Muslims all over the world are receiving gaily Ramadan, praying to God for making it the month of goodness and blessing. Allah distinguishes this month among the other months by providing it with a great number of excellences and merits. In this context, Sheikh Salman Bin Fahd Al-Ouda clarifies these excellences and enumerates the merits of fasting, saying:

1. Fasting is a prevention from the Hell as stated in the compiler of Imam Ahmed reporting that Jabir reported that Prophet (may peace be upon him) said,” Fasting is a prevention for the human being from the Hell”. In an agreed-upon Hadith , Abu Said Al-Khudary (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may peace be upon him) said,” Any Muslim fasts a day for the sake of Allah, Allah places his face at the distance of the Hell by this day for seventy autumns”. Thus, the fasting is a prevention from the Hell. The more days a Muslim fasts, the more he/she places him(her)self from the Hell. Fasting a day gives a prevention from the Hell for seventy autumns; if so, what do you think about fasting for a whole month or for three days a month? Surely, you will be utterly at a complete distance of the Hell.

2. Fasting is a prevention from the sensual desires. In an agreed-upon Hadith, Ibn Masoud (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may peace be upon him) said,” O Young men, anyone of you can make sexual intercourse, he should marry because this is safer for the vision and pudendum. Whoever cannot do, he can fast as fasting has in itself an infallibility”. Here, the Messenger (may peace be upon him) orders the young men to marry and he recommends them to fast if they cannot afford the marriage costing. Moreover, our Prophet shows that Fasting is a preventive tool against the sensual desires that easily dominate one’s soul.

Fasting is especially for the young men complaining about the overwhelming desires at a time full of temptations. Nowadays, a young man is complaining about coming across the adorning women at markets or seeing the naked models on the magazines’ covers. In all his movements, a young man is pursued everywhere by the sexual desires and temptations, taking into consideration the instinctive and sensual components of one’s nature as well as the moral restraint or deterrence that is so weak in a great number of young people. For those, we present this prophetic gift that is considered a vital prescription given by the Prophetic Medicine to whoever complains about the overwhelming desires and lust. This prescription is tested, proving a great success and sufficiency.

3. Fasting is a road to the Paradise. Al-Nas’ai reported that Abu Imama (may Allah be pleased with him) said,” O Allah’s Messenger, tell me about a doing makes me as close as possible from the Paradise and makes me as distant as possible from the Hell. The Prophet (may peace be upon him) said to him,’ Fast as nothing like fasting will give you what you want”. The Prophet then explained the benefits of Fasting as a tool for preventing one’s soul from the Hell and a road to the Paradise. Further, the Paradise has a gate called Al-Rayan specially dedicated for the fasters. In an agreed-upon Hadith, Sahal Ibn Saa’d (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet ( may peace be upon him) said,” The Paradise has a gate called Al-Rayan through which the fasters enter the Paradise. After the fasters enter the Paradise through it, Al-Rayan is closed before anybody else”.

4. Fasting is a way of intercession for the fasters. In this regard, Abdullah Ibn
Amr Ibn Alas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may peace be upon him) said,” Qur’an and Fasting are a way of intercession for the Muslim human being at the Resurrection Day. At that time, Fasting says, ’O God, You forbid him the food and drink, then accept my intercession for him’. Qur’an says, ’O God, You forbid him from sleeping at night, then accept my intercession for him’. The Prophet (may peace be upon him) said,’ Allah accepts their intercessions”. Here in this Hadith, Allah’s Messenger gives the evidence that Fasting will turn at the Resurrection Day to be a being that has the ability to speak and consider. At that time, Fasting will say,’ O God, accept my intercession for the faster as you forbid him/her from the food, drink and lust’.

5. Ramadan is the month of Qur’an; it is the month when Qur’an was
revealed. Revelation here has two meanings. The first one refers to the
revelation of Qur’an from the Preserved Tablet to the Heaven as reported by Ibn Abbas. Perhaps the meaning is the first night of revealing Qur’an was at the Night of Fate, one of the remarkable Ramadan nights. It has been said that the meaning of’ Ramadan is month when Qur’an has been revealed’ is that the Glorious Qur’an mentions and praises the merits of this holy month. But the first interpretation is more acceptable than the second one. On the other hand, Ramadan is the month of patience as fasting is a sport of patience. As we know, the reward of patience is Paradise. Additionally, nothing is related to patience as it is with Fasting; person is deprived from the food, drink and
sexual intercourse during the whole month.
Another excellence of this month is that the gates of the Hell are totally closed whereas the gates of the Paradise are completely opened as well as the devils and the giants of demons are chained as stated in agreed upon Hadith that Prophet (may peace be upon him) said,” On the arrival of Ramadan, the gates of the Hell are closed and the gates of the Paradise are opened whereas the demons are handcuffed (‘chained’ as uttered in another Hadith)”. In Ramadan, the Satan is chained for preventing its access to the human beings. Thus, one can notice that the devilish insinuation is less in Ramadan than the other months. Satan fears Ramadan as it does with the call to the prayer and performing of the prayer.