In today’s world, and especially for those of us enjoying the blessings of life in Canada or other developed nations, food can hardly be considered a scarce commodity. There are supermarkets all through neighbourhoods, and then there is the extreme side of our “food obsession”. An entire channel dedicated to food aka The Food Network, fast food restaurants with increasingly large portions for increasingly low prices, and advertisements plastered across TV screens, magazines, and billboards. All of this while around 1 billion people go hungry every single day…and we waste 1.3 billion tonnes of food every single year. For years, the United Nations has been saying that there is more than enough food to feed every single person on Earth. Seeing the numbers first-hand drives that message home. For the majority of people, this is a problem so far from home that it barely gets a thought; the blessing of having access to food is something that’s often taken for granted.
Until Ramadan. When 1.2 billion people in every corner of this globe is made to think of the 842 million hungry people sharing God’s Earth, when they feel a little of that hunger that their brothers and sisters feel and think about the food they have been blessed with. To the average human being, the main aspect of Ramadan involves 30 days of fasting, or staying away from food and drink from dawn until sunset. It’s about saying ‘it’s not all about food”.
As Muslims observe this holy month, traditions and customs vary from place to place. In Egypt, families go out just before dawn to enjoy their suhoor (meal before fast starts) at a local café, and in Canada Muslims grab a Tim Horton’s coffee to go with their meal from one of the only ‘breakfast’ joints open at 2:00 am. But regardless of these differences, there is one central theme from the mountains of Xinjiang province to the suburban homes in Vancouver: thankfulness for the food on the table. In perspective, it’s like a month-long Thanksgiving. Every afternoon when the fast is broken with a date, a prayer crosses the lips of each fasting soul. “Lord, I fasted for You and I believe in You, and with Your sustenance I break my fast. Ameen. “
Even for those Muslims who are fasting, the mantra “It’s not all about food” is central to the month of Ramadan. Fasting, as defined in Islam, is more than just not eating and not drinking, it’s about trying one’s best to do as many good deeds as possible. Praying, reading the Quran, giving charity, helping those in need, and visiting family and friends are all things are all done more than usual in this month. Organizations like Give 30 spread this month of goodwill at a national level by soliciting support for food banks across Canada, while others like UNRWA do that at an international level in support of refugees and victims of war around the world.