The Right of Fasting (11th): Commentary on Imam al-Sajjad’s (A.S) Treaties of Right by Mohammad Sobhanie.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
وَأَمَّا حَقُّ الصَّوْمِ فَأَنْ تَعْلَمَ أَنَّهُ حِجَابٌ ضَرَبَهُ اللهُ عَلَى لِسَانِكَ وَسَمْعِكَ وبَصَرِكَ وَفَرْجِكَ وبَطْنِكَ لِيَسْتر’َكَ بهِ مِن النَّارِ وَهَكَذَا جَاءَ فِي الْحَديثِ “الصَّوْمُ جُنَّةٌ مِنَ النَّارِ” فَإنْ سَكَنَتْ أَطْرَافُـكَ فِي حَجَبَتِهَا رَجَوْتَ أَنْ تَكُونَ مَحْجُوبًا. وَإنْ أَنْتَ تَرَكْتَهَا تَضْطَرِبُ فِي حِجَابهَا وتَرْفَعُ جَنَبَاتِ الْحِجَاب فَتُطّلِعُ إلَى مَا لَيْسَ لَهَا بالنَّظْرَةِ الدَّاعِيـَةِ لِلشَّهْوَةِ وَالقُوَّةِ الْخَارِجَةِ عَنْ حَدِّ التَّقِيَّةِ للهِ لَمْ تَأمَنْ أَنْ تَخرِقَ الْحِجَابَ وَتَخرُجَ مِنْهُ. وَلا قُوَّةَ إلا باللهِ.
The Right of Fasting
And the right of fasting (in the Month of Ramadhan) is that you should know it is a veil, which God has set up over your tongue, hearing and sight, private parts, and stomach to protect you from the Fire. This meaning is asserted in the quote, “Fasting is an armor against the Fire.”
Thus, if you shield your body parts (from sinning) with the veil of fasting, you could have hope of protection from the Fire (rightfully). But if you leave them unprotected by ignoring fasting, you will draw to lustful ideas and places whose power of temptations is beyond your piety. In this case, you should expect that the veil will be torn, and you will fall through it. And there is no power except in God.
Commentary:
Imam Sajjad (AS) introduces fasting as a means of controlling our body parts, such as our tongue, ears, eyes, private parts, and stomach, from sinning. Fasting is metaphorically described as a shield to protect us from Hellfire; as the quote says [1], “fasting is an armor against the Fire [2].” Just as armor protects us from the enemy’s blows on the battlefield, fasting protects us from Hellfire.
The Imam stresses that if you shield your body parts with the veil of fasting (so that they do not sin), you could expect protection from Hellfire rightfully. But if you leave them unprotected by ignoring fasting, you will be drawn to lustful things whose power of temptation would be beyond your piety. In this case, the Imam warns that you will lose your protection from Hellfire by not fasting.
Fasting in the Month of Ramadhan was ordained with the revelation of verse 2:183. The verse is as follows:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ ﴿١٨٣﴾
2:183 ‘O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous –
There are three points in this verse:
Fasting is prescribed to the Muslims.
Fasting was also prescribed to the preceding nations
Chapter 9 in the Torah of Deuteronomy mentions that Prophet Musa (AS) fasted for forty days and nights when he went to the mountain to receive the Tablets. The phrase in the Torah [3] is as follows:
“I had ascended the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the Tablets of the Covenant that God had made with you, and I stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights, eating no bread and drinking no water.”
The Gospel of Matthew 4:2 says that Jesus fasted for forty days and nights, and then he was hungry [4].
The purpose of Fasting is to gain righteousness. Fasting strengthens the human will to engage in Jihad with the inciting soul (An-nafs Al-ʾammārah). Hence, humans commit less sin with their eyes, ears, feet, hands, etc. As a result, man becomes righteous.
The importance of fasting is evident in the quote that Zararah (زرارة) narrated from Imam Baqir (AS): “The foundations of Islam are five things: prayer, zakat, Hajj, fasting, and the guardianship of the Imams (AS) [5].”
بني الاسلام على خمسة أشياء: على الصلاة والزكاة والحج والصوم والولاية،
The Prophet (PBUH) said [6],[7] “Do you want me to tell you what you can do so that the Shaytan becomes away from you as the east is far from the west?” They said: “’O Prophet of God! Yes.” He said: “fasting blackens Shaytan’s face. Giving charity breaks his back, loving others for the sake of God and persistence in doing good deeds roots him out, and repentance cut off his aorta. There are alms for everything, and the alms of the body is fasting.”
Fasting also brings many health benefits, such as a decreased resting heart rate, reduced blood pressure, improved heart pumping, increased insulin sensitivity, and reduced LDL cholesterol [8]. Regarding the medical benefits of fasting, the Prophet (PBUH) said [9] “Fast to be healthy. [10]”
We end with a quote from the Prophet (PBUH):
المعدةُ بيت كلّ داء والحمية رأس كلّ دواء
The stomach is the home of every illness, and abstinence (from food) is the mother of all healings [11].
Acknowledgment:
The text is based on “Commentary on Imam Al-Sajjad’s (AS) Treaties of Right” by the Grand Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani.
Appendix_1
H.1
أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ (صلي الله عليه و آله ) قَالَ لِأَصْحَابِهِ :
“أَلَا أُخْبِرُكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ إِنْ أَنْتُمْ فَعَلْتُمُوهُ تَبَاعَدَ الشَّيْطَانُ مِنْكُمْ كَمَا تَبَاعَدَ الْمَشْرِقُ مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ؟ قَالُوا : بَلَى .
قَالَ (صلى الله عليه و آله) : الصَّوْمُ يُسَوِّدُ وَجْهَهُ . وَ الصَّدَقَةُ تَكْسِرُ ظَهْرَهُ .وَ الْحُبُّ فِي اللَّهِ ، وَ الْمُوَازَرَةُ عَلَى الْعَمَلِ الصَّالِحِ يَقْطَعُ دَابِرَهُ . وَ الِاسْتِغْفَارُ يَقْطَعُ وَتِينَهُ . وَ لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ زَكَاةٌ وَ زَكَاةُ الْأَبْدَانِ الصِّيَامُ
Notes:
[1] http://shiaonlinelibrary.com/الكتب/1524_بحار-الأنوار-العلامة-المجلسي-ج-٩٣/الصفحة_344
[2] (الصَّوْمُ جُنَّة مِنَ النَّارِ)
[3] https://www.sefaria.org/Deuteronomy.9.9?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en
[4] https://biblehub.com/matthew/4-2.htm
[5] http://shiaonlinelibrary.com/ الكتب/1123_الكافي-ج-٢/الصفحة_0?pageno=18
[6] http://shiaonlinelibrary.com/الكتب/1150_من-لا-يحضره-الفقيه-الشيخ-الصدوق-ج-٢/الصفحة_75
[7] Text of Hadith in Appendix-1, H.1
[8] https://www.medicinenet.com/what_are_the_health_benefits_of_fasting/article.htm
[9] http://shiaonlinelibrary.com/ الكتب/1693_ميزان-الحكمة-محمد-الريشهري-ج-٢/الصفحة_750
[10] (صوموا تصحّوا).
[11] http://shiaonlinelibrary.com/ الكتب/4685_موسوعة-الأحاديث-الطبية-محمد-الريشهري-ج-٢/الصفحة_13
Source:en.shafaqna.com
