Ramadan (Arabic: رمضان, ramaḍān, ‘the hot month’) is the month of fasting for Muslims and the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. According to Islamic belief, the Koran was sent down in it.

The festival of breaking the fast (Arabic: عيد الفطر id al-fitr / Turkish: Ramazan bayramı) immediately after the month of fasting at the beginning of the following month, Shawwal, is the second highest Islamic holiday after the Festival of Sacrifice.

Many festivals and religious folk festivals known as “mulid” are celebrated in Egypt. These are usually associated with a specific Coptic or Sufi saint, but are commonly celebrated by all Egyptians regardless of belief or religion. Ramadan in Egypt has its own flavor; it is marked with music, lights (local lanterns are called “fawannes”) and lots of bonfires, drawing Muslim tourists from the region to the country to watch the spectacle. The ancient spring festival of Sham el Nisim (Coptic “shom en nisim”) has been celebrated for thousands of years, typically between the Egyptian calendar months of Paremoude (April) and Pashons (May), following Easter Sunday.

Ramadan position

The fasting month of Ramadan is given special importance by the Koranic statement, according to which it was precisely this month in which the

“Quran was sent down (for the first time) as guidance for the people, and (the individual verses of the Quran) as clear proofs of guidance and salvation (?). So any of you who are present (i.e., not on the move) during the month should fast in it.”

– Koran: Sura 2, Verse 185
Sura 97 is also dedicated to the commemoration of the revelation of the Koran, in which it says:

“We sent it down (i.e. the Qur’an) on the night of destiny. But how can you know what the night of destiny is? The night of destiny is better than a thousand months.”

– Koran: Sura 97
Based on the preceding Quranic statement, it is taken for granted that the night of divine destiny (lailat al-qadr / ليلة القدر / lailatu ʾl-qadr) is one night in the month of Ramadan. Since the exact night of the revelation of the Koran was not clear, this night is celebrated mainly on the night of the 27th of Ramadan, but also on other odd days of the last ten days of the month of fasting.

The last third of Ramadan is also of particular importance because the pious practice of Iʿtikāf, the “separation” in the mosque, takes place during this time.

Compulsory fasting

From the Quran verse already mentioned:

“It is the month of Ramadan (or: (Lent is) the month of Ramadan) in which the Qur’an was sent down (for the first time) as guidance for the people, and (the individual verses of the Qur’an) as clear proofs of guidance and Rescue. So any of you who are present (i.e., not on the move) during the month should fast in it…”

– Koran: Sura 2, Verse 185
and in connection with the prophetic injunction also mentioned, “Do not fast until you see it (the crescent moon – Hilal), and do not break your fast until you see it (again)…

” etc. results in the one-month fast from sunrise to sunset; The first steep part of Sura 2, verse 184: “(Fasting is) a certain number of days (to be observed)” is thus the subject of abrogation according to unanimous interpretations of the Koran exegesis (Tafsīr) and thus lost its meaning in favor of the following verse: “Anyone of you who is present (i.e. not on the move) during the month should fast in it…”.

According to the law, fasting is defined as abstinence (imsak) from certain activities: consumption of earthly substances and food and drink, smoking, sexual intercourse and drunkenness. Every Muslim who is of sound mind (‘aqil), of legal age (baligh) and physically able (qadir) is obliged to fast. The fasting of a discerning minor (mumayyiz) is also valid.

In addition to these practical aspects of the obligation to fast, there are several ethical and moral components that the Muslim must observe in Ramadan. Defamation, slander, lies and insults of all kinds are to be avoided at all costs.

Fasting (saum, siyam / صيام , صوم / ṣaum, ṣiyām) in the fasting month of Ramadan / رمضان / Ramaḍān is one of the religious obligations of Muslims anchored in the Koran. The original meaning of the word “Saum” is derived from the verb s-w-m in the meaning of “stand still”, “rest” and in a figurative sense “abstain”, “fast”. The term occurs only once in the Koranic verses written in Mecca; here Mary is commanded by Revelation to speak as follows:

“And eat and drink and be of good cheer (w. cool eyes)! And if you see (any) one of the people, then say: I have vowed to fast to the merciful. That is why I will not speak to any human being today.”

