Ramadan

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Greeting: Ramdan Kareem! (Ramadan is generous)
Response: Allahu Akram (God is MOST generous)
OR
Greeting: Kul as-sena wa enta/ti tayyib/a (not lit: I hope you and your year will be well).
Response: Wa enta/ti tayyib/a (and you…)


So this one is going to be a doozy considering I have been building up to it for a month. I don’t know what you all know—or don’t know, rather—about Ramadan, so I’ll include a little background and all that I have learned over the past few weeks:

Ramadan is one of the months of the Islamic Calendar (which is lunar) and it marks the month that the Holy Prophet Mohammed (p.b.u.h = peace be upon him) had his first Qur’anic revelation. Muslims believe that the Qur’an was not written by Mohammed or anyone else about him, but is the actual word of God revealed to him over a period of 22 (?) years. So anyways, during Ramadan Muslims do a lot of things to commemorate this event, most notably they fast from dawn to dusk. This means no food, water, smoking or sex during the daylight hours. Some go a step further past physical fasting and might abstain from listening to music and cursing. In general people try to concentrate on the holiness of the month by being nicer to everyone and more generous—though the crankiness that comes with fasting usually negates this. We had one girl pull over on the highway where we were walking, jump out, hand us some dates, and then leave!—my Muslim friend said that it is because it “gives her pleasure” to give (especially during Ramadan when giving is granted 1000x the brownie points…are we in kindergarten again?!).
As in all religions people have different interpretations. Supposedly in Morrocco—according to my very American and very ancient professor—people will not even consume their own saliva…so one must be careful when walking next to a bus, if you know what I mean! My friends (and I have adopted this view as well) draw the line at being able to brush your teeth in the morning--as long as you don’t swallow the rinse water. Here are some of the other rules they have taught me:
-you are supposed to break the fast (Iftar) with dates and water and say something to the effect of “Allah, I fasted for you and now for you I break my fast with the food you have provided for me,” then you do one of the required 5 daily prayers and THEN have the real meal. (I like this because then you don’t gorge yourself with food and get sick afterwards.)
-if you are sick, pregnant, traveling, too young/old, or have your period you do not have to fast (but with the latter you must make up the days some time before the next Ramadan). Basically the point of Ramadan is not to kill your body—although it might kill your metabolism—it is to bring you closer to God. By denying your physical self you can fully concentrate on your relationship with Allah.
-If you are sick (not chronically) then you can choose to make up those days later, or you can give money or food to a poor person.
-If you accidentally—seriously accidentally (and I have come close to forgetting a few times)—eat something then it is just considered a gift from God and it’s okay. {Anecdote: on Thursday mornings I tutor Sudanese Refugees at a church just north of the University, and while I was waiting for class to start one of the adult men was handing out little sandwiches (basically a piece of pita bread slit open with tomatoes and French fries stuffed in the middle) and a banana. He handed me one and said “breakfast!” and, since I have been trained now that not accepting such hospitality is rude, I unconsciously put my hands out only to realize a few seconds later that I’m an idiot—I’m fasting! I didn’t want to throw it away but none of the kids wanted it so I just stuck it in my bag for Iftar. Since I was foolish and stayed on campus until Iftar that night I couldn’t find anywhere to eat, so I had my banana and thus was able to quasi-properly break the fast on-time (banana…date…same difference!), but more importantly as I was walking down an alley in a frantic search for a touristy restaurant I passed a young homeless boy who took one look at my sandwich and got all wide-eyed--so I motioned for him to take it. Moral of the story: in the end I consider my mistake of forgetting that I was fasting as a blessing from Allah, because otherwise I would not have had any food to give the boy!}

I have come to think of the general aura of Ramadan as a hybrid of 4th of July and Thanksgiving. Going to the Khan (the oldest bazaar in the world) at night after Iftar is absolutely glorious. There is a big square there (Midan Hussein) which is outside Hussein Mosque—this mosque is especially important because it is where the prophet’s grandson Al-Hussein is buried and only Muslims are allowed inside—where people just hang out under the “Ramadan tent” and many spread out their blankets and sit with family, making the midan into a giant quilt. This is the part that reminds me so much of 4th of July: little kids running around under the strings of lights, vendors selling yummy falafel and tamarind (?) juice, people relaxing and smoking sheesha on their blankets while listening to the old men in business suits strike up a tune--all under the colorful glow of all the fawanees Ramadan (the special lanterns hung in all the windows during Ramadan…supposedly the story goes that one year during Ramadan Egypt got a new king and so all the people took their lanterns and set out towards the Citadel to meet him. When he looked out over the city he was extremely struck by the line of lights coming to greet him and so he decreed that everyone should carry a lantern during Ramadan…..I’m sure I totally butchered that story, oh well).

