TODAY, as people draw away from spirituality and suffer the outcomes of moral degeneracy, the number of unhappy people increases.
In today’s world, where friendship and brotherhood are not considered priorities, where love, compassion and understanding are long-forgotten values and where material gains are considered the most important things, people can’t help but long for the old friendships and unbreakable bonds of pure love that existed only in the past.
No wonder that the biggest dream of today’s people immersed in daily life’s hustle and bustle is a world of peace and love where there are no more conflicts, battles, problems and hypocrisy.
Needless to say, everyone is complaining of this world that has lost its morality and that is painfully suffering from a complete breakdown. Everyone is yearning for those old times when the world was a much more peaceful place where people greeted each other on the streets even if they were not acquaintances. Back in those days, people didn’t need to lock their doors as love, trust and friendship prevailed. Today many people can only dream of such things.
Surely, old Ramadans were a very important part of the loving atmosphere of the past. Everyone knows that in the holy month of Ramadan, a time of purification and doing good deeds, people spent their time in complete solidarity and bonding in the past. That’s why we reminisce about those old days of solidarity when young, old, poor, rich, literally everyone bonded with love and stood as one.
Just like today, Muslims of the past enjoyed the sweet anticipation and exhilaration before this holy month. This excitement would usually start as early as the beginning of the “Three Months” as an all-consuming spirit of festivity spread all around the cities. Streets, mosques and minarets were illuminated, adorned and cleaned as Muslims all around the Islamic world awaited the arrival of this beautiful month. Streets, houses and mosques went through a very thorough cleaning process to be ready for the spirituality of Ramadan.
Everyone would invite each other over to iftar dinners and would gladly welcome even unannounced guests as “Guests from God”. The hosts with the highest number of guests would consider themselves as the most blessed.
The rich would keep their doors open for a whole month and people would directly walk in and break their fasts even if they weren’t invited; they weren’t asked about who they were or where they came from, but were immediately welcomed with great warmth. Mansions and manors acted almost as houses of feasts for a whole month. After the iftar, everyone would go to the mosque together for tarawih in unison, only to be followed by suhur meals and morning prayer, once again performed all together.
There was no separation between rich and poor, black and white, or no questioning of language or race. The rich would revel in the opportunity to help the poor and made sure that everything they needed was well provided. All the blessings and richness were equally and loving shared by everyone, regardless of them being Muslims, Christians or Jews.
Thus the unique spirit of old Ramadans embraced the whole Islamic world, softened all hearts and everyone approached one another with feelings of compassion and peace. All people welcomed each other with love and peace, regardless of religion, sect, language, race or views and this beautiful spirituality that God wants for us surrounded everyone.
Muslims took this opportunity to elevate their souls even more and benefited from this beautiful background of deep spirituality to get closer to God.
We hope that the days when foundations of love and friendship will be laid are close and love, compassion, altruism, understanding and reconciliation will prevail in the world. The whole world will find enlightenment with this era, and the long-lost values of love, respect and justice will reappear and needless to say, in those glorious days, Ramadans will be even more beautiful and warm.
Muslims will put away their old resentments and once again bond with each other with love. They will break their fasts together in blessed feast tables with love as feelings of peace and brotherhood spread everywhere.
We believe that very soon, Muslims will hug each other with love and the Islamic world will once again live in peace and serenity. We believe that hearts will blossom with seeds of love, and the whole of humanity will unite around love and brotherhood. People will love God with an incredible passion and the excitement and joy of seeing the infinite beauty of God and His incredible manifestations on His creation will embrace everyone. We all pray to see this magnificent atmosphere of love very soon.
Adnan Oktar's piece on New Straits Times:
