The origins of Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. The Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam with the profession of faith, pilgrimage to Mecca, prayer, and compulsory almsgiving.
According to tradition, the archangel Gabriel appeared to the Prophet Muhammad on the 27th night of the month of Ramadan to reveal the Qur'an. It is the "night of destiny" (Laylat al-Qadr). In order to celebrate this major Islamic event, fasting was instituted during this holy month of Ramadan in the second year of the Hegira (the Islamic calendar), in 624 of the Christian era.
References to fasting are found in verses 183-1 183-2 of the second Surah of the Quran: "O believers! We have prescribed fasting for you (Al-Siyam) as we have prescribed for those before you ... "Sociologist specializing in Arab-Islamic culture and professor at the University of Quebec in Montreal (Canada), Rachad Antonius explains That the fasting of Ramadan is a heritage of Judaism and Christianity. "The Qur'an is a continuation of the Old and New Testaments as well as of the Gospels. Fasting is nothing new in substance: it is always a means of strengthening one's will in the face of desires and passions, "adds the sociologist.
The practice of fasting
"The novelty lies in the fact that this fast is done from morning till evening, according to the natural rhythms of ancient societies," continues Rachad Antonius. Indeed, during the month of Ramadan, Muslims should not eat, drink, have sex or smoke during the day. These prohibitions are respected between the first prayer before dawn (as-soubh) and the fourth of the day (al-maghrib).
"It is a matter of depriving oneself of spirituality and reflection. The idea is not to stop eating as a ritual in itself, it is also a form of control and asceticism, "summarizes Rachad Antonius. As an associate researcher at the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (IRIS) and a seminar on the "geopolitics of religions", Slimane Zeghidour adds that "it is not a simple deprivation of food but also a penance, Forget quarrels and forgive ".
The fasters pay Zakatt-al-Fitr (obligatory alms) at the end of Ramadan. But this month of fasting is also often a "period of festivities and the opportunity to reunite with family and friends," recalls the sociologist Rachad Antonius. The end of the month of Ramadan is marked by the Feast of Eid-el-Fitr, which celebrates the closing of the fast on the first day of the following month.
