Assalamu alaikum dear readers, peace be upon you all
Half of this blessed month has already left us, never to return, and one can’t help but be sad at that thought. But indeed then also still happy that the month is still in our midst and that the last ten days are soon to begin. Bi ithnillahi ta’ala (=with the permission of God, the Most High) I will blog about the last ten nights of Ramadan later on.
Many of my Muslim readers who have been fasting, and perhaps some of my non-Muslim friends who joined the fast this year, would have gotten a renewed appreciation for water the past few days. Here in Canada the days are long and where I live, we are having a spell of warm weather. There is nothing as delightful as that first sip of cool refreshing water at sunset when we break our fast. Indeed the du’a (=prayer/supplication) of the blessed beloved (peace of God be upon him) when he broke his fast is heartfelt by us as we also utter it. [He made other du’a when opening the fast, that we also say]
‘The thirst has gone and the veins are quenched, and reward is confirmed, if Allaah wills.’
While fasting has many esoteric benefits, one among them is truly a deeper understanding of the suffering there is in the world. Some things just have to be felt to be understood! And yet, as I write this, I know it is true that the suffering of thirst and hunger we undergo is very different to that of people who really are suffering these tribulations. For we, we have some assurance in our heart of food and drink that will come at the end of the day. But for many thousands this is not an assured thing. Indeed this month reminds us that for many in the world, even in our post-modern context, starvation/malnourishment/lack of potable water is still a stark reality.
It is remarkable how much more energized I feel just after drinking that glass of water. It always strikes me how amazing it is, that this substance can bring about such a complete change in a matter of moments.
As a scientist-in-training I am mesmerized by water. It’s such a perfect molecule. I forget, but I recall reading that had not the bond angle between H-O-H (the two hydrogen atoms and the one oxygen atom) being the precise angle it is, all of life would not have existed. It is an amazing molecule – that when it is frozen, it weighs less than when liquid… one could go on and on about it.
So I looked up an old post that I want to share. It is taken from here. This was shared with us by one of my dear sisters, herself a post-doctoral fellow now mashaAllah (=by the grace of Allah). It was when we had been studying the water cycle as it is given in the Quran during our Quran study halaqa (=circle/group/class). It was blogged 4 years ago. A reminder of the 4th anniversary of our Quran study group and also of this blog, bi barakathiallah! (=by the blessing of Allah). A useful collection of ayaath (literally ‘signs’, meaning ‘verses’ in the Quran..as each verse is considered a sign of God)
“Also, since we were discussing the fact that Quran mentions that fresh and salt water do not mix. The reference to it is in the Surah 25 Al-Furqan: Ayat 53: “And it is He who has released [simultaneously] the two seas, one fresh and sweet and one salty and bitter, and He placed between them a barrier and prohibiting partition”
It is also in Surah 55 Ar-Rahman, Ayat 19 & 20.
I think we were all fascinated by water and how it sustains life.
Ayat 54 of Al Furqan is the one that says that humans are created from water: It is He Who has created man from water: then has He established relationships of lineage and marriage: for thy Lord has power (over all things).Surah 21 Al Anbiya Ayat 30: “We made from water every living thing”
I wanted to share this video (http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/17265-the-water-cycle-where-fresh-water-comes-from-video.htm) about the cycle of water which is also mentioned in the Quran at several places:
– Surah 23 Al-Mumenoon Ayat 18: “And We send down water from the sky according to (due) measure, and We cause it to soak in the soil; and We certainly are able to drain it off (with ease).”
– Surah 30 Ar-Room Ayat 48: “It is Allah Who sends the Winds, and they raise the Clouds: then does He spread them in the sky as He wills, and break them into fragments, until thou seest rain-drops issue from the midst thereof: then when He has made them reach such of his servants as He wills behold, they do rejoice! “
– Surah 7 Al-Araf Ayat 57: “It is He Who sendeth the winds like heralds of glad tidings, going before His mercy: when they have carried the heavy-laden clouds, We drive them to a land that is dead, make rain to descend thereon, and produce every kind of harvest therewith: thus shall We raise up the dead: perchance ye may remember.”
– Surah 39 Az-Zumar Ayat 39: “Seest thou not that Allah sends down rain from the sky, and leads it through springs in the earth? Then He causes to grow, therewith, produce of various colours: then it withers; thou wilt see it grow yellow; then He makes it dry up and crumble away. Truly, in this, is a Message of remembrance to men of understanding.”
Let’s renew our appreciation of water, our thanks for it, and implement the sunnah (=way/habits/practices) of the beloved Messenger of God (peace be upon him) in how careful he was in using water and not wasting it.
Ramadan Kareem! (=May Ramadan be generous for you/wish you a generous Ramadan/God’s generosity be with you this Ramadan)
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