– Sura 19, verse 26: Translation: Rudi Paret
Correspondingly, the term saum (fasting) is associated by the Koran exegetes with “silence” (velvet) at this point – as a sign of abstinence, which is characteristic of Islamic fasting in all areas of daily life.

Government coercive measures against non-fasting

In a number of Islamic countries, non-compliance with the obligation to fast is prohibited by the state. In Saudi Arabia, even non-Muslims who eat, drink or smoke in public during the day during Ramadan are punished. In Morocco, government raids and arrests of youths having picnics during Ramadan made headlines. In 2013, anyone who publicly violated the rule of fasting in Morocco faced arrest. In 2008, six men were sentenced to four years in prison and a fine of 1,000 euros in Biskra, Algeria, for violating the law on fasting. In Malaysia in 2015, fast-breakers could face up to six months in prison, a fine of 236 euros or both.

Exceptions to the obligation to fast

It was the task of Islamic jurisprudence in its various branches to lay down the practical rules of fasting. But the Koran already allowed exceptions:

“And if one is ill or on a journey (and therefore cannot fast, he is) assigned a (corresponding) number of other days (to make up for the missed). God wants to make it easy for you, not difficult. Therefore fill up (by subsequent fasting) the number (of the prescribed fasting days) and praise God for having guided you. Perhaps you will be grateful.”

– Koran: Sura 2, at the end of verse 185
Pregnant women, breastfeeding women and the sick as well as children (= people before puberty) are not obliged to fast. Pregnant, breastfeeding and sick people have to make up for the missed days after the reasons have ceased to exist. People who are unable to fast due to old age or illness should provide a fasting substitute service, the Fidya or Fidyah.

Pregnant and menstruating women are exempt from fasting, but are not forbidden from fasting. Missed days must be made up. It has been statistically proven that the majority of pregnant Muslim women still fast and that this reduces birth weight and length of pregnancy. Physical and especially mental disabilities become much more likely when fasting is used during pregnancy (see also Starvation Metabolism and Starvation and Fasting).

Start and end of Ramadan

The general rule
While the daily prayer (salat / صلاة / ṣalāt) and the Islamic pilgrimage (hajj / حجّ / ḥaǧǧ) are based on fixed times, the beginning and the end of the month of fasting Ramadan in the Islamic tradition have always been contradictory and discussed. The beginning of Ramadan is indicated by the sighting (ru’ya / رؤية / ruʾya) of the new crescent moon (hilal) at the end of the last day/night of the previous month Sha’ban. The basic type of these traditions in the canonical hadith collections as directives of the Prophet reads:

“The month consists of 29 days. Do not fast until you see it (the crescent moon – hilal) and do not break your fast until you see it (again). And if (the sky) is overcast over you, determine it /Var. completes the number of Sha’ban days/ to 30 (days).”

– Hadith Abu Dawud, Book 13, No. 2312; al-Bukhari, Book 31, No. 130-131.
The sighting of the crescent moon ru’yat al-hilal / رؤية الهلال / ruʾyatu ʾl-hilāl by one or more witnesses is decisive for the beginning or end of Ramadan. The role of the astronomers (munajjim) and the mathematicians (ahl al-ma’rifa bil-hisab) in determining the beginning of the month is controversial.

– Hadith Abu Dawud, Book 13, No. 2312; al-Bukhari, Book 31, No. 130-131.
The sighting of the crescent moon ru’yat al-hilal / رؤية الهلال / ruʾyatu ʾl-hilāl by one or more witnesses is decisive for the beginning or end of Ramadan. The role of the astronomers (munajdschim) and the mathematicians (ahl al-ma’rifa bil-hisab) in determining the beginning of the month is controversial crescent moon were striving to fix the beginning of the month.

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