Download What is Ramadan and why do Muslims fast?

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TUESDAY, JUNE 7, 2016
MEDAN: Students perform a prayer on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan at Ar-Raudlatul Hasanah Islamic boarding school in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia yesterday. — AP
What is Ramadan and why do Muslims fast?
DUBAI: Millions of Muslims around the world yesterday marked
the start of Ramadan, a month of intense prayer, dawn-to-dusk
fasting and nightly feasts. Others will begin fasting a day later,
Tuesday, due to a moon-sighting methodology that can lead to
different countries declaring the start of Ramadan a day or two
apart. Here are some questions and answers about Islam’s holiest month:
Why do Muslims fast?
The fast is intended to bring the faithful closer to God and to
remind them of the suffering of those less fortunate. Ramadan is
a time to detach from worldly pleasures and focus on one’s inner
self. It’s seen as a way to physically and spiritually purify, refraining from habits such as smoking and caffeine. Muslims often
donate to charities during the month and feed the hungry.
Many spend more time at mosques during Ramadan and use
their downtime to recite the Quran. London’s new Muslim mayor, Sadiq Khan, wrote in the Guardian that he plans to use
Ramadan to “build bridges” and break bread with Muslims and
non-Muslims around the city at synagogues, churches and
mosques, though he acknowledged that 19-hour-long fasts during the longer summer days in Europe and forgoing coffee will
be challenging. Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars
of Islam, along with the Muslim declaration of faith, daily prayer,
charity, and performing the hajj pilgrimage in Mecca.
How do Muslims fast?
Observant Muslims abstain from eating and drinking from
dawn to dusk for the entire month of Ramadan. A single sip of
water or a puff of a cigarette is enough to invalidate the fast.
However, Muslim scholars say it’s not enough to just avoid food
and drinks during the day. Ramadan is also an exercise in selfrestraint. Muslims are encouraged to avoid gossip and arguments. Sexual intercourse between spouses is also forbidden
during the daytime fast. Just before the fast, Muslims have a predawn meal of power foods to get them through the day, the
“suhoor.” Egyptians eat mashed fava beans called “ful,” spiced
with cumin and olive oil, while in Lebanon and Syria, popular
suhoor food is flatbread with thyme, cheese or yogurt. In
Afghanistan, people eat dates and dumplings stuffed with potato and leeks, first steamed, then fried.
How Muslims break their fast
Muslims traditionally break their fast like the Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) did some 1,400 years ago, with a sip of
water and some dates at sunset. That first sip of water is the
most anticipated moment of the day. After sunset prayers, a
large feast known as “iftar” is shared with family and friends. Iftar
is a social event as much as it is a gastronomical adventure.
Across the Arab world, apricot juices are an iftar staple. In South
Asia and Turkey, yogurt-based drinks are popular. Every night of
Ramadan, mosques and aid organizations set up tents and
tables for the public to have free iftar meals. But large crowds at
mosques can also be targets for extremists. As the war with the
Taliban intensifies, Afghan and US military officials have said
they expect attacks to increase during Ramadan. Nigerian intelligence officials also say the extremist Boko Haram group plans to
Month of Quran
Continued from Page 1
And mankind in general is addressed with invitations
to believe in God and mold life around that belief, and
they are informed of the consequences of accepting or
rejecting God’s invitation. The Quran’s purpose is to inform
people of a reality beyond their five senses and their perceptions of space and time, and to teach moral lessons
and develop spirituality. With the additional perspective it
offers, the Quran also invites people to adopt a lifestyle
that ensures ultimate happiness and success. Finally,
through stories and instruction, it describes the beliefs and
practices that are essential to achieve that state.
The verses of the Quran were revealed to address particular situations, to relate historical information and to
codify Islamic law. Common subjects are descriptions of
God, stories of prophets, descriptions of believers and disbelievers, promises of God’s rewards, especially Paradise,
warnings about consequences for rebellion toward God,
including Hellfire, instructions for personal conduct, guidelines for familial and social relations, and a framework for
international relations. Being an oral revelation first and
foremost, devout Muslims learn how to recite the holy
scripture as it was revealed. Verbatim memorization is
common and care is taken to reproduce the exact pronunciation and vocal duration of each letter.
Arabic is a rich language, and words of the Quran have
great depth and breadth; therefore, they also study the
meaning of the words, verses and chapters, and there are
encyclopedic works of this nature. In addition, Muslims
study the occasions of revelation, the relation of the holy
text to prophetic traditions, and the application of princi-
attack Muslims during morning and evening prayers.
Can Muslims be exempted?
Yes. There are exceptions for children, the elderly, those who
are ill, women who are pregnant, nursing or menstruating, and
people traveling, which can include athletes during tournaments. Many Muslims, particularly those living in the United
States and Europe, are accepting and welcoming of others
around them who aren’t observing Ramadan. However, nonMuslims or adult Muslims who eat in public during the day can
be fined or even jailed in some Mideast countries, such as Saudi
Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which is home to large
Western expat populations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. In many
predominantly Muslim countries like Indonesia, karaoke bars
and nightclubs are closed across much of the country for the
month. Restaurants there use curtains to conceal customers
who eat during the day.
And in Egypt, the Dar Al-Ifta, which is the main authority in
charge of issuing religious edits, on Monday warned against eating in public, saying this is not an act of “personal freedom, but
chaos - an assault on Islam.” In China, minority Uighur Muslims
complain of heavy restrictions by the Communist Party, such as
bans on fasting by party members, civil servants, teachers and
students during Ramadan, as well as generally enforced bans on
children attending mosques, women wearing veils and young
men growing beards.
