Every person who fasts knows well that fasting cannot be done without a strong will. In the state of fasting, a person remains hungry and thirsty from dawn to sunset. This state has three things in it simultaneously. The first is that a person abstains from the things he likes and desires. When hungry, even onions and sauces feel more satisfying than delicious food, but the fasting person controls himself and refrains from all kinds of food and drinks even though they are available. This is not possible without strong will.
The second thing is ‘need’. Food and drink is the basic need of a human being without which he feels weak and finds it difficult to perform routines. But the fasting person uses his strong will, withstands the weakness and abstains from food and drink. The third and greatest thing is the pain and suffering that comes from enduring hunger and thirst. But once again, due to the strength of his will, the fasting person remains steadfast upon the worship of fasting for a month despite the hardships of weather, hunger and thirst.
Unfortunately this fasting person, who stands strong in the face of desires, needs and pain, for a month, forgets his strong will immediately after Ramadan. He falls victim to petty sins, desires, and evil impulses. However, if a fasting person decides in the month of Ramadan that by using the willpower on which he endured the hardships of fasting, he will give up every sin during Ramadan and thereafter, then without a doubt, this is a trivial matter for the person’s will power. If someone achieves this in Ramadan, then without a doubt, he has definitely achieved the success of Paradise in Ramadan.
Translated by Ali Zafar