КУЛТУРА
Sultan of The 11 Month
R
amadan, in Islam, the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. It begins and ends with the appearance of the crescent moon. Because the Muslim calendar year is shorter than the Gregorian calendar year, Ramadan begins 10–12 days earlier each year. For Muslims, Ramadan is a period of introspection, communal prayer in the mosque, and reading of the Quran. God forgives the past sins of those who observe the holy month with fasting, prayer, and faithful intention. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims won’t eat or drink between dawn and sunset. This is called fasting. Fasting is important during Ramadan as it allows Muslims to devote themselves to their faith and come closer to God. After iftar (the end of the fasting for each day), people go out and come together with friends and families until Sahur (the beginning of the fasting for each day). Most countries have special events and traditional shows during the Ramadan. Although Muslims were first commanded to fast in the second year of Hijra (624 CE), they believe that the practice of fasting is actually not an innovation of monotheism but rather has always been necessary for believers to attain taqwa (the fear of God). They point to the fact that the preIslamic pagans of Mecca fasted on the tenth day of Muharram to expiate sin and avoid drought. Philip Jenkins argues that the observance of Ramadan fasting grew out of “the strict Lenten discipline of the Syrian Churches,” a postulation corroborated by other scholars, including theologian Paul-Gordon Chandler, but disputed by some Muslim academics.
10 - VOICES
