RANDA SHABAYEK For Muslims, Ramadan is a time for reflection

Muslims in the Mahoning Valley, as well as around the world, started observing the holy month of Ramadan last week.
Ramadan is a special month of the year for more than 1 billion Muslims throughout the world. It is a time for inner reflection, devotion to God and self-control. Muslims think of it as a kind of tune-up for their spiritual lives.
Ramadan is also a time of intensive worship, reading of the Koran, giving charity, purifying one's behavior and doing good deeds.
Fasting
Fasting during Ramadan is a way of experiencing hunger and developing sympathy for the less fortunate. Muslims learn to be thankful and appreciative for all of God's bounties. Fasting is also beneficial to the health and provides a break in the cycle of rigid habits or overindulgence.
Fasting from dawn to sunset during Ramadan is obligatory for adult Muslims. Young children are encouraged to fast as long as they can take it. They usually start with fasting for a couple of hours a day, and gradually increase it to half the day, then the full day. Exempted from fasting are the elderly, the ill, pregnant and nursing women. Travelers and sick adults may break their fast, then make up for the days they missed after the month is over.
During daylight, Muslims abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex. The usual practice is to have a prefast meal called Suhoor (So-hur) before dawn and a post-fast meal called "Iftar" after sunset. It is very common for Muslims to break their fast with dates, following the custom of the prophet Mohammed.
This is followed by the sunset prayer, then dinner. Since Ramadan emphasizes community aspects and everyone eats dinner at the same time, Muslims often invite one another to share in the Ramadan evening meal.
Five pillars
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. The much-anticipated start of the month is based on a combination of physical sighting of the moon and astronomical calculations. The end of the month, marked by the celebration of "Eid-Ul-Fitr," is similarly determined.
Fasting during Ramadan is the third "pillar" or religious obligation in Islam. The other four pillars are: testifying that there is no God but Allah and that Mohammed is his messenger; praying five daily prayers; paying charity to the poor and the needy; and going on a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in one's life when capable and you can afford it.
XRanda Shabayek of Poland attends the Islamic Society of Greater Youngstown.