JACOB KONST/Arizona Daily Wildcat Mahamad Ou, urban planning graduate student, and Fathaei Peera, second year medical student, prayed at the Islamic Center of Tucson before braking the day's fast in celebration of Ramadan.

Monthlong holiday provides time to fast, commemorate the Quran

From sunrise to sunset ÷ for the next month ÷ Muslims at the UA and around the world will deprive themselves of food and water.

Fasting is part of the Islamic celebration of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Muslim year according to the Islamic lunar calendar.

Ramadan is the holiest month of the year for Muslims. It is a time to take part in fasting and to commemorate the Quran, which Muslims believe was revealed by Allah to the prophet Muhammad.

For many Muslims at the UA, the holiday ÷ which began on Oct. 27 ÷ is about becoming more aware of those who are less fortunate, rather than a cause for celebration.

"It's the last, only month to be more humble, more generous, for forgiveness from God," said Nacer Baulo, an economics graduate student.

Baulo, whose father is Christian and mother is Muslim, believes that respecting people's faith and believing in something is important to one's character.

"People share the ideas, the same meal, the main emphasis is like a family," Baulo said. "Life is supposed to be like this."

Ammar Al Fareed, a management information systems sophomore, said there is power in fasting.

"Fasting provides a power for the person to gain when fighting the hunger for example," Al Fareed said. "It sort of provides for the rich a feeling of how it really feels to be hungry or poor."

Indulgence of any sort is forbidden during the fast, including water.

"I find it refreshing," said Sabora Bagheri, a cellular biology junior. "I get a lot more done during the day."

Al Fareed said that fasting for everyone is a way to cleanse the soul and be more understanding to those less fortunate.

Many of the estimated 250 Muslim UA students view Ramadan as an opportunity to donate time to the needy.

Faisal El Azzouzi, the cultural coordinator for the Muslim Student Association, mentioned using Ramadan to spark hunger awareness around Tucson.

The MSA has decided to host a Ramadan Fast-a-Thon on campus, a first for the UA. The association will encourage non-Muslim students to fast on Nov. 13.

For each student who participates, local businesses will donate at least $1 to the Community Food Bank, and at the break of the fast, participating students will be invited to share a meal and attend a presentation about hunger issues.

"Hunger affects 30,000 people in Tucson; 17,000 of them are kids," El Azzouzi said. "We're asking non-Muslims to fast, to see how the hungry feel."

The holy month will last through Nov. 27 or Nov. 28, and conclude just in time for Thanksgiving with the holiday of Eid al-Fitr, a celebration known for feasting, not fasting.

For more information on Ramadan and the upcoming Fast-a-Thon, stop by the MSA table located on the Mall for the next two weeks.