(Feature Story) The Ramadan Fasting Festival of Muslims

Photo Credit: support.muslimpro 

BY: SEM VANNA

(Semarang) People always eat meanwhile Muslim people fast one month. This fasting month is called “Ramadan” festival which celebrates around the world every year. Indonesia is also a large Muslim country to celebrate Ramadan festival.

The Ramadan festival is a month fasting festival which Muslim people do their fasting even though the kids or young people. This is a very unique festival in Muslim religion that Muslim people must not eat food drink and smoke.

“My parents taught me that it means you don’t respect god if you don’t do fasting and then you will get bad punishment,” said Oddie Bagus Saputra, an International Relation senior student at Universitas Diponegoro.

Oddie Bagus Saputra, an International Relation student. ( Supplied) 

During the Ramadan, Muslim people are encouraged to fast to develop tolerance for those who are less fortunate. They are also encouraged to do more good deeds and charity.

“We can feel what poor people feel when they don’t have food to eat, then we can share food to people,” Oddie Bagus Saputra said.

“The fasting month, also called the holy month, is when Muslim people around the world fast from dawn to dusk. When fasting, they abstain from food, smoke, drink (including water), and sexual contacts from down until dusk. Muslims are encouraged to eat a meal before dawn, and then break the fast immediately after sunset,” ASEAN official posted on Facebook.

Mr. Pak Bambang is being interviewed on May 31, 2018. 

Mr. Pak Bambang, a master of Muslim ceremony said “Ramadan is a special holy month for Muslim because we will have more blessing, kindness and forgiveness from the god if we have sins.”

“We do fasting after sunrise, called Subult, and then we will be praying and reading the god’s script (Optional). Men do not have many obstacles to fast, but women have mores because during their period, they skip and fast later after the days finish,” he added.

Ramadan falls on ninth lunar month in the Islamic Calendar. The lunar calendar means the start of each month is based on various factors, such as the sighting of the month. Therefore, like all Islamic month, the month of Ramadan rotates every year.

“Indonesia has the world’s largest Muslim population and Islam is the largest religion,” BBC reported on May 14, 2018.

Indonesia is the 4^th population country in the world and more than 87% of its inhabitants are Muslims. The country’s population is 261 million and 222 million is Muslims.