God and His Prophet love moderation in worship, and condemn excess, since the latter often leads to default in duties which are obligatory, or failure in deeds which are better and more useful, or it leads to the commission of things which are forbidden and undesirable. God does not love or approve of torturing the body or subjecting oneself to hardship. It is not true that the more arduous the act the better it is. Many ignorant people think that reward is proportionate to the hardship one suffers. No, this is not true. Reward is proportionate to the good that the act produces and the benefits that follow from it, as well as the extent or degree to which one obeys the command of God and His Prophet.
What is required of us, and what God and His Prophet want us to observe is moderation in worship (`ibadah). The Prophet has said, “Live a balanced life and pursue moderation.M7 He has also said, “This religion is well balanced. Whoever tries to stretch it in any direction shall be defeated. Therefore, take help from (the prayers of) early morning and evening, and from some of them in late night. Observe moderation, observe moderation; you will reach the destination.”" Both these ahadith are in the Sahih collections. Ubayy Ibn Ka`b,M9 a Companion of the Prophet, has said, “Moderation in practices approved (sunnah) is better than exertion in things not approved (bid `ah).”
When excessive exertion in devotion becomes harmful and hinders the performance of duties which are more beneficial, it is forbidden. An example is the fasting which weakens you so much that you are not able to earn your livelihood which is your duty, or affects your mind so much that you are unable to think properly and attend to your duties, or interferes with the jihad which is obligatory. Similar is the case of a devotional act which lands you in evils that outweigh the good it produces. For example, you give all your money in charity and then go to people begging.
If devotions render you so weak that you are not able to pursue what is better or land you in what is undesirable, they are not desirable… The Quran says: “You who believe! Make not unlawful the good things which God has made lawful for you, and commit no excess; for God loves not those who are given to excess” (5:87). This verse was revealed in the case of some Companions of the Prophet who swore in a meeting that they would give themselves to devotions. Someone said that he would fast every day; another said he would pray all night; the third said he would not eat meat; the fourth said he would keep away from women. God reproved these people in the above verse and warned them against forbidding themselves things which are lawful, like eating meat or marrying women, thereby committing excess, which is doing more than what is approved whether it is excess in fasting, praying, reading the Quran, making dhikr or anything else. Excess in forbidden things is to forbid oneself more than what is forbidden, and excess in permitted things is to indulge in them more than what is permitted. God also commanded this group of Companions to atone for the oath they had taken, an oath to forbid themselves the lawful and commit excess in devotions.
A hadith reported by Anas and recorded in both S a h i h collections says that some Companions of the Prophet inquired from his wives about his devotions at home. Then one of them said, “As for me, I will fast (every day) and will not eat.” Another said, I will pray all night and will not sleep.” The third said, “I will not marry any woman.” The fourth said, “I will not eat meat.” When the Prophet came to know this, he said, “What is the matter with these people who are saying such things? I pray and I sleep; I fast and I eat; and I marry and eat meat. Now, if anyone deviates from my way (Sunnah), he is not of me.”55°
It is also recorded in the Sahih collections that `Abdullah Ibn `Amr Ibn Al-`As began to fast every day, pray all night, and read the whole Quran in three days. When the Prophet was informed of this, He called `Abdullah and said, “Don’t do that, for if you do, your eyes will be heavy and your body will become weak.” That is to say, his eyes will sink and he will feel uncomfortable and weary. The Prophet further said, “Your body has a right over you, your wife has a right over you, and your guest has a right over you. Render to each what is his due.s551 He thus emphasized upon him that his body, his family, his friends all have rights on him, that he should not engage in so many devotions that he is not able to perform all these duties. He must render to each and every one what is his due. The Prophet then advised him to fast three days a month, saying that it would be equal to fasting the whole month. He also advised him to read the Quran in a month. But `Abdullah said that he was able to do more than that. The Prophet allowed him to do more, and then more till he said, “Fast one day and eat one day; this is the best way of fasting.” `Abdullah said, “I can do more,” whereupon the Prophet said, “There is nothing better than this. There is nothing better than this.” When `Abdullah grew old, he said he wished he had accepted the concession the Prophet had given him.552 At times he was not able to fast even on alternate days. He would eat some days and then fast an equal number of days. He did not want to do one thing during the life of the Prophet and another after him. `Abdullah did this because his body was strong enough, but if anyone fasts on alternate days which bars him from doing something better than it, fasting would not be the better thing for him to do in that situation.
