A Personal Reflection on Ramadan | Mohammad Mustafa Hussain 

Wednesday 06-04-2022 - 14:16

In the name of God: the most Gracious, the most Merciful. 

  

An entire month dedicated to fasting and prayer always struck me as a truly special time of the year, even before I was old enough to understand the religious significance of Ramadan. At the time, I was too young to fast for the full day, as much as I wanted to, so to see others refrain from eating until sunset was inspiring in the way I saw everyone brought together to break their fasts after a long day of balancing their religious commitment with their busy lifestyle.  

 

This stuck with me as I grew up, imbuing my experiences during the holy month with continuously increasing fulfilment alongside my appreciation for its spiritual bounties as each year passed.  

 

A moment unique to this time of year is Suhoor: waking up during the last few moments of the night when it’s still permissible to eat before sunrise. Getting up in the middle of the night to eat in preparation for the next fast has often been difficult (so much so that I’ve frequently chosen to just stay up until sunrise instead,) but experiencing it for the first time reinforced the sentiment that I had uncovered a new and special side to Ramadan. Even on nights when I’d resorted to a simple meal of just a bowl of Weetabix and multiple glasses of water, the intention underpinning the act of eating at night served as a vital reminder of its significance and cemented those moments as memories I truly cherish.  

 

On my gap year I decided to take a new step in the form of I'tikaf: a religious retreat when one chooses to physically isolate themselves in the last 10 days of Ramadan for the purpose of focusing solely on prayer by keeping all other distractions at bay.  

 

It was both exciting and daunting to commit to as I had previously been unable to take such time out due to education. Undergoing such a solitary experience was eye-opening in the way I perceived and experienced the spirituality of the month, testament to the ever-evolving lifelong personal journeys all Muslims have with not only Ramadan, but our Islamic faith as well. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Pictured: Left, Suleimaan Mahmud, Treasurer for the Islamic Society.  Right, Mohammad Mustafa Hussain, Secretary for the Islamic Society)

 

Spending two weeks of Ramadan on campus this year is set to be another new experience I greatly look forward to, as it’ll be shared with all the other Muslim students I’ve met through the Islamic Society. The society serves to bring together Muslim students on campus, and the planned Iftar and subsequent Eid celebration events are ones I greatly look forward to in hopes of making new memories with the friends I’ve made through ISOC events throughout the academic year so far.  

 

Even events as simple as praying together in the prayer room are significant in bringing us together and enriching the unity we are grateful to share with other Muslims on campus.  

 

At its core, Ramadan has always been about the pursuit of deepening our bond with God by taking the time to be even more mindful of his presence in our lives, with the occasion itself coinciding with the month in which the Quran was first revealed to Mankind. The pursuit of deepened piety and faith is a lifelong endeavour, and Muslims everywhere around the world being brought together in this unified effort makes it all the more beautiful to witness and partake in.  

 

Mohammad Mustafa Hussain

Categories:

Student Features

Related Tags :

Islamic Society, Ramadan, Edge Hill,

More Edge Hill University Students' Union Articles

More Articles...