Ramadan Mubarak!

Today is the start of the Islamic month of Ramadan, when Muslims celebrate the transmission, to use a Buddhist term, of the holy Qu’ran to the Prophet Mohammad, peace be upon him. For a whole month, Muslims observe a rather intense fast in which they eat before Fajar, the morning prayers, presently at 5-6am in Hyderabad, and then do not take food or drink until the sun sets and they have again said their evening prayers, here after 6pm. With the appropriate frame of mind, abstaining from edibles during the day creates a mindfulness about one’s self and relationship to others that is often overlooked in the normal mill of quotidian activities. Abstention reminds people to keep the sacred in mind, that we are not all self-sufficient because we truly rely on outside nourishment for our physical functioning, and how fragile our state of mind is when responding to external stimuli. For Muslims, a great sense of community and tradition is renewed every year at this time as believers share in the labor and prayer of asceticism.

I first observed Ramadan in Delhi in 2003, during my first visit to India. I decided to fast because I wanted to learn more about Islam and because I found the challenging spiritual practice appealing. By fasting, listening to the Muslim students living with me in my hostel, and reading the Qu’ran, I began my Islamic education. Not with the intention to convert, I might add, but rather to know more about this great faith and to identify with my Muslim brothers and sisters. I have since continued to observe the fast every subsequent year.

This year, I almost decided not to fast. After serious study and practice, I possess a foundational knowledge of the world’s religions and am not in the same state of mind to devour spiritual practices the way I did on my first Indian tour. However, given the media hype about Islam and terrorism, I felt it was imperative to take advantage of the sizable Muslim population on campus, and in Hyderabad in general, to learn more about Islam and to pray for peace among the world’s religions.

Shadows of the Cold War against communism, the preaching of Pope Benedict and the international news about the culpability of Islam with respect to today’s terrorism seriously demoralize a religion that prides itself on submission to God and the welfare of society. I feel that the media will effectively taint the world’s view of Islam because of a few Muslim fundamentalists’ actions or a political ploy to paint current events in that light.

If this religion is not properly understood, the result could very well be a global civil war or a return to the crusades that will cause even greater animosity and bloodshed than the suffering of the medieval era. Therefore, I offer up my fast this year, an effort to improve my mindfulness, to the increased awareness of Islam around the globe and to the fraternity and respect of people of all faiths without compromising any tradition that seeks to perfect the relational dimensions of humanity.