Ramadan

[deadhead65]

I've only been on this site for a few months but I was wondering.................am I the only muslim on here? Just curious if anyone else will be going through Ramadan with me.

peace

deadhead65 Reviewed by deadhead65 on 09-09-2007. Ramadan I've only been on this site for a few months but I was wondering.................am I the only muslim on here? Just curious if anyone else will be going through Ramadan with me. peace :) Rating: 5

[thekhoso]

hey, another muslim here living in tunisia. no weed/hashish here but i intend to fast.

[Hardcore Newbie]

excuse my ignorance but what is ramadan and what is the reason behind it?

[thekhoso]

the calendar that we follow today is called the gregorian calendar. in the islamic calendar, there's a month called ramadhan. it's based on the sightings of the moon. every month, when a new moon (crescent) is visible, a new islamic month starts. in 2007, ramadhan starts on the 13th of sept which is today.

in ramadhan, muslims fast throughout the month. by fasting, i mean muslims don't eat from the crack of dawn till the end of the day - dusk. upon dusk, one is allowed to eat. fasting is also observed in judaism and christianity.

hope i've answered you sufficiently. if not, please ask. in islam, it is believed that asking questions is gaining half the knowledge.

[Hardcore Newbie]

oh ok so it's not a full out fasting for x amount of days, just a time during the day when eating is prohibited, for x amount of days. Even still, sound harsh

[Coelho]

If I had to be religious, I think the last religion I would choose would be Islam.

Well... im sure there is a lot of people that would say the same thing about your (lack of) religion...


BTW, i must tell here a strange coincidence that happened today... i didnt knew that the ramadan started today, i didnt even had it in my mind, as im half-christian and have not almost any knowledge about islam, only know the "basics".
Anyway, today i decided to fast. Dont know why, though. But i did, and will eat only now (5am). Its still dark here, btw. I always eat this time, as i live at night and sleep at day, but, strangely, today i didnt eat since the time awoke...
And, just now, reading this post i knew that today was the start of the ramadan. Thats really a strange coincidence...

[Psycho4Bud]

SHOW RESPECT!

Have a good one!:jointsmile:

[stinkyattic]

While I've personally never fasted for any religious reasons (I'm Unitarian and it's not common practice), I respect the idea of denying ones self the pleasures of food, sex, etc. as a reminder of either the suffering of others or to prepare for the harvest season to come, and the long hard winter after.

[Coelho]

Well, stinky, i think (i may be wrong, though) that fasting is more an way for exercising control over your desires.
As many things called "sins", or things that are wrong, are manifestations of our desires, i think if you are a truly spiritual person, you must have control over them.
And, sincerely, controling your stomach when you are hungry is a HARD work... if you can do it sucessfully, then probably you can control most of your desires also, as usually they are less "tangible", less "real" than the burning feeling of hunger in your stomach.

[thekhoso]

hey guys, been away for a week and my control panel had all these 'updated' forums waiting for me.

coelho's right. fasting in ramadhan more like an exercise to control your desires and for me, knowing that your food is on the table and wait till a specific time to eat it.. i think that's a form of controlling desires. it is not just food. any 'intake' into the body breaks the idea of fast. no cigarettes, no water etc. it's also about overcoming addiction which, at the first place is a great vice itself additcion is.

furthermore, because of poverty and the history of poverty, one should know the poor starve and long for a meal. remember.. for people like you and me, being hungry is almost abstract. we've never starved for longer than a couple of hours at the most.. since we all have homes, food and most of us have family's support too.

people these days have a great misconception about islam and its teachings. the media has portrayed it differently. sadly the uneducated and the narrow minded people have clinged onto uncontexted phrases of islam and have made a bad name of their own religion.

i'd like to clarify everything you guys ask =]