São Paulo – Next Friday (20) the Muslims who live in Brazil, as is the case in other parts of the world, change their routine to spend their day fasting. It is the start of Ramadan, the ninth month of the lunar calendar, the holy period for Muslims. Within or outside and Islamic country, in the period, they are obliged to fast from dawn to dusk.
In Brazil, Ramadan is even more visible for those who have Muslim acquaintances and for those living close to mosques. There, there is a large calendar showing joint prayer times, celebrations, talks and even dinners to break the fast in a group after the sun sets. At the houses of Islamists, there tend to be large gatherings of family and friends, with several food options, for a joint meal after hours without eating or drinking.
"Ramadan is an important month for all Muslims. One of the pillars of Islam is fasting in Ramaadn,” said sheikh Khalid Taky El Din, the Islamic affairs director at the Federation of Muslim Associations of Brazil (Fambras). Islam is based on five pillars. Apart from fasting in Ramadan, there is also faith, prayer, charity and pilgrimage. "Doing good this month multiplies the benefit. One donation is worth 70 donations, one prayer is worth 70 prayers,” explains the sheikh.
According to Islam, it was in Ramadan that God revealed the Koran to prophet Mohammed. To the Muslims, the “Night of Decree”, the date in which God revealed the holy book to the prophet, marks the end of humanity’s period of ignorance and the start of a time of illumination of God and his message.
El Din, who circulates the several mosques of São Paulo, like Santo Amaro, São Miguel and those in neighbouring cities, like São Bernardo do Campo, as well as Mesquita Brasil, the largest in the country, explains that, during Ramadan, apart from the five daily prayers, mosques also promote talks and readings of the Koran. In the period, he says, Brazilian temples should also receive eight sheiks from Egypt specially for the celebrations.
In the busiest times at the mosques, explains El Din, on Friday evening and over the weekend, the temples receive between 200 and 400 people at prayer times. Islam preaches that its followers should pray five times a day, but, during Ramadan, there are also extra prayers. Mosques also tend to promote diners in the evening so that the faithful may fast all together.
The Lebanese Hassan Bourgi, the sheikh of Brás mosque, in the city of São Paulo, reveals that some Muslims find it hard to follow Ramadan due to the cultural differences with the Brazilian society, but that does not stop them fasting. "Most Muslims are awaiting Ramadan and are getting ready for the special occasion,” he said.
"Fasting is a way of obeying the words of God and there are also social benefits, with people visiting and helping each other more than usual. Muslims worldwide also feel stronger as they are doing the same thing at the same time,” pointed out Bourgi. He explains that over the last two months the mosque has offered weekly classes to men, women and children to explain the spiritual meaning of Ramadan and the way in which the faithful behave during this month. "At night, when people leave work, some 200 people go to the dinner and prayer,” he explained, regarding Ramadan at Brás Mosque.
Businessman Kamal Osman stated that, to him, there is no difference in following Ramadan in Brazil or in an Islamic country. “It all depends on your faith. If you are faithful, it does not matter where you fast,” he pointed out. "The fast is promoted in benefit of humans. It empowers the person who practices it as he is being obedient to God,” he says.
A resident of Foz do Iguaçu, in Paraná, Osman was born in Lebanon, but he considers himself Brazilian. To him, fasting during the cold season helps alleviate the difficulty of not eating or drinking. "This year, we were benefited as it will be during winter. The days are cooler and we should fast for 12 hours, but we have already fasted for as long as 16 hours in the heat of December,” he said. Each year, Ramadan takes place in different periods of the Gregorian calendar.
Osman says that he goes to the mosque to pray every day during Ramadan. "I have dinner with my family every night or we call friends over to break the fast with us. On Saturdays, we break the fast at the mosque,” he says. "Fasting is having hope, patience and perseverance. It develops much in the human being,” he said.
Faisal Ismail, president of the Islamic Beneficent Cultural Centre in Foz do Iguaçu, says that the Muslim community in the city is 22,000 people and that the figure includes several Brazilians who converted to Islam. According to him, the evening prayer usually brings together some 300 people. The morning prayer, in turn, which takes place at 04:30 AM, brings together as many as 300 faithful.
"Brazil is a country like any other. There are countries in which it is harder to adapt. In Canada, for example, the fasting may be as much as 20 hours. In Brazil, it is around 12 hours. There is lack of food, but what is fundamental is the spirit, it is feeling the need of those who do not have food,” he explained.
He adds that this week the centre is starting a series of talks for youths about Ramadan and the five pillars of Islam. "We hope that over 100 youths participate in the course,” he reveals. To Ismail, the human body adapts to fasting. “The biological clock now is the clock of prayer. The base of our routine is the five prayers. This way, you are always close to God.”
*Translated by Mark Ament
