by Tahmina Sattar

Created on: July 29, 2009   Last Updated: July 31, 2009

Ramadan, the ninth month of fasting in the Islamic year, is the month when the lives of Muslims become upside down. Fasting from sunrise to sunset may be common, but how Ramadan is practiced differs in different countries and cultures. The observation of suhur- the early morning meal and the iftar- the breaking of the fast at sunset consist of a variety of traditional meals and desserts for Muslims all over the world.

In places like Damascus and Istanbul, the traditional drum beater drums his way through the quiet streets waking everyone for the morning meal. In other places such as Dhaka a person can be heard informing sleepers through a loudspeaker as to how much time remains before the time to eat became restricted. Now in modern lifestyles Muslims can register for the Suhur wake up call via their telephone!

However in many middle eastern cities the norm is to sit, chat and drink qahweh ( a short black coffee) till the wee hours of the morning. Everybody eats their morning meal, prays the dawn prayers (fajr) before going to bed till noon. Many cafes and restaurants stay open till morning. Usually the all nighters wake up in time for the next daily prayer and begin the daily preparation of the sumptuous evening meal with friends and family. In other parts of the world this is not the case, and depending on the length of the night some wait till the last few minutes before they wake up for a quick bite or take a leisurely two to three hours preparing a proper meal, chatting and relaxing in conversation before it's prayers time.

In a lot of Muslim countries the special Ramadan evening prayer - taraweeh, is a communal affair with the whole family spending time at the mosque. Usually it is easier to complete the prayers with hundreds others, listening to the beautiful quran recitation of the imam. Many imams try to complete the recitation of the whole quran during the taraweeh prayers, as reading the entire quran is seen as an extra reward-able action.

Most people take advantage of this special month and its significance for worship. The detoxification from food during the day is not the only benefit. Partaking in charitable acts, refraining from backbiting, bad temper and other bad actions as well as immersing oneself in spiritual meditation is seen to be in the spirit of Ramadan. Young children are encouraged to fast, even if it is half a day as well as to collect small change in a sadaqa bank which they can distribute to the poor later.

Ramadan food is

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