So the social part is very festive, but for me the best part is that it’s like Thanksgiving for a month! I get an excuse to have a dinner date or host a dinner party in my room (even if it just entails ordering-in EuroDeli with some friends) every night for a month! The Egyptians obviously have Iftar with their family and our class schedule actually changes so that there is a big gap before Iftar and afterwards so that people can go home and prepare food and then enjoy the wonderful coma that ensues. One of my favorite Iftars was when I went to my friend Darcy’s apartment because she offered to cook for me. Because I got a little lost on the way and thus, was late (another blessing in disguise), I was able to meet some Egyptians and witness a lot of people gathering to eat Iftar. The streets were empty (you guys have no idea what an empty and silent street is like in Cairo…it gives you a creepy feeling of Armaggedon) and my driver was flying…all he could talk about was how everyone is hungry and Iftar was in like 5 minutes. When he found out I was fasting too he got really excited and even offered me one of his three dates in a little baggie—his wife must have packed him an Iftar before work! Then it was like Cinderella-- I stepped out of the cab and wished him a good year (see above) just as one of the mosques in Midan Tahrir started the call to prayer (which signals it is time to eat). I was the only one in the whole square except for a few policemen who had basically left their duties to have a picnic on the sidewalk next to their huts. As I power-walked the few blocks to my friend’s apartment I could see in all the gas station and shop windows everyone gathered around a big table passing all sorts of food…just imagine all the 7Eleven workers having a feast between the Pringles and the candy bar aisles. Darcy said from her window on the 10th floor you can look out and see the whole city eating together on their roofs. So anyways, when I got to her building I was heading to the elevators when I said hello to her bowab (doorman) who was sitting in the corner of an empty foyer with about 7 of his friends—all dressed in traditional galabiyya. Of course they all waved me over to come sit and eat with them. I didn’t want to be rude so I thought I would just take a bite of chicken or something. It was extremely awkward…a little white American sitting around with 7 men who spoke no English…but because we all knew how ridiculous the situation was I think we got over it and just had a good time. I fumbled around with some Arabic (the problem was not just that I couldn’t express myself well in their language, but what kind of conversation protocol is there for this type of situation!?) and we had a few laughs, especially when the bowab asked me whether I liked to smoke cigarettes or hashish and then proceeded to go around the circle naming all of his friend’s vices. I basically spent my time asking the names of the different foods and pretending to remember them…of course this sort of feigned interest (though I guess if I could remember the names I would be genuinely inclined to eat them again) often incites them to pile more onto your plate. By the time I was able to pry myself away and convince them that my friend was waiting for me and she was fasting too, and despite me trying to explain that she is a vegetarian, I found myself with a bag full of bread and almost half of a chicken to take home.

