The first Ramadan in the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad ﷺ

The First Ramadan: Revelation, Discipline, and the Birth of a Sacred Practice

Ramadan in the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad^sa  was a profound blending of the divine and the deeply human. Spiritually, it was a month in which his already intense devotion reached its highest pitch. He fasted with full consciousness of Allah, spending long hours in prayer, especially at night, standing until his blessed feet would swell. His relationship with the Qur’an became even more intimate; Jibrīl would review the Qur’an with him every Ramadan, and in the final year of his life this review took place twice signaling both completion and culmination. Ramadan for him was not a break from worship, but an acceleration of it: more duʿā’, more humility, more tears, and a deeper turning toward Allah with complete reliance and surrender.

At the same time, the Holy Prophet^sa embodied the human reality of Ramadan with extraordinary compassion and balance. He experienced hunger and fatigue, yet never allowed hardship to harden his heart. Instead, fasting softened him further—he became more generous than the wind that brings rain, feeding the poor, freeing captives, and prioritizing mercy over severity. He discouraged excess and ostentation, keeping his ifṭār simple and reminding others that fasting is not about hunger alone but about restraining the ego and purifying character. He granted concessions to the sick and travelers without judgment, teaching that Allah’s mercy is woven into His law. In his life, Ramadan was neither ascetic withdrawal nor mere routine—it was a living demonstration of how divine devotion and human compassion can exist in perfect harmony.

For Muslims, understanding the first Ramadan in the life of the Holy Prophet ﷺ is essential because it reveals how Islam establishes spiritual practices: through revelation, gradual reform, balance, and purpose. Ramadan did not enter Islamic life as a cultural tradition or seasonal ritual. It entered through revelation as a command for the purpose of transformation. The first Ramadan observed by the Holy Prophet ﷺ was not marked by lanterns, communal iftars, or established nightly prayers as we know them today. It was a period of deep spiritual restructuring, where fasting was legislated, revelation intensified, and the foundations of Islamic discipline were laid.

Understanding the first Ramadan in the life of Holy Prophet Muhammad requires returning to its Qur’anic context, its historical moment in Madinah, and the Prophet’s lived Sunnah—not later custom.

Ramadan Before Obligation: Spiritual Preparation Before Law

Before fasting became obligatory, the Prophet ﷺ was already spiritually conditioned for self-restraint. Long before prophethood, he regularly withdrew to the Cave of Hira for contemplation. After revelation began, voluntary fasting remained part of his practice.

In Madina, Muslims observed ʿĀshūrāʾ as a fast, a practice inherited from earlier prophetic traditions. This matters because when Ramadan fasting was later made obligatory, it was not introduced to an untrained community. Discipline preceded legislation.

This reflects a Qur’anic pattern: Allah prepares hearts before imposing commands.

When Was Fasting Made Obligatory?

The obligation of fasting was revealed in Shaʿbān, 2 AH (624 CE)—approximately 18 months after the Hijrah to Madinah. This means the first obligatory Ramadan occurred in Ramadan of 2 AH.

The Qur’an explicitly legislates fasting in Surah al-Baqarah:

“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may attain taqwa.” (Qur’an 2:183)

Here, fasting is framed not as hardship, but as a continuation of prophetic tradition and a tool for taqwa (God-consciousness) that governs thought, speech, and action.

The revelation continues:

“The month of Ramadan is that in which the Qur’an was sent down as guidance for mankind…”
(Qur’an 2:185)

Thus, Ramadan is inseparable from the Qur’an. The first Ramadan of the Prophet ﷺ as an obligation was, at its core, a Qur’anic event.

The First Ramadan: Context Matters

The first Ramadan did not occur in a period of comfort.

Muslims in Madinah were:

• Economically vulnerable
• Militarily threatened
• Internally restructuring a new society
• Externally facing Quraysh hostility

In fact, the Battle of Badr occurred on the 17th of Ramadan, 2 AH—during this first obligatory Ramadan.

This alone dismantles the modern misconception of Ramadan as a passive or retreat-only month. The Prophet ﷺ fasted while leading, while governing, and while confronting existential threats.

The Prophet’s Practice in the First Ramadan

1. Fasting with Precision, Not Extremism

The Prophet ﷺ fasted as commanded but never promoted excess.

