Ramadan’s

Ramadan’s moon is sighted …..and there is no recount…

We are currently in the midst of our post-presidential election indecision, where we find ourselves busy staring at our ballots and trying to see the light at the end of a Chad. Muslim-Americans all across the country have already sighted the light of the new moon and consequently started their observance of the holy month of Ramadan by abstaining from eating, drinking, smoking and sex from dawn to sunset; it is a month of reflection, sharing and giving. This is the month where Muslim-Americans feel somehow special, connected and unapologetically joyful in sharing their religious tradition with friends and families in the Christmas-like month-long festivities.

I start reflecting on my last Ramadan in Egypt when this week I quickly ran out of friends and families to celebrate the first few days of Ramadan. And the only people with whom I could break my fast were those regular diners at Old Country Buffet during sunset. Back in Egypt, people have more than enough family members and friends to go around the whole month.

In Egypt, what was so amazing to observe during the month of Ramadan were the streets of Cairo. Millions of people go about their business during the fasting day without a major crisis; they are sharing the narrow streets with cars and animals in a chaotic harmony. An observer will hardly see any pavement or rode rage, and street skirmishes are quickly extinguished by a simple plea from a bystander whispering to the short tempered parties, “Ramadan Kareem Ya Ekhwan” - “Have a gracious Ramadan, brothers.”

At sunset when it is time for breaking our long day fast, people rush home by any means they can find. Taxis will stop to pick up any straggler, bus drivers will change their routes and graciously waive their fee to get you home on time. The streets of Cairo quickly are deserted and the old city gets its long deserved reverence. The calls for the Sunset prayer (El-Mughrab) rise from thousands of Mosques purifying the heavily polluted Cairo air.

We first break our fast by sampling some dried fruits and sipping our favorite Apricot drinks. Men then rush to one of the many local corner Mosques that are sprouting up all over Cairo sidewalks to pray the Sunset prayer (El-Mughrab) before quickly returning home to the serious business of gobbling the big Ramadan Breakfast meal (Iftar).

After finishing a heavy meal of mass consumption, all you feel is your stomach; in fact you become your stomach. Our movement becomes less noticeable and we become a captive audience to a mirage of must-see low budget 24/7 media marathon of government television programs.

A few hours later people start slowly moving out of their houses and leaking back into the street. Millions of them melt together into a human river streaming through Cairo streets, checking and greeting each other, and visiting the makeshift public entertainment centers that are scattered all over Cairo squares, where amateurs artists and musicians come from all over Egypt to perform for free, chanting their religious folklore songs all night.

Nights become days, the dark sky becomes bright and flourished by the massive Ramadan lights displayed everywhere. Cairo city turns into a great World Wide Web without a need for a browser. At each corner thousands of people, entertainers, cars, food courts all type of shops, and visitors all are thrown together in a great heap within a city that never sleeps.

People celebrate and eat all night; food becomes a spiritual means to revere fasting. All you see around you is food, desserts and drinks; sweet shops, cafes and restaurants are open all night providing a rich variety of Ramadan’s specials dishes - kunnafa, katife, sosary water, rice pudding, lamb chops and fava beans dashes. The festivities will go on uninterrupted till the Musahratti (a drummer) goes through the city neighborhoods to wake up sleepy folks to get their last evening meal (Suhore) before dawn. This ritual is ignored by the millions of people who are already have been up and eating all night.

All these evening indulgences will come to an end at the call for the dawn prayer (Elfajr). Now it is time reflection and reverence; the spirited nightlife slowly comes to a stand still and the mood of the people shifts. Their smiles fade away, and for the next 10 to12 fasting hours it is every man for himself.

While you may share eating and drinking with families and friends, fasting is very personal and private. It is between you and god, only both of you can observe. Every fasting day must count unless you are sick or traveling, and then there definitely will be a recount at a later date. After all, god tends no hardship. Ramadan Kareem, everyone.

Ahmed… 12-1-00
Producer/Host of the Arab American TV Show Belahdan
Minnetonka, MN