Although there are a lot of muslims out there in the world, there are even more people who aren't. So it was important that I wrote about such things as Ramadhan in a way that could make sense of it for them all. Like Thought for the Day, if it makes no common sense there's not much point in saying it. Now, no-one would expect to get fan letters about Thought for the Day, but Words of Faith is different, and I was made acutely aware of what it means to be on the World Service when I received fan mail from Turkey, where muslims fasting in Ramadhan were able to hear what I had to say. It was the only fan mail that I ever got for anything.

We know that there is more to enjoying food than its effect on the taste buds of the tongue. Cooks make a great deal of effort to ensure that their food pleases the eye, and the sight of the food alone triggers our saliva. It makes no sense that decoration and presentation should alter our perception of a taste, yet it does, in the same way that tea is said to taste better in a bone china cup than an earthenware mug. But I think that its taste is really more dependent on the nature of the drinker than the vessel.

Just as we can learn to be critically discerning, the art of appreciation and enjoyment can be learned. The most precious of possessions bring no joy to one who has no gratitude, and what you have can never be enough if your heart is filled with envy. In this part of the world, where few starve, many find an emptiness inside that no amount of food and drink can satisfy, yet to a hungry man a bowl of soup and a crust of bread may seem to be a feast.

In our lives we journey towards the afterlife, where heaven and hell await us, and our eventual destination depends on the way in which we choose to travel. What gives us true pleasure and satisfaction is gratitude for our existence, and a love of God and our fellow man. What causes our pain is our own envy, anger, intolerance and greed. These characteristics aren't determined by wealth, or power or possessions, but by our attitude to life. So we can choose to nurture those values in ourselves that lead to peace and contentment, or (as many do) we can choose to live our lives in hell on earth.

In the fasting month of Ramadhan you develop an appreciation for your food. We drink the same orange juice we always get from the supermarket over the road, but after a day without food and water, it seems to taste as never before. The apples we eat at sunset may have come from the same tree as those we ate two weeks ago, but they taste better. Our taste sensations are clearly not just a function of the fruit.

In Ramadhan rather more than usual, we eat in the company of friends. The conversation often seems as exceptional as the food, and we can take our time relaxing over dinner. Yet only a few years ago Ramadhan was in July, and the twenty hour Glasgow days left us little time to eat drink and pray at night. But now, as Ramadhan moves into winter, the fasting day gets shorter and our nights are nearly thirteen hours long. So, whether at dinner or at prayer, there should be time for us to savour just a hint of the flavour that awaits us, God willing, in Paradise.

[From the Qur'an, the chapter called Mankind, vv. 11-26]

God protects the Righteous from the woes of Judgement Day, and bestows upon them radiancy and gladness, rewarding their patience with a Garden, and garments of silk. They shall rest upon couches, knowing neither burning sun nor bitter cold. Near them will be shade, hanging clusters of fruit; vessels of silver passed around them, goblets of crystal, crystal-clear silver, and they will determine the measure.

They will drink of a cup mixed with ginger, from a fountain called Salsabil. Immortal youths shall wait upon them (to see them you would think them scattered pearls), and whoever looks there sees bliss and a mighty kingdom. They will be dressed in green silk and brocade, adorned with silver bracelets, and their Lord shall give them a pure drink - "This is your reward. Your effort has been accepted."

We have sent down to you the Qur'an, step by step a sending down. So await your Lord's judgement with patience, and ignore both sinner and unbeliever. And remember the Name of your Lord at dawn and in the eveningtime, and for part of the night bow down before Him, and celebrate His glory throughout the long night.