He clarified:

• Fasting begins at true dawn (fajr)
• Fasting ends at sunset, without unnecessary delay
• Suḥūr (pre-dawn meal) was encouraged
• Ifṭār was simple—often dates and water

This balance is preserved in authentic ahadith recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.

The Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ in the first Ramadan established a rule still binding today:
Worship must not damage the body or ego-inflate the soul.

2. Gradual Development of Ramadan Practices

It is critical to be precise here.

• Tarāwīḥ as a formal nightly congregation was NOT established in the first Ramadan
• The Prophet ﷺ prayed night prayers individually or in small groups
• He deliberately avoided making them obligatory

This restraint was intentional. He ﷺ feared that excessive formalisation would overburden the Ummah.

This shows a defining prophetic principle:

The Prophet ﷺ legislated for sustainability, not intensity spikes.

3. Increased Qur’anic Engagement

Ramadan’s connection to the Qur’an is not symbolic—it is structural.

The Prophet ﷺ would increase recitation and reflection during Ramadan. According to hadith, Jibrīl (AS) would review the Qur’an with him annually in Ramadan, and in the final year of his life, this occurred twice.

This practice traces back to the earliest Ramadans and anchors Ramadan as:

• A month of internal revelation digestion
• Not merely ritual fasting

The Qur’an itself is the central act of Ramadan, not food schedules.

Ethics of Fasting: The Prophet’s Moral Framework

The first Ramadan was not merely about abstaining from food.

The Prophet ﷺ made this explicit:

“Whoever does not give up false speech and acting upon it, Allah has no need of him leaving his food and drink.”
(Bukhari)

This statement reframes fasting entirely. Hunger without ethical restraint is religiously meaningless.

In the first Ramadan:

• Speech discipline mattered
• Anger restraint mattered
• Social responsibility mattered

Ramadan was introduced as moral training, not bodily punishment.

Charity and Social Responsibility in the First Ramadan

Zakat al-Fitr was legislated to ensure no one was excluded from the joy of Eid.

The Prophet ﷺ himself was described as more generous in Ramadan than at any other time.

This generosity was not performative. Madinah was poor. Charity was sacrificial, not symbolic.

The first Ramadan established a principle that still stands:

You cannot spiritually ascend while ignoring human need.

Ramadan and Leadership: The Prophet ﷺ at Badr

Perhaps the most striking feature of the first Ramadan is this:
The Prophet ﷺ led an army while fasting.

The Battle of Badr was not incidental. It tested:

• Physical endurance
• Emotional reliance on Allah
• Strategic leadership under deprivation

The Prophet ﷺ prayed intensely the night before battle, showing that fasting deepened dependence on Allah, not recklessness.

This moment permanently disproves the idea that Ramadan is a month of disengagement from responsibility.

Sunnah Established, Not Ritualised

What the Prophet ﷺ did in the first Ramadan is more important than what he did not do.

He did not:

• Create elaborate ceremonies
• Enforce uniform night routines
• Measure spirituality by exhaustion

Instead, he:

• Established core principles
• Left room for flexibility
• Protected the Ummah from burnout

This prophetic restraint is itself Sunnah.

Lasting Lessons from the First Ramadan

The first Ramadan teaches enduring truths:

1. Ramadan is Qur’an-centred, not food-centred
2. Fasting is for taqwa, not social approval
3. Spiritual discipline must coexist with leadership and action
4. Worship must be sustainable
5. Ethics matter more than hunger
6. Charity is integral, not optional

The Prophet ﷺ did not experience Ramadan as a seasonal pause from life. He experienced it as a recalibration of life itself.

Conclusion: Returning to the Prophetic Origin

The first Ramadan in the life of the Holy Prophet ﷺ was quietly revolutionary. It reshaped the believer’s relationship with God, society, and the self. It was not excessive, performative, or disconnected from life—it was deeply transformative.

If modern Ramadan feels exhausting, performative, or hollow, the solution is not innovation—it is return to:

• The Qur’anic purpose
• The Prophet’s balanced Sunnah
• The ethical heart of fasting

For Muslims, returning to this original framework ensures that Ramadan becomes what it was always meant to be: a month that reforms the heart, disciplines the soul, and draws the believer closer to Allah in truth—not appearance.