Explaining Some Benefits of Fasting in Ramadan — By Muḥammad Ibn Ṣāliḥ al-‘Uthaymīn[1]
Introduction
My brothers, a precious month and a great time are upon us. During it, Allah increases rewards and bestows gifts in abundance. He opens the doors to goodness for whoever wishes for it. It is the month of benefits and blessings, the month of endowments and gifts.
شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ ٱلْقُرْءَانُ هُدًۭى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَـٰتٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْفُرْقَانِ ۚ
“Ramadan is the month in which the Qur’an was revealed as a guide for humanity with clear proofs of guidance and the decisive authority.”[2]
From the virtues of fasting is that Allah has prescribed it for all nations, and has made it a commandment upon them.
He said:
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
“O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you, just as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may become righteous.”[3]
If fasting were not such a great form of worship and an essential deed by which to worship Allah, and connected with such great rewards, Allah would not have made it an obligation upon all people, past and present.
The First Ḥadīth
One of the benefits of fasting in Ramadan is that it is a means by which sins are forgiven and bad deeds are expiated. In the two authentic collections of ḥadīth (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim), Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:
« مَنْ صَامَ رَمَضَانَ إِيمَانًا وَاحْتِسَابًا غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ »
“Whoever fasts Ramadan out of faith and hope for reward, his past sins will be forgiven.”[4]
This means that the person fasts out of true belief in Allah, being pleased with the obligation of fasting that Allah has placed upon him, and hoping for Allah’s reward. The person should not hate his obligation or doubt his reward. So, if his belief and hope are correct, then Allah will surely forgive whatever sins he may have committed in the past.
And in Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, there is a ḥadīth in which Abū Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:
« الصَّلَوَاتُ الْخَمْسُ وَالْجُمُعَةُ إِلَى الْجُمُعَةِ وَرَمَضَانُ إِلَى رَمَضَانَ مُكَفِّرَاتٌ مَا بَيْنَهُنَّ إِذَا اجْتَنَبَ الْكَبَائِرَ »
“The five prayers, from one Friday to another Friday, and from one Ramadan to another Ramadan, expiate whatever sins are committed between them, as long as the major sins are avoided.”[5]
The Second Ḥadīth
Abū Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say:
« قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: كُلُّ عَمَلِ ابْنِ آدَمَ لَهُ إِلاَّ الصِّيَامَ فَإِنَّهُ لِي وَأَنَا أَجْزِي بِهِ »
Allah, the Exalted and Majestic, said: “Every deed of the Son of Adam is for himself, except fasting – it is for Me, and I will reward it.”[6]
« It is for me » Of all the deeds a person may do, Allah has specifically chosen fasting for Himself and connected Himself to it. He did so because of a certain honor He holds for fasting and a certain love He has for it. When a person fasts, his genuine sincerity is made apparent to Allah, because fasting in itself is a secret between a worshipper and his Lord; no one other than Allah is aware of it. When someone who is fasting is in a place away from others, it is possible for him to eat or drink, which Allah has made forbidden to him. However, he does not do so, because he knows he has a Lord who is aware of everything he does, even when he is alone, and he knows Allah has forbidden him from eating and drinking at that time. So, he prevents himself from eating and drinking only for Allah, fearing His punishment and hoping for His reward. And for that, Allah thanks him for his genuine sincerity and specifically chooses his fasting for Himself from all the other deeds a person may do. About this, Allah says in another ḥadīth:
« يَتْرُكُ طَعَامَهُ وَشَرَابَهُ وَشَهْوَتَهُ مِنْ أَجْلِ »
“He leaves his food, his drink, and his desire, just for Me.”[7]
The virtue of Allah especially choosing fasting will also be made apparent on the Day of Resurrection. Sufyān Ibn ‘Uyaynah, may Allah have mercy on him, said: “On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will take His worshipper to account and compensate for any oppression the person had done to others by taking away from the person’s good deeds (and giving them to those he may have oppressed) until no good deeds remain except fasting. Allah will then give up any remaining acts of oppression and enter him into Paradise by the act of fasting.”
