MoMmY Lei ss_blog_claim=913025a03411326416d1f2daa1a8f71b ss_blog_claim=913025a03411326416d1f2daa1a8f71b
MoMmY Lei

Oct 18, 2004

#46 - Holy Month

Ramadan started last Friday, October 15. It's my first time to experience Ramadan and I've heard a lot of it way back high school time. It's really different when you just heard rather than experienced it.

Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic Calendar for Muslims. Since Islam uses lunar calendar, Ramadan begins and ends at different time each year. The start depends on the sighting of the new moon and the end is determined on the same way.

If we Christian have holy week, and abstain from meat during lent, Muslims have one whole month of fasting and abstaining from human basic needs, which is food, drink and sex, from sunrise till sunset.

Fasting is an obligation of Muslim men and women and it is compulsory to those who are mentally and physically fit. Exempted to this are adolescense, mentally incapacitated, menstruating and pregnant women, lactating mothers and travelers. Those who cannot fast must make up on the other month or contribute to poor.

There were so many changes and restrictions that I observed and we, the non-Muslims must obey and respect them.

- Drinking, Eating and Smoking in public is prohibited during daytime.
- Restaurants and Malls are close during daytime.
- Bars and Disco houses are close during Ramadan.
- School hours were cut short.
And last...
- Working hours were shortened to 6 hours only (Yipeee)



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Fasting is not only abstaining from human needs but it should come from your heart, from you own freewill and should be dedicated or worshipped for God / Allah / Buddha or whatever your religion.
 

:: Posted by Mmy-Lei :: 23:29 :: # :: 0 Comments:

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