The Prophet himself fasted in this way, and this was better than the fast of David (pbuh). Even so, when he was asked about fasting all year long he said, “Whoever fasts all year long neither fasts nor does not fast.”553 This is a sahih hadith. When he was asked about one who fasts for two days and eats the third day, he said “Who can do that?”" When he was asked about one who fasted one day and ate two days, he said, “I wish I could do that.”555 He was also asked about one who fasts on alternate days. He replied, “That is the best way to fast.”556 It is clear from these ahadith that he wished he could fast one third of the year, for he had to do other things which were more important for him and more dear to God, which he could not do along with fasting one third-of the year.
It is also reported in a sahih hadith that at the time he was marching on Makkah during Ramadan he asked his Companions to stop fasting, and when some people fasted against his will, he said “They are sinners!”557 Once he offered salah riding on his camel, and asked his Companions to do likewise, but one man got down from his camel and prayed on the ground. On that he said, “He is defiant. He has defied God by this act of his.”558 That man turned apostate before he died. Ibn Mas`ud559 has said, “When I fast I feel weak and am not able to read the Quran, and reading the Quran is much dearer to me.” Many more things can be said on the subject; for a fuller treatment of it one should look to another place.
If, however… one swears by God to do some such thing, or vows it, he should do it. `A’ishah (raa) has reported that the Prophet said, “Whoever vows to do something right in obedience to God should do it, but if he vows to do something defying Him, he should not do it.i560 Therefore, if the oath that you take proves harmful and leads you to negligence of duty or commission of something forbidden, you will be sinning if you fulfill your oath.
Certainly you are not required to fulfill such a vow. Similarly, if you vow to engage in a devotion which is undesirable, such as praying the whole night, or fasting all the days, you do not have to carry it out. Opinions differ on the question whether you should make expatiation for your vow. To me the correct view is that you should make expatiation. The Prophet has said, “Atonement for a vow is the same as the atonement for an ordinary oath.”56′ He is also reported to have said, “A vow is an oath.”562 In the Sunan collections we have it that he said, “There is no fulfilling of a vow which is for something sinful; however, it should be atoned for like any other oath. ,13 Al-Bukhari has recorded the hadith reported by Ibn `Abbas that one day the Prophet saw a man standing in the sun. He said, “What is this?” He was told, “This is Abu Isra’il; he has vowed that he will keep standing, that he will never go into the shade or speak to anyone, and will go on fasting.” He said, “Tell him to speak, go into the shade, sit down, and complete his fast.”" This means that when he saw a man engaged in devotions which are not approved, namely keeping silent, standing and staying in the sun, he commanded him to complete that part which is approved and give up those which are not approved.
However, if one is not able to fulfill his vow, or would put himself in hardship if he tried, then he should atone for it and do something in its place. It is reported that ‘Aqabah Ibn `Amir said to the Prophet that his sister had vowed to make hajj on foot. He said, “God does not want your sister to torture herself. Tell her to accept a ride and offer a sacrifice.”565 In another version of the hadith we have it that he commanded her to fast (to atone for her vow). 566
This man (whose case you have stated) vowed to God that he would fast half the year. But if he does it, his mind and body will be affected. He must therefore break the fast, take what improves his health and mental condition, and atone for not fulfilling the vow. He should refrain from fasting till his sanity is restored and his physical and mental health are improved. He should refrain from fasting for the period necessary, whether it is two-thirds of the year, three-fourths of it, or the whole of it. When he regains his health he may resume fasting on alternate days if it does not cause any harm, or fast however he finds useful, without turning away from things which are dearer to God than fasting. God does not want anyone to turn away from what is dearer to Him and engage in what is inferior. Obviously this man is not required to fulfill his vow.
