'Ramadan balances my mind; it keeps me level'

Fasting for 18 hours a day for a month may sound excruciating to some people, but for Muslims across the country the holy month of Ramadan is their most ‘peaceful and passionate’ time

SINCE LAST Monday, many of Ireland’s 45,000 strong Muslim population have been rising at around 3.15am to partake in an exceptionally early breakfast. Some load up on calorific pastries, while others prefer a small bowl of cereal and a cup of tea. For the entire month of August, the notion that breakfast is the most important meal of the day takes on even greater significance for Muslims, because after this bleary eyed pre-dawn snack it will be 18 hours before they next eat or drink again.

This is daily life for the faithful during the holy fasting month of Ramadan. In addition to abstaining from food or drink between sunrise and sunset, they also endeavour not to smoke, have sex, swear or engage in morally suspect behaviour, as they consider it, during fasting hours. As religious observances go, it makes Lent look like a 40-day hooley.

Traditionally Ramadan falls during the ninth month of the Islam lunar calendar, which is believed by Muslims to be when the Koran was revealed to the prophet Mohammed. Khurrum Khan, an accountant who lives in Co Meath, describes the holy month of Ramadan as a test, set by Allah, and “an opportunity to go nearer to God and praise him”.

“There are hundreds of benefits to fasting in this month,” says Khan.“It is not just about the fast. I am more spiritual and am doing more good deeds during this time than other months.”

Some people imagine fasting for 18 hours a day, without even a sip of water for sustenance, for a month would be excruciating, he says, but in his experience it’s not that challenging.

“When you have a strong passion and will to do something, it is not hard. People might expect that you would lose a lot of weight during Ramadan but actually, if you weigh somebody before and after, there can be a slight weight gain after the fast. It’s human nature to eat too much when you break the fast and then as night falls you have nothing to do but fall on your bed, you don’t move around so much with all that food in your system,” he says.

There are exceptions when it comes to those who are expected to fast. Pregnant and breastfeeding women, people who are sick or travelling, children and the elderly are among the groups who are exempt. Bheendiya Qureshi, who converted to Islam from Hinduisum five years ago and lives in Dublin, is partaking in the fast this year despite being four months pregnant. “I consulted with my doctor and he said it was fine to try it and see how I feel. I have been feeling fine with no disturbance so I will continue,” she says.

Qureshi enjoys the community aspect of Ramadan: she and her husband and their four-year-old daughter will break their fast, a meal known as Iftar, in the homes of various friends, as well as inviting others to share the evening meals with them.

For Mia-manan Hameed and his family, who run a popular restaurant, a food-importing business and a mosque in Dublin city centre, Ramadan is always a busy month. At 9.20pm every evening his Sufi mosque on Talbot Street provides Iftar for up to 200 Muslims. There is no charge for the meal and any food left over is donated to the homeless.

Hameed stopped smoking in preparation for Ramadan, which he says is one of his favourite times of the year.

“I find Ramadan balances my mind; it keeps me level,” he says. “I can get very angry but I am less so while fasting . . . It makes you bring yourself into contentment and shows you how strong your belief and discipline really is. I feel very spiritually balanced at this time.”

When he was a boy, at school in Dublin, he was teased for fasting. His children – his eldest daughter is nine and insists on joining in part of the fast – have had a very different experience.

“It’s great to see how things have changed and how this country has become more diverse. My children’s generation are more accepting of different traditions. One Catholic friend of my daughter wanted to try it just to see what it was like, but I don’t think her mother was very keen.”

For some the most challenging aspect of Ramadan is not the fast but the reaction of non-Muslims who are often wary when they hear about the practice. “I meet people who think I am mad because I can’t drink and have a tea or coffee with them during fasting hours,” says Mudafar Altawash, who works at the mosque on South Circular Road in Dublin. “They tell me I shouldn’t do it, that it must be bad for my health and I’ll be dehydrated. I tell them to try it one day: you will find nothing bad happens to you; some doctors even say it’s good for your health to give your stomach a rest for the month.”

He says when he breaks his fast, thirst is a more pronounced feeling than hunger. “I’ll have a glass of milk and some dates first and then take a break before I have dinner,” he says.

Ramadan is known as one of the five pillars of Islam. “As with any other pillar, if it is not there the structure will not stand up,” says Imam Ismail Kotwal, from the Black Pitts mosque in Dublin. He describes Ramadan as a “peaceful and passionate” time for Muslims.

Far from finding the fasting difficult, he says: “To be very honest, it’s a piece of cake for me.” He sound one note of caution, though, urging those fasting to watch out for non-Muslims bearing sweets; “My neighbour offered me a polo mint yesterday and it was in my mouth before I remembered I was fasting. I realised just in time and took it out.”

Ramadan explained

For the 1.6 billion Muslims around the world, the ninth month of the Islam lunar calendar is the holy month of Ramadan, a month of fasting, spiritual growth and self-improvement. Muslims believe this was the month when the Koran was revealed to the prophet Mohammed by the angel Gabriel. Throughout the 30 days of fasting, participants abstain from food and drink between sunset and sunrise and try to give up bad habits.

The 45,000-strong Muslim population of Ireland are currently waking at around 3am to get in an early breakfast, known in Arabic as Suhoor, before the fast starts at around 3.45am. They won’t eat or drink again until around 9.20pm, when their fast is broken with a hearty meal known as Iftar, which often begins with a glass of milk and some dates.