Ramadhan Mubarak! Many people seem to be aware of Ramadhan (also written as "Ramadan", "Ramadaan", and probably a variety of other phonetically-similar ways when transliterated into English), though it's just as likely that many people are not aware of it, be it what it is, why people "do" Ramadhan, and so on. As such, I aim to write a little bit trying to answer those questions, as well as why I observe sawm ("fasting regulated by Islamic jurisprudence" - sourced from Wikipedia via Sheikh Google) during the month of Ramadhan (what is meant by "doing" Ramadhan).
What is Ramadhan?Ramadhan is the name of the ninth month in the Islaamic "Hijri" calendar (which follows lunar cycles, with each month being marked by the sighting of the new moon) and is considered to be the holiest month in the calendar (for several reasons, with a dominant one being it believed to be the month in which the Quran began to be revealed to the [according to Islaamic beliefs] Prophet Muhammad [peace be upon him]). However, when people refer to "Ramadhan", more often than not, they're referring to the act of fasting within this month in the context of the "Five Pillars of Islaam" (considered to be actions mandatory upon those who identify as Muslims - these "pillars", referred to as such as they are like the foundations upon which our faith is built, were outlined in the "Hadith of Jibreel [the angel Gabriel of Abrahamic religions]"), of which sawm is the fourth, rather than in a calendrical manner. Also, Ramadhan itself is 'split' into thirds - the first ten days being that of seeking God's rahmat ("mercy"), the next ten of God's maghfirat ("forgiveness"), and the last nine or ten days of God's nijaat ("salvation").
Regarding the lunar calendar, though, something that may be worth keeping in mind is that, since the Islaamic calendar is based on lunar cycles, it 'moves back' by about [on average] ten days each solar year/a month every three years (the *average* of ten days is because the length of lunar months are rounded to integers, so either 29 or 30 days long). So, back when I first started properly fasting at around the age of seven or eight (by choice - my mother, from her seemingly unending love, always worried [and still does, even though I meet the criteria that make fasting obligatory upon me] that it'd be too much for me, not to worry if I felt I couldn't do it, and that I could try again when I'm a bit older, insha Allah), Ramadhan was in December (with relatively short fasts since the days were about eight hours long) and now it's mid-June to about mid-July (around nineteen hours long?), with the summer solstice today, incidentally.
The fasting period itself is, as implied from the previous paragraph, during daylight, rather than the whole month itself (which is nigh impossible!). Specifically, it begins from dawn (which is also the time after which, out of the salaat (five daily prayers), the first one (Fajr) is due, and lasts until sunset (at which the fourth prayer, Maghrib, is due). Typically, Muslims will have suhoor (a meal preceding the fasting period - water and slow-releasing energy foods, like porridge, are recommended here, though this article also provides some snazzy alternatives!) in the morning, and must have iftaar (the meal to break the fast with - and that, kids, is how I met your mother came to understand the reasoning behind the word "breakfast"...).
Iftaar (which I'll talk about more in the next section) is usually opened with some fresh dates and milk or water (and this - opening the fast with dates and milk, is also a sunnah - a verified and kinda-'certified' tradition of the Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] - which means it's strongly encouraged/favoured by Muslims). This particular sunnah is probably also what inspired the following meme (and title of this post) that you may have seen over the years:
In Islaam, sawm during Ramadhan is compulsory upon Muslims who are able/healthy to do so. Those who are exempt are typically young children (I say "young", since we're all children, as far as I'm aware...), the elderly, those with illnesses (be it mental or physical), those who are pregnant, menstruating, post-natal, breast-feeding, and travellers. If it's something temporary during Ramadhan (say you have the flu or are menstruating), then you just make up for it on other days, whereas if it's something more permanent (diabetes, for example), then you try to feed those in need if you can, instead, insha Allah. Though if you fall under one of these criteria, yet reasonably think that you can/should still fast, you can, of course - it's your choice.
So, to summarise what Ramadhan is - it's believed to be the holiest month in the Islaamic calendar, in which Muslims able to do so will fast from the beginning of dawn (so we can eat up until the twilight before sunrise, not sunrise itself!) until sunset each day of the month. The day after the end of Ramadhan (1st of Shawwal) is known as Eid-ul-Fitr ("Festival of the Breaking of the Fast"), and is one of the main festivals/celebrations in Islaam (it's also forbidden to fast on this day), but I won't talk about that in this post, since it's already quite lengthy (maybe in another post, insha Allah). Before going onto "Why Muslims Fast?", I will include a bit about iftaar, since I ended up writing quite a bit on it accidentally, and realised it didn't really go under either question.
