Ramadan 2022

Do you know what Ramadan is? Do you have friends or family who celebrate it? Aniko LaFrance-Hernandez will go into more detail about this celebration in this editorial.

April and Ramadan

By Aniko LaFrance-Hernandez

The Concept

Ramadan is a Muslim celebration that is estimated to start on Apr. 2 and ends on May 1 (U.S. time). The 30-day celebration allows prayer, fasting, giving, and self-evaluation for those of the Islam religion. It is a deeply personal exploration that accounts for some of the pillars of Islam.

Fasting (Sawm) allows observers to eat breakfast before sunrise (Suhoor), but they must fast at sunrise, not eating or drinking anything until sunset. Praying (Salat) is the second pillar of Islam, allowing individuals to have prayer time five times a day in the direction of Mecca, the original birthplace of Muhammad. After the time of Ramadan comes to an end, Eid al-Fitr begins. This is essentially when Muslims hold a festival towards the “break of the fast.” It will be celebrated for one to three days (depending on the country) and most are not allowed to fast on this day. It concludes Ramadan and allows for new life. The general public can respect all of this by being silent, giving others their needed time of prayer and educating ourselves. This time is generally said to be a holy month for Islamic tradition.

Let’s Get Educated From First Hand Experience

Anonymous individuals who celebrate Ramadan shared their thoughts on how others can all better understand this celebration. The first anonymous individual noted, “bear in mind, in different cultures, there are different beliefs, but the general premises are the same.” Having this in mind, they began to explain the general concepts and dates of the celebration: “There’s no set date on the regular calendar on when it is, as we follow the Islamic calendar. Ramadan is actually the ninth month on the Islamic calendar.” “..it is believed that our uh ‘spiritual rewards’ (I don’t know the English word for it) is multiplied during this month so that’s when like we devote the most prayers, charity y’know, to really doing good deeds.” A second anonymous celebrator of Ramadan explains that, in his family, “we muslims fast from fajr to maghrib which are the names of our prayers we do and pray to our god.” He allows me to have a bit more insight on how the prayer is handled, as everyone can celebrate it in different ways.

Photo Source: https://www.groundtruth.com/insight/ramadan-top-5-things-advertisers-need-to-keep-in-mind-for-their-campaigns/

The History

Mahammad (the final prophet) was the man to inspire this tradition. Muslims believe he had received revelations from God in which he collected into a holy book (Quran). This is what began the celebration of Ramadan-- Muhammad obtaining these revelations of 114 chapters during this month on the Islamic calendar. Their holy book states as follows: “The month of Ramadan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur’an, guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it.”

Important Things to Consider!

Don’t try to ‘support’ your Muslim friends in their fasting or prayer by participating. This is their time of reflection, so let them celebrate it how they feel necessary. Food is a necessity, but this is their time and they know how to care for themselves.
Remember to respect people’s privacy and don’t go around asking random people (online and in-person) if they are Muslim. Not only is it insensitive, but it is also disrespectful.
Try and keep in mind how we may not completely understand what each person is praying for or religiously indulging in, so we should therefore not be allowed any personal opinion or privilege on the history/their sacred month.
Teachers! Maybe take some time this month to share what Ramadan is, so we can all better educate ourselves with the Muslim community.

Page updated

Report abuse