This Ramadan: Do What’s Right

Sir Frank Peters

Ramadan should be the one time of year to show that money is not our God and that compassion, human kindness, and the welfare of our brothers and sisters still significantly matter

SIR FRANK PETERS

Ramadan is in sight. Even through the highly polluted air of Dhaka, its approach is visible and welcomed with great anticipation and joy.

Ramadan is special. It’s undoubtedly the holiest month on the Islamic calendar. A month to pause one’s regular activities, to compass check one’s way of living, dot the i’s and cross the t’s, and ensure one is heading in the right direction towards fulfilling Allah’s wishes and becoming a better person.

It’s a time to reflect upon errors and mistakes made during the previous year, owning up to having made them, and promising Allah they will be corrected and never repeated.

To most people it is a month of seeking forgiveness for past transgressions; a deep cleansing of the soul, redemption, and a commitment to improve one’s self and move forward.

It is also a time to think outside the box, outside ourselves, and show compassion for fellow earth travellers.

Ramadan Kareem translates to "May Ramadan be generous to you." It reflects the spirit of generosity and abundance associated with this time.

Seemingly, there are two types of Muslims who celebrate Ramadan with abundant fervor: those who devote their love and want to please Allah; and the hypocrites who view Ramadan as once-in-the-year opportunity to accumulate as much money as possible by increasing the prices of essential items and watch their fellow brethren suffer.

To appease their conscience, they even have the gall to label it “good business” and use that excuse as a conscience-cleansing agent.

Unbelievably, instead of bringing out the best in everyone, as Islamic principles demand, the opposite sometimes manifests. The price of essential food items spiral. Making it near to impossible for the poor and low-income earners to buy nourishing food cheap.

For several years price hikes during Ramadan have been accepted as a “natural occurrence” although there’s absolutely no justification for such. The provisions of essential food items are aplenty; Allah has seen to that.

                                Price hikes are man-made

So, all price-hikes – without exception – are man-made and go against the holy essence of Ramadan and the will of Allah.  

Ramadan should be the one time of year when food is cheapest, not dearest. A time of year when even the poorest of the poor should get to enjoy nutritious healthy meals and join hands in prayer in praise to the Almighty for providing same.

It’s incomprehensible to think that those responsible for the price hikes will actually bow down at mosques (for all present to see) and beg Allah to shower blessings upon them, when the same people are depriving food from the mouths of hungry fellow brethren.  Shameful hypocrisy.

I read a report about a trader in Bangladesh who was selling essential items at the cost to him plus a taka profit. (God love him). That’s the true spirit of Ramadan and should be expanded and encouraged. The charity Bidyanondo is doing similar (https://www.bidyanondo.org/). (God love them, too!)

To become Allah’s conduit to help the poor and demonstrate love for Him in a tangible, meaningful, beneficial way, ideally ALL traders should compile a list of, say, five essential food items (or more), and sell them at their cost plus one or two taka, as a “Ramadan Special”. Similarly, their wholesale suppliers should also participate and do likewise.

Ramadan should be the one time of year when food is cheapest and ‘brotherly love’ – and the love for Allah – is not just spoken, but demonstrated realistically.

No doubt those who do would profit handsomely from Allah’s gratitude and His divine blessings.

Ramadan should be the one time of year to show that money is not our God and that compassion, human kindness, and the welfare of our brothers and sisters still significantly matter. Man-made money pales in comparison.

(Sir Frank Peters is a former newspaper and magazine publisher and editor, humanitarian, human rights activist, an anti corporal punishment crusader, an Honorary Member of the Bangladesh Freedom Fighters and a foreign friend of Bangladesh. <SirFrankPeters@gmail.com>