After a wait of 11 months, now it is the time of religious fasting. Fasting counts among the five pillars of worship for followers of Islam. Followers say the ritual helps them practice patience and increase their physical and mental endurance as they carry on daily obligations on an empty stomach. Doing so, they emphasize, helps them abstain from negative habits and thoughts, recharge spiritually and stand in solidarity with the less fortunate and the experience which they say ultimately brings them closer to God.
But for some reason, Ramadan has given rise to a culture of month-long feasting within the community, more than fasting and thereby the real purpose of the same washes away. There is an urgent need to bring about some moderation in our eating habits during Ramadan. It is said that during the month, believers guard their tongue, engage in long hours of worship, exercise patience and open up their hearts and pockets to charitable cause.
However, when it comes to consuming food after the 12 hours’ fasting of a day, a majority of the believers fail to follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad. Now if Prophet pay a visit among his believers, he will be shocked seeing the revolution created among the Muslims, which has turned entirely different than what he sermonized.
What I would recommend my Muslim friends is to just conduct a status check on the budget of their family both during the month of fasting and the other months. Without any doubt, the budget of fasting month will be double than what it was during other months. This itself is a proof for the Allah believers to understand that they have completely altered His notion of fasting. It is during the month of Ramadan we consume more food and often overindulge ourselves.
When the body is fasting and not occupied with the process of digestion, the organs are given opportunity to rejuvenate and restore themselves, in turn allowing the one who fasts to recover from various ailments. However, if a person overeats in the evening and indulges in heavy, fatty foods, this offsets the physical benefits of fasting. To remain healthy and active during Ramadan, the amount of food intake isn't as important as the variety of foods we eat.
