[Medical aspects of fasting]

Fasting (arabic-savm) was proclaimed through islam, and thus it is an obligation for Holly Prophet Muhammad s.a.v.s.-Peace be to Him-in the second year after Hijra (in 624 after Milad-born of Isa a.s.). There is a month of fasting-Ramadan-each lunar (hijra) year. So, it was 1415th fasting this year. Former Prophets have brought obligative messages on fasting to their people; so there are also certain forms of fasting with other religions i.e. with Catholics, Jews, Orthodox. These kinds of fasting above differ from muslim fasting, but they also appear obligative. All revelations have brought fasting as obligative. From medical point of view, fasting has two basical components: psychical and physical. Psychical sphere correlate closely with its fundamental ideological message. Allah dz.s. says in Quran: "... Fasting is obligative for you, as it was obligative to your precedents, as to avoid sins; during very few days (II, II, 183 & 184)." Will strength, control of passions, effort and self-discipline makes a pure faithfull person, who purify its mind and body through fasting. Thinking about The Creator is more intensive, character is more solid; and spirit and will get stronger. We will mention the hadith saying: "Essaihune humus saimun!" That means: "Travellers at the Earth are fasters (of my ummet)." The commentary of this hadith, in the Collection of 1001 hadiths (Bin bir hadis), number 485, says: "There are no travelling dervishs or monks in islam; thus there is no such a kind of relligousity in islam. In stead, it is changed by fasting and constant attending of mosque. That was proclaimed as obligation, although there were few cases of travelling in the name of relligousity, like travelling dervishs and sheichs." In this paper, the author discusses medical aspects of fasting and its positive characteristics in the respect of healthy life style and prevention of many sicks. The author mentions positive influence of fasting to certain system and organs of human body. According the author, o basic messages of fasting could be a Roman poet's saying:" Mens sana in corpora sanum."