By Emaan Naheed in 5th class, County Cork, Ireland
What is Ramadan?
You might ask what is Ramadan? Or why do Muslims celebrate Ramadan? Well here I am going to tell you! Ramadan is a fasting month of Muslims. After 29 to 30 days, Muslims celebrate a special day,called Eid-ul-Fitar just likewise other religions have Christmas, Easter, etc.
Why Muslims fast in Ramadan?
This is a very common question ‘why do Muslims fast in Ramadan?’ The idea behind fasting is to practice self-restrain, which is one of the five pillars of Islam. Fasting is done from dusk till dawn. Being living in Ireland and observing fast, I wake up at around 4 am and eat and drink until around 5AM then I pray Fajr (Morning prayer) and sleep. You don’t eat until around 8PM when it is time to open fast.
Muslims normally cook or order a big meal because they don’t eat the whole day. You would normally start fasting at the age of 12-14.
Prayers
In Ramadan there are 5 prayers that a Muslim prays and not only in Ramadan you have to offer these 5 prayers every day. They are called Fajr-morning prayer, Zuhr-day prayer, Asr-afternoon prayer, Maghrib-evening prayer and Isha-night prayer.There is different time for each Prayer.
General facts about Ramadan
- The dates of Ramadan change each year as it starts on sighting of the moon.
- One can not eat, drink, use abusive language, be patient, behave while getting the true spirit of fasting.
- The end of Ramadan is celebrated with a big celebration called ‘Eid ul-Fitr’.
- During Ramadan you can greet someone by saying “Ramadan Mubarak”.
- Some people give ‘zakat’ in Ramadan which is giving money to the poor.
- Approximately 1.8 billion people in the world are Muslims.
- Muslims believe that there is one God, who is merciful and all-powerful.
- Only Muslims who are able to have to fast during Ramadan. This means that people who are sick, travelling, elderly, pregnant, or have a health condition can skip the month of fasting.
- The meal that is used to break the fast at the end of each day is called iftar.
Enjoy the blessings of Ramadan 2022!
By Emaan Naheed in 5th class, County Cork, Ireland