As for the light that he experiences while fasting, the first thing to note is that acts of devotion and worship are not pure evil. Even those forms which are forbidden have some good consequences along with the evil ones. When their evil outweighs their good, the Law-giver prohibits them, as He has prohibited fasting all year long, or praying the whole night always, or offering saldh after the morning (fajr) or evening (`asr) prayers. Another thing which is to be noted is that people do see light when they fast continuously on account of the excessive hunger they experience. But this light is also seen by the infidels from among the People of the Book and the pagans, the hermits and the worshipers of graves. Excessive hunger over and above the limit allowed by the shay’ is harmful in the life here as well as in the life hereafter; its harms are greater than its benefits. I have seen many a people who engage in austere practices and severe penance ending up in frustration, inactivity, even sinful acts. They have often turned away from God altogether, or given up higher deeds for lower ones. Sometimes they have turned mad or developed some form of insanity. This is because their devotional structure is raised on foundations which are not approved by the shar’ or supported by the Sunnah.
One must know that God’s pleasure or love does not lie in torturing oneself or subjecting oneself to hardship; it is not true that the harder the work the more rewarding it is. Many ignorant people do think that reward is proportionate to the hardship one encounters. This is not true. Reward is proportionate to the usefulness of the act one performs, the good and beneficial consequences it produces, as well as the extent one obeys the command of God and His Prophet. The more useful the act and the better one carries out God’s will, the better it is. Acts are not superior or inferior on account of their quantity, but on account of what goes on in the heart while one performs the act.
This is the reason why the Prophet said to ‘Aqabah Ibn `Amir when his sister vowed to make hajj on foot, “God does not want your sister to torture herself. Tell her to accept a ride.”5′ According to another version of the hadith he commanded her to offer a sacrifice, and according to a third version, to fast (atoning for her vow).56′ He saw his wife, Juwayriyah, saying tasbih on pebbles or date pits while he visited her at noon and again after sunset. He said, Had you said four words only three times it would have outweighed what you have been saying the whole day … 9–)569
One should know the truth, that God does not enjoin except what is beneficial for us, and does not forbid except what is harmful to us. He forbids things because they are harmful and injurious and commands things because they are useful and promote our well-being, though they do sometimes involve hardship. It is true that in making jihad or performing hajj, or enjoining the good and forbidding the evil, or acquiring knowledge, we encounter hardships. But when we bear the hardship and are rewarded for it it is because of the need which the act-produces. At the time of his farewell hajj, when `A’ishah (raa) made `umrah starting from Tan`im the Prophet did say to her, “Your reward shall be proportionate to the amount of labor you put in.”570 But if the good that the act produces is not equal to the hardship one undergoes in its performance, it will be something evil, and God does not love evil…
All that has been instituted in the shar’ is based on justice, moderation, and the principle of balance, which is the best and the noblest of all things. Firdaws is the highest grade of Paradise, and it is its best part. Hence, one who follows the principle of balance will go, God willing, to Firdaws.
This is true of all devotional acts which are not pursued for themselves, such as hunger, vigils and traveling on foot. But those which are pursued for themselves such as knowledge or love of God, turning to Him (in penitence), and trust in Him, perfection in them has been commended by the shay’. However, excess may be committed in these acts, too, by adding to them what does not belong to them. For example, in practicing trust one may discard the means which have been prescribed, or in cultivating love one may engage in what is unlawful or avoid what is lawful. One must differentiate between the two. However, knowledge is with God.
Author: Ibn Taymiyyah
Islamic Topic: SULUK: JOURNEY TO GOD
Source: Book: [Fatawa 25:272-84] / Also mentioned in “Ibn Taymiyyah Expounds on Islam”
