Sunday marked the end of the holy month of Ramadan for Muslims worldwide. Ramadan is the ninth month on the Islamic calendar where Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. It is believed that during this month, the Quran was first revealed to Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel. Since Islam follows the lunar calendar, Muslims rely on moon sightings to determine the first day of Ramadan.
This month is observed by Muslims through fasting, reflection, worship, spirituality and as a time for communities to come together. It is considered to be one of the holiest times of the year for Muslims.
“Ramadan is a month of spirituality for Muslims that was designated by God and His messenger,” said Mikhail Raza, a fourth-year student studying engineering. “It’s characterized by a lot of different things, but mostly an emphasis on an intense sense of devotion and worship to God. There’s an overarching theme of disconnecting from the world and worldly matters and reliance, and focusing solely on our connection with God and on fostering that.”
One of the key aspects of Ramadan is the fast that Muslims keep. Muslims start their fast in a pre-dawn meal called suhoor, and open their fast during dusk in a meal called iftar. The fast is traditionally broken with a date and small appetizer, usually consisting of a variety of fried foods. During the day, they aren’t allowed to eat anything or drink anything, not even water. Along with food, there are also prohibitions on intimate activities, swearing and music.
“Fasting in and of itself is an act of worship that is meant solely for the sake of your connection with God,” Raza said. “There’s nobody that is affected or benefited from fasting except yourself and your connection with Allah. … It serves to remove your naafs, your humanity’s reliance on the material world and what comes from it. Throughout the year, you spend all this time thinking about your job, your school, about our family. Well, in Ramadan and fasting, you remove yourself from that completely and you understand that the purpose of your life is not for this.”
Another important aspect of Ramadan and fasting is the ability to empathise with the less fortunate and to give charity to those who need it. Called zakat, it is a type of mandatory charity that Muslims are obligated to give usually increases significantly during this holy month.
“When you feel hunger, it helps you feel for the people that are involuntarily subjected to hunger, where we make a choice that we’re going to feel hunger and that we’re going to discipline ourselves,” said Atif Chaudhry, an Imam and executive director at the Rahma Center of Charlotte. “One of the lessons that a lot of Muslims benefit from is the ability to empathize with people, and this is why Ramadan is also such a charitable time of the year, where a lot of the poor, a lot of the people in need, their needs are taken care of.”
Along with charity and fasting, additional worship and spirituality is also increasingly practiced. Extra voluntary prayers called Taraweeh are usually prayed after Isha, which is the nightly mandatory prayer, and are prayed in groups and in eight or 20 sets, usually at a mosque. These prayers are led by Hafiz, or those who have memorized the Quran.
“Those [prayers] are not obligatory upon us, but encouraged to attend if you can,” said Osama Said, the chair of the Shura at the Islamic Association of Raleigh. “If you’re able to attend Taraweeh every single night, then you can complete the Quran in one month.”
While the whole of Ramadan is special and a holy time for Muslims, the last 10 nights of Ramadan are hailed as the most spiritual times of the year. Muslims believe that in the last 10 nights, the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel in an event known as Laylatul-Qadr, or “The Night of Power,” where a person’s prayers are accepted.
“We’re told to find the night,” Chaudhry said. “It wasn’t specified, but the Prophet saw them and told us that it’s in the odd nights of the last 10 days. So it can be the 21st, the 23rd, the 25th, the 27th or the 29th. It’s a special night that has a significance, because that’s when the Quran was revealed, and then also because it is a time where prayers are accepted.”
Ramadan is additionally a time to come together and celebrate with tradition and culture. Mosques encourage community activity by hosting events and programs, such as iftars and bazaars.
“My mom makes special dishes that she usually waits until Ramadan to make, and everyone is really happy,” Raza said. “My mom’s happy we’re eating for food. My dad’s happy because his house is full. I’m happy because I have everyone that I love around me. There’s lots of community events, community iftars, it’s a time for everyone to come together, especially with the community prayers.”
NC State also offers a variety of community events for Muslims during Ramadan.
“The Muslim Student Association … offered dawah tables at Talley Student Union for people that maybe aren’t familiar with Islam or with Muslims in general,” Raza said. “They have the opportunity to speak to a Muslim to gain perspective on the religion. I think nowadays, especially when there’s so much disinformation that is spread about Islam, it’s a really nice opportunity just to engage with the broader community, not just Muslims.”
Seeking out and being with the community doesn’t necessarily mean only the Islamic community, as many Muslims also engage and celebrate with non-Muslim friends and neighbors during Ramadan.
While people generally view Ramadan as a holy and joyous month, there are still many misconceptions that people have regarding it.
“We can eat after sundown,” Raza said. “No, we don’t drink water during the day. You know, those are memes at this point. The spiritual aspects of Islam really aren’t represented. A lot of people see Islam as just like a set of rules, you know, a set of regulations. … It’s a very, very spiritual experience.”
Muslims celebrate the end of Ramadan through the holiday of Eid al-fitr. Eid al-fitr is usually based on the moon sightings that mark the beginning of a new Islamic month. During Eid, Muslims come together as a community to celebrate the end of Ramadan and to celebrate the end of their hard work.
On Eid morning, a special prayer is hosted at the mosque, and then people tend to come together for brunches and dinner. People wear new clothes, and the women tend to decorate their hands with henna. Children are gifted with money or gifts referred to as Eidi.
While Ramadan is a time for Muslims to connect and come together, it has been marked by tragedy and heaviness for the past year and a half as many Muslim communities worldwide have been impacted by the Israel-Hamas war and other conflicts, making it difficult for communities worldwide to celebrate Ramadan and Eid.
“With regards to everything that’s happening in Palestine, Sudan, Myanmar, even Muslims in Europe and Chechnya that are being oppressed; a lot of us find ourselves engaging daily with this and struggling immensely,” Raza said. “These horrible things are happening around the world, and it’s very, very painful.”
