Okay But Why Is There Always Confusion Every Year About Exactly What Day Ramadan Starts On
There’s a reason “Ramadan start date” is one of the most-searched phrases every single year. That’s because Muslims around the world do not know when exactly Ramadan is actually supposed to start. If you Google it, you’ll see there’s a little disclaimer under Google’s answer that says “Dates may vary”:
That also has to do with the moon as well as disagreements about science, history, and tradition, plus a bit of geopolitical rivalry.
The beginning of each new month in the Islamic calendar starts on the new moon. Which means the month of Ramadan starts on the new moon. Simple enough, right?
Wrong.
If it’s been a while since your high school astronomy class, here’s a reminder of what the phases of the moon look like:
Back in Mohammed’s day, in sixth-century Arabia, astronomical calculations weren’t as precise as they are today, so people went by what they could see with the naked eye.
Since the new moon isn’t actually super visible in the night sky , Muslims traditionally waited to start fasting until the small sliver of crescent moon became visible. There’s even a saying attributed to the Prophet Mohammed about waiting to start the fast until you see the crescent.
Today, however, we have precise scientific calculations that tell us exactly when the new moon begins, and we don’t need to wait until someone spots a tiny crescent in the sky.
Professional And Cultural Issues
Ramadan fasting is uniformly observed across the Muslim world. However, unique cultural differences exist and these may impact the health outcomes of patients with diabetes who elect to observe the fast. Several studies addressed the perceptions and behaviors of health care professionals and their practices towards Ramadan fasting. The pattern of diabetes management during Ramadan fasting in childhood and adolescence by 167 physicians was examined . The study revealed a wide variation in the management of children and adolescents with diabetes during Ramadan. The knowledge, attitudes and practices of 330 Sudanese community pharmacists in the management of diabetes during Ramadan were assessed in a cross-sectional study . More than three quarters of the pharmacists had reportedly sufficient knowledge in identifying high-risk individuals and whether there is a need to break their fasting. Practice questions concerning monitoring blood glucose levels, undergoing meal planning to avoid hypoglycemia and dehydration during prolonged fasting hours, and undergoing meal choices to avoid postprandial hyperglycemia were answered correctly by> 80% of pharmacists. 56.9% of the community pharmacists advised individuals with diabetes about physical activity. Barriers that hinder proper counseling were attributed to lack of knowledge . Medication regimen adjustment was reported as highly crucial and critical . The confidence of knowledge about MRA was reported by 52.1%.
Make Most Out Of Ramadan:
One can make the most out of Ramadan by doing the following good deeds:
Recite Quran Kareem
Ramadan is also called the month of the Quran so one must Recite Al Quran during the whole month. Tarawih Prayers – usually held in mosques – is one of the ways Muslims can complete the recitation of The Holy Quran. These Prayers are known as Mustahab for Muslims to read the whole Quran during Ramadan and strive to complete it. However, it is not obligatory. Some Muslims do it by Completing one Juz’ each day for the 30 Days of Ramadan.
Here is the collection of some of the Verses in Quran about Ramadan.
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What Happens After Sundown During Ramadan
As soon as the sun goes down, Muslims break their fast with a light meal or snack called iftar before their evening prayer, known as tarawih, which some choose to perform at mosques. They also have the option to pray at home, too.
Following the evening call to prayer, Muslims often gather in each other’s homes and share a larger meal throughout the month before heading to bed . After a few hours of sleep, they wake up before sunrise to consume their first meal of the day, called suhoor, before starting all over again.
How Does Fasting Work
Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars or duties of Islam, along with the testimony of faith, prayer, charitable giving, and making a pilgrimage to Mecca. All Muslims are required to take part every year, though there are special dispensations for those who are ill, pregnant or nursing, menstruating, or traveling, and for young children and the elderly.
The practice of fasting serves several spiritual and social purposes: to remind you of your human frailty and your dependence on God for sustenance, to show you what it feels like to be hungry and thirsty so you feel compassion for the poor and needy, and to reduce the distractions in life so you can more clearly focus on your relationship with God.
During Ramadan, Muslims abstain from eating any food, drinking any liquids, smoking cigarettes, and engaging in any sexual activity, from dawn to sunset. That includes taking medication . Chewing gum is also prohibited .
Doing any of those things “invalidates” your fast for the day, and you just start over the next day. To make up for days you didn’t fast, you can either fast later in the year or provide a meal to a needy person for each day you missed.
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Why Does Fasting Take Place
Ramadan represents a period of practicing self-restraint to keep in line with awm , which is one of the pillars of Islam.
The Muslim Council of Britain says: “A key objective of fasting increase in taqwa , and to engender a sense of gratitude, self-discipline and self-improvement, at both an individual and community level, which Muslims are encouraged to continue throughout the year.
“At an individual level, fasting encourages us to feel an affinity with the poor across the world who have little or no food to eat.”
