Abdul Muqit Chowdhury :Roza (fasting) is the third Rukn of Islam. The holy Quran ordains fasting obligatory on capable Muslims. The Sunnah demonstrates the way to perform fasting with rituals and also describes unique merit of this injunction. Fasting begins after Sahri and ends with Iftar. Having a pre-dawn meal is called Sahri and breaking fasting with light food at sunset is called Iftar. The holy Quran directs : ” And eat and drink/Until the white thread/Of dawn appears to you/Distinct from its black thread;/ Then complete your fast/Till the night appears: … “. [ (2:187) (The Meanings of the holy Qur’an by Maulana Abdullah Yusuf Ali)]The time of fasting is in between these two limits. Sahri is to be taken before the end of Subhe Sadeq. Even if one feels no appetite for food, a glass of water at least may be taken as Sahri. Iftar is to be taken at the sunset. Rasulullah (SM) said : “Take Sahri, because in it lies abundance.” (Bukhari and Muslim Sharif). About Iftar Rahmatullil Alameen said : “Allah accepts the supplication of the rozadar at the time of Iftar.” He also said: “Rozadar is endowed with two virtues : One at the time of Iftar that his/her prayer is accepted. Another is the meeting with the Lord of the worlds on the Day of Resurrection”. (Bukhari Sharif)The Rozadar should be cautious at the time of taking Iftar. He/she should take food at the proper time as per the guidelines. Over eating is detrimental to health. Wastage is forbidden. It leads to the deprivation of the needy and destitute ones. The holy Quran forbids extravagance and wastage : ”The extravagant are brothers of Satan.” So, those who are extravagant and commit wastage in the name of Sahri and Iftar, go against the socio-economic norms and values of Islam. They should be conscious about the haven’t and hungry people for whom they have great responsibility, as Islam, the religion of human brotherhood lays great stress on humanistic ideal and humanitarian duty for the distressed.
