Ramadan is about more than fasting for Muslims
Imam Sohail Chaudhry
SRINAGAR: Ramadan contains a special night which is more popularly known as the ‘Night of Power.’ This is the exact night the Qur’an was revealed.
God tells believers in the Qur’an that if someone worships God during this one night, it is as if he or she has worshiped God for a thousand months. The night is said to occur during the last 10 nights of the month of Ramadan.
Believers all around the globe spend the last part of Ramadan searching for this mysterious night. Many will stay up all night during the last 10 nights of Ramadan and worship God or recite verses from the Qur’an, hoping to receive the immense rewards in store.
Besides fasting from dawn to sunset, Muslims around the world dedicate themselves to reading and understanding the Qur’an more during this month.
Special worship congregations are held in mosques all over the world, and prayers are made for world peace and unity. Special meals are made for breaking the daily fasts and it becomes quite a festival during evenings in most of the Muslim world.
Family visits and gift exchanges follow Ramadan
The month of Ramadan ends with the Eid celebrations. This marks the end of the month of blessing for Muslims and a celebration for having witnessed the great month and fast during its days.
Family and friends visit each other and gifts are exchanged. Special meals are prepared and an Eid prayer service is held in the mosques. The believers thank God for His enormous blessings during Ramadan, and express the wish to live another year to witness another Ramadan in their life.
Spiritually, fasting acts as a training to tame the wild desires of the soul. Charity, forgiveness and social service are also encouraged during the month of Ramadan.
The rich embrace the poor with gifts and wealth throughout the month. The spirit of sacrifice and sharing is ignited within the human spirit on an annual basis through the institution of fasting.
Controlling the tongue and the body revives the spiritual strength and helps the believer focus on the task at hand — to worship and obey God.
Imam Sohail Chaudhry is the Imam at the Islamic Society of Greater Lansing. Although observed days may vary, Ramadan begins on or around May 5 in 2019 and goes into June.
