*Ramadan
Day 16*
*What have you learnt?*
Alhamdulilah!
Alhamdulilah!! Alhamdulilah!!!
We thank
Almighty Allah to spare our lives to witness this miraculous month (Ramadan).
Brothers and sisters in Islam.
*I just want
to remind myself and yours about ‘’ Why
was fasting singled out when Allaah said, “Fasting is for Me and I shall reward
for it?”*
What is
special about fasting so that Allaah singled it out when He said, “Fasting is
for Me and I shall reward for it?”
Answer
Praise
be to Allaah.
Al-Bukhaari
(1761) and Muslim (1946) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with
him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said: “Allaah said: ‘Every deed of the son of Adam is for him except fasting;
it is for Me and I shall reward for it…’”
Because
all deeds are for the sake of Allaah and He is the One Who rewards for them,
the scholars differed concerning this phrase, “Fasting is for Me and I shall
reward for it” – why is fasting singled out in this manner?
Al-Haafiz
ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) quoted the views of ten scholars who
sought to explain the meaning of this hadeeth and why fasting was singled out
in this manner. The most important of these views are as follows:
1 –
That there is no showing off in fasting as may happen in other acts of worship.
Al-Qurtubi said: Because showing off may enter into all good deeds, but no one
can see when a person is fasting except Allaah, so Allaah connected it to
Himself. Hence He said in the hadeeth, “He gives up his desire for My sake.”
Ibn al-Jawzi said: All acts of worship can be seen when done, and they may be
contaminated with some element of showing off, unlike fasting.
2 –
That what is meant by the words, “I shall reward for it” is: I am the only One
Who knows the extent of his reward and how much his hasanaat (good deeds) will
be multiplied. Al-Qurtubi said: What this means is that the amount of reward
for good deeds may become known to people, and they will be rewarded between
ten and seven hundred fold, and as much as Allaah wants, except fasting, for
Allaah will reward it without measure. This is supported by a report narrated
by Muslim (115) from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said:
The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
“Every deed of the son of Adam will be rewarded between ten and seven hundred
fold. Allaah said: ‘Except fasting, for it is for Me and I shall reward for
it’” – i.e., I shall reward it greatly, without specifying how much. This is
like the verse in which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Only
those who are patient shall receive their reward in full, without reckoning”[al-Zumar
39:10]
3 –
That what is meant by “fasting is for Me” is that it is the dearest of acts of
worship to Me. Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr said: The words “Fasting is for Me” are
sufficient to indicate the superiority of fasting over all other acts of
worship. Al-Nasaa’i (2220) narrated that Abu Umaamah said: The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “You should fast, for
there is nothing like it.” Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh
al-Nasaa’i.
4 –
That fasting is mentioned in conjunction with Allaah by way of honouring, as we
say, “the House of Allaah,” although all houses belong to Allaah. Al-Zayn ibn
al-Muneer said: giving a specific meaning to something general in a context
such as this can only be understood as being by way of honouring.
Shaykh
Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
This
hadeeth points to the virtue of fasting in numerous ways:
1 –
Allaah singled out fasting for Himself from all other good deeds, because of
its honoured status before Him, because He loves it and because it is a
demonstration of sincerity towards Him, as it is a secret between a person and
his Lord, which no one can see except Allaah. The fasting person may be in a
place with no other people around, and he could eat or drink that which Allaah
has forbidden to the fasting person, but he does not do that, because he knows
that he has a Lord Who can see him even though he is alone and Who has
forbidden that to him. So he forsakes it for the sake of Allaah and fearing His
punishment, seeking His reward. Because of that, Allaah appreciates his
sincerity and singled out fasting for Himself from among all other good deeds.
Hence He said: “He gives up his desires and his food for My sake.”
The
benefit of this singling out will be seen on the Day of Resurrection, as
Sufyaan ibn ‘Uyaynah said: When the Day of Resurrection comes, Allaah will
bring His slave to account and will settle any scores outstanding from the rest
of his deeds, until when there is nothing left but fasting, Allaah will settle
the matter and will admit him to Paradise by virtue of his fasting.
2 –
Allaah said concerning fasting: “I shall reward him for it.” So he connected
the reward for fasting to Himself, because the reward for righteous deeds is
mentioned by number, and a good deed will be rewarded between ten and seven
hundred fold, many times. But with regard to fasting, Allaah connected the
reward to Himself without specifying any number. Allaah is the most generous of
those who are generous, and the gift reflects the generosity of the giver. So
the reward of the one who fasts will be very great, without reckoning. Fasting
is patience in obeying Allaah, patience in keeping away from the things
forbidden by Allaah, and patience in bearing the decree of Allaah, hunger,
thirst, physical and mental weakness. So it combines all three types of
patience, thus the fasting person deserves to be counted as one of the patient,
and Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Only
those who are patient shall receive their reward in full, without
reckoning”[al-Zumar 39:10]
Majaalis
Shahr Ramadaan, p. 13
Islam
Q&A, Question 50388
And
Allaah knows best.
May
Allah Almighty accept our fast and blessed us
May
Almighty Allah reward us abundantly and accept our Ibadaah. Ameen
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