Iftar tables, which are enough for couple of meals, are not in accordance with the spirit of worship!

Experts say that during fasting, people strengthen their spiritual bonds with Allah because they worship Allah throughout the day, and that there is also a situation where they learn, feel and experience the situation of the people in need and the poor by going hungry.

Sufi researcher Prof. Reşat Öngören stated that "Fasting is a training of patience for people" and expressed that "It is in accordance with the spirit of worship to have iftar with a menu that is at least not too luxurious and enough to fill one's stomach to feel the situation of the poor and people in need at iftar."

Üsküdar University Institute for Sufi Studies faculty member Prof. Reşat Öngören evaluated the issue of how the Ramadan table should be suitable for the spirit of Ramadan.

"There are two dimensions to fasting"

Prof. Reşat Öngören stated that there are two dimensions to the fasting worship in the month of Ramadan and expressed that "One is the dimension of the servant's relationship with Allah, we can call it the vertical dimension. The other is the relationship of the servant with the social environment, which we can call the horizontal dimension. When we look at the issue in terms of the vertical dimension, since people worship Allah all day long, and they strengthen their spiritual bonds with Him. At the same time, fasting worship has a horizontal dimension, and it has benefits for people in terms of social relations. For human beings, fasting is an education of patience, and more importantly, it is the state of learning, feeling, and experiencing the situation of people in need and the poor by going hungry."

"Luxurious tables contradict the emotion felt throughout the day"

Stating that people have the opportunity to empathize with people in need while fasting, Prof. Reşat Öngören said that "Then a person who is hungry all day long will feel hardship and how the poor suffer. When a person sits at the iftar table with these feelings, if the iftar table is in the form of luxurious tables set up by ultra-rich people, then a situation contradicts the feeling one feels throughout the day. It is also in accordance with the spirit of worship to have iftar with a menu that is at least not too luxurious and enough to fill one's stomach to feel the situation of the poor and people in need at iftar."

"The feeling of supporting the poor is gained through fasting"

Noting that fasting must not considered as just skipping a meal, and that if there is a situation of empathizing with the poor, developing a sense of patience, then it is necessary to continue this at iftars, Prof. Reşat Öngören said that "In this case, the feeling of supporting the poor is gained through fasting worship both after Ramadan and during Ramadan since people will develop the sense of helping the poor."

““It is not appropriate to prepare an iftar table in such a way that is enough for couple of meals”

Prof. Reşat Öngören also stated that since fasting is a worship that reminds people of those in need, it is in accordance with the spirit of fasting worship for a person in need to prepare a menu by considering how a poor person can set a table to feel this at iftar, and said that "Therefore, it would not be very appropriate for a person who is hungry all day long to prepare an iftar table in a way that can be enough for a few meals, as if rewarding themselves."

"We cannot continue to open our iftars with lavish tables while we watch our brothers and sisters starve to death in Gaza"

Prof. Reşat Öngören stated that "If we continue to have our iftars at iftar tables with luxurious meals while we watch our brothers and sisters die of hunger due to the events in Gaza today, then we will show that the social dimension of this worship has no effect on us," and continued his remarks as follows:

"If we feel this situation that they are experiencing, it is expected that people who are truly fasting will not be able to eat at iftar tables but will have a lump in their throats. In that case, we will feel that fasting has an impact on people with its social dimension, and we will have placed this sense of empathy in Ramadan as well.

"We should remember our brothers and sisters in Gaza and make plans on how we can deliver our zakat, fitrah and aid"

Now, another dimension of the work is that after experiencing this feeling, one should look for ways to help those in need and how to support those poor people after feeling this in themselves. Especially, remembering our brothers and sisters in Gaza, we must make our zakat, fitrah, as well as the Qur'an's command to 'Malî Cihad', and we must both calculate how we can deliver our extra aid and make plans to achieve this."

"Although zakat can be given at any time of the year, it is especially recommended to give it during Ramadan"

Emphasizing empathy with the poor in the month of Ramadan, Prof. Reşat Öngören stated that "We should remember all people in need, especially those children in Gaza, on the occasion of this fasting, on the occasion of the month of Ramadan. There is fitrah and zakat in our religion. Fitrahs are given during Ramadan. However, although zakat can be given at any time of the year, it is recommended to give it especially during Ramadan. It is stated that its reward will be higher."

Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)