Muslims in Northwest Arkansas and around the world looked toward the skies this week -- looking for the crescent moon that signaled the start of Ramadan in their locations.
"The sky (in Northwest Arkansas) was overcast, and the crescent of Ramadan was hiding behind thick clouds," reported Hameed Naseem on Thursday. Naseem is president of the Tulsa, Okla., chapter of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. But through calculations and computer modeling, the time of sunset and the crescent moon were calculated. "Also it has been reported seen in Florida. So June 18 is the day Ramadan starts," Naseem said.
Varying traditions
Just as with Christianity, just as with Judaism. Islam has several different traditions within the faith.
Friends and colleagues, Hameed Naseem and Murtadha Alher share Islam but follow different traditions, perhaps based on their families’ backgrounds. Naseem, with a background in India, is a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, and Alher, from Iraq, is a Shia Muslim.
Both believe in Allah as God and follow the practices of the Prophet Muhammad as written in the Quran after revelations from God during a time of fasting in the wilderness.
News reports often tell of fighting between various factions of Muslims, but the differences are political — a fight over who leads the faith after the Prophet Muhammad, Naseem said.
"The Quran, the character and the model are still the same," Naseem assured.
Feeding the soul
As in many faith traditions, Muslims break their daily fasts and celebrate the Eid holiday with traditional foods, although these might be different from one community to the next.
“You break the (daily) fast by eating dates in yogurt or in soup,” Alher said, or dates will be baked into sweets like baklava, Naseem said.
“During Ramadan, the far-flung Muslim communities of the world are unified by one food: the date, one of the earliest cultivated crops and an ancient icon in the Middle East,” reads a Thursday report in the New York Times. The “Hadith” — a collection of sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad — records that The Prophet always broke the fast with dates and water, and many Muslims follow his lead, the report continued.
Muslims often gather daily at local mosques to break the fast together, Alher said. The two large meals of the night hours — the predawn “suhoor” and the sundown “iftar” — include extra dairy and protein at both meals to help stave off hunger the following day, the Times said.
Naseem mentioned a favorite: Biryani — a dish of meat and rice pilaf. “Oooh, that’s cooked in its own steam,” he said, savoring the vision. He also listed a fine spaghetti-type of noodle cooked in milk for strength, and Alher mentioned a drink similar to lemonade.
“Ahmadiyya (Muslims), we end the fast at sunset,” Naseem said while rubbing his stomach. “I’m hungry! I’m eating! The Shia want it to be dark,” he said, poking fun at his friend.
“I always lose weight during Ramadan,” Naseem said. “I always gain,” Alher added.
The Muslim faith and observances are based on a lunar calendar, and with that rotation throughout their lifetimes, most Muslims will have gone through a Ramadan fast in all seasons, Naseem said.
“It’s a blessing, because fasts during summer days are long and hot, but 17 years from now, it will cycle to the winter months (and shorter days).” The daily fasts this year run from about 5 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., according to the New York Times article.
“But we both celebrate with prayer each night,” Alher said, returning to the heart of the observance.
“Prayers are the most important thing during the fast,” Naseem agreed.
“When everybody is fasting, it has a community effect,” Naseem said. “Like when you all worship at the same time, it goes from a regular light to a laser beam.”
Ramadan is the most holy month for the followers of Islam, marked with fasting, introspection and prayer. Fasting -- or "saum" -- stands as one of the five pillars of Islam.
Fasting and prayer
"Fasting begins one or two hours before sunrise and ends when the evening becomes dark," said Naseem, who is from India. In addition to his work with the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, he also serves as the adviser for the Al-Islam Students Association, a registered student organization at the University of Arkansas, where he is a professor of electrical engineering.
"You are not supposed to eat, drink, say a bad word, show anger or get too close to your wife -- have sexual relations," Naseem said. "What is normally allowed is forbidden for a person during the fasting hours.
"You are supposed to control yourself because our Beloved (Allah) wants us to learn to sacrifice."
Fasting during the Ramadan observance is just one form of worship for Muslims, Naseem said. "So is spending for the poor (alms), travel to a holy place (the "hajj" or the pilgrimage to Mecca). This is the kind of worship that man makes directly to God. Man is involved with God."
The month of Ramadan (is that) in which was revealed the Quran, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights (the new moon of) the month, let him fast it.
-- Quran, 2:185
The Quran requires fasting during the month of Ramadan, Naseem explained.
"It's a quiet time for the adults," he said, looking forward to his upcoming observance.
"It is obligatory to you, just as it was required of the people who came before you. Just as it will be required for the people who come after you. You are no different than those people; you do this, so you will become righteous. Jews, Christians, Buddhists -- they all fast and carry on spiritual healing.
"Ramadan can be taxing, stressful, a boot camp for your own self," Naseem continued. "But as you stay away from the physical desires, you are increasing in spiritual capacity. When you cut down on physical gain (for example, from food), you gain the spirit."
The time left open when not eating should be spent in prayer and study of the Quran (often offered in mosques), said Murtadha Alher, a Shia Muslim of Iraq. The post-doctoral engineering research scholar at the university spoke often through Naseem because English is not his primary language.
"With meditation, you can get to the home of God -- 'dhikr'," Alher said, "taking the name of God, remembering him more often, all the time."
Some Muslims wake during the night and say special prayers -- the "tahajjud." Others stay up all night praying, Ahler said.
The Prophet's grandson, Al-Hasan, said: "They burdened themselves with the night. They extended the salah (prayer) until the early dawn, then they sat making du'a (supplication) and seeking forgiveness."
"Some will say special prayers at the beginning of the night," Naseem said. "Then some will sleep until they hear the pots and pans rattle while others are making breakfast. They wake up and say prayers."