Iftaar Iftaar can be a wonderful time, I've found, with particular regards to community. Prior to going to university (a privilege and a luxury I, unlike many others, am able to have, which I acknowledge and am grateful for), my experiences of iftaar were with Family or at my local masjid, and whilst these weren't generally bad or anything, I think the atmosphere didn't feel particularly 'unified'. Regarding the local masjid: whilst there were some regulars perhaps without families of their own around, be it because they're unmarried or temporarily in the UK for work/studies with their families back in their 'homelands', I think it often seemed a mish-mash of different people whenever I went, as the days on which individuals choose to attend iftaar with the wider community rather instead of with family would be seemingly random. Consequently, for me, I didn't really feel an underlying sense of consistency/continuity upon which to build ties, unless I already knew them from outside the masjid (which wasn't the case for me at the time, and I think this was a big factor in me not feeling the 'community spirit' - so please note that I don't think it's really the fault of the community themselves as a whole, but myself for not being more involved; I'm only saying that I didn't feel a communal spirit at Ramadhan until I went to university). (Regarding Family: I do have 'Family problems', but that's not meant in a negative way against any of my Family, rather that it is what it is, and I think we all do what we can to try to resolve it/cope with it in our own ways - might write about it at some point, insha Allah...).
Anywho, at university, the Students' Union's Islamic Society (often called "ISoc", not "iSoc", which'll probably be a personal society you can develop on your tablet/device in the near-future...) would organise communal iftaar events open to all (not just Muslims at the university, but Muslims/non-Muslims in and out of the university) [I've just realised I quite enjoy writing this stuff, as in my thoughts and feelings...*apprehensive me is apprehensive*...if I ever get to the point, if I'm not already there/beyond it =/, that I think/feel my opinions have some authoritative value and 'need' to be known by others, please kindly tell me and help me down from that pedestal.]. For the majority of attendees, university itself would be 'home' for them, especially in these summer months, when those still around are either from abroad and so also have no 'blood-family' around or are post-graduate students that need to be at university anyway for studies/research. As such, you would pretty much see everybody you already knew (since you'd see them throughout the year, anyway, most often at the masjid for performing the daily prayers in a congregation) everyday and very quickly got to know new faces (again, be they from the university or outside). Furthermore, as there'd always be some work to do every day - with setting everything up (food, drink, serving, etc.) and tidying away (washing up, vacuum cleaning, finding people to give away any excess food to, etc.) - you'd soon find that people would just get up and start helping out and responding to any needs however they could. This is heart-warming and a great comfort. To know that, if you are absent, there are others that will shoulder the responsibilities at hand to accomplish that which needs doing is quite a significant relief for me (as you can probably tell, this means more to me than 'just' in the context of setting up for Ramadhan) - so, for all those who do it, in any form, thank you.
Anywho, I digress. Everybody would help out, be it setting up/tidying away, serving food to others (before themselves, though there were also instances were there was no food left for themselves), bringing food to share with others (or contributing money for the ISoc to buy food), looking after the children (as some would bring their families, which was lovely) running around playing "hide-and-seek" or "It/Tag" when they'd [almost-inevitably] fall over at some point despite how often you'd ask them to be careful (but childhood is a time for innocence, if not defined by it, so it was generally quite understandable - though please note that I'm not condoning a "You're young, it's okay to make mistakes"-philosophy or the like), etc. There was such a strong sense of community (so much so that I'm wondering if this is all starting to sound clichéd...=/), and that's something I never really experienced before anywhere, and continues to be something I haven't observed (in the same manner and to the same extent) anywhere else. That's not to say it doesn't exist (I get the impression that some neighbourhoods may thankfully have a communal feel, but most don't, which is a great shame, in my opinion, but hopefully something I'm either wrong about and need to update my data, or will change for the better soon), just that it doesn't seem to be something in general society, sadly.
With particular regards to Muslims, at least (since I'm pretty sure this isn't an exclusive thing), community is a big thing in Islaam, be it in the literal communal sense of those around where we live and work (Muslims share "The Golden Rule", too - "Not one of you truly believes until you wish for others what you wish for yourself.", Prophet Muhammad [PBUH]), as well as in the sense of the Ummah - the whole community of all Muslims, united by their common belief that "There is no God but the one true God, and that Muhammad is God's Last Messenger." (this is the Shahadah - the "Declaration of Faith" in Islaam, and pretty much the defining statement of a Muslim - if you believe this, you're a Muslim. Simples.). A relatively famous ahadith (saying of the Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] - think I've defined this before in another post, but just in case, here it is again) about the Ummah: “The similitude of believers in regard to mutual love, affection, fellow-feeling is that of one body; when any limb of it aches, the whole body aches, because of sleeplessness and fever.” So yes, community is a big thing in Islaam, and I take the fact that I can see it (a community spirit, not just with Muslims, but non-Muslims, too - people in general) in effect on small scales in Ramadhan as a proof-of-concept for larger scales throughout the whole year - we just need to make it happen (easier said than done, I know, but still doable, insha Allah).
