Trivia Tuesday is a series in which I choose a topic, and provide Fun Facts or Interesting Trivia about it. Ramadan has started, so I'll continue last week's Ramadan Trivia and let you guys know more about it!
Fun Facts About Ramadan
๐ 1. Lunar Observations
Ramadan starts with the sighting of the moon. This leads to some countries starting Ramadan a day off from each other if they saw the new moon on different days.
This happened this year in my country. Because we couldn't see the new moon the day before, Libya started its Ramadan a day after the Arab Gulf and countries like Algeria.
๐ 2. Nightly Prayers
One of the Muslims traditions during Ramadan is an additional prayer at night called "Taraweh." This is a long prayer with 8-20 rak'at (iterations.) It can be done at home, but it's mostly done in groups at mosques.
Some mosques recite the whole Qur'an in the Taraweh prayer in Ramadan.
The mosque I go to recites half of the Quran in the Ramadan of a given year, and the other half in the following year.
๐ 3. Iftar and Suhoor
The meal to break fast at the sunset of Ramadan is called Iftar (it literally means Breakfast.) There's also a meal at night before dawn called "Suhoor" to strengthen the body for fasting during the day.
Iftar meals vary between cultures, and you could see the richness of each Muslim culture by the common Iftar their community prepares.
Depending on the year, in my family we sometimes have our Suhoor a few hours after the nightly prayer instead of before Dawn.
๐ 4. Fasting Exceptions
Not every Muslim is obligated to fast in Ramadan. Eldery people, young children, pregnant or nursing women aren't obligated to fast until they're able to. People who are travelling can postpone their fasting.
Muslims who are able to make up the days they missed must fast these days before the next Ramadan. People who aren't able to fast in general, must feed the poor for each day they missed.
My mother who has diabetes was told by Doctor that she should never fast. She pays to feed the poor instead each year.
๐ 5. Eid al-Fitr
The first day after the end of Ramadan is called, Eid al-Fitr. It roughly translates to "Festival of the Breakfast." It's one of two Islamic Festivals and it's the day you see smiling faces and new clothes all over.
Here in Libya we visit our relatives in this Eid. It's the day we feel connected to our family the most !
What do you think?
As I said in the previous article. Ramadan is my favorite month of the Islamic Calendar. It changes my routine in a fulfilling way. Abstaining from food and water isn't as hard as you might think, however, being mindful of what we say and do isn't as easy.
Now that I got the general Fun Facts about Ramadan out of the way, I might so something more specific in the upcoming Trivia Tuesday. Or I may do something completely different. Let me know if you whether you want a follow-up article or suggest another topic.
Anyway, Thanks for Reading... If you're reading this while fasting, I pray for your fast to be blessed.
If you have an idea for the next Trivia Tuesday's Topic, suggest it in a comment below. For now, have a nice day/night.~
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