Let us sum the change in the life matrix of the Muslims during the month of Ramadan, the month of fasting, or Saum.
While the entire neighbourhood of non Muslims sleep peacefully throughout the night, they seldom notice that suddenly the lights of flats or houses of Muslims are switched on after midnight and ladies of the house head toward the kitchen to prepare a pre meal for the Sehri (or Suhoor), a meal mandatory to consume before one commences the fast for the coming day. From here on, the pre-fast activities begin, which culminate into the next evening when the fast is broken and life becomes like routine before.
But what does happen between the Sheri or the Suhoor and Iftari, the breaking of fast in the evening, are the defining moments of changed matrix of the life of the believers. Let us just list these for details have been already published in number of posts which can be accessed from our reference page: Ramadan - A month of fasting and Blessings
Fast from dawn (Fajr) to sunset (Maghrib)
The fast begins at Fajr prayer and ends at Maghrib prayer. During this time, which ranges from any length even up to 20 hours in some countries.
Concessions in Fasting
Fasting is mandatory for all able bodied and healthy Adult Muslim men and women. Following are exempted from fasting:
- Young children
- The elderly who cannot fast
- People who are ill
- Pregnant or breastfeeding women (if fasting harms them)
- Travelers (They may make up missed fasts later or provide compensation (fidya), depending on circumstances.)
Prohibitions
A fasting Muslim is suddenly imposed many a restrictions, which are otherwise allowable for them. Some of these are:
- Abstain from food, drink and smoking. Even small amounts invalidate the fast.
- Abstain from marital relations during the period of fasting. However, these are allowed after breaking the fast at the Maghrab time till start of the Fajar time next morning.
- Abstain from acts of unbecoming conduct.
- Avoid sinful behavior: This includes cheating, dishonesty, backbiting, and harmful actions.
- Avoid lying, gossiping, arguing, and bad language. These don’t just reduce reward — they go against the spirit of fasting.
How to live the day of fasting
As mentioned earlier, the day begins with a pre-dawn meal called Sehri/Suhoor. The pre-dawn meal is highly recommended for strength and blessings. Thereafter, during the day, beside the daily chores/office work, one should find time to recite the Qur'an.
How does Ramadan changes the Life Matrix of Muslims
For eleven months, Muslims live like all ordinary men and women of any faith or religion and move through life on autopilot - the same routines, the same cravings, the same endless chase for more. The dunya wraps itself around us so tightly that we begin to forget we're even trapped.
But when the month of Ramadan begins, suddenly many things change in our life for next thirty days. In fact Ramadan simply interrupts our life style. It forces you to wake up before the world wakes up. It silences our desires and rewires our daily rhythm. And in this disruption, something extraordinary happens: a hidden doorway begins to open - a door to Divine blessings, for Allah promises that He exclusively rewards the fasting of His servants and rewards them with immense blessings, which is far more than the remaining eleven months of the year.
And suddenly, Muslims feel a change in their lives. The fasting teaches them how the poor suffer and feel when they do not get even a morsel of food throughout the day. It teaches us the importance of even a drop of water on our thirsty tongues. It teaches us how we suddenly leave otherwise every allowable acts not as a ritual, but for the pleasure of our Creator, upon whose commandment we fast and abstain from everything allowed for us otherwise.
The fasting teaches us how to feel the plight of have nots and how do they feel when devoid of all means of sustenance. This feeling is alike both for the poor and the rich - there is no concessions for anyone. All poor and rich undergo the same rigours of hunger and thirst throughout the day. This is the lesson which fasting teaches us as how to feel the plight and agony of those who are deprived of even the minimum means of sustenance and how we should help them and feel for them.
For this reason, Muslims are encouraged to dole out charities more than the rest of the year. Arrangements be made for providing food for Suhoor and iftar for the poor so that they also fast and do not have starve without food.
Remember! Fasting is not just about hunger. It reprograms the internal “matrix” of our lives: how we think, choose, react, and value things.
When one is hungry while fasting, but choose not to eat, one proves to one self: “I control my desires. They don’t control me.” That shift changes our internal operating system from impulse-driven to intention-driven living.
Herein under are visible effects that Ramadan leaves on the matrix of our lives:
- Fasting Resets Our Relationship With Desire
- In daily life, we act on impulse. That is when hungry we eat, when angry we react, when tired we quit or when tempted we indulge,
- But when Ramadan comes, fasting interrupts that automatic pattern. We learn how to rein in our desires which previously would overpower us since there were no restrictions. That shift changes your internal operating system from impulse-driven to intention-driven living.
- Fasting Reorders Priorities
- During Ramadan, food moves from constant to scheduled, entertainment reduces.
- On the contrary, our inclination to Prayer increases and reciting Al Qur'an the Reflection deepens.
- Our schedule reorganizes around purpose instead of pleasure.
- The month of Ramadan commemorates the revelation of the Qur’an to Prophet Muhammad, which is why many re-center their lives around spiritual growth.
- This reordering quietly asks: “What truly matters in my life?”
- Fasting Build Emotional Discipline
- While hunger makes makes us irritable and the fatigue tests our patience.
- Yet we are expected to: Stay calm, Avoid arguing, Control our tongue
- This rewires emotional reactions.
- Fasting Creates Empathy
- When we feel hunger, we understand poverty.
- When we feel vulnerability, we soften toward others.
- Charity (zakat and sadaqah) increases because fasting turns sympathy into lived experience.
- Fasting shifts our life matrix from Self-centered to Other-aware
- Fasting Strengthens Your Identity
- Fasting is done even when no one sees us. We could secretly eat - But we don’t. That builds integrity.
- Our identity shifts from “I behave well when watched” to “I live by values even when alone.”
- That internal alignment is powerful.
- Fasting Teaches Delayed Gratification
- Modern life says: “Now. Faster. Instant.” - But fasting teaches: “Wait.” for waiting builds strength.
- Research in psychology consistently shows that delayed gratification predicts: (1) Better self-control, (2) Better long-term decision-making, (3) Higher resilience
- In fact Ramadan becomes a 30-day training camp for willpower.
- Fasting makes us Aware of Blessings
- Water tastes different at sunset.
- A date feels luxurious.
- A simple meal feels abundant.
- In fact fasting transforms ordinary things into miracles.
- Gratitude increases - Complaints decrease - and our abundance matrix changes.
- Fasting Redefines Freedom
- We think freedom means: “Doing whatever I want.”
- But Fasting teaches: “Freedom is mastering what I want.”
- That’s a profound shift.
So How Does It Change the Matrix of Our Lives? It moves us from impulse to intention, consumption to consciousness, Reaction to Reflection, Ego to Humility, Comfort to Growth, and Scarcity mindset to Gratitude mindset
If practiced sincerely, fasting doesn’t just change our month, instead it changes our baseline self. Try changing your life matrix while fasting. Let fasting this Ramadan leave a reflective impact on our life matrix forever.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
May Allah show us the right path so that we do not go astray due to what man has interpreted verses of religious scriptures to suit their own religions and faith. Aameen.
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