BAGHDAD — The
Muslim holy fasting
month of Ramadan will begin Sunday for Shiites in Iraq,
Iran, and Lebanon, as well as in countries including Morocco, Pakistan, and
India, various authorities said.
اضافة اعلان
"The first day of Ramadan will be
tomorrow" for Shiites in Iraq, state media said Saturday, citing the
office of the country's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani.
In neighboring Iran, which like Iraq is
majority Shiite, as well as for Shiites in Lebanon, Ramadan will also begin
Sunday.
The starting date of the fasting month is
determined by both lunar calculations and physical sightings of a new moon.
Traditionally, many Muslim-majority
countries have followed dates set by Saudi religious authorities, but in recent
years many have used their own astronomic calculations.
Sunni Muslims in Iraq, Lebanon and most
Middle Eastern countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait,
commenced the holy month on Saturday.
Jordan and Morocco, which are majority
Sunni, and Oman, however, will begin on Sunday.
During Ramadan, observant Muslims refrain
from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk, and traditionally gather with
family and friends to break their fast in the evening.
It is also a time of prayers, during which
Muslims converge in large numbers at mosques, especially at night.
In Asia, Afghanistan began Ramadan on
Saturday, while Pakistan and India will begin on Sunday.
In Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim
majority country, followers of the Muhammadiyah organization began the holy
month on Saturday, while those affiliated with the Nahdlatul Ulama, the
country's largest Muslim association, will begin on Sunday.
According to tradition, Ramadan marks the
time that Prophet Mohammed started receiving revelations of the Muslim holy
book, the Quran.
The Eid Al-Fitr holiday marks the end of the
holy month.
Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five
"pillars" of Islam.
The others are the profession of faith
("there is no God but God and Mohammed is his messenger"), the
obligation to pray five times a day, charity, and the pilgrimage to Mecca at
least once in a believer's lifetime.
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