"You will have blessings when you wake up and eat breakfast before dawn -- enough to last 24 hours," Alher said. "You eat foods to start the fast, just as you eat foods to break the fast."
They used to sleep but little of the night, and in the hours before dawn, they would ask forgiveness.
-- Quran 51:17-18
"The Prophet says every good action you do is recorded 10 times during Ramadan," Naseem said. "So you could fast all year, or you could fast during Ramadan.
"And men have the option of fasting for six more days," he said, noting each of the 30 days of required fasting and six days of optional fasting are recorded as 10. The fast is recorded as 360 days -- nearly a calendar year.
Some Muslims keep fasts at other times of the year, particularly when experiencing troubles or petitioning for Allah's special favors, according to the Al-Islam website of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.
"There is no limit to this, except that the founder of Islam strongly discouraged those who had vowed to fast continuously for their whole life," reads the website. "When the Holy Prophet came to learn of one such case, he disapproved of the practice and censured the man ... He told the person concerned that: 'Just by putting yourself to trouble or discomfort, not only will you be unable to please God, but you may even earn his displeasure.' (Muhammad) pointed out that overemphasis on austerity is likely to make one negligent toward one's wife and children, kith and kin, friends, etc."
Some Muslims are exempt from the required fasting, Naseem and Alher said -- children, elderly, those who are sick and those who are traveling, among them.
"Allah does not want hardships on his people," Naseem said. "There are other days during the year when you can complete the number of days."
So whoever sights (the new moon of) the month, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey -- then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for your ease and does not intend for you hardship and (wants) for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that (to) which he has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful.
-- Quran 2:185
"If you can't fast, you can feed the poor," Alher said.
"Another hallmark of Islam is giving alms to the poor," Naseem said. "Some people give away 10 percent of the money they earn during Ramadan, but it is not normally that high."
"Prophet Muhammad was like a whirlwind in alms-giving," Naseem continued. "He was like no other."
"Muslims, in general, give a lot this time of year to the poor outside of the mosques in other countries."
And as the month of Ramadan closes at Eid-al-Fitr, and the monthlong fast is broken, "you share food with your neighbors and look for poor people to provide them meat," Naseem said.
"In Islam, alms-giving and care for the destitute is so highly emphasized that it becomes part of a Muslim's daily life," reads Al-Islam. "However, when it comes to Ramadan, the month of fasting, Muslims are required to redouble their efforts in this field. It is reported of the Holy Prophet that spending in the cause of the poor was a routine daily practice with him, which has been likened unto a breeze, never ceasing to bring comfort and solace to the needy. However, during Ramadan, the reporters of the Ahadith -- the sayings of the Holy Prophet -- remind us that the breeze seemed to pick up speed and began to blow like strong winds. Alms-giving and care for the destitute are so highly emphasized, that in no period during the year do Muslims engage in such philanthropic purposes as they do during the month of Ramadan."
But God does not need his hunger, Naseem said. Merely being hungry or thirsty during a fast brings no reward, he said. "It is more righteous if you put aside your bad habits."
Last 10 days
The last 10 days of Ramadan are "physically tough but spiritually rewarding," Naseem said.
"It's made even more intense because you are looking for a sign from God that your prayers are accepted," Alher said. "God comes closer to people as their prayers increase in intensity."
But the Prophet has told them to look for signs of acceptance only on the odd-numbered days, Naseem said, although the particular days are different in both men's traditions.
"And there's a high probability it will come at night," Alher said. "By only watching nights, it makes it easier."
"It's very good if you can do 100 prayers during Ramadan," Alher continued. "That's considered acceptance (in his tradition)."
"Sometimes people smell something good or see a light that's not normally there, or a light rain might fall," Naseem said.
Alher said he feels something satisfied within himself.
The fasting and the step back from gossip, anger and vices can be tough in today's world, Naseem admitted.
"There will be slips," he said. "But hopefully Ramadan leaves us better than we were when we started. Then, next year, we'll be even better than this year.
"All are trying," Naseem continued. "Allah is very forgiving. His mercy encompasses every one of his attributes. Some slip, and they will ask for forgiveness from God."
Alher admitted that he feels sad at the end of Ramadan, when the holy month ends and the world continues.
Break the fast
Muslims in Northwest Arkansas will celebrate Eid-al-Fitr, the Festival of Fast-Breaking, on July 18. "It's a day of celebration and nobody fasts on that day," Alher said.
"You are not allowed to fast," Naseem added.
Prayers of the Eid-al-Fitr -- like the Friday Prayers -- are held in "jaamia" (or grand mosques) or even outdoors because of the large number of participants. Daily prayers are performed at personal homes or in neighborhood mosques, weekly Friday prayers in bigger mosques. "And Eid requires an even bigger place," Naseem said.
Thousands of Muslims join the prayers, which might be of 20-minute duration, and are held after sunrise any time between 8 and 11 a.m. The congregation often spills over onto the street in big cities.
"I have one special thing," Naseem quoted The Prophet. "Worship was previously confined to certain sacred places. For me, however, the entire Earth is made sacred."
"You must find a clean place for offering prayers," Naseem continued. "Often any hall or house is a good place; in many Western countries, huge community centers or expo centers are rented out for Eid prayers."
On this day, children visit and pay respect to their elders. As a child, after Naseem spoke to an uncle, "he would move his hands to his pockets" and retrieve a gift for the child.
"I hope your days will be happy," is the common greeting.
Naseem recalled another scene from his Indian home. "In the early morning, I can see my sisters will be putting gifts in boxes to take to their friends. They will probably miss the prayers," he said, laughing at his memories.
"In Iraq, the Eid celebration lasts for three days," Alher said. "Despite the solemness of the occasion, it's quite fun."
NAN Religion on 06/20/2015