With Ramadan upon us and as the Muslim community in Canada embraces the holy month which involves fasting for 30 days there’s no better time than now to introduce a few fun facts about Ramadan to the non Muslim community.
The idea came up during a conversation I had with Dana Mccauley, Executive Director at Food Starter while I was talking about what goes on during Ramadan and Dana had a lot of ‘ Oh I wasn’t aware of that’ moments.
Here are a few fun facts:
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Ramadan starts at a different time every year simply because the Muslim calendar is based on the moon sighting and a special committee in every country is assigned to watch out for the moon to determine the beginning and end of every month. In general Ramadan marks a shift of 11 days earlier every year.
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Fasting involves no consumption of food or drinks from dusk till dawn which adds up to about 17 hours in Canada this year.
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Fasting is not mandatory if you are ill, pregnant, breastfeeding and when travelling. Only if you are a healthy adult capable of fasting without it causing you any malnutrition or illness then you are required to do so and it’s healthy for you.
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Most Muslims break their fast by eating dates as it was known that the Prophet Mohammad did so and turns out they are ideal for that as they are nutritious and help rejuvenate your energy levels quickly. In fact dates are a big gift item during this month so if you want to surprise a friend or colleague then choose one of our gift boxes which will definitely put a smile on their face.
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Fasting is meant to help a person appreciate the value of having food on the table, to feel with the poor and to be at his/her best behaviour. It’s similar to a detox only it’s both physical and spiritual.
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Muslims are not offended when they see other people eat or drink during their fast. It’s a nice gesture to spread wishes of happy Ramadan.
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Ramadan decorations are a big thing. Special accents and lanterns are usually used to turn the household into a Ramadan themed one and children love that. It’s like Christmas only it goes on for a whole month and ends with a big celebration called Eid.
Ramadan is a beautiful and peaceful experience for the Muslim community, and Iftar time (breaking the fast) is best when shared with people. I encourage you to share Iftar with someone this year. I will be posting more tips on how to prepare for a healthy fast and special Ramadan recipes in the coming weeks, stay tuned.
Wishing the Muslim community a happy and healthy Ramadan.
Healthy Genie