Ramadan

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and the holy month of fasting for Muslims around the world. It’s the month in which the Qur’an was first revealed, and for 29 or 30 days, Muslims who are able fast from dawn until sunset, with no food or drink. The days are shaped by the fast and the evenings by shared meals and prayer, with extra time for the Qur’an, for charity and for each other. The month ends with Eid al-Fitr, the festival of breaking the fast.

How the date is set

The Islamic calendar follows the moon. Each month begins with the new crescent, and twelve lunar months come to about 354 days, so Ramadan arrives about 11 days earlier each year. Over roughly 33 years it travels through every season.

Traditionally the month begins when the thin crescent is seen low in the western sky just after sunset, at the end of the 29th day of the month before, Sha’ban. If no one sees it, Sha’ban runs to 30 days. The crescent isn’t visible everywhere on the same evening, and communities make the call in different ways: some follow a local sighting, some a sighting abroad and some a calendar calculated in advance. That’s why Ramadan can begin on different days in different countries, and sometimes at different mosques in the same city.

This countdown uses the calendar of the Fiqh Council of North America, which many mosques in the US and Canada follow, and counts to the first day of fasting. Since the new month begins at sundown, the first night prayers are held the evening before. We mark each date as provisional, and your local mosque has the final word.

A day in Ramadan

Days start early, with suhoor, a meal eaten before dawn. Then comes the fast: nothing to eat or drink until sunset, along with an effort to be more patient, generous and mindful. At sunset the fast is broken with iftar, often starting with a date and a sip of water before the evening prayer, then a proper meal with family and friends. Many mosques host community iftars, and some open them to neighbors of every faith.

Later in the evening, many Muslims gather at the mosque for Taraweeh, night prayers held only in Ramadan. A portion of the Qur’an is recited each night, and many mosques finish the whole book by the end of the month.

Giving, the last ten nights and Eid

Ramadan is also a month of generosity. Zakat, the yearly charity that is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, is typically 2.5 percent of a person’s wealth, and many give it during Ramadan. Before the Eid prayer, every household also gives zakat al-Fitr, a small set amount for each person, so that people in need have food for the holiday.

The last ten nights are the most treasured. Muslims believe one of them, most often sought on the odd-numbered nights, is Laylat al-Qadr, the Night of Glory, when the Qur’an was first sent down, and many spend those nights in prayer.

When the next crescent appears, Ramadan gives way to Eid al-Fitr. It begins with a special morning prayer, and the celebrations with family and friends can last up to three days.