September 5, 2008
RAMADAN
With a night full of Arabic chants, Ramadan has begun again. This Muslim month of fasting is the fourth one we’ve experienced here in Indonesia. So, read on to see what it means to be an Indonesian Muslim fasting during Ramadan and what it means for me (Rebecca), as a westerner experiencing the culture during this time.
For Indonesian Muslims:
· 2 a.m. The day begins for those who are cooking the morning meal. Indonesians don’t have to rely on their alarm clocks to waken them. A small group of musicians usually parades the streets, playing instruments and singing a song to wake everyone up.
· 4 a.m. By now, the whole family has woken and is eating some sort of rice for breakfast.
· 4:30 a.m. The men head to the local mosque for prayers. Usually, the women stay and do their prayers at home.
· 5 or 6 a.m. Some Muslims will return to bed to sleep briefly before beginning their work day. Teenagers will usually take to the streets, riding their motorcycles, shouting greetings to passersby. School children have the month off and spend the day playing.
· 6 a.m.-6 p.m. For those who work, they will work, being careful not to eat or drink anything all day, even in the heat of the day. They are not even allowed to swallow their spit. So, they often spit on the ground, or spit into a handkerchief. Muslims are also encouraged to think and say only kind things about others, so they also receive kindness (a kind of karma common in Indonesian culture).
· 4 p.m. Vendors begin to set up temporary tables and stalls along the streets to prepare to sell food for the “opening of the fast,” as they say in Indonesian.
· 6 p.m. It’s now time for the prayer time that breaks the fast. So, men visit the mosque, after which they break the fast, usually with a light fruit to warm up the stomach. Women may do their prayers at home and then break the fast, too.
· 6:30 p.m. Now Indonesians eat a big dinner.
· 7 p.m. Back to the mosque for a special evening service. This time the whole family goes. The women, covered from head to toe with white, flowy coverings, stand behind the men.
· 8 p.m. until late at night: Indonesians eat and party until they go to sleep for the night.
For westerners, like me:
· 2 a.m.: We may wake up to the sound of those musicians, usually around the time that my baby wakes me up.
· 4:30 a.m. We may wake up again to the sound of the mosque, broadcasting the call to prayer.
· 5:30 a.m. Time for my morning walk. This is usually a quiet time with few people out and about. But during Ramadan, it’s quite busy out with the teenagers carousing the streets, greeting me with “Hello, Mister!” “Good morning, Mister!” and “I love you, Mister!” (Even though I’m a Mrs.)
· 6 a.m.-6 p.m. Out of respect for fasting Muslims, I don’t eat or drink anything out in public. If I visit a Muslim friend, I will decline any drinks they may offer me.
Also, as a follower of Isa (Arabic for Jesus), Ramadan is a time of praying for my Muslim friends to seek and find God. We also have opportunities to talk about spiritual things. And it encourages my faith as I watch the diligence my Muslim friends put into following their religion of pleasing God. I always rejoice in the grace I experience, and am reminded to worship God with a balance of freedom, sacrifice and devotion.
