In Airdrie and around the world, Muslims are in the midst of observing the holy month of Ramadan.
“Muslims are completely in sort of a meditation mode – you are meditating every day, you are praying more, you are reading the Qu'ran more, you are worshipping God more and you are helping people more,” said Imam Syed Soharwardy, founder of Airdrie’s Jamia Riyadhul Jannah Mosque.
According to Soharwardy, Muslims follow their own lunar calendar. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and began at sunset on April 23 this year. For 30 days, until May 23, they will devote themselves to several spiritual practices.
Soharwardy added Muslims believe it was during the month of Ramadan that God sent the Qu'ran to the Prophet Muhammad.
“In this month, every Muslim fasts from dawn to sunset,” he said. “During our fasting, we do not drink or eat anything. Nothing goes into the system.”
Muslims also abstain from smoking and sexual intercourse during the fast, he added.
In the evening, Muslims offer special prayers called taraweeh. Normally, these prayers occur in a mosque and are led by an imam, Soharwardy said, but due to COVID-19, the majority of Muslims will offer these prayers from home this year. This is just one of the ways Ramadan will be different because of the coronavirus.
“Generally, in the nightly prayer, we have an imam who has memorized the whole Qu'ran, from the first chapter to the last chapter,” Soharwardy said. “Every day, little by little, he reads it in the prayer, and at the end of the month, they complete the whole recitation of the holy Qu'ran.”
Because many lay Muslims have not memorized the entire Qu'ran and won’t be able to attend mosque, the prayers will need to be said at home. Soharwardy said he’s been advising his congregants to recite the chapters they have committed to memory.
Some mosques are currently open in the region, but under strict restrictions that limit the amount of people allowed inside at a single time in order to comply with physical distancing requirements. Soharwardy said the physical distance between people has made for an unusual atmosphere during prayers, which will persist during Ramadan.
At sunset every day, Muslims break the fast with an evening meal, called iftar. According to Soharwardy, dates are traditionally eaten at this meal, to emulate the Prophet Muhammad. Then, before dawn, another meal – sahoor – is eaten. This is the final meal before the day’s fast.
“Ramadan is not just about fasting; it has many aspects,” Soharwardy noted.
Another key aspect is charity, he said. During Ramandan, Muslims practice two kinds of charity – zakat, the mandatory giving of 2.5 per cent of investments and savings, and sadaqa, optional charity above and beyond zakat.
The current pandemic provides a timely opportunity for Muslims to assist their communities, Soharwardy said.
“Because of COVID-19, we should give our charity to food banks, [and] we should go around our neighbourhoods,” he said. “Find out if anybody is in isolation. They are the most deserving people.”
Normally, Ramandan concludes with Eid, a festival Soharwardy said is equivalent to Christmas.
“Because of COVID-19, nothing is going to take place this year, unfortunately," he said. “It’s quite disappointing that we cannot hold our Eid prayers, that we cannot hold Eid gatherings, that we cannot have partying.”
Still, this is necessary, he said, in order to ensure the spread of the virus is limited.
“We must follow our health experts guidance, and we should not be careless. We must be careful. We do not want to be part of community spread, because this coronavirus is a very dangerous, contagious virus,” he said.
Ben Sherick, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @BenSherick
