All across campus this week, Muslim students will begin fasting in honor of Ramadan. The Muslim observance is a month-long fasting with the starting date depending on the lunar calendar, from sunrise until sunset everyday, in honor of the completion of the Quran. The first day of fasting will begin upon spotting of the full moon.

Members of both the Muslim Students Association and the Pakistani Students Association at the University said that observing Ramadan is extremely important, as it makes up one of the five pillars of Islam and has been observed for centuries.

Fahad Qureshi, senior in Business and assistant to the president of the Muslim Students Association on campus, said the month of Ramadan is one of learning and sacrifice.

“Ramadan is all about self-restraint and demonstrating unity between members,” Qureshi said. “Although it is a hard month for all of us, we come together at the end of each day and embrace other Muslims on campus, which is great.”

Qureshi said that the importance of Ramadan lies in learning more about their Islamic religion and engaging in a bonding experience with others that are partaking in the observance.

At the end of each day of the month-long fast, all participants come together for Iftar, which is a dinner at night. Qureshi said that for people at the University, the Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center will provide Iftar dinners each day free of charge to all students who fasted during the day.

Qureshi said that the last 10 days of the 30-day fasting are the most important because tradition says that the Quran was completely finished during one of these final days. He also said during these days, students are extra vigilant in their practices and feel closer to God.

Ahsan Rizvi, junior in Engineering and member of the Public Relations Committee for the Pakistani Students Association, said that Ramadan is about giving up more than just food for the month. Rizvi said participants also agree to give up thinking impure thoughts as a way to cleanse and purify their entire bodies.

“As a member of PSA (Pakistani Students Association), we look more at the social aspects of Ramadan and how it affects people,” Rizvi said. “This organization is not strictly religious, we observe it in totality.”

On a spiritual level, he said that cleansing the body in this way leads to total clarity and purity.

“As students, it is sometimes hard for us to learn these important lessons,” Rizvi said. “However, this month is like a refresher course for principles and beliefs that we should be practicing all year long.”

He said that all of his friends come together to eat before dawn. Then at night, since they cannot go out, Rizvi said that the come together to have fun in other ways.

Ahmad Zakaria, senior in Engineering and president of the Pakistani Students Association, said that Ramadan teaches important lessons of discipline and shows what people had to go through to fight for their religious beliefs. He said that all participants look forward to Eid, the celebration at the end of the month that he said is similar to Christmas.

“At the conclusion of Ramadan, all of our families and friends come together for a giant feast and celebration known as Eid,” Zakaria said. “It is a very fun way to enjoy what we have been working toward all month.”

The entire month is about prayer and coming closer to God, he said.

“We pray during the day, and then come together to eat, and then pray again at night,” Zakaria said. “It shows us that we are not alone in what we are striving toward.”

Benazir Chhotani, freshman in LAS, said that it is extremely important that she remains vigilant even while at school, as she will be observing her first Ramadan away from home this month.

“I think Ramadan makes us learn important lessons over the course of this month, which is awesome,” Chhotani said. “However, I take it as a responsibility to carry this discipline in thought and action with me for the rest of the year too.”