The Divine Feast of Fasting
“O Allah, incline me this dya toward good-doing, and ma vice and make vice and disobedience hateful to me; save me in it from Your displeasure and hellfire; with Your help, O Succour of those who appeal for help!”
How beautiful are the moments of servitude at the time of Sahar, once the enthusiasm of supplication to God Almighty removes sleep from the eyes of the faithful and invites them to perform prayer in order to be in communion with the Source of all creation. How prosperous are the fasting persons who are engaged in praising God and are seeking to help the orphans and the needy people. Truly the everlasting bliss of paradise is for such faithful people. In ayahs 16 and 17 of Surah Aal-e Imran, the holy Qur’an says the pious are those who ask forgiveness at Sahar time.
“Those who say: Our Lord! Surely we believe, therefore forgive us our faults and save us from the chastisement of the fire.”
“The patient, and the truthful, and the obedient, and those who spend (benevolently) and those who ask forgiveness in the morning times.”
In Islam supplication to God at night time has constructive results. This assumes added importance in the blessed month of Ramadhan. Special Sahar prayers and supplications have been narrated from the Prophet and his Immaculate Household, the Ahl al-Bait. Among these is the famous supplication taught to Abu Hamza Samali by Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS), the 4th Infallible Successor of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).
The Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA) was among those devout persons of the modern era who used to pray and supplicate in the late midnight hours till the break of dawn. One of his relatives says: One night in the blessed month of Ramadhan, at midnight I woke up and saw Imam Khomeini crying while engaged in prayers and supplication to the Almighty. The sound of his supplication really affected me. There are many devoted people, including scholars and laymen who avail of the late midnight hours.
A group of French researchers have come to the conclusion that staying awake at night prevents many brain diseases including blood clotting in brain arteries. They say once a person gets up early in the morning his heartbeats are slow and normal and he is less exposed to stress and nervous tension. So mankind feels more tranquility during the Sahar. This physical and spiritual freshness brings about positive and constructive impacts including good temper. One of the characteristics of the pious people is their honesty and telling truth. In ayah 119 of Surah Mae’dah of the holy Qur’an, which reads:
“Allah will say: This is the day when their truth shall benefit the truthful ones; they shall have gardens beneath which rivers flow to abide in them forever: Allah is well pleased with them and they are well pleased with Allah; this is the mighty achievement”
The honest people are usually brave and enjoy strong personality while the liars are coward and hypocrite. Psychologists believe that the liars always suffer from internal anxiety. Since they do not want their lies to be revealed they are always worried about their contradictory statements and paradoxical behavior. The latest scientific tests show that the human brain consumes much energy while one utters lies since this is an unnatural habit, but the brain is relaxed when speaks the truth. One of the benefits of telling the truth is the trust of people in honest persons. Since man is a social creature, winning the confidence of others is of a great importance for him or her.
Once a person approached the Prophet and told him that sometimes he is unwillingly exposed to wrongdoing. He asked the Prophet to teach him a way for giving up this bad habit. The Prophet said: don’t lie. The person said: is that all! The Prophet said: yes, this is enough. The man went away. After that he was indulged in some wrongdoing but was worried what response he would give to the Prophet once he was questioned, since he had promised to be true and not to tell lies. This review of his behavior and his promise to be true finally changed his behavior. The holy Qur’an in Surah Ahzab calls on people to be honest since this has a great impact on refraining from wrongdoing. It is evident that if we wish to improve our behavior, our words should be free of any lies.
Thus, as is clear, honesty helps us to acquire good moral characteristics. Even the ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, has said: honesty is like treasures the more it appears its advocates become more but lies are like the hidden flames of fire when they appear they cause more destruction.
