This is especially important since those who deliver Khutbahs and admonish the people during Ramadaan, when they speak about those things which disrupt the Fast, then they only speak about the material things, those things that we have just mentioned‹eating, drinking and sexual intercourse.  But what they should do, as sincere advisers and people who give reminder to the Muslims in general, is to concentrate a great deal upon the second category of things which disrupt the Fast.  This is because the people have become used to thinking that Fasting is just to refrain from the first category, to withhold from the material things.  But there is another category of things which disrupt the Fast, which we are able to call the non-material things which disrupt the Fast.

So you have just heard his, sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, saying, "Whoever does not abandon falsehood in speech and action, then Allaah has no need that he should leave his food and drink."

Therefore every fasting person should examine himself and see: is he just withholding from the material things, or is he also withholding from those non-material things?  Meaning: has he made his manners and behaviour good when the blessed month of Ramadaan comes?  If that is the case, then he has fulfilled the Saying of Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, at the end of the aayah:

So that you may become people of Taqwaa.

But as for he one who restricts himself in his fasting to just withholding from food and drink, but who continues and persists upon the evil manners which he was upon previously, before Ramadaan, then this is not the Fasting that is desired and required from the wisdom behind the legislation of this noble month, which our Lord, the Mighty and Majestic indicates in His Saying:

So that you may become people of Taqwaa.

So therefore we advise and remind our brother Muslims that they should remind this other category of things, those that are non-material, which disrupt the Fast, and it is something which the admonishers and those who seek to direct the people to the correct way rarely speak about, not to mention the general people, who are not aware of this category of things which disrupt the fast, i.e., the non-material things.

This is what I wanted to remind our brothers who are present in this fine gathering about, if Allaah wills, so that it may be cause of their increasing in acts of worship seeking to draw closer to Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, in this blessed month, the month of Fasting, which is such that we hope that Allaah, the Exalted and Most High, will guide and grant us all the success of fulfilling the due right of this blessed month, which is that we withhold from both the material and the non-material things which disrupt the Fast.

Then in addition to this word, I hope that you will pay attention to some affairs which have been neglected by the majority of the general Muslims, indeed and also by those having knowledge.

There is a hadeeth which is very often neglected because of another hadeeth, because the majority of people are unable to reconcile in practice and application between them.  So this hadeeth is his, sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, saying, "My Ummah will continue to be upon good for as long as they hasten to break the fast and delay the pre-dawn meal."

So here two matters were mentioned, and they are neglected by most of the people, and they are: hastening to break the fast, and delaying the pre-dawn meal (Suhoor).

As for neglect of the first matter, which is hastening to break the Fast, then in the view of some people it contradicts another hadeeth, which is his, sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, saying, "My Ummah will continue to be upon good for as long as they hasten to pray the Maghrib Prayer."

So here we have two commands, to hasten with two matters. So it appears to some people that we cannot hasten to perform both of them together.

But reconciling between the command to hasten with breaking the Fast and the command to hasten to pray the Maghrib Prayer is a very easy matter.  So it is something which our Prophet, sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, made clear to us by his action and practice.  So he, sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, used to break the Fast with three dates.  He would eat three dates.  Then he would pray the Maghrib Prayer, then he would eat again if he found that he needed to eat the evening meal.