Ramadan (month)

Ramadan
A crescent moon (Hilal) marks the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan.
Native nameرَمَضَان (Arabic)
CalendarIslamic calendar
Month number9
Number of days29-30 (depends on actual observation of the moon's crescent)
Significant days
← Sha'ban
Shawwal →
Islamic calendar
Months
  1. Muharram
  2. Safar
  3. Rabi' al-Awwal
  4. Rabi' al-Thani
  5. Jumada al-Awwal
  6. Jumada al-Thani
  7. Rajab
  8. Sha'ban
  9. Ramadan
  10. Shawwal
  11. Dhu al-Qadah
  12. Dhu al-Hijjah

Ramadan (Arabic: رَمَضَان, Ramaḍān) is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed to have been revealed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Fasting during the month of Ramadan is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. The month is spent by Muslims fasting during the daylight hours from dawn to sunset. According to Islam, the Quran was sent down to the lowest heaven during this month, thus being prepared for gradual revelation by Jibra'il to Muhammad. Therefore, Muhammad told his followers that the gates of Heaven would be open for the entire month and the gates of Hell (Jahannam) would be closed.[1] The first three days of the next month, Shawwal, are spent in celebration and are observed as the "Festival of Breaking Fast" or Eid al-Fitr.

Timing

The Islamic calendar is a lunar one, where each month begins when the first crescent of a new moon is sighted. The Islamic year consists of 12 lunar cycles, and consequently it is 10 to 11 days shorter than the solar year, and as it contains no intercalation,[a] Ramadan migrates throughout the seasons. The Islamic day starts after sunset. The estimated start and end dates for Ramadan, based on the Umm al-Qura calendar of Saudi Arabia, are:[2]

Ramadan dates between 2022 and 2026
AH First day (CE/AD) Last day (CE/AD)
1443 2 April 2022 1 May 2022
1444 23 March 2023 20 April 2023
1445 11 March 2024 9 April 2024
1446 1 March 2025 29 March 2025
1447 18 February 2026 19 March 2026
An iftar meal

Many Muslims insist on the local physical sighting of the moon to mark the beginning of Ramadan, but others use the calculated time of the new moon or the Saudi Arabian declaration to determine the start of the month. Since the new moon is not in the same state at the same time globally, the beginning and ending dates of Ramadan depend on what lunar sightings are received in each respective location. As a result, Ramadan dates vary in different countries, but usually only by a day. This is due to the cycles of the moon; the moon may not meet the criteria to qualify as a waxing crescent, which delineates the change in months, at the time of sundown in one location while later meeting it in another location.[3] Astronomical projections that approximate the start of Ramadan are available.[4]

Events

Martyrdom of Imam Ali, Yousef Abdinejad

Ramadan is observed by Muslims during the entire lunar month by the same name. The month of religious observances consists of fasting and extra prayers. Some important historical events during this month are generally believed to include:

Laylat al-Qadr is observed during one of the last ten days of the month (typically the odd nights). Muslims believe that this night which is also known as "The Night of Power" is better than a thousand months. This is often interpreted to mean that the reward for praying throughout this night is equal to the reward for praying for a thousand months (just over 83 years, i.e., a lifetime). Many Muslims spend the entire night in prayer.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ A tropical year is almost the same length as a year in the Western Gregorian Calendar, the difference is imperceptible in a human lifespan.

References

  1. ^ Hadith al-Bukhari 3:123 Archived 2018-09-08 at the Wayback Machine Hadith Collection
  2. ^ "The Umm al-Qura Calendar of Saudi Arabia". webspace.science.uu.nl. Retrieved 2024-03-10.
  3. ^ "What is the Islamic calendar?". FAQ - For Muslims. Ramadan Awareness Campaign. Archived from the original on 2012-09-09. Retrieved 2008-09-01.
  4. ^ "Ramadan and Eidian". Committee For Crescent Observation. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  5. ^ Sayyid Ali Ashgar Razwy (10 November 2013). "The Birth of Muhammad and the Early Years of his Life". Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  6. ^ Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-64696-3.
  7. ^ Chittick, William (Summer 2018). "Ibn Arabi". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford: Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. Retrieved 19 July 2018. Ibn 'Arabî referred to himself with fuller versions of his name, such as Abû 'Abdallâh Muhammad ibn 'Alî ibn al-'Arabî al-Tâ'î al-Hâtimî (the last three names indicating his noble Arab lineage)
  8. ^ Haylamaz, Resit (1 March 2013). Aisha: The Wife, The Companion, The Scholar. Tughra Books. pp. 192–193. ISBN 9781597846554. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  9. ^ a b c W. Montgomery Watt (1956), Muhammad at Medina Oxford: Clarendon Press, p. 12. Watt notes that the date for the battle is also recorded as the 19th or the 21st of Ramadan (15 or 17 March 624).
  10. ^ F.R. Shaikh, Chronology of Prophetic Events, Ta-Ha Publishers Ltd., London, 2001 pp 3, 72, 134-6. Shaikh places the departure on Wednesday, 29 November. This is apparently calculated using the tabular Islamic calendar and then substituting Ramadan for Sha'ban in an (ineffective) attempt to allow for intercalation.