Regarding the excellence of Ramadan, the Holy Prophet (PBUH) said: “Ramadan is the month of patience and the reward for patience is Paradise.” Twelve (12) months make up a year. Out of the twelve months, only Ramadan has been identified as the month of patience. Why? ‘Patience’ is an Arabic word. Its lexical meaning is to gain complete control over the self, to exercise restraint, to remain steadfast and to remain steadfast in the face of adversity, i.e. to have patience, etc. Ramadan is the “month of patience” – to understand this, an analytical discussion of the lexical meaning of patience is necessary. It has been said that patience means gaining complete control over the self. How is that possible? And what is the relationship between Ramadan and this? Here a theoretical analysis of the human body is needed.
There are two opposing forces or entities in the human body. One is the human soul, the other is the self. One is good, the other is bad. One is God-oriented, the other is God-oriented. The first shows the way towards light, the second leads towards darkness. As the helpers or assistants of the soul, the human body has four Latifas of the world, namely, the heart, the soul, the body, and the mind. On the other hand, the helpers of the soul are the four inanimate elements in the body; namely, fire, water, earth, and air. The Prophets and the saints of Allah act as helpers on behalf of the soul. On the other hand, the helper of the soul is the accursed Satan. In the human body, the soul and the soul are engaged in a face-to-face battle.
A person whose soul is defeated by his soul is a disgrace to his human name; he is a human animal. On the other hand, a person whose soul is defeated by his soul is a true human being. His soul is awakened, his heart is purified. However, defeating the soul is not an easy task. Here, an amazing power is needed.
The power by which the soul is able to overcome the self is called “patience”. And the power conducive to overcoming the self is very easily generated in the human heart by the grace of Ramadan. Because in the month of Ramadan, Satan is kept captive and chained. As a result, the evil self in the body is deprived of the help or support that it used to get from Satan. Since the help of Satan is stopped, the self is already disoriented. Moreover, the fire that is created in the body during fasting plays a more effective role in weakening the self than the most advanced atomic weapons. As a result, the soul can easily establish its control over the self. That is, a person who observes fasting can easily acquire the quality of patience by the grace of Ramadan. This task, that is, gaining control over the self, is not so easy in the other eleven months except Ramadan.
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Because:
Satan is then free or independent. He again helps the soul to triumph over the spirit and
There is no system or method in the Shariah for fasting for a whole month in the other eleven months except Ramadan. Therefore, it is understood that Ramadan is the most suitable time to gain control over the soul. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) has therefore called Ramadan the “month of patience”.
About the nature of the soul and the role of Ramadan in guiding the soul and bringing it under its control, a wise man said:- “Among all the demands of the soul and the body of man, three demands are the main ones. In fact, these three demands are more powerful.
The demand of hunger. The survival of life depends only on this.
The demand of sexual passion. This is the only way for the human race, that is, the status of the human race.
And
The demand for peace and rest. That is, it is essential for renewing, awakening and strengthening the working power.
If these three demands of man are within their limits, then there is no doubt that the world will be like the inner thoughts of nature. On the other hand, these three demands of the soul and the body are a great danger – at the slightest opportunity, they capture the ‘self’ of man and make him a slave. As a result, a long angel of innumerable demands emerges from each demand.
As a result, every man forgets the purpose, rules and the ultimate instructions of the heart and is engaged in fulfilling its demands alone. When the weak ‘self’ is defeated by these demands, man becomes a slave to the stomach for food, descends to a lower level than animals to satisfy sexual hunger, and the love of rest for the body destroys his willpower.
Then he is no longer the ruler of his soul or body; rather, he becomes its obedient slave and is forced to follow its orders in all ways, good and bad. Fasting regulates and regulates these three desires of man and accustoms the “self” to exert influence and dominance over it. If the “self” of the fasting believer is truly subordinate and obedient to Allah, if his willpower is strong enough to control the nafs, then he will himself strengthen and bind the intense desire for food, sexual hunger and lust, and love of rest in the bonds of the extraordinary rules presented by fasting. Since a long month is spent in this difficult practice of the believer every year from the time of reaching puberty until death, the bond of the self over the nafs becomes new and strong again and again.” This bond of the “self” over the nafs – this is true patience; which is easily achieved by fasting in Ramadan.
Source: Holy Advice of Shah Sufi Hazrat Faridpuri (PBUH) Saheb in the Light of Divine Knowledge, Volume 20, Pages 15/16/17.
