See how Muslims around the world heralded their holiest month: The Picture Show: NPR

Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, began this weekend for the 1.8 billion Muslims around the world. From sun up to sunset, the physically skilled among them will fast – and abstain not just from food, but also as much as a sip of water.

While it is easy to think of Ramadan as a holiday, it is not. Muslims go to work and school and continue their daily lives.

In that sense, the true purpose of the month is discipline and dedication. Fasting extends to more than food. Muslims are expected to practice how to avoid unclean thoughts and deeds.

Ramadan provides a constant physical reminder of God, as well as a reminder of all the people in the world who do not have enough food or water. “It creates a momentum of both gratitude and charity,” said Adeel Zeb – Muslim pastor at The Claremont Colleges – in an interview with NPR in 2017.

The month is centered on charity, worship and the development of empathy and connection to others. But there is also a strong common aspect, which is an essential part of the experience.

But in the last two years, when a pandemic raged, the coronavirus did away with many of these rituals. Gone were the big group dinners, the visits to the mosques, the early morning runs to IHOP to get pancakes before Lent begins – along with so many other beloved aspects of the month.

This year, many Muslims plan to resume the nightly gatherings, Iftar, where they can break their day-long fast together. Many also look forward to the common tarawih prayers that follow after fasting.

This is welcome news for followers like Rizwan Ali. “The worst thing is just to miss people, honestly,” Ali, the imam from the Islamic Center of Naperville, Illinois, told NPR in 2020. “I said that after I prepared for the prayers, I made wudu. [cleansing the body before prayers] in my house. And I was, as you know, I never thought I would miss the long queues in the mosque to make wudu and prepare for prayer. Well, those are the little things you miss – the smiles, the faces. I can close my eyes and tell you where each person is sitting. And I miss all the little experiences now. “

Ramadan is a month in which Muslims believe that God revealed the Qur’an, the sacred text of Islam, to the Prophet Muhammad. It officially begins with the first observation of the waxing crescent after the new moon, leading to different countries declaring its start a day or two apart. For most countries this year, it started Friday night.

The month ends with Eid al-Fitr – a three-day celebration, a time to eat and drink and rejoice after a month of fasting and long nights of worship.