Ramadan: The Holy Month

I am often asked by non-muslims about the meaning of Islam, such as our five daily prayers, modest attire, arabic words and meaning etc. Lately I have recieved many questions for the upcoming Ramadan. So in sharing, I thought it would be great to also share with my fellow writers here.

Ramadan, a Holy month, not a holiday like most believe, is where Muslims all around the world celebrate. By celebrate I mean being closer to God. This is a great and much anticipated time of year, as it brings great benefit and rewards to Muslims. It is the month the Holy Quran (the Muslims Holy book) was revealed by God to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Muslims believe that during this time the gates of heaven are open, while the gates of hell are closed. This gives us a chance to repent for previous sins if any, and to focus more on making our relationship closer to God, and less on everyday life and society by fasting for 30 days and doing extra prayers besides the five daily obligated ones. While doing so Satan is locked away and cannot steer us towards destruction and sin.

Ramadan is Every September, but does not fall on the same day. Each year Ramadan starts on a different day. There were times were it started as late in October or start in August. That is because, we base the start of it on the sighting of the crescent moon. It is done this way, because Muslim do not use the same calendar as Non-muslims. We use a lunar calendar, which is eleven days shorter then the widely used Gregorian calendar, and so every year the days move ahead by eleven days. For example, lets say Ramadan would have started last year in July 30, then it would have started this year in July 19

Fasting is done from sunset to sundown. Eating must be done in the very early mornings around 4am to 5am. The time differs depending on where you are located, but it will still be early morning. During daylight hours one must not eat or drink, but these are not the only things you must abstain from. Other things you cannot do during fasting is sexual relations, all forms of lying (e.g. backbiting, slander, etc.). smoking, cursing, indecent acts etc. so if one observes the fast according to the above principles, it should improve his moral character, making him more truthful and more careful about what he says and does.

There are several reasons why we fast in this way. The first reason we fast is too experience hunger and thirst to make us realize what the poor and homeless go through. This gives us a desire to help those who are less fortunate by sharing our food and wealth with them. It helps one to feel compassion since each day, one will feel greater appreciation for what he/she has as a result of feeling hunger and thirst. That is also the basis to why other things mentioned above are not permitted while fasting. The other reason we fast is to "purify" our bodies and souls, by developing a greater sense of humility, spirituality and community. The ultimate goal is to develop a high consciousness of God. The pleasure of God is the most sought after desire

At the end of Ramadan,a holiday known as Eid ul Fitr is celebrated. In english it means breaking the fast. It is a 3 day celebration/festival. In this celebration we first offer a prayer of gratitude to have had the strength to complete the full fast, and the rewards we have gained. After that we will pay our Zakat (charity) then the rest of the day is spent with family and friends sharing the end and success of Ramadan.