الصیام وتأثیره الشامل في حیاة الإنسان فى ضوء الصحيح البخارى

Fasting and its Comprehensive Impact on Human Life in The Light of Saheeh Al Bukhari

Abstract

In Islam, fasting (called ṣawm in Arabic:صَوم  (, or ṣiyām صيام is the practice of abstaining from food, drink, sexual activity, and anything that substitutes food and drink. During the holy month of Ramadan, fasting is observed between dawn and sunset when the prayer call of the dawn prayer and the sunset prayer is called. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim lunar calendar and fasting is a requirement for able Muslims as it is the fourth of the five pillars of Islam.

Religious fasting is not a uniquely Muslim practice; it has been practiced for centuries by religions such as Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Judaism, and Taoism, among others. It is stated in the Quran that Allah says:

O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may develop God-consciousness.

Fasting furnishes social, moral and spiritual values followed by several additional opportunities for devotion, meditation and reciting the Holy Qur'an. In fact, this avenue ensures harmony and equality and terminates all kinds of disparities and discrepancies in society. It further creates a sense of awareness and empathy, and thus people help each other and socialize. Here the rich people experience the pangs of hunger and thirst and thus fulfil their obligations with respect to the poor. In some cases, affluent people welcome their poverty-stricken neighbors and give them best hospitality throughout the month of  with the intention to get the reward from Allah the Almighty.

Apart from social and spiritual avenues, the fasting of Ramaḍān has abundant personal avenues in the prism of health convenience. Over the years, modern science has come up with copious reports on the benefits of intermittent fasting. It has been a green area for health professionals as they have found the observance of fasting as a great means to improve the health conditions and bring mental and physical soundness to the body. Here are some salient aspects where the body acquires fitness and procures robustness with the observance of intermittent fasting like the fasting of Ramdan.

Fasting triggers, the body to start stem cells into producing new white blood cells that reciprocally regenerate the whole immune system and help the body repel infections. Along with that, research has also shown that an intermittent time can bring in an increase in human growth hormone.

Recent discoveries show that fasting for at least 3 days can regenerate a whole system. The discovery could be particularly beneficial for people who suffer from damaged immune systems, as in the case of cancer patients on chemotherapy and, therefore, the elderly whose immune systems became less effective. This is often thanks to prolonged fasting that forces the body to utilize the availability of glucose and fat and the breakdown of a considerable portion of White Blood Cells.