Here are the origins of the fast, a sacred ritual of worship with ancient roots!
As highlighted in Surah Baqarah, fasting has been made obligatory upon Muslims during the Holy month of Ramadan, just as it was made so for earlier people of different faiths.
The practice of religious fasting can be traced back to the earliest civilization of Mesopotamia, where it was seen as a way to appease the gods and seek their favor. Fasting was also practiced in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome, where it was believed to bring about spiritual enlightenment and improve physical health.
According to the Biblical account, the ancient civilizations of Nineveh and Babylon were once inhabited by the Assyrians, and were visited by the Prophet Jonah (sws). Although they initially rejected Jonah’s prophethood, they later came to profess faith in him, leading to their repentance and return to the righteous path by the way of fasting.
This significant event is recorded in the Bible and recounts the story of the people’s redemption in following words:
The Ninevites believed in God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat down in the dust. Then he issued a proclamation in Nineveh: By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. (Jonah, 3:5-8)
The historical records also suggest that the Quraysh tribe had a tradition of fasting on the day of ‘Ashur, during which they would congregate to celebrate Eid and enshroud the Ka‘bah. It is believed that they fasted on this day to expiate a grave sin committed during the days of Jahiliyyah, which weighed heavily on their conscience. By fasting on this day, they expressed their gratitude to God for saving them from the evil consequences of their sin.
Interestingly, some sources indicate that even before his prophethood, Muhammad (sws) observed this fast in accordance with the tradition of his people.
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Yet another reason for observing a fast on this day is attributed to the time of severe famine, when the Almighty saved them from it. Thus, in gratitude for His mercy, they began to observe this fast.
The practice of fasting is also present in the shari‘ah of the People of the Book. The Bible contains numerous references to fasting and uses phrases such as “saddening oneself” and “self-denial” to describe this act of worship.
- There’s a record in Exodus:
Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel’. Moses was there with the LORD for forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.(34:27-28)
- There’s a record in Leviticus:
This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month, you must sadden and not do any work, whether native-born or an alien living among you, because on this day atonement will be made for you to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins. It is a sabbath of rest, and you must sadden yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance. (16: 29-31)
- There’s a record in Judges:
Then the Israelites, all the people, went up to Bethel, and there they sat weeping before the LORD. They fasted that day until evening and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to the LORD. (20:26)
- There’s a record in Samuel:
They mourned and wept and fasted till evening for Saul and his son Jonathan, and for the army of the LORD and the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. (2 Samuel 1:12)
David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted, went into his house, and spent the nights lying on the ground. (2 Samuel 12:16)
- There’s a record in Nehemiah:
On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting, wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads. Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers. (9:1-2)
- There’s a record in the Psalms:
Yet when they were ill, I put on a sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered. (35:13)
- There’s a record in Jeremiah:
So you go to the house of the Lord on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the Lord that you wrote as I dictated. (36:6)
- There’s a record in Joel:
The day of the LORD is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it? ‘Even now,’ declares the LORD, ‘return to me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping and mourning.’ Rend your heart, not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. (2:11-13)
- There’s a record in Zechariah:
Again, the word of the Lord Almighty came to me. This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘The fasts of the fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months will become joyful and glad occasions and happy festivals for Judah. Therefore, love truth and peace.’ (8:18-19)
- There’s a record in Matthew:
‘When you fast, do not look sombre (dull) as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen, and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (6:16-18)
- There’s a record in Acts:
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said: ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them’. So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. (13:2-3)
It is evident from this overview that, like the prayer, the fast was also well known to the Arabs in Arabia in pre-Islamic times. The mere existence of the word صوم (sawm) in Arabic is evidence enough to show that the Arabs were fully aware of its religious status and its details, viz. its bounds and limits.
Consequently, when the Qur’an directed them to fast, these bounds and limits were not unknown to them; in fact, the words in which this directive was given show that they should observe it as an obligatory ritual, which they knew as an age-old ritual and an age-old Sunnah of the prophets. The Prophet (sws) and his Companions (rta) fasted on this very basis, and Muslims after them are following this practice generation after generation. Viewed thus, the source of the fast is also the consensus and tawatur (practical perpetuation) of the Muslims. The only thing that the Qur’an did was make the fast an obligatory ritual, stipulating certain principles of lenience for the sick and travelers, pregnant women & the lactating mothers.
**Based on the research insights of Ghamidi Centre for Islamic Learning