who worship him sincerely and give them salvation from the fire Hell. During this night it is believed that the fate of the worlds decided for the next year and all the Angels and the Archangel Gabriel descended down to our world until the beginning of Dawn.
The reward of fasting is with Allah if it is accepted by him. However there are other rewards during the fasting month for the body and the soul. Fasting is a process of complete refurbishment of the body stores, metabolic pathways, and restoration of the hormonal status in the body. It is a total body exercise for the body systems such as the gastrointestinal system, the endocrine glands, the heart, the liver, the kidneys, the brain, the joints, and the other parts of the body. Fasting strengthen the will and make one to be patient and improve the self control and heal the self from its diseases.
When the month ends it is celebrated in the first day of Shawwal and charity have to be given from each person who fasted or not and paid to the poor and needy. The celebration called Id-Al-Fitr which is started in the first day morning with the Eid prayer.
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