Sabah Says…Ramadan: Refresh,Reconnect, Restart

I cannot believe it is that time of year again. Ramadan is upon us once more and for me, this is the most beautiful time of the year: a month that brings new energy and blessings; a month that brings families and friends closer together; a month that improves our relationship with God, and a month that is a starting point for many of us in making a much needed or much wanted change. Ramadan is here – and I cannot deny that my heart feels joy.

This Ramadan is different however; as for me, it is my first ever time spending the holy month in a new country (here in Mauritius as opposed to my home country, England), in my new home and without my extended family or any of my friends around. This Ramadan, it’s just my husband, our two small children and I, and I’m looking forward to the experience that lies ahead. 

What is Ramadan?

So, for those who do not know or fully understand… what is Ramadan? 

Ramadan is probably the most important time of the year for millions of Muslims across the globe. It is the ninth month in the Islamic holy calendar and is made up of 29-30 days when Muslims abstain from food, drink and other bodily desires during daylight hours. Back home in the UK, this means fasts there can last for 20+ hours per day, if Ramadan hits during the peak of summer – hours of fasting that I have been used to in recent years. However, here in Mauritius, each fast will be around 12-13 hours long and this is something that I will have to adjust to; the last time that fasts were that short for me was when I was a child. I’m not complaining though – as the breastfeeding mother of a baby and with a three year-old energetic little boy to run around after, the shorter fasts are much welcomed!

Why do Muslims fast?

Fasting is a major spiritual practice of all religions, whereby the fast enables a person to give something up or abstain from doing something in the name of God. This comes in different forms for followers of different religions: for Christians, they fast during the period of Lent; many Hindus fast once or twice per week and Jewish people fast on Yom Kippur. For Muslims, the month of Ramadan is no different and is a time for us to focus on our spiritual selves; allowing us time to work on our relationship with ourselves, with each other, with the whole of humanity and ultimately, our relationship with God.

Through fasting, we learn to understand our carnal selves and through this understanding, we begin to tame our physical appetites, desires and greed, allowing us to pave a path that elevates us up from just our physical being, to the spiritual dimension of our being. These processes teach us patience, perseverance, humility and gratitude and arguably, these are characteristics that we should strive to embody every single day in order to better ourselves as human beings. 

Ramadan as a new beginning

Although religion teaches us not to judge one another, this is one of the most common things I see as I go about my day-to-day life. Just recently, I saw a post on Facebook that was condemning those that only followed religious practices during the month of Ramadan, and although this didn’t shock me, I was annoyed. Who are we to judge one another? If somebody wants to use Ramadan as a starting point for self-improvement, then we have no right to tell them that they are wrong.

Ramadan is a fresh start for the majority of us, I would say – many of us see the month as a time to improve ourselves, albeit in different ways - and rather than discourage one another, we need to encourage and empower one another. On a personal level, since moving to Mauritius and having had our second child, I have been neglecting my spirituality and not giving it the attention or the focus that I have wanted to or that it deserves. I have allowed other things to take over but I know that my priority lies with taking care of my spiritual self and once that is taken care of, everything else will fall into place. This Ramadan is an opportunity for me to reconnect with myself and with my Lord, and to make changes that will last forever. And for everyone else who is also considering Ramadan as an opportunity to refresh, reconnect and restart, I commend you and wish you the best of luck.

Let the fasting begin!

I pray for this month to be one of peace, joy, blessings and healing for us all. I pray for us to stop judging one another, whether we do this consciously or unconsciously. I pray for us all to see humanity as one, with no one race or religion as superior to another. I pray for the people of war: the people suffering in Syria, Palestine and all around the world. But mostly, I pray for those with hate and no humanity or humility in their hearts – they are the ones who need our love and prayers the most.

Happy Ramadan to everyone! This truly is the most wonderful time of the year. Have a blessed one and use this time to refresh, reconnect and restart, if that is what you need to do.

Light & Love, Sabah 

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