« and I will reward it » As Allah has connected fasting to Himself, He has also generously connected its reward to Himself. Good deeds have their rewards multiplied in number: one reward is multiplied by ten to seven hundred times, or even more. However, with fasting, Allah has associated its reward with Himself, without specifying a certain number. And remember, He is the Most Giving and the Most Generous, and a gift is only as good as its giver. So, the reward given to a fasting person is certainly great and without limit.
Fasting also includes all three types of patience: having patience upon obedience to Allah, having patience while staying away from what Allah has forbidden, and having patience with the natural decree of Allah, such as the pain one feels from hunger, thirst, and fatigue. So, fasting contains all of those three types of patience, and those who fast are truly considered the patient ones. Allah (تعالى) says:
إِنَّمَا يُوَفَّى ٱلصَّـٰبِرُونَ أَجْرَهُم بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍۢ
“Certainly, the patient will be given their reward without account.”[8]
The Third Ḥadīth
Ḥudhayfah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say:
« الصِّيَامُ جُنَّةٌ، فَلاَ يَرْفُثْ وَلاَ يَجْهَلْ، وَإِنِ امْرُؤٌ قَاتَلَهُ أَوْ شَاتَمَهُ فَلْيَقُلْ إِنِّي صَائِمٌ. مَرَّتَيْنِ، وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَخُلُوفُ فَمِ الصَّائِمِ أَطْيَبُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى مِنْ رِيحِ الْمِسْكِ، يَتْرُكُ طَعَامَهُ وَشَرَابَهُ وَشَهْوَتَهُ مِنْ أَجْلِي، الصِّيَامُ لِي، وَأَنَا أَجْزِي بِهِ، وَالْحَسَنَةُ بِعَشْرِ أَمْثَالِهَا »
“Fasting is a means of protection, so the person should not speak badly or act rudely. And if someone fights him or insults him, let him say twice, ‘I am fasting.’ I swear by the One in whose hand is my soul, the smell of a fasting person’s mouth is better to Allah than the scent of perfume. Allah says, ‘He leaves his food, his drink, and his desire, just for Me. Fasting is just for Me, and I will reward it.’ And a good deed is worth ten like it.”[9]
« Fasting is a means of protection » meaning it is a defense or shield that the fasting person uses to protect himself from saying useless, obscene, or rude things. For this, the Prophet (ﷺ) said, “The person should not speak badly or act rudely.” And fasting also protects a person from the Fire. Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, narrates a ḥadīth in which the Prophet (ﷺ) is reported to have said, “Fasting is a means of protection by which the worshipper is protected from the Fire.”
« And if someone fights him or insults him, let him say twice, ‘I am fasting.’ » Also, in this ḥadīth, the fasting person is instructed that if someone insults him or tries to fight with him, he is not to confront the aggressor in the same manner, so as not to encourage the insulting and fighting and thus prevent it from intensifying. And so that the fasting person does not seem weak or cowardly by simply remaining silent, he is instructed to tell the person that he is fasting, as an indication that he refuses to confront the aggressor in the same manner, out of respect for his own fast, not out of weakness or inability to stand up and retaliate. In this way, the arguing, insulting, and fighting may stop. Allah says:
ٱدْفَعْ بِٱلَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ فَإِذَا ٱلَّذِى بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَهُۥ عَدَٰوَةٌۭ كَأَنَّهُۥ وَلِىٌّ حَمِيمٌۭ• وَمَا يُلَقَّىٰهَآ إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ صَبَرُوا۟ وَمَا يُلَقَّىٰهَآ إِلَّا ذُو حَظٍّ عَظِيمٍۢ
“Repel (evil) by that which is better; and thereupon the one who between you and him is enmity may become as though he were a devoted friend. But none is granted it except those who are patient, and none is granted it except one having a great portion (of good).”[10]
« The smell of a fasting person’s mouth is better to Allah than the scent of perfume. » The Arabic word used here (khulūf) refers to the change in smell in the mouth when the stomach is empty. It is a disgusting smell in the sight of people, yet in the sight of Allah, it is better than the fragrant scent of perfume, because it originates from the worship of Allah and obedience to Him. And anything that results from worshipping Allah and obeying Him is beloved to Him, and He will give the worshipper in exchange something that is better and more pleasant.