Ramadan traditions
Typically, the start of the month is welcomed with the greet-
ing of “Ramadan kareem!” Another hallmark of Ramadan is nightly prayer at the mosque among Sunni Muslims called “taraweeh.”
Egyptians have the tradition of Ramadan lanterns called the
“fanoos,” often the centerpiece at an iftar table or seen hanging in
window shops and from balconies. In the Arabian Gulf countries,
wealthy families hold “majlises” where they open their doors for
people to pass by all hours of the night for food, tea, coffee and
conversation. Increasingly common are Ramadan tents in fivestar hotels that offer lavish and pricey meals from sunset to sunrise. While Ramadan is a boon for retailers in the Middle East and
South Asia, critics say the holy month is increasingly becoming
commercialized. Scholars have also been disturbed by the proliferation of evening television shows during Ramadan. In Pakistan,
live game shows give away gifts promoting their sponsors. In the
Arab world, month-long soap operas starring Egypt’s top actors,
rake in millions of dollars in advertising.
The end of Ramadan
The end of Ramadan is marked by intense worship as
Muslims seek to have their prayers answered during “Laylat alQadr” or “the Night of Destiny.” It is on this night, which falls during the last 10 nights of Ramadan, that Muslims believe that God
sent the Angel Gabriel to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and
revealed the first versus of the Quran. The end of Ramadan is celebrated by a three-day holiday called Eid al-Fitr. Children often
receive new clothes, gifts and cash. Muslims attend early morning Eid prayers the day after Ramadan. Families usually spend
the day at parks and eating - now during the day. — AP
Holy Month begins
ples by renowned scholars and rulers. The study of the
Quran develops moral reasoning and spirituality first and
foremost, as well as thought processes of logic, sequencing, deduction, intuition, assimilation and abstraction.
Reciting and memorizing it develops memory, enunciation and self-expression.
The printed Quran is revered as a holy book and is treated with respect. It is not considered casual reading or handled like an ordinary book. There is only one version of the
Quran, and careful measures are taken that prints and
reprints of the Quran in Arabic are authenticated by
authoritative bodies for accuracy. Since the Quran is an
Arabic-language literary masterpiece both technically and
aesthetically, it is impossible to portray its rhythm, rhyme,
depth of denotation and subtlety of connotation in another language.
There are many translations of the Quran, but we cannot call a translation “the Quran” but only an approximation of the meaning of the Quran. The best English translations have the accompanying original text in Arabic so that
it can be consulted. Since Ramadan is the month of the
Quran, everyone should have their copy handy and complete reading it in this holy month.
Courtesy of the TIES Center, whose mission is to empower
Kuwait’s expats through social and educational services that
promote a positive and productive role in society, and to facilitate opportunities for intra- and interfaith interactions that
promote social solidarity. For more information, please call
25231015/6 or e-mail: [email protected].
Continued from Page 1
In the Syrian city of Madaya, where some 40,000 people have been living under government siege for
months, resident Mumina was preparing to break the fast
with her husband using the little food aid the United
Nations has managed to bring in. “The food packages we
receive are very bland, pulses and five cans of tuna per
person. There’s no pasta, no meat, no dairy. We tried to
plant some vegetables but the land isn’t good for planting now,” the 32-year-old said. “There’s barely any food in
the markets and whatever we find is so expensive that
we can’t buy it,” she said, planning a simple meal of beans
for the night.
In the Iraqi city of Fallujah, father-of-six Abu
Mohammed Al-Dulaimi also worried about how to provide food for his family during Ramadan. Iraqi forces have
tightened a siege around Fallujah as they press a major
advance to retake the city from the Islamic State jihadist
group. An estimated 50,000 people are believed trapped
inside, some being used as human shields by IS, and the
families left behind are often those who could not afford
to leave. “You have to get up at 5:00 in the morning and
stand in line forever to pay 5,000 dinars ($4.50) for a kilo
of tomatoes,” said Dulaimi, contacted by AFP inside
Fallujah. “I can’t even go there myself, I have to send
someone, because you need to have a long beard and a
short dishdasha,” he said, referring to traditional robes
which the jihadists insist should be worn shorter than
usual in local custom.
In other parts of the Islamic world Muslims were
preparing to mark Ramadan with extravagance. In the
wealthy Gulf states, hotels and restaurants were competing to offer the most luxurious meals. At Dubai’s sailshaped landmark Burj Al-Arab hotel, diners were being
offered “an array of delectable traditional delicacies” at
iftar meals for 400 Emirati dirhams ($110) per person.
In Indonesia, faithful spent the days leading up to
Ramadan taking part in rituals, including visits to relatives’ tombs and swims in springs infused with flowers.
Most in the country practice a moderate form of Islam
and centuries-old, local beliefs are often fused with
Muslim customs to create a particularly Indonesian brand
of the faith. Indonesia’s conservative Muslim leaders regularly urge people not to partake in some of these ritualssuch as swimming in springs-but the practices are deeply
entrenched. Hardline group the Islamic Defenders’ Front
(FPI) also threatened to launch raids on Indonesian
nightspots that flout restrictions during Ramadan.
In the past, the group has raided bars that are open
later than they should be, seizing alcohol and throwing
out customers. “Please respect the holiness of Ramadan,”
Ja’far Shodiq, the group’s deputy chairman said. “The FPI
is not against fun-but sometimes fun can verge on
immoral.” In China, the start of Ramadan was marked
with the customary ban on civil servants, students and
children in the mainly Muslim Xinjiang region taking part
in the daytime fast. China’s ruling Communist party has
for years banned government employees and minors
from fasting in Xinjiang, home to the more than 10 million strong Uighur minority. It has also ordered restaurants to stay open. — AFP