Regardless of whether you’re Sunni or Shia, Egyptian, Indonesian, Iranian, Nigerian, or Saudi… the holy month of Ramadan is underway. To all of you who are fasting – Ramadan mubarak (regardless of your religious affiliation). While Ramadan is central to the Muslim faith, anyone in decent health can benefit immensely from partaking in it and I encourage you all to experience it firsthand.
Labels are wack… I don’t consider myself a ‘religious’ person per se (organized religion has been the source of countless woes over the years), but like many others, this is an important part of the year for me. While I appreciate the things Ramadan is all about (patience, humility, discipline, remembrance, charity, etc) it is also an opportunity to cleanse myself… like most people, I indulge in my fair share of vices from which my body and mind need reprieve.
But for those of us observing Ramadan in the US, the experience often has one major drawback – business as usual. The communal spirit that makes Ramadan such a unique time in Muslim/Arab countries is amiss in the US. (Obviously, I’m not talking about people who live in Dearborn or other similar communities.) There is nothing outside of one’s social network to suggest that anything is different; unless you have people around you to remind you of it, you can easily forget what time it is. I started fasting in the Arab world where there were constant reminders, but the first time I fasted in the US I found myself repeatedly leaning over the water fountain at school and almost breaking my fast.
While fasting can be physically taxing, it can also be a nuisance to have to constantly explain yourself to others (sometimes it’s a pleasure). Ironically, I have found average Americans to be much more understanding than Arabs/Muslims in the US – they are simply not as judgmental and their interest is genuine. At my two previous jobs I was surrounded with Arabs (not all Muslim) who felt the need to keep joking around with me about Ramadan. Many questions were asked, most of them politically and religiously charged. This is especially true of Lebanese people who feel the need to know what your religious affiliations are. I once worked at a small company where most of the employees where US-Jews; they knew virtually nothing about Ramadan, but when the initial phase of Q&A; was over they were very pleasant and overly considerate.
Perhaps the most crucial thing here in the US relates to timing. Whereas back home we hear calls from the minarets reminding us when we should eat and when we should stop, people here are left looking at their watches. I still find it silly that there are calendars with exact times for iftar, suhur, and all that jazz! It’s hard to start eating when there’s still light outside and I find it strange that the last call for food and drink (according to these calendars) comes when it’s still pitch black outside!!
Related posts:
- Ramadan Mubarak & Happy Rosh Hashanah
- HAPPY RAMADAN
- Ramadan on France
- We Are Not Anti-Semites!
- So Long to an Amazing Artist
In an ideal world we should all begin fasting on the same day.
And as soon as Persia conquers your little Arab bitch asses, you will be.
Posted by Anonymous | September 3, 2008, 6:40 pmInteresting; I’m not sure I like these “break from the norm” holidays so much, because they encourage us to be more complacent during the rest of the year — I’ve made a personal decision to invert Yom Kippur, taking that as a guilt-free day off and trying to focus more on righting any personal wrongs I commit the other 364 days. Then again, Ramadan is long enough that those problems might not be so evident.
Posted by Joe | September 8, 2008, 2:19 pm“I’ve made a personal decision to invert Yom Kippur, taking that as a guilt-free day off”
That’s actually exactly right, Joe! You’re a Jew?
Anyway, on Yom Kippur, you don’t have to do anything. The day itself atones for you. It’s strange that so many Jews all go to synagogue on this day, when all they have to do is fast, but won’t go the other 363 days, when connecting to G-d is important in correcting personal failings.
Posted by Anonymous | September 8, 2008, 3:39 pmhappy ramadan karim !! =)
Posted by preity | August 19, 2009, 6:45 am