Know that fasting is one of the pillars of religion. It has two special qualities:
- It’s to naturalize in not doing something rather than an action.
- It is a victory over Satan, for Satan’s armies are carnal appetites, and fasting is the abandonment of those appetites.
Prophetic Practices of Fasting
Know that the Prophetic practices of fasting are six:
- Delay the pre-dawn meal
- Hasten to break the fast with the dates or water before prayer
- Brush your teeth in the afternoon
- Be generous
- Recite the Quran
- Seclusion
Degrees of Fasting
Know that fasting has three degrees.
The lowest degree is of the common folk: that is simply restraining the stomach and genitalia
The fasting of the select: that is restraining all bodily limbs. This lies in six things:
- Restraining the eye from looking at things that distract one from God
- Restraining the tongue from foolish talk and other harms
- Restraining the ear from listening to improper things
- Restraining the hands, feet, and all bodily parts from the indecent
- Restraining the stomach from overeating after breaking the fast
- Maintaining a state of humility after breaking your fast.
God is your judge, and it is God who will decide your reward. The highest degree is the fasting of the spiritual elite; it is to restrain the soul from thought of all things except God. One must give oneself entirely to God and fast from everything inwardly and outwardly.