Ramadan Reflections

The moment the call for the evening prayer goes off, I watch my brother wolf down his dinner and look at the clock in front of our dining table like I have for the past three weeks. I pick up my date fruit for the 20th time in a row and take a bite. I look up reluctantly to see my brother choke on his smoothie as my mom stares at him in blatant horror. I take my first sip of water in 14 hours and realize that my stomach is already full. My brother, late to this realization, looks at me with the same stare of regret etched on his face for the thousandth time. 

The ninth month of the Islamic calendar, Ramadan, is a cherished month for Muslims all across the world. Our holy book, the Qur’an, is believed to have been revealed during the month of Ramadan. The Qur’an serves not just as a book of religion but as a guide to having a fruitful life. The idea of what it means to have a “fruitful life” is generally subjective. However, in Islam, achieving one’s best potential while on this earth is through action—spending time worshipping, investing in education, helping the needy, and striving to become the best Muslim and person you can be. A fruitful life is composed of all of these elements, and Ramadan serves as a reminder for us to prioritize bettering ourselves by means of our character and faith in God. 

To do this, Muslims observe the month of Ramadan by fasting for 30 days from sunrise to sunset, while reflecting on the teachings of the Qur’an and deepening their knowledge of Islam. Fasting during Ramadan does not only include abstaining from food and drink; it involves the avoidance of committing sins such as backbiting, cursing, negative thoughts, impulse-driven actions, and many others. It includes paying attention to the small things like the ones we tend to overlook in our day-to-day life. Ramadan pushes us to recognize our potential to abandon the sins that we would have never believed ourselves capable of leaving. It serves as a reminder of our abilities, encourages us to complete more good deeds, and continuously reflect on the blessings of God. We perform extra prayers, control our worldly desires, and strive to foster new habits to carry throughout the rest of the year. Most of all, we remind ourselves that this world is finite.

In light of the emergence of the Qur’an during this blessed month, Muslims take extra care to read the Qur’an with expectations of completing the Arabic text in its entirety. For many, this would suggest about five hundred to six hundred pages of text to course through. However, for many students, participating in the full glory of Ramadan is often halted by schoolwork. One of many struggles students face during Ramadan is in completing the Qur’an on time. No matter how many times I plan and revise the number of pages I need to read per day, I lose focus on the true reason why I read the Qur’an: to reflect on its message. At the end of the month, I can recite the last line of the Qur’an with content and close it like millions across the world. However, I eventually realize that I have yet to absorb the meanings behind the verses I have just recited because the urgency I felt to complete the Qur’an wasn’t driven by my desire to become a better Muslim. It was driven by a general societal expectation to complete the Qur’an by the end of the month—which doesn’t account for taking time to emotionally reflect. I found myself focusing more on the quantity of pages I read in a night rather than the quality of my reading. Yet, how could I possibly complete the entire Qur’an in time while also taking care to interpret its messages and meanings? Although it is recommended that we complete the Qur’an during the month of Ramadan, its completion should not be prioritized over taking the time to truly understand it. The month of Ramadan should instead serve as an opportunity for one to reach a closer relationship with the holy book and work to recite it daily, throughout their life. Nonetheless, it is easier said than done. Personally, I dedicated as much or as little time as I could before I went to bed to reflect on the Qur’an or complete an extra prayer. When I didn’t have much homework or studying to do, I was able to dedicate an hour or more. On other nights, even 20 minutes seemed like a lot. Either way, it doesn’t have to be much, as long as it is something. After all, the true benefit doesn’t lie in the number of pages you’ve read; it lies in the fact that you took that extra time to read the Qur’an for the sake of implementing its teachings in your daily life. It is far more important to take the time to reflect and apply the message of the chapter of Qur’an you read, rather than course through it for the sake of completion, ultimately gaining no understanding.

Additionally, prayers during Ramadan often occur in the late hours of the night and are especially emphasized during the last 10 days of the month. These days are considered among the most special, especially the odd dates. The Qur’an was revealed during one of these odd dates. This special night—also known as Laylatul Qadr (Night of Power)—is a significant night. Although many believe Laylutal Qadr falls on the 27th, Muslims are encouraged to seek it every night of Ramandan’s last 10 days; if someone completes good acts on Laylatul Qadr, they will receive rewards as if they’ve done it for a thousand months. Unfortunately, oftentimes the odd nights of the last 10 days fall on school nights, which only further ruins the already demolished sleep schedules of Stuyvesant students. As much as I wish to provide a definitive method that allows one to sleep adequately and pray during the night, I am void of such solutions. Everyone has different schedules and priorities, so adjusting accordingly is necessary. Personally, I found that during the weekdays, I added extra prayers during the day instead of at night, and during weekends, I was able to stay up later into the night to pray. It is important to recognize that worship during Ramadan doesn’t mean that we need to adhere to a strict schedule that will ultimately harm our well-being. Rather, part of the purpose is to push ourselves to remember God more than we normally would and do our best to make as much time for worship as possible without losing too much sleep or jeopardizing our health. For, “Indeed, He is the Forgiving, the Merciful” (Surah Az-Zumar). 

While thinking about Ramadan at Stuyvesant, I appreciate the kindness of everyone who respects those fasting, whether it’s by hiding their food while in class or apologizing when they do take a bite. I truly find it so generous when students go out of their way as hungry teenagers to do this, yet I would also like to express that it is not at all necessary. Although a little kindness does go a long way, and it is much appreciated, I actually find that the greater challenge is remembering that I actually can eat when it is time. After not eating for the entire day, I imagine myself eating copious amounts of food after sunset, yet when the time comes, I completely forget to eat the rest of the night, subconsciously thinking I am fasting. In school, the opposite happens as well. While seeing my friend eating garlic knots during lunch, I’ve gone as far as walking into the store only to remember that I can’t eat food just yet. Then again, I’ll forget I can eat even after I break my fast, so, I lose either way. 

One of the most important parts of Ramadan is creating new habits to carry on throughout the rest of the year. Even if we don’t pray all throughout the night most days or fast everyday, the habits we develop during Ramadan—like reading the Qur’an daily or adding that extra prayer—are ones that we should strive to continue. We shouldn’t restrict the act of improving ourselves and looking to deepen our knowledge of the religion to Ramadan. Instead, we should view Ramadan as an opportunity to continue bettering ourselves. I’ve found that my relationship with the Qur’an—when I take the time to read the meaning of the verses I encounter and assess how to implement them in my daily life—has gotten much closer than previous years. The essence of Ramadan comes from what we take away just as much as what we do during it. Consistency is the hardest part, but when you take the extra step to form habits like you do during Ramadan, you’re already halfway there.

Although this may be a piece reflecting on Ramadan, everyone—no matter their religious identities, can implement aspects like maintaining consistency when forming new habits or knowing how to balance tasks even when it gets overwhelming. Ramadan is a time for us to push ourselves not just as Muslims but as a sister or brother; a mother or father; a friend or coworker. It is time for us to take a step back and reflect on the blessings of this life while acknowledging that life’s pleasures are temporary. It’s about taking the effort to not curse even when it’s second nature; to wake up early to offer that one extra prayer; and to realize that we are capable of doing so much, even during our limited lives. In the end, the quality of the time we spend living matters more than the number of years we spend on it. On that note, I write this on March 27—the most likely day for Laylatul Qadr. Thus, I wish you all a productive and fruitful Night of Power, and I hope that Ramadan next year comes to you with reflection, love, and lots of good food.