Thereis no receptacle more odious to Allah than a belly, stuffed with lawfulfood. Of what use is the fast as a means of conquering Allah's enemyand abating appetite, if at the time of breaking it, one not only makesup for all food one has missed during the daytime, but perhaps also ina variety of extra foods?

It has even become the custom to stockup for Ramadan, with all kinds of foodstuffs, so that more is consumedin that time than in the course of several other months put together.It is well known that the object of fasting is to experience hunger,and to check desire, in order to reinforce the soul and piety. If thestomach is starved from early morning to evening, so that its appetiteis aroused and its craving intensified, and it is then offereddelicacies and allowed to eat its fill, its taste for pleasuresincreased and its force is exaggerated; passions are activated whichwould have lain dormant under normal conditions.

The spirit andsecret nature of fasting is to weaken the forces, which are Satan'smeans of leading us back to evil. It is therefore essential to cut downones intake to what one would consume on a normal night, when notfasting. No benefit is derived from the fast if one consumes as much asone would usually take during the day and night combined. Moreover, oneof the properties consists in taking little sleep during the daytime,so that one feels the hunger and thirst and becomes conscious of theweakening of ones powers, with the consequent purification of the heart.

Oneshould let a certain degree of weakness carry on into the night, makingit easier to perform the night prayers (tahajjud) and to recite thelitanies (awrad). It may be that Satan will not hover around someone'sheart, and that one will behold the Kingdom of Heaven. The night ofdestiny represents the night on which something of this kingdom isrevealed. This is what is meant by the words of Allah:

Quran (97:1)

Anyonewho puts a bag of food between his heart and his breast becomes blindof this revelation. Nor is keeping the stomach empty sufficient toremove the veil, unless one also empties his mind of everything butAllah سبحانه وتعالى. That is the entire matter, and the starting point of itall; is cutting down on food...

Luqman (as) advises his son:

When your stomach is full, your intelligence sleeps oblivious to wisdom and the limbs are lazy for worship.

A friend of Allah said:

I take refuge in Allah from the Sufi who fills his stomach with all sorts of foods and corrupts it.

The mother of the believers, Aisha رضي الله عنه said:

Try to open the doors of the malakut (spiritual world). They asked: How? She said through hunger and thirst.

Thegreat friend of Allah Mahmud Sami Ramazanoghlu emphasizes thesignificance of eating and drinking little in his book Mukkerrem Insan(the perfect man) and says:

They asked doctors: What is the best cure?
They answered: Eating little.The people of wisdom are asked: How they find so much power and courage for worshipping Allah?
They answer: Eating little.
The ascetics are asked: What makes the tie between man and God stronger?
They reply: Eating little.
The scholars are asked: What is the best state of learning?
They reply: Being in a state of hunger (rather than satiety) and eating little.

There are so many benefits in eating little (never eating until the stomach is filled):

• Inmoderate hunger there is clearness of mind and heart; the memory isstronger. In the state of being overly full, there is forgetfulness andfoolishness.

• In moderate hunger there isgentleness of the heart. The heart benefits and takes pleasure inworship and supplication. With a full stomach the heart is insensitiveand takes no pleasure of worship.

• In moderate hunger there is softness of heart and humility. Satiety produces insolence, conceit, pride and bragging.

• In moderate hunger one thinks of the poor and hungry, whereas a man with a full stomach never remembers the poor and needy.

• Inmoderate hunger the appetite, the needs and wishes of the animal soulare broken. With a full stomach, the animal soul is strong and thedesires find strength.

• In moderate hunger the body is agile and is in an aware condition. When full it feels sleepy and careless.

• In moderate hunger one feels ready to worship and give service to Allah. When the stomach is full one feels lazy and lax.

• In moderate hunger, the body is healthy. Sickness disappears. Overeating makes the body feel worn out and sick.

• In moderate hunger, the body feels light and spacious, making one cheerful.

• Inmoderate hunger one feels more generous and ready to provide supportfor the poor with charity. On the other hand those who do notexperience hunger at all, do not understand the sufferings of the poor.Also, for this, in the heat of the Day of Judgment, the servant willcome into a state of coolness and shade. Fullness produces a state thatgoes from stinginess to wasteful spending which leads to thedestruction of the servant.

Inother words, a full stomach urges the animal soul to be active in orderto satisfy its base desires. On the other hand, fasting when it isperformed without going to the extreme opens up the faculties ofmeditation and makes the human heart more sensitive to divinerealities. The following hadith summarizes what we have said so far:

(Tabrani)