RAMADAN AND GLOBAL PEACE
By Adegoke Alade & Abdulateef Oyebisi
Ramadan, the glorious month in the Islamic calendar, has come again, when the yearly thirty-day fasting is observed by Muslims all over the world as ordained by Almighty God.
Fasting in the month of Ramadan is one of the pillars of Islam, in which Muslims are expected to fast from dawn to dusk. It is ordained by Almighty God that during Ramadan, a good Muslim must not only abstain from eating and drinking but must also refrain from sex and avoid all acts that can render the fasting void and null.
Fasting in the month of Ramadan was instituted as a compulsory act of worship of God, whereupon it became the third pillar of Islam.
The divine decree on fasting is found in Quran chapter two verses one hundred and eighty-three to one hundred and eighty-seven. Verse one hundred and eighty-three says: “oh you who believe, fasting is ordained for you as it was ordained for those before you so that you might remain conscious of God”.
The significance of the month is legendary. Specifically, during the month of Ramadan, Muslims are enjoined to extend the hands of love and kindness to all especially the less privileged ones in the society.
Muslims are expected to devote twenty-nine or thirty nights and days in the month of Ramadan to move closer to their Creator, read the Holy Quran and live by the dictates of the Holy book.
Essentially, fasting in the month of Ramadan provides opportunities for devotees to abstain from consumption of alcoholic drinks, adultery, fornication, stealing or thieving, lies telling and hemp or cigarette smoking. It also provides opportunities for healthy living as internal digestion organs have less to cope with as food and drinks intake are reduced drastically during fasting.
Ramadan is also a period for the wealthy members of the society to extend their hands of love to the less privileged by giving them Sadaqat or alms, which attract abundant reward from God.
To further underscore the significance of the period, the month is divided into three. The first ten days are dedicated to seeking God’s forgiveness of sins; the second ten days are for seeking God’s favour while the third ten days are devoted to asking for God’s blessings.
In the last ten days, Muslims are enjoined to be in seclusion in a mosque for serious prayers to achieve success in the world and in the hereafter. Those who have the wherewithal travel to Saudi Arabia for a lesser Hajj, known as Umurah.
It is also noteworthy that within the last ten days of Ramadan, Muslims look for and observe one memorable night called “Lailatul –Quadri, the Night of Majesty.”
According to Chapter ninety-seven verse three of the Holy Quran, the glorious night or the Night of Destiny is loaded with blessings much better than one thousand months put together. The Night is better observed on the 21st, 23rd, 25th and 27th of Ramadan. It was said to be a day when those who have been destined to enter hell will receive God’s mercy and enter paradise or those whose life have been uneventful will live a life of abundance.
Traditionally, during Ramadan, all hostilities and warfare cease. Unfortunately, the world is witnessing uprising, natural and manmade disasters. From Africa to the Middle East, the Americas to Europe, the world is not at peace.
Therefore one way to honour this holy month, is for all parties to any dispute or uprising to observe a ceasefire, and stop any act of terrorism.
World leaders should also use the month to evaluate their beliefs, policies and activities which have put the world on the edge of the precipice with a view to enhancing global peace and security.
For Broadcast on Wednesday August 3, 2011
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