Ramadan: A Month of Purification

In the book, Ramadan: A Month of Purification, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan explains that saum, the Arabic word for fasting means abstinence. Ramadan entails fostering of a culture of abstinence. Prophet Muhammad said, “There is purification for all things, and purification of the body is fasting.” (Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith No. 1745) Just as bathing purifies the body, so does fasting purify the soul. Fostering a culture of abstinence means cutting oneself off from the world and turning one's heart and mind continually to God. Then God endows him with wisdom to purify one’s thought, speech and general behaviour. This enables man to reassess his life; review all his affairs; re-plan his religious and dawah life; purify his heart and mind; and builds a new personality within himself. Ramadan is, therefore, the month of self-purification that aims to awaken one’s spirituality and purify oneself. Then, purification of the self becomes a continuous process in the life of the believer.