Ramadan Part II - Electric Bugaloo

Okay, so I announced it was Ramadan in my last post but it was coupled with rather materialistic ramblings (I bought stuff, yay! I wasted food… yay?) and I want to redress that with a gigantic mega-post full of Ramadan goodness. So let’s get cracking.

What is Ramadan?

"Oh you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that you many learn piety and righteousness" (Qur'an, al-Baqarah, 2:183)

In the month of Ramadan, Muslims are required to fast everyday from dawn till dusk. Fasting means refraining from:

v Food

v Drink

v Intoxicants e.g. nicotine

v Sexual relations (ooh-err, missus… I’m sorry I can’t help it, well I can, but, you know…)

Muslims eat a meal before dawn called sehri then it’s fasting all day until sunset and the time of eating again is called ‘iftari’.

Ramadan is a time for being devoted to worship and the act of fasting brings you to a higher state of mind. It’s a time of the year for self-reflection and contemplation. How big of a jerk have I been this year and what do I need to do to stop it?

Yesterday, I was practically dying for a glass of water. I got all panicked and thought I would end up in a coma and die. I had eaten and drank my fill only half an hour before. Just how on earth are people in the Horn of Africa coping with famine? Subhanallah, we are so lucky to have the luxury to choose not to eat. I hope Allah brings relief to those suffering, ameen.

The Prophet said: He who gives food for a fasting person to break his fast, he will receive the same reward as him, except that nothing will be reduced from the fasting persons reward." [Ahmad, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah, Ibn Hibbaan, Saheeh].

It’s not just about guarding your stomach though. It’s about guarding your thoughts and your body parts too. One has to be careful not to quarrel, use curse words or lie.

Now, during ramzan, I try not to watch too much TV especially stuff to do with romance (which is hard because I am or was a Twilight fan – don’t judge me!) and I turn away from seeing two people kissing on screen cos I don’t need to see that while I’m in a state of fasting (or on any other day) buuuuuuuuuuut…

... after one day of fasting, I happened to have the TV on and was flicking through the channels. The film Alexander was on and Colin Farrell happened to catch my eye as he was eating a pomegranate. I was utterly mesmerised. My pious resolve was almost shattered. Considering Colin Farrell looked like this:

Throughout the movie, I can’t decide if it was a testament to Colin’s acting or my state of piety that I could be so entranced by him eating a friggin’ piece of fruit. Moral of the story: don’t watch TV during Ramadan. It will mess with your head.

Now, it’s all very well fasting but what does one have to look forward to as a reward for all the good deeds and hard work?

In the aftermath of 9/11, the idea of ’72 virgins in heaven’ was bandied about and it caught the public imagination. I was talking to my friend about this. As a muslim, I had never even heard this phrase before but didn’t know enough to dispute it. Thankfully, someone else did the hard work and I was so happy to find this youtube clip which explains beautifully what an Islamic version of paradise is really like and debunks the '72 virgins' myth.

Beautiful gardens with rivers which flow beneath. Sounds rather heavenly to me.

photo - optical illusion