So, the breath of a fasting person’s mouth is better to Allah than the smell of perfume because it is a sign of fasting. It is pleasant to Allah, and He loves it. This also confirms the great status fasting has with Allah, in that something hateful and disgusting to people becomes beloved and pleasant to Allah, because it originates from a person’s obedience to Allah by fasting.
The Fourth Ḥadīth
Abū Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say:
« لِلصَّائِمِ فَرْحَتَانِ فَرْحَةٌ عِنْدَ فِطْرِهِ وَفَرْحَةٌ عِنْدَ لِقَاءِ رَبِّهِ »
“There are two times of happiness for the fasting person: when he breaks his fast, he is happy, and when he meets Allah, he is happy.”[11]
As for a person’s happiness at the time of breaking his fast, he is happy that Allah has blessed him with the completion of fasting that day as a means of worship, since fasting is one of the best deeds a person can do. How many people were prevented, for whatever reasons, and were unable to fast that day? Also, the person is naturally happy with what Allah has now made permissible for him – food, drinks, and intimate relations – that were earlier forbidden for him during his fast.
As for a person’s happiness at the time he meets his Lord, he is happy with his fast when he finds its reward, saved in full for him, with Allah, at a time when the person needs it most, a time when it will be said:
« أَيْنَ الصَّائِمُونَ فَيَقُومُونَ »
“Where are the fasting people?” Then they will stand.[12]
The full text of this ḥadīth is:
« إِنَّ فِي الْجَنَّةِ بَابًا يُقَالُ لَهُ الرَّيَّانُ، يَدْخُلُ مِنْهُ الصَّائِمُونَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، لاَ يَدْخُلُ مِنْهُ أَحَدٌ غَيْرُهُمْ يُقَالُ أَيْنَ الصَّائِمُونَ فَيَقُومُونَ، لاَ يَدْخُلُ مِنْهُ أَحَدٌ غَيْرُهُمْ، فَإِذَا دَخَلُوا أُغْلِقَ، فَلَمْ يَدْخُلْ مِنْهُ أَحَدٌ »
“In Paradise, there is a gate called ‘ar-Rayyān.’ The fasting people will enter through it on the Day of Resurrection; no one other than they will enter through it. It will be said, ‘Where are the fasting people?’ So they will stand. No one but they will enter through it. And when they all pass through it, it will be locked, and then no one else will enter through it.”
My brothers, reaching the month of Ramadan is a great reward in itself for those who do so, and sincerely take advantage of it by returning to their Lord: returning from disobeying Him to obeying Him, from forgetting Him to remembering Him, and from distancing themselves from Him to repenting and turning to Him.
O Allah, wake us from the sleep of negligence, grant us an increase in awareness of You before it is too late, bless us with the ability to take advantage of our time in what benefits us for our appointed time, and forgive us, our parents, and all Muslims by Your mercy, for You are the Most Merciful of the merciful. And may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), and upon his family, and companions. Aameen!
End quote.
Notes:
[1] This article is a collection of points explained by Muḥammad Ibn Ṣāliḥ al-‘Uthaymīn (رحمه الله) in his book, Majālis Shahr Ramaḍān (pp. 7-18).
[2] The Qur’an, Sūrah al-Baqarah, 2:185.
[3] The Qur’an, Sūrah al-Baqarah, 2:183.
[4] Recorded by al-Bukhārī (no. 1901) and Muslim (no. 760).
[5] Recorded by Muslim (no. 233).
[6] This ḥadīth is recorded by Muslim (no. 1151).
[7] Recorded by al-Bukhārī (no. 1894) and Muslim (no. 1151).
[8] The Qur’an, Sūrah al-Zumar, 39:10.
[9] Recorded by al-Bukhārī (no. 1894) and Muslim (no. 1151).
[10] The Qur’an, Sūrah Fuṣṣilat, 41:34-35.
[11] Recorded by Muslim (no. 1151).
[12] Recorded by al-Bukhārī (no. 1896) and Muslim (no. 1152).
The Enduring Good Deeds 