Right, so now onto trying to answer "Why Muslims Fast?", albeit from my perspective (whilst I am also part of a ~1.6 billion-membered [crica 2013] community, I don't automatically represent them all - though it does often feel as if that is how I am perceived by others, which is kinda a double-edged sword...so please remember that I have my own thoughts and feelings; [ironically saying this, perhaps:] we are not Borg!).
Why do Muslims fast? First and foremost (and as stated before), fasting during Ramadhan is obligatory upon Muslims. (Though this isn't an excuse to go around forcing others to fast - as usual, in Islaam, if it's obligatory, it's a responsibility on ourselves to uphold those obligations; feel free to peacefully/kindly encourage others of their duties/responsibilities, but no forcing. The only time 'force' against others is permitted, as far as I'm aware - and this is with the "I'm going to interfere"-mindset, not the "I'm going to physically and aggressively make you"-mindset - is when the actions of another will bring harm to themselves/others i.e. "That person about to cross the road hasn't seen the oncoming car, need to pull/push them out of the way!" or "Oh, you're beating me/some person up, and there's no other option other than retaliating/protecting the victim (with self-defence).") Back to topic at hand, fasting is compulsory for Muslims:
"O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may attain Taqwa [God-consciousness]." – The Qur’an, Al-Baqarah [2:183]
Something also worth noting is that fasting isn't just abstaining from food and drink (including water), it is 1) the abstinence of all carnal desires - hunger, thirst, sex (and things like smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc. even though these are forbidden in Islaam anyway, but those who consume such things often make the effort to at least refrain whilst fasting), etc., and 2) the abstinence of 'mental desires'. What I mean by this is thoughts and actions that are regarded as unfavourable in Islaam, such as those founded on lust (towards those that aren't your "significant other"), those borne of anger (not just cursing or shouting, but getting angry in general), back-biting, hypocrisy, etc. (again, these are things forbidden in Islaam anyway, so Ramadhan is a time of mental, physical, and spiritual 'detox' and 'recharging' so as to address problems we may have, rid ourselves of them, and then improve ourselves...kinda like running an anti-virus/-spyware/-malware scan, quarantining and removing the 'bad' files, then running disk defragmenting software to reorganise what's left into a better configuration, but you don't do it all the time, just every once in a while...).
So this is one of the main reasons of fasting, too - to better ourselves in terms of character, and become 'closer' to God (I have another post in mind about my thoughts on God being "Perfection", something we may never be able to attain, but can get asymptotically close to, so trying to attain perfection is the same as trying to be closer to God. Like I said, though, this is probably for a separate post.) To be frank, I find this latter aspect, of 'mental' fasting, harder than the physical fast, and I suppose this is Jihaad ("Struggle") in it's "Greater" form - the struggle against one's self (of course this can, and probably does, vary from person to person). That said, on a rather personal level, I think it's the part that means the most to me, as trying to fulfil 'spiritual' goals is something I can still think/feel "Maybe I have done something right, and can do more right?", rather than "I don't think I'm meant to be here." Of course, this isn't to say that actions with objectively 'positive' outcomes mean nothing, but I feel those are things we ought to do anyway, to help each other, no? Rather, this (trying to become closer to God) is something I don't 'have' to do, but choose to do, out of my own volition, so it's only me that gets effected (for better or for worse), not others, and so I don't feel the same burden of responsibility upon others or worry how it might affect others if I mess up with this particular aspect that I do for the other aspects.
However, one of the other main, and more obvious, motivations, perhaps, is to be mindful of that which we take for granted and those who do not share in the same luxuries we enjoy (be they a right or not) i.e. those without food and water, those for whom fasting isn't a choice or obligatory act to fulfil, but a forced condition (of poverty, mainly). Whilst charity (in the form of Zaka'at, the third pillar of Islaam) is also compulsory upon Muslims able to give it (though, aside from Zaka'at, something always generally encouraged, anyway), and is a means of addressing poverty (amongst other things), we still have at least over a billion people in extreme poverty without food and water, sadly. For some of us, poverty is something we/our families have experienced, but for others, poverty is something that is 'distant' to us - still a problem, but not one we can relate to or may feel that involved with/affiliated to. As such, we can sometimes/often forget that which we have and take for granted, from our houses and cars, through to our jobs and education, down to having some food and water to just survive, at least, not live. And so fasting is a way to at least try to reconnect with those without these basic requirements to survive that we may have forgotten and grown distant from (after all, we are one community), to try to relate at least somewhat to the hardships others are going through, to remind ourselves of that which we have, and perhaps to let go of 'worldly desires' and come closer to God, and that is why I, at least, fast.
Thank you for reading.
P.S. Here's a bunch of Ramadhan-related memes (with one exception) that I hope make you smile/laugh:
