Ali Ataie – The Prophet’s Heart
AI: Summary ©
The speaker discusses the importance of the Quran in fasting, citing examples from the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. They also mention the use of the "naught" or "naughty," in the title of the Bible, and the use of the "naught" in the title of the Bible to indicate a lack of knowledge or understanding. The speaker emphasizes the need for everyone to be aware of the Quran and its teachings.
AI: Summary ©
This is our final session.
So we are often asked by non Muslims
why we fast
Ramadan, 9th lunar month.
The answer is given in verse 185 of
Al Baqarah, the second
of the 3 verses within the Quranic passage
about fasting that we wanted to examine.
Allah says
The month of Ramadan is that which during
the Quran was revealed, literally sent down
sent down as a guidance for mankind, as
clear proofs of guidance, and as a criterion.
So this refers to the
of the Quran, which is the descent of
the entire Quran from the preserved tablet below
to the earth during Ramadan
in the prophet
fortieth
year.
In the 5th book of the Torah, which
is called Devarim or Deuteronomy,
the author tells us that Moses, Musa alaihi
salam,
fasted for 40 days 40 nights in preparation
for receiving the law of God.
Moses is quoted as saying
neither bread did I eat nor water did
I drink.
Both the gospels of Matthew and Luke tell
us that Isa,
Jesus peace be upon him, fasted in the
wilderness for 40 days prior to his public
ministry.
Therefore, in the Bible and within the greater
Judeo Christian tradition,
these are just a couple examples,
the number 40 is often associated
with a period of training or preparation
for some sort of,
major historical event.
Okay. In Genesis, the flood ended after 40
days 40 nights. In 1st Samuel,
Goliath, right, challenged the Israelites
to fight for 40 days until David or
Dawud alaihis salam
defeated him. In our case, Allah
prepared the heart and mind
of his beloved messenger, the greatest prophet of
all time,
our master Muhammad,
to receive his final revelation.
This ayah also refers to the Quran as
a criterion,
Al Furqan.
It is the standard by which something might
be judged.
Imam Al Kortubi said that the meaning of
this is that the Quran separates truth from
falsehood
and clearly delineates what is lawful and what
is unlawful.
Elsewhere in the Quran, Allah says,
blessed is he who sent down the criterion
upon his servant
that he may that he may be a
warner unto the worlds.
So this first chapter 21 verse 1 refers
to the of
the Quran.
So you have
the of the Quran, then you have
the of the Quran,
the piecemeal revelation
of the Quran from the angel Gabriel
to the heart and mind of the prophet
Muhammad
over a 23
year period.
Therefore,
the greatest night of all nights in the
sacred history of religion,
okay, is the night during which the Quran
was initially sent down
to humanity.
The night of power, the night of destiny,
The night of constriction has these different meanings
later to the Qadr. The Quran says that
the night of power is greater than a
1000 months.
This event marks the commencement of the Quranic
revelation with a single word, Iqra,
read.
Read in the name of your lord who
created humanity.
The 3rd verse in the passage about fasting
in Al Baqarah
that I want to mention is verse 186.
Now at first glance, this verse seems to
be a bit out of place.
It seems to be unrelated to the theme
of fasting,
but it is perfectly in place, I assure
you.
It reads,
When my servants asked you okay. So Allah
is speaking directly to the prophet, when
my servants asked you concerning me,
truly, I am near. I am kareeb.
I answer the call of the caller
when he calls me.
So let them respond to me and believe
in me in order that they may be
guided.
This ayah highlights the imminence of God,
okay, in relation to his servants,
not in terms of physical
space or distance or direction.
Okay?
Not in terms of physicality,
but rather in terms of awareness,
concern,
knowledge, and love.
But what does this verse have to do
with fasting? Why is it in this passage
regarding fasting?
Why is this verse in the middle of
this passage regarding fasting? Well, when we fast
effectively,
our thoughts shift
from the mundane to the spiritual,
from the temporal to the eternal.
Thus, we should feel a heightened sense of
Allah's nearness to us,
and this should provoke us to engage in
constant communion
with our Lord, to make dua to Allah
Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala.
The prophet
said,
supplication
is the essence of worship.
So speak to Allah
in your own words. Speak to him with
hope, longing, love. The hadith literature also tells
us
that the prophet used to fast twice a
week.
This was the practice of the Jews and
early Christians as well.
Furthermore, on the authority of Ibn Abbas, the
prophet
noticed that the Jews of Medina were fasting
on the 10th of Muharram.
He said, what is this? And they said,
This is a great day.
The day that Allah
saved the
Israelites,
from their enemies.
Musa.
So Musa fasted.
And then the prophet
said,
I have a greater claim to Moses than
you.
So he fasted on that day and ordered
others to fast as well. This day, of
course,
is Yom Kippur, the 10th of the 10th
of Tishrei called the asar ei Tishrei in
Hebrew. In Aramaic, it's called the Asura.
That's an Arabic Asura.
And, of course, this fast
is sunnah.
We ask Allah
to accept our prayers and fasting,
and that and that we have the best
Ramadan of our lives. We ask for openings
upon openings with respect to the Quran.
We ask that he increase us in our
understandings of the Quran. We ask that he
increase us
in in knowledge,
useful knowledge, and in light, and in all
good things.