Chapter VI: Secrets of Fasting
(3) To restrain the ear from hearing the evil talks because what is unlawful to utter is also unlawful to hear. For this reason, God placed the eater of unlawful food and the hearer of unlawful words on the same level. God says: The hearers of falsehood and eaters of unlawful food - 5:46. God says: Why do not the God- fearing men and the worldly renunciated men prohibit talking sinful words and unlawful eating - 5:68? To remain silent at the time of back-biting is unlawful. God says: You are then like them - 9 : 139. Thus said the Prophet: The back-biter and the hearer of back-biting are equal cosharers in sin.
(4) To save hand, feet and other organs from sins, from evil deeds and to save belly from doubtful things at the time of breaking fast. There is no meaning of fasting if it is kept with lawful food and broken with unlawful food. He is like a man who destroys a town for constructing a building. It is also injurious to eat lawful food in excess and hot to eat it little. He who fasts and does evil deeds is like a patient who restrains himself from eating fruits for fear of disease but who swallows poison. A sin is like eating poison. He who drinks this poison .is a fool. An unlawful thing is like poison and it destroys
Vol-I THE BOOK OF WORSHIP 185
religion and a lawful thing is like a medicine. Its little does benefit and its much spoils. The Prophet said: There are many fasting men who do not gain by fasting except hunger and thirst.
On being asked the reason, he said: He refrains from eating lawful food and breaks fast by eating human flesh by back-biting.
That is unlawful.
(5) To eat even lawful food so much at the time of breaking fast that it fills up the belly. A belly filled up with too much lawful food is hated more than all other reservoirs. A fasting man eats in full at the time of breaking fast what he could not eat during day time. He prepares different kinds of foods. The object of fast is to keep belly vacant in order to control passion and to increase God-fear. If the belly remains full from morning to evening, sexual passion rises high and greed and temptation reign supreme.