As you all may know, we are currently in the month of Ramadan. You may have noticed a lot of your Muslim friends fasting on campus or even heard about it on the media. Ramadan is the ninth holy month in the Islamic lunar calendar where Muslims fast (cannot eat and drink) from sunrise (Fajr prayer) to sunset (Maghrib prayer). In this month, the Q’uran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and is acknowledged by one of the holiest nights, Laylat al Qadr. It is a very spiritual month that we consistently commit to every day. We try to be the best Muslim we can be during this month. It strengthens our faith and grounds our beliefs. We remind ourselves of the smallest joys in life and be grateful.
One of the Five Pillars of Islam is fasting, and therefore it is very important to our faith. Of course, that doesn’t mean those who are ill, old age, pregnant, traveling, or menstruating are required to fast. They are exempt from fasting. Children can begin if they would like for a half-day, and it’s something they look forward to for all the Ramadan activities.
During Ramadan, Muslims who fast eat before sunrise (Fajr prayer), Suhoor or Sehri, which is their last meal before fasting for the day. Then they break their fast after sunset. The fast is broken with a glass of water and a date if you have one. The meal for breaking fast is called Iftar, and it’s a meal that you have altogether.
My schedule before I sleep is to check when Fajr prayer is, set an alarm for an hour before that to eat Suhoor/Sehri. Sometimes this works for me, other times I oversleep or wake up hearing the Athan (call for Fajr prayer) instead. I am an insomniac so I do tend to stay up sometimes for it. But besides my struggle for sehri, I eat a egg and kabob pita bread sandwich for it with lots of water and tea, which is good enough for me. Then I go about the day, doing school things and wanting to nap. But when Iftar comes, it’s always important to eat with friends and family. Some UMass dining halls offer all halal options for Iftar, which is wonderful. I go to the dining halls to eat with my fellow Muslim friends.
Then I go to Taraweeh in the masjid, which is special prayers in Ramadan after the last daily prayer Isha every night. Long parts of the Qu’ran are read with the goal to finish the Q’uran in these prayers by the end of the month. When I was younger, I went to the masjid every night for Taraweeh. I don’t want to miss it now even though I am not home. It’s something very important for me in Ramadan. There are many rewards for praying Taraweeh as well.
Thank you, and see you next time!
Can’t get enough of HC UMass Amherst? Be sure to follow us on Instagram, listen to us on Spotify, like us on Facebook, and read our latest Tweets!