Religious scholars urge Muslims to not waste food this Ramadan

UAE (Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Religious scholars Monday advised Muslims to refrain from wasting food in the Holy month of Ramadan as it is against the very spirit of fasting.“Wastage of food is a sin and a violation of the very concept of Ramadan,” said Assad Bashir, a Muslim scholar. Expressing his displeasure on the increased cases of throwing surplus food, he said Muslims should be more careful.He said variety and quantity of food increases vastly on the people’s eating mats and tables during this month. “They cook as much food as they can and a big portion of it later goes to the municipality’s garbage bins. It’s so sad,” he added.Abdul Aziz Al Masri, a religious scholar in Al Ain, also expressed his displeasure on throwing surplus food in the bins. He said the act itself is a contradiction to the very concept and philosophy of fasting in Islam. Surplus food coasts more and also results in heavy eating that causes different health problems.“It is not permissible at all to gather unnecessary food and a sin to waste the surplus,” he said. Al Masri said people involved in such acts actually make violation of the very concept of Ramadan. “It is painful to see heaps of unutilised food in the litterbins,” he said.Both the scholars were of the view that people’s intentions should be of make use of the benefits associated with fasting. Keeping fast has numerous health benefits.“But, most importantly, it teaches a moral to Muslims to feel and understand the hunger, deprivation, and suffering of fellow human beings,” they said.Khalid Hassan, a Lebanese expatriate in Al Ain, said people should eat simple food at the time Iftar and Sahoor. They should think like donating the money to charities instead of wasting it on lavish and extra food items.“This amount must go to the underprivileged people to help them in fulfilling their basic needs”, he added.The spirit of Ramadan, Hassan said, is reconciliation and rapprochement to Allah while refraining from food and drink and all the sins from sunrise to sunset.“Committing a sin by food wasting in this month is highly regrettable,” he said. It is not enough just to remain thirsty and hungry. Muslim must employ their time to reap maximum blessings by following the religious guidance, he added./129