By Shazad
The Muslim month of Ramadhan started last week and for over a Billion Muslims, this is a very spiritual time of the year. The communal prayers, fasting, and charitable giving are common themes shared by all Muslims around the world. There are at least 3 life lessons I have learned in this holy month and I’m going to share how everyone can benefit from these regardless of whether you are a Muslim or not. Consider these the literal equivalent of 3 juicy dates to break your fast today.
The first important lesson is “Less is More”. As we observe fasting from before dawn to local sunset time, we realize how to survive on less food, water, sleep, and free time. We understand the benefit of quality food and having space in our calendar for fewer but more meaningful things like contemplation about our spiritual life. Muslims are instructed to give up bad habits and shun entertainment as well as vain discussions. This allows us to find what is meaningful in life. This elimination of unnecessary thoughts and activities helps the believer realize what is truly essential and how to return to these things whenever we need to.
The second important lesson is made possible after the first one. It’s the ability to go deep in study to focus on something. For practicing Muslims, the study of the Holy Quran and participation in additional congregational prayers allows for greater spiritual understanding and brotherhood. In a distracted world with so many things competing for our attention, we’ve lost the ability to go deep in thought and actually study anything in great detail. By taking the time each day to read, contemplate, and integrate knowledge into our daily life, we become wiser and happier.
The third important lesson we should all learn in Ramadhan is compassion for others. By experiencing this voluntary hardship of hunger, thirst, and disturbance in sleep, we should develop an understanding of what other people of the world are going through. The ability to empathize with the poor, the sick, and those suffering from various mental issues should encourage us to behave better in society. Muslims are encouraged to give more to charity as well as volunteer their time on a regular basis. Everyone can develop more consideration for fellow human beings if we just remember what struggles and pain we have faced in life. We should feel connected to everyone else and live in a way that benefits society as much as possible.
So there you have it. Ramadhan is not just about staying away from food and drink during daylight hours or having big feasts with family and friends at sunset. There are powerful life lessons about what is truly essential, how to focus attention, and the ways we are all connected. To our Muslim readers, we say Ramadhan Mubarak! To all of the rest of you, we wish you a purposeful, prosperous, and pious life.
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