As we come to the end of Ramadan and the government talks of easing the lockdown, I began to think more about Prophet Yunus in the belly of the whale.
Like Prophet Yunus, we too have been in the belly of the whale: our lockdown Ramadan. We have gone through various emotional states. We have experienced initial confusion about our situation, the change in our environment, the enforced restrictions limiting our existence and everything we took for granted. Fear followed. Many of us were frozen by the fear of the sheer magnitude of what we faced as humankind. While many talked of how this was a wonderful opportunity to improve ourselves, discover new skills and talents and connect with God, we could not forget those numbed by pain, fear, mental illness and abuse and who remained locked in a state of fear – made worse by this new lockdown life.
As the weeks passed, the fear has turned to reflection. Prophet Yunus reflected on his situation - he overcame his frozen state of fear and he asked for forgiveness, repented, and accepted that his purpose was to spread God’s message. And like Prophet Yunus, we too have the opportunity to reflect, repent and amend our ways. Ultimately it is a realisation that we have to change, and to do this we have to think and act differently. We have been too busy juggling all the work/life demands, actual and perceived. Often, we have not juggled very well, inevitably neglecting some aspects, be that our ourselves, family, neighbours, or God.
So, while in the belly we have practically done our bit: we maintained social distancing, even keeping our distance from those we want to hold closest; we looked out for others, checking in on our friends, neighbours and family members and we volunteered, picking up shopping, organising meals and picking up prescriptions. We expressed our gratitude for all that we have by doing for others. We behaved differently because we had time to reflect. We were able to cut out the background noise so that we could hear our inner voice.
Lockdown Ramadan gave us time to pray with our immediate families in a deeper way and seek spiritual solitude as required. The veils were lifted from our eyes so that we could see that we don’t need as much as the adverts tell us we need. Our lives haven’t drastically taken a dive because we don’t have the latest gadget, or beauty treatment, and we learned there are more meaningful ways to spend our money in the service of others.
As we leave the belly of the whale and bid farewell to the blessed month of Ramadan let us leave with a realisation that Ramadan in lockdown has been a double blessing for many of us. That while being in the belly of the whale, we have achieved a sense of our purpose, gratitude for the enormous privileges we have, a strong sense of responsibilities for others and to others. If there is one thing God has taught us whilst in the belly of the whale, is that as humans we are connected much more intrinsically than we ever thought. May we all leave the belly of the whale intent on taking positive action and change for the better.
