Is fasting beneficial?

Submitted by Mohamed Eljahmi (United States), Aug 26, 2009 at 21:18

Maybe yes and maybe no. However, I think Ramadan is not a good month for productivity, peace or harmony. In Ramadan the day and night's activities are transposed. A person refrains from eating during the day but eats at night, then wakes up in the middle of the night to eat, then go to sleep - some stay awake for the whole night to eat the last meal and then sleep during the day. Another issue, if the person lives in a zone where there is a 24 hour sunlight or the opposite, what is he or she supposed to do?

Personally, I feel crappy if I eat after 8 PM or very early in the morning. I feel good though, if I refrain from food for 18 hours but drink plenty of water. I believe Ramadan fasting is an Arab tradition to conserve food. Also Arabs before Islam were not Pagan, they believed in God and the idols were symbols of their connection to God. Also, there was a thriving religious environment, there were Jews, Christians and Ebionites. It is believe that Waraqa Ibn Nawfal was an Ebionite, who didn't believe in the deity of Christ but believed in him as Prophet.

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