Tarawieh<\/em>\u201d which only occurs during Ramadan, and during these prayers, we recite the Quran from beginning to end in 30 days.<\/p>\nBeing the mother of racially and ethnically mixed children, our Ramadan practice always reflects a mix of my kid\u2019s Indian-Palestinian-Irish American heritage. The iftar table regularly features butter chicken, humus, and fries \u2014 a combination that would have completely humored and confused my Indian grandmother. Our prayers have always been bilingual, easily switching back and forth between Arabic and English. Our devotional music is almost always in Urdu songs and poetry, which is the religious music of my childhood. And in our own small way, my family is an example of the diversity that is the American Muslim community.<\/p>\n
The beauty of Ramadan for the American Muslim community lies in the diversity of observance.<\/h3>\n
This year my oldest son, Sulayman, is excited to fully participate in the ritual of fasting. As I prepare to parent him and help him navigate his Ramadan practices at school, I have been thinking about two lessons I want him to internalize from this month into the rest of his year.<\/p>\n
Ramadan is a time for remembrance and reconnection.<\/strong><\/p>\nThe Prophet Muhammad received his first revelation of the Quran (the holy scripture for Muslims) in Ramadan. According to the Muslim tradition, the Prophet had retreated to a cave called Hira outside of Mecca, which was his contemplative practice. The angel Gabriel appeared before him and said, \u201cRead!\u201d to which the Prophet replied, \u201cI cannot read.\u201d Gabriel then commanded the Prophet to recite the following verses: \u201cRead! In the name of your Lord who created you\u2026\u201d This first command, to \u201cread,\u201d resonates with me in literal and symbolic ways. One of the most common practices of Ramadan is to engage in reading the Quran \u2014 communally and individually. For those of us who do not have fluency in Arabic, the language of Muslim scripture, it is common to engage with translation and commentary of the Quran. And through studying it, remembering and reconnecting with the stories and lessons that anchor many parts of Muslim life but can get lost in the day-to-day shuffle of life. Ramadan invites us to re-connect with the purpose and intentionality of the Muslim faith.<\/p>\n
Ramadan is a time to set and practice new intentions. <\/strong><\/p>\nMy grandfather regularly told me, \u201cIf you want to start a new habit, start it in Ramadan,\u201d implying that pairing the new habit with the practice of 30 days of fasting helps to embed it in one\u2019s life. Every Ramadan, my family tries to incorporate a small new habit to our existing daily religious practices. Last year, I invited my children to join me in writing a daily gratitude list at our dinner table and then sharing what we were thankful for. We learned we were thankful for the delicious food made by grandmothers, for LEGO, for Nutella and M&M\u2019s, for old friends and new. Thus, learning a little about each other and us in the process. This year, I hope we can continue to make our gratitude lists and add another element by also recording one act of generosity we\u2019ve practiced in our day, whether it is a simple act of saying \u201chello\u201d to our neighbors, or helping a friend at school, or donating to a local organization.<\/p>\n
Ramadan is a sacred time. It is also a communal and familial time. This month is about honing our individual spiritual practice while also fulfilling our commitments to the people in our lives. I\u2019m grateful to have a chance each year to reflect on my own spiritual practice as a Muslim and to renew how I show up in our world. My invitation and hope for you this Ramadan is for you to have an opportunity to do the same.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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