The fasting experience itself has taught me a lot about myself and definitely about my habits. Periodically my friends will ask me how the fast is going, and I think it has generally been really good. I have only cheated one time—after volleyball (we play outside from 3-4:30 with the guys on a men’s net and we have to dress appropriately—no tank tops or shorts let alone just spandex!) when I had about half of a small bottle of water. During practice I had been really light headed and decided it just wasn’t smart to keep fasting—I guess I could claim it’s part of the “being sick” exception, but I won’t give myself that much credit. Some of my teammates play fully covered and with hijabs…but they attribute their stamina just to being used to it. It probably didn’t help that I had been traveling that weekend so that was the first day back that I was fasting. Anyways, it hasn’t been so bad going with out food but water and caffeine have been big problems. It is cool how I now feel more control over my desires. When I was thirsty before most of what consumed my mind would be what exactly I was craving that would quench my thirst, and my plan of action in acquiring said liquid. But, during Ramadan it is interesting because the best way to survive is to simply train yourself to forget about it. Maybe not forget that you are thirsty (that would defeat the purpose), but just forget about even trying to succumb to your body's desires and for once let your mind have the upper hand--focusing on what you think you WANT detracts so much from other important thoughts! Furthermore, I didn’t realize how addicted I was to caffeine. It’s not really even a physical addiction (no headaches, and the lack of food makes me tired enough to crave caffeine in the morning even though I usually only drank it at night at Penn), but more of a psychological one. I realized how often I go get a coffee or snack just for the excuse to hang out or do work in a cozy coffee shop. Unfortunately this drives me to spend all day in my dorm room until Iftar 😞 --but does help me save a lot of money and relieve me from getting up early to eat breakfast and worry about where I will eat lunch! I also now understand their custom of giving bottles of water to the poor. I have seen people on the subways and in ‘ahwas (the coffee/sheesha shops that line the streets) just hand their water bottles to the beggars that come inside. Water is truly a precious commodity for our bodies, despite one of my cab drivers declaring quite seriously “there is too much water in Egypt!”—I am truly starting to appreciate good, clean H20!

One supposed purpose of fasting is that it is a time that everyone is equal, especially the rich and the poor. Everyone is hungry. Everyone is thirsty. This helps those more fortunate to understand the sufferings of others. When my stomach starts cramping up an hour or so before Iftar I try to meditate on this idea and focus on what it would be like to have this feeling indefinitely—it makes it so much easier if you are just doing a countdown in your head and thinking about the glorious feast you are going to have to break the fast, or eat a huge sahour (predawn meal) to prepare for the next day. Imagine what it would be like to be hungry and also not know when that feeling will stop! I also try to remind myself that I have a schedule that allows me to sleep in fairly late, sit in class, and study all day—most days I only end up fasting for 8 hours at the most and am not doing any physical work, which I did get a taste of during volleyball practice, as I explained before. Even if you all pick a weekend to relax in front of the TV I would still urge you to try fasting for one day—and congrats to all of you that did it last week at Penn! It won’t screw up your metabolism to just do it for one day. Yet, I can tell that my stomach has shrunk because I can easily break the fast with a few dates and water and then be fine for another hour or so if we go out and need time to peruse the menu and wait for our food. Furthermore I usually can’t finish my portions (fat-kid blasphemy...sorry Katie)—which is great because I can bring it to my room and have it for sahour. A girl I met on the subway that goes to Cairo University says that some people like fasting because they feel that it is a de-toxification of their bodies—spiritually and physically. To each his own I guess 😊

So I am sure there are tons of other things I could tell y’all about Ramadan, but I am not going to get into the spiritual part for me in all this because I am just getting comfortable writing on-line at all…so it’ll be a while before I take the next step in talking about that to anyone but myself…

Ramadan Kareem!!

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Photos

Midan Hussein
This is just all the people outside the restaurants after Iftar on a Thursday night...doesn't even begin to show the rest of the square.

Ramadan tent pattern
One of the patterns of material they wrap around everything (trees, walls, etc) on the ceiling of the grocery store--with holes for light of course

Fawanees Ramadan
two very small fanous (singular of Fawanees) Ramadan in our floor couch lounge. Many of them are as big as me!

Huge fanous Ramadan
This one is HUGE! It is as big as a man (can you see the guy's shoulders standing behind it?...bad picture I know...I was trying to keep my creepiness from detection)

Fishawy's
The 'ahwa (coffee house) that Naguib Mahfouz often wrote in while smoking sheesha

musicians
you know the typical tune...gotta clap out the beat...

yuummmmmm
Yay for Falafel at any hour of the day!

maybe more like Halloween?
Let's not forget all the random little toys and gadgets being sold...

throw in a little Christmas too
wow...Ramadan is every holiday wrapped into one...they put lights on mosques and minarets too!

Time to eat!!
Yes people, I actually helped cook...Darcy and I made an amazing apple salsa the same night I had dinner with her bowab. I had to soak my fingers in milk after cutting the peppers it was so hot...