. Religion
& Spirit
Focus On ...
.. Ramadan,
One of the Five Pillars of Islam O
People! Indeed ahead of you
is the blessed month of
Allah.
A month of blessing, mercy and
forgiveness. A
month which with
Allah is the best of months. Its
days,
the best of days, its nights, the best
of
nights, and its hours, the best of
hours. It is the
month which invites
you to be the guests of Allah and
invites
you to be one of those near
to Him. Each breath you
take
glorifies him; your sleep is worship,
your
deeds are accepted and your
supplications are answered.
...
The Sermon Given by
The Prophet (s) on the
Last Friday of Sha'ban
on the Reception of
the Month of Ramadan
Ramadan, the
ninth month of the Islamic year, is a holy month of fasting, proscribed
by the Qur'an for all adult Muslims. The fast -- which begins each
day at dawn and ends at sunset, during which time Muslims are forbidden
to eat, drink, or smoke -- was instituted in order that believers
"may cultivate piety." The ninth month was designated
because it was during the ninth month that Muhammad received the first
of the revelations of the Qur'an. ... Since the Islamic
calendar follows a strictly lunar cycle, the holy month of Ramadan may
fall at any time during the course of a given year. The
official beginning of Ramadan starts with the first sighting of the
crescent moon, which helps to explain the prevalence of that symbol
throughout Islamic culture. As with most celestial phenomena that
are dependent upon actual sightings, a variety of factors can influence
the actual time of the sighting -- from an obstructing hillside to
cloudy weather. However, according to our latitude and longitude,
and given the sun's declination, it is expected that this year Ramadan
will begin on November 17th, at around 16:22 [4:22 p.m.] local
time. Because of the relative uncertainty, however, those who are
observing Ramadan are encouraged to contact their local Mosque. The
times for fasting after the first day of Ramadan, of course, will
change. Since the entire month of Ramadan comes this year before
the winter solstice, the times of fasting will be earlier every few
days, so that by the end of the fast -- on Eid-ul-Fitr -- the
estimated time fasting will commence is around 16:11 [4:11 p.m.] local
time. The Five Pillars of Islam ...
Ramadan
is one of The Five Pillars of Islam -- five ritual duties -- which are
considered the foundation of the Islamic faith. The Five Pillars
include ... the confession of faith (shahada); performance
of daily prayers (sal'at); the
fast during the month of Ramadan (sa'um); the
payment of the alms tax (zakat); and the
performance, at least once in life, of a pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj).
"Ashhadu
Alla Ilaha Illa Allah Wa Ashhadu Anna Muhammad Rasulu Allah,"
thus is recited the shahada, meaning "I bear witness that
there is no God but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His
Messenger." In addition to the shahada, Muslims must
also confess their faith in the Qur'an, in the angels, and in the Last
Day.  | Verses
from the Qur'an 2: 183-186 |
For
more information and insight about the Islamic faith, see this month's Links
to Religion & Spirit On-Line: The Pillars of Islam. . |
