It is the holiest month of the year for Muslims around the world. For the first time in our lives, we are not experiencing it at the mosques or with our families. We are experiencing it at home, and for some of us, by ourselves.
Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar that symbolizes 30 days of fasting, prayer, introspection or reflection, and community service. It also consists of nightly prayers, for each of the 30 days, a chapter of the Quran, Islam’s holy book, is read to masses of Muslims every night. At the end of the month, we celebrate with Eid ul-Fitr, an enormous festivity of how we have become more grateful for all that we have, and when family and friends come together and celebrate the end to another Ramadan.
The days of fasting consist of waking up before the morning prayer, which is at dawn. You eat with your family, friends, or community, pray, and begin your day. The hours of your fasts vary depending on where in the world you are; for Muslims here in the United States, our fasts are going to be between 16 to 17 hours long. During that time, you work, pray, or go about your daily lif. Essentially, you don’t eat lunch and have a very late dinner- and yes, we can not even drink water during this time
. In past years, my fasts have consisted of still attending classes and lectures, helping at home, and doing my part in community service work. It is also the time I get to spend the most with my family. When it is time to break our fasts, it becomes a huge feast with fruit, salad, fried snack and lots of water. Ramadan is my favorite time of year because it’s the time that I can see my entire community come together and lift one another during their difficult moments. From food drives, to bake sales, working at soup kitchens, even just donating parts of a paycheck, I felt I was doing my part, and in a sense felt at ease.
This year, it’s going to be very different. Unlike the past 12 years I have been fasting, I will not get to celebrate the breaking of my fast with my entire family, I will not be able to participate in physical community service work, and I will not be able to go to the mosque late at night and hear the chapters being read. Though many mosques and Islamic countries have been said to live stream the nightly prayers, the feeling will not be the same. To my fellow Muslims, I promise that we will get through this odd time together and that those of us celebrating alone have the strength to do so. Call your families during the breaking of fasts, read the chapters at your own pace, and connect with others in your community and celebrate together. This is an odd time for all of us, but I know my community is resilient, and that we will make the most of Ramadan, even in quarantine. Have a blessed month, Ramadan Mubarak.