![]() ![]() This year it takes place from Wednesday May 12 to the evening of Thursday May 13. To celebrate the end of the fasting month, the first day of the next month, Shawwal, is marked with a big feast, the exchanging of gifts and celebrations, known as the 'Festival of Breaking Fast' or Eid al-Fitr. Overall, Ramadan is a time for Muslims to exercise self-discipline and restraint both spiritually and physically, as well as empathising with the plight of the poor. Many Muslims in Scandanavian countries, where there is only a short period of darkness in summer, use Turkey as a model. There is an active debate among British Muslims about whether to apply a literal understanding of instructions about fasting during daytime and a practical interpretation, taking account of the longer daylight hours. Women who are on their periods are not expected to fast but make up the missed days at a later date. ![]() Pregnant or breastfeeding women, anyone who is sick and anyone travelling on a journey are also exempt. Most will break their fast alongside their families in the evening with a communal 'Iftar' meal, typically often started with dates.įit and able adults are expected to fast, but children and elderly people are exempt. Muslims will wake up before sunrise for morning prayer and to eat before the day's fast begins. The act of fasting is also believed to increase Muslims' piety, reminding them that others are less fortunate than themselves.įasting involves abstaining from all food, drink, smoking and having sex from sunrise to sunset. The others are prayer (salat), giving a percentage of your salary to charity (zakat), making the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and, of course, a belief in the Muslim faith (shahadah).įasting is seen as a way to purify spiritually as well as physically – a time to detach from material pleasures and be closer to God. Many Muslims will try and recite as much of the Koran as they can during the month.Īs the holiest month of the year, it is a crucial period for practising Muslims and underpins some of the religion's core values, such as prayer and giving to charity.įasting (sawm in Arabic), is one of the five key pillars underpinning the Islamic faith. #ISLAMIC CALENDAR 2021 RAMADAN SERIES#Muslims believe Prophet Mohammed received a series of revelations from God which combined to form the Koran – and that the Koran was revealed during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, Ramadan.Īfter learning the Koran was to be revealed to him by Jibreel during the month, the Islamic prophet Muhammad told his followers that the gates to heaven would stay open for the month, while the gates of hell would be closed. In the Gregorian calendar, it runs from approximately Augto 9 August 2021.ĭuring the holy month, Muslims do not let food or drink pass their lips from dawn to dusk. The current year in the Islamic calendar – also known as the Muslim, or Hijri calendar – is 1442 AH. It is 10 to 11 days shorter than the solar year and has no leap days, weeks or months, which is why it is a movable feast. ![]() In the Islamic calendar, each new month begins when the first crescent of a new moon is seen. This year, Ramadan, which is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, begins on Monday April 12 and ends on Wednesday May 12.Īs the calendar is lunar, the dates for when each month begins move every year in 2020 Ramadan began on Thursday April 23 and ended in the evening of Saturday May 23. During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims across the globe and throughout the UK endure a period of daily fasting – the largest act of religious observance of its kind.įor the world's 1.8 billion Muslims, including the Britain's 3.3 million-strong Muslim community, the annual event represents a time to fast and devote a particular focus to prayer, purification and charitable acts.įrom why the month of Ramadan moves to how it is celebrated, here is everything you need to know about the holy month. ![]()
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