Ramadan, the holy month in the Muslim calendar, began this week. This holy time recalls the transmission of the Qur’an, the Muslim scriptures. Ramadan is marked by prayer and daily fasting (called sawm ). Every day during the month of Ramadan, Muslims around the world get up before dawn to eat and pray. Between sunup and sundown they do not smoke, drink any liquid or eat any food. They break their fast at the fourth prayer of the day (which is said at sunset).

This fasting is considered one of the “Pillars of Islam”, and is a sacred obligation to all who are able. There are over a billion Muslims world-wide, over 8 million in the USA.


Again, I am here describing a tradition which is not my own, so I have given larger quotes than usual from the better-informed blogs of others. And, I heartily welcome the comments of those who are Muslim and have things to share with us about Ramadan in their lives.


During Ramadan, Muslims are expected show purity of both thought and action. Fasting is a reminder of the poverty and suffering of others, and provides an opportunity to focus on prayer. Fasting is seen as a way to cleanse the inner soul. The emphasis on giving and charity during this season is very important to all Muslims.


Wikipedia says:

Ramadan is divided into three ten-day parts, or ashra (Arabic for ten). They are named Rahmat (mercy of God), Maghfirat (forgiveness of God), and Najat (salvation), respectively. Laylat al-Qadr, which falls during the last third, commemorates the revelation of the first verses of the Qur'an and is considered the most holy night of the year. Ramadan ends with the holiday Eid ul-Fitr, on which feasts are held. …
.Muslims tend to perform the recitation of the entire Qur'an by means of special prayers, called Tarawih, which are held in the mosques every night of the month, during which a whole section of the Qur'an (‘Juz', which is 1/30 of the Qur'an) is recited, so that by the end of the month the entire Qur'an has been completed.

To all of our Muslim brothers and sisters, we wish "Ramadan Mubarek"!

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In Recipes from Tanzania and other Countries there is a description of the daily fasting break in Tanzania .

I remember when I was about 5 to 6 years old in Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania. Our neighbor who was from Zanzibar (the island of Tanzania) would always bring us food during Ramadan season. Sure the lady could cook. One thing I never understood at that age was that; This family would stay without eating anything for the whole day, then when it was time to eat, they would first drink ( very light) Uji wa pilipili manga (Black pepper porridge) . Even though I loved this porridge, but as a five year old, I thought they were insane; After not eating for that long, I could have run and eat pilau, ugali, bhajia, samosas and etcetera.
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Now I can understand the scientific facts of why this family did break their fast by having a light porridge known as Uji wa pilipili manga. After not eating for the whole day, basically the intestine shrinks. It is not good after not eating for long hours to eat something heavy. To help the intestines expand without causing any stomach pain, it is always healthy to have something very light and warm. I guess that was why our neighbor would break their fast during Ramadan by having this light porridge.

In this lengthy but significant quote from a blog written by Aziz Poonawalla at City of Brass, Aziz states

My intention is to blog daily during Ramadan, in the quiet space after the morning pre-dawn meal (sihori) and the sunrise prayer (fajr). I also note that my friend Shahed Amanullah will also be blogging during Ramadan over at Beliefnet. His first post, about the intersection of 9-11 and Ramadan this year, is an excellent start:
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This Ramadan has been heralded by images of Osama bin Laden taunting us from his cave and exhorting non-Muslims to accept Islam, obviously unaware that the actions of him and his kind have done more to bring curses down upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad and turn people away from Islam more than anything in Islam's history. It's imagery and words like this, and the strong feelings they evoke in me, that I have to push aside in order to focus on starting this month right.
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The terrorism that I read about in the news represents the polar opposite of what Ramadan stands for. Ramadan is about opening yourself up to God's mercy, enduring patience in the face of discomfort and adversity, and providing assistance to those less fortunate. Extremism and terrorism is just the opposite--the ultimate exercise of self-indulgence and inflicting merciless hardship on the innocent.

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Indeed. In fact, for the next two years, 9-11 will fall within Ramadan again. It is important for muslims to move beyond 9-11 as a context in which we defend our faith and simply embrace our faith on our own terms. The time for attempting to assuage other Americans' fears about Islam is over; it is time to simply be muslims, and Americans, again. Ramadan this year represents an opportunity for a renewal of our identity as a community like any other in this great nation.

UK's first ever Muslim Chaplain to the Forces, Imam Asim Hafiz,
Was interviewed in this article In the article he speaks to the issue of how soldiers function during times of fasting, but also has this to say about the sad fact of “hidden” Muslims.

With no supporting team Imam Hafiz undertakes these roles and provides support for the 350 Muslim UK Service Personnel on his own. He is keen to point out though that 350 is the official number. He is constantly coming across more Muslims in the Forces who have not registered as being Muslim. Sometime this is just an admin error, but sometimes he says, they don't want to be identified by their faith, rather first and foremost as a soldier. Sadly, some people have been reluctant to disclose their faith due to the political climate.

From Australia,
Nafeesa in her blog, Rain On Me wishes “RAMADAN MUBARAK! To everyone who's fasting !”

Nora, in New Zealand, in her blog A snapshot of my life says:

Here we are again in another bless-full month of Ramadhan. Ramadhan Kareem means generous Ramadhan in which Allah has promised wonderful great rewards to Muslims who observe and practice good deeds.
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Narrated Abu Huraira: Prophet Muhammad (SAW) said, "When the month of Ramadan comes, the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of the (Hell) Fire are closed, and the devils are chained." (Translation of sahih Bukhari Vol 4 Book 54 No.497)
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Ramadhan is a special month and hence let us not make it similar to any other month. Let us reduce the time spent on worldly needs and pleasures. Instead lets feed our suffering souls by remembering Allah and increasing the amount of good deeds. May Allah give us hidayah.

Unique Muslimah in her blog she talks about getting together with family at the holiday, when the family may not all get along. She offers a spiritual solution.

You go for God, despite not wanting to see this person, or not wanting to see these people show off. You go because you wish you could be a good example to them, because they don’t take Ramadan seriously- they think it’s just about abstaining from food and water and nothing else.
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Ramadan is so much more than that. It’s about purifying our souls. That after we break our fast, we are still actually fasting in a sense that our eyes won’t watch something unlawful, our legs won’t walk to a place that is unlawful, our hands won’t touch something unlawful. It’s about re-connecting with God, it’s about training our will power and submission towards Him. It’s about forgetting the material world a little and getting in touch with our souls.
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In Ramadan we force each other to see family we don’t get along with for His sake, so that He may have mercy on us. But do we necessarily have to be friendly with these people, can we just be conservative and professional? Because you fear that their attitude may bring you down, you fear they are a bad influence.
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It’s amazing, the things we do for God. It really is not just about not eating. It being my first Ramadan in Egypt, I now know it’s all about family and maintaining your ties with them.
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And for some people, that’s a hell of a job.