Families and local communities are also encouraged to share meals with friends and neighbors and reach out to those who may be fasting alone during Ramadan.
“Aside from fasting, Muslims observing Ramadan also increase in spiritual devotional acts such as prayer, giving charity and strengthening family ties,” the council adds.
Ramadan ends with Eid al-Fitr, a festival that marks the breaking of the fasting period. It begins on May 12 this year and can be celebrated for up to three days.
“It is a time for great feasts, the giving of gifts to children and spending time with those dearest to you,” says Muslim Aid.
When Does Ramadan End
This year, Ramadan ends when the sun sets on Wednesday, May 12.
Ramadan lasts for 29 or 30 days depending on the moon cycle.
After a month of fasting, Muslims celebrate with a festival called Eid and wish each other ‘Eid Mubarak’ .
Eid is a social event that is celebrated by having your family, friends and neighbours over for a large feast.
Muslims decorate their homes and wear new clothes, and children and the elderly receive gifts or money packets.
While practices vary across the world, Eid is also a time when Muslims seek forgiveness from each other.
COVID restrictions have meant Eid celebrations are smaller and socially distanced, but are still meaningful.
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Eid Celebrations At The End Of Ramadan
Fasting has other personal and social benefits. Through fasting, the rich know what it means to be hungry. Hence, the rich will be more inclined to give charity when they fast. The annual Islamic alms are usually paid in Ramadan.
Muslims often invite friends and family members to join in the celebration of the break-fast dinners . The rich organise dinners for the poor.
In the past few decades, Muslim minorities in western countries have started to invite their non-Muslim friends to iftar dinners. Muslim organisations have annual iftar dinners for their associates and supporters.
In Australia, the NSW premier, for example, has been holding iftar dinners for members of the Muslim community and other faith leaders since 2004. Presidents of the US have also held iftar dinners in the White House.
Ramadan has become a cultural event for everyone.
Ramadan culminates in a three-day celebration , where Muslims offer a special morning prayer, then visit family and friends. Charity, called fitr, is given to the poor to ensure no one is left out of the celebrations and the joy of success that comes with fasting.
Fasting During Ramadan And Nutritional Status
Ramadan fasting has drawn considerable interest among nutritional scientists as it provides an excellent opportunity to study the effects of restricted energy intake and altered periodicity of meals on changes in body weight, composition, fluid, and electrolyte balance, and metabolic and biochemical changes, especially those of serum lipid concentrations in free-living populations. Most data are derived from studies using small numbers of subjects who are examined before and after the Ramadan fast. Rarely are nonfasting control groups used to account for seasonality or other changes that occur during the month, nor are the long-term effects of these annual fasts described.
Ellen Fallows, Hayley S. McKenzie, in, 2021
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What Is Ramadan Actually About
Ramadan is the most sacred month of the year for Muslims the Prophet Mohammed reportedly said, “When the month of Ramadan starts, the gates of heaven are opened and the gates of hell are closed and the devils are chained.”
Muslims believe it was during this month that God revealed the first verses of the Quran, Islam’s sacred text, to Mohammed, on a night known as “The Night of Power” .
During the entire month of Ramadan, Muslims fast every day from dawn to sunset. It is meant to be a time of spiritual discipline of deep contemplation of one’s relationship with God, extra prayer, increased charity and generosity, and intense study of the Quran.
But if that makes it sound super serious and boring, it’s really not. It’s a time of celebration and joy, to be spent with loved ones. At the end of Ramadan theres a big three-day celebration called Eid al-Fitr,or the Festival of the Breaking of the Fast.
It’s kind of like the Muslim version of Christmas, in the sense that it’s a religious holiday where everyone comes together for big meals with family and friends, exchanges presents, and generally has a lovely time.
So Do You Lose Weight During Ramadan
Some of you may be thinking, “Wow, that sounds like a great way to lose weight! I’m going to try it!” But in fact, Ramadan is actually notorious for often causing weight gain. That’s because eating large meals super early in the morning and late at night with a long period of low activity bordering on lethargy in between can wreak havoc on your metabolism.
One meta-analysis of scientific studies on the effects of Ramadan fasting on body weight found that “eight changes during Ramadan were relatively small and mostly reversed after Ramadan, gradually returning to pre-Ramadan status. Ramadan provides an opportunity to lose weight, but structured and consistent lifestyle modifications are necessary to achieve lasting weight loss.”
So just like with any other extreme diet plan, you may lose a few pounds, but unless you actually make “structured and consistent lifestyle modifications,” you’re probably not going to see major, lasting results.
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Ramadan In Earth Orbit
Muslim astronauts in space schedule religious practices around the time zone of their last location on Earth. For example, this means an astronaut from Malaysia launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida would center their fast according to sunrise and sunset in Florida’s Eastern Time. This includes times for daily prayers, as well as sunset and sunrise for Ramadan.
Understanding Your Nutritional Needs
During Ramadan, to meet the amount of energy and nutrients your body needs during the day, you should eat foods rich in protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, and you should make sure to drink enough water.
