A new article by Tarek Mehanna (for Eid): In here, some of us make it a point to get by on the basics (coffee, oats, etc.) and avoid the more opulent items available in the governments prison commissary. The sole exception is Id, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The days of Tashriq are days of eating, drinking, and dhikr of Allah. Another narration of the hadith states: Dont fast these days, because they are days of eating, drinking, and dhikr of Allah. Another narration states: They are days of eating, drinking, and Salah. Another narration states: Whoever is fasting should break his fast, because these are days of eating and drinking. Another narration states: These are not days of fasting. The encouragement is thus quite strong for everyone to make these days different, to the point that you are prohibited from fasting even if you want to. In his book Lataif al-Maarif, Ibn Rajab al-Hambali spent a few pages explaining why. Id like to share with you samples of what he wrote: * For the believer, the days of Tashriq combine the physical pleasure of eating & drinking with the spiritual pleasure of remembering Allah and thanking Him. This is how blessings are perfected. And when they thank Him for a blessing, that act of gratitude is itself a blessing that deserves gratitude. In this way, the gratitude is unceasing. * The Prophets statement that they are days of eating, drinking, and dhikr of Allah points to the primary purpose behind eating & drinking during the days of Id, and that is to help you remember and obey Him. Its from the perfection of gratitude for His blessing that that blessing be used to obey Him, and Allah has commanded in the Quran that we eat pure, wholesome foods and then thank Him for it. Whoever uses the blessings of Allah to disobey Him is in fact ungrateful for those blessings and has exchanged them for ingratitude, and deserves to have such blessings snatched away. * This is especially true when it comes to eating the meat of slaughtered animals during the days of Tashriq, because these animals obey Allah and dont rebel against Him. They praise Him and submit to Him, as He said: {...there is nothing except that it praises Him...} (17:44) They prostrate to Him, as He mentioned in the surahs of an-Nahl and al-Hajj - and they may even be more mindful of Allah than some humans, as in the hadith reported in the Musnad which states: An animal might be better than the person riding it, and remember Allah more than he does. And Allah mentioned in the Quran that many Jinn and humans are like cattle, and are in fact more astray. * Allah permitted His believing slaves to slaughter these animals which obey Him and remember Him so that they may strengthen their bodies and enjoy eating their meat, as meat is from the best and tastiest of foods. Even though the body can be sustained on a vegetarian diet, meat is what gives the body full power, intellect, and enjoyment. He allowed the believers to kill these animals and eat their meat to give them full strength and intellect, thus helping them discover the beneficial knowledge and sound actions which distinguish humans from animals, and to remember Him - and the believer remembers Allah more than animals do. Therefore, its only fitting that a believer respond to such blessings by being grateful for them and using them to obey and remember Allah. Allah elevated humans over many other forms of creation, and He put these animals at their service. He said: {So, eat from it and feed it to the poor - those who beg, and those who dont beg. Such did I put them at your service so that you may thank Me.} (22:36) * And there is a beautiful secret behind the prohibition on fasting these days and the command to eat & drink in them. This secret is that because Allah knows the difficulty, exhaustion, and struggle experienced by those who visit His House and fulfill the rituals of Hajj, He has them relax after this by staying at Mina on the day of Id and the three days after it, where He commanded them to eat from the meat of the animals theyd sacrificed. They are guests of Allah, enjoying His mercy and kindness. * People from all over the world participate with them in this just as they did in attaining forgiveness from Allah and exerting themselves in the first ten days of Dhu al-Hijjah through fasting, Dhikr, and other forms of worship. They participate with them in attaining forgiveness and closeness to Allah by spilling the blood of their slaughtered animals. So, they participated with them in their Id, and everyone has a share in the relaxation of the days of Id by eating and drinking, just as they all participated in the exertion in worship in the first ten days. All of the Muslims thus find themselves as guests of Allah during these days, eating from what He provided and thanking Him for His blessings. * Fasting is prohibited these days because it doesnt befit the Generous One to leave His guests hungry. Its as if its being said to the believers these days: Youve finished your actions. All thats left is for you to relax. This relaxation is in response to that exhaustion, just like He relaxes those who fast in Ramadan by having them break their fast on Id al-Fitr. You can see that this is analogous to a believers existence in this world in that your entire life is a journey like the Hajj; its a time of ihram for the believer from the desires that Allah has prohibited. Whoever is patient during the journey and desists from following his whims will find that when his journey/life come to and end and he reaches his destination of Mina, he will have ended his period of unkemptness and fulfilled his vow (22:29). Thus, all of his days will be days of Mina - days of eating & drinking & dhikr of Allah - and he will find himself as a guest of Allah, in His presence for eternity. This is why it will be said to the inhabitants of Paradise: {Eat and drink in relaxation because of what you used to do in past days.} (69:24) * As for the holidays of the believers in Paradise, theyre the days in which they visit their Lord. They visit Him, and He treats them with utmost generosity. He becomes visible to them, they look at Him, and nothing that He gives them will be more beloved to them than this. * Every holiday for the Muslims in this life will be a holiday for them in Paradise in which they gather to visit their Lord, Who will appear to them. In Paradise, Fridays will be known as the Day of Increase, and the days of Id al-Fitr and Id al-Adha will be days that the residents of Paradise will gather to visit Allah. Its been narrated that women will participate with men in these two days just as they now attend the Id prayers in this life, in exclusion to the Friday prayers. This is for the general masses of the residents of Paradise. As for the chosen elite amongst them, each day will be a holiday for them in which they visit their Lord twice - once in the morning, once in the evening. Each day in this life is a holiday for these chosen elite, and each day in the next will therefore also be a holiday. * The pillars upon which Islam is built are five: the Shahadatan, the Salah, the Zakah, the fast of Ramadan, and the Hajj. Each of the holidays of the general masses of Muslims in this life occurs at the completion of the weekly cycle of prayers (i.e., Friday), the completion of fasting (i.e., Id al-Fitr), and the Hajj (i.e., Id al-Adha). In these days, the Muslims all assemble in large gatherings. As for the Zakah, it isnt bound by a specific time to be taken as a holiday. Rather, anyone who has the minimum amount of wealth necessitating that the Zakah be paid does so on his own terms. * As for the Shahadatan (that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and Muhammad is His Messenger), their completion and perfection occur once their rights are fulfilled. It is the chosen elite of the believers who exert themselves in this incessantly. As a result, every moment of their existence both in this life and the next is considered Id, as ash-Shibli would recite in poetry: My Id remains, and the peoples Id departs; My heart has been turned away from pleasures; I have two companions from whom I can never part: A constant yearning, and an eye left blind by its tears... May Allah accept our righteous actions, make us of the chosen elite, and continue to give victory to the Khilafah. Written by: Tariq Mehanna Wednesday, the 7th of Dhu al-Hijjah 1435 (1st of October 2014) Marion CMU
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 04:44:18 +0000
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