A Time of Sacrifice and Reflection

This year the Islamic holy time known as Ramadan falls within the month of August. The majority of Muslims will spend this month fasting from dawn until dusk in order to purify themselves, evaluate their lives and refocus their attention on God.  While food, drink, smoking and sex are all expressly prohibited, the overarching religious themes encourage practitioners to abstain from all indulgent and sinful behaviors.  Each part of the body is to be denied.  The tongue must not tell lies, the ears must not listen to slanderous talk and the feet must not take the body to sinful places.

While the body goes without, the soul is nourished.  Ramadan is a time of frequent prayer.  Many Muslims read the Qur'an partially or in total during the holy month.  Though the fasting takes on meanings unique to each person, two of rewards for the pious are obvious:

By practicing self-sacrifice, Muslims find out how it feels to be hungry, thus allowing them a more powerful empathy with those less fortunate than themselves.  Also, by setting aside bad habits and indulgent behavior for a time, many will have the opportunity to reevaluate their life choices and perhaps make improvements.

Ramadan ends at the end of August with 'Eid-ul-Fitr, the Festival of Fast-Breaking.