At the same time, this does not mean that you should eat everything you need at once during suhoor. If you do that, your body cannot utilize the energy intake all at once, which may result in weight gain. This is because your metabolism adapts to eating patterns during Ramadan.
Adults need to drink 3 to 4 liters of water a day. Even though you get 40 percent of this amount from foods, fruit juice, mineral water, tea, and other beverages, you should still drink 1.5 and 2.5 liters of water a day. This means you should drink two or three glasses of water every hour from iftar to suhoor.
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When Is Ramadan In 2022
In correspondence with the first appearance of the crescent moon, Ramadan starts at sundown on April 2 and lasts through May 1 in the United States this year, per The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
The religious holiday begins 10 to 12 days earlier each year since the Muslim calendar is shorter than the modern-day Gregorian calendar. Per Britannica, this causes Ramadan to fall in every season throughout a 33-year cycle, despite the word’s literal translation meaning “the hot month” in Arabic.
Why Do Muslims Fast
The idea behind fasting is to practice self restrain, which is one of the pillars of Islam. Fasting is done from dusk till dawn. Every Muslim that has reached puberty, and is physically capable, is required to fast.
Muslims must abstain from:
- Negative thoughts
- Bad intentions
“Muslims, like any religious community, are diverse in belief and practice. Many fast, some choose not to fast at all, others may be creative in how they fast,” said Ziad.
Although there are no sexual activities during the fast, couples are allowed to have intimate encounters at night once the fast is broken.
Muslims ask for forgiveness during Ramadan for the sins they have committed. It is about repentance. A habit takes a month to form, so Ramadan being a month-long allows for the habit to form, according to Ziad.
“It becomes a time to commune more deeply with God,” said Ziad. “It becomes a time to become more aware of God’s mercy and to seek that forgiveness.”
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- It’s become a yearly tradition, a month of reflection and purification. On Ramadan, we spend 30 days not eating or drinking, including water –
- About this app. Ramadan 2022 / 1443 is an application dedicated to Muslims all over the world! This calendar of Ramadan for Android provides Salah, Suhoor and Iftar times, as well as other useful information during this holy month. Get the exact schedules of Suhoor and Iftar. Adjust timetable by adding or removing minutes.
- Fasting, Eid al-Fitr and more explained. Ramadan is a month-long religious holiday for Muslims as a time of self-reflection and strengthening their relationship with God. Ramadan is
- Countries with longest Ramzan fast in 2022. Iceland will have 16 hours and 50 minutes of fasting period in 2022. Following it closely will be England, France, Portugal and Poland which will see 16 hours of sunlight this year. Places like New Zealand, South Africa, Paraguay, and Uruguay will have shortest Ramadan fastin 2022 with daylight timing …
- Today Sehri Time is 03:18 on 14 Jun 2022 and expected 6 hours 45 minutes long fasting day today. What is Iftar Time in America? The difference between America Sehri timeRamadan2022 and Roza or Iftar time is the total duration of each fasting day. You can open fast by looking at Iftar time in America today.
Intermittent Fasting For Diabetes And Cardiovascular Disease
Eating more frequently throughout the day has been found to be associated with increased CV risk in a prospective cohort study, which showed that the hazard ratios for chronic heart disease were 1.10 for men who ate one to two times a day versus 1.26 for those who ate six times a day .
Ramadan fasting has also been shown to improve the lipid profile in healthy, obese and those with dyslipidaemia . The 2017 American Heart Association consensus statement on meal timings and frequency for the primary prevention of CV disease concluded that trials of IF resulted in a reduction of between 6%21% of total cholesterol, 7%32% of low density lipoprotein cholesterol and 14%42% of triglycerides . These IF trials also showed a decrease in systolic and diastolic BP in trials if a 67% weight loss was achieved.
Sigal Sofer, … Zecharia Madar, in, 2014
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Fasting Can Be Beneficial
Fasting kicks our system into a healing phase, said Ussma Ghani, a registered dietitian and holistic nutritionist at Nutriacs.
Since the day we were born, our tract has been constantly working for us, she said. So when we give it a break, were allowing for the body to stop, clear out some dead cells and have some time to do some housekeeping or house cleaning.
Other benefits of fasting can include better blood sugar control, decrease in stress and inflammatory processes in your body, and improving heart health and brain function, said Sumiya Khan, a registered dietitian and co-founder of Sanctuary Kitchen.
But if youre going most of the day without eating, what you do put in your body is going to have a larger effect on how you feel throughout the day.
The whole point of Ramadan and fasting is to practice mindfulness, discipline and control, Khan said. So practicing moderation, focusing on the company and why we are fasting, as well as being very mindful of what youre eating while youre eating thats really part of the whole package.
Getting through a month of fasting is hard, but there are things you can do to make it easier, and more meaningful, for yourself or your Muslim friends.
