The following message written by Yusuf Islam (formerly Cat Stevens) was posted to his website and the Yusuf / Cat Stevens Facebook Page on Thursday to recognize Ramadan:
The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said that God said:
Every good deed is ten times its likeness, up to seven hundred times, except for fasting, for verily it is for Me, and I will reward it.*
Peace be with you,
As the Month of Ramadan is now upon us, it’s wise to understand the depth of this magnificent month. Every act of worship is possessed of an outward form and an inner [secret], an external husk and internal pith. The husks are of different grades and each grade has different layers. It is for you to choose whether to be content with the husk or join the company of the wise and the learned.
Fasting and staying away from food and drink is a choice we make, but while so many are suffering the pains of hunger and war, Ramadan is the best time to sympathise and give what we can to help awaken our humanity. Especially living in a place like Dubai, where I spend a lot of my time with my grandchildren these days, it is important, with all the endless delights and metropolistic luxuries available in this part of the Gulf, that we remember how valuable charity and the inner aspects of the fast are, since these constitute provision for the Hereafter and are not of this lower world – even if it boasts the tallest building.
Yusuf Islam, 20 July 2012/1 Ramadan 1433
* Saying of the Prophet (pbuh)
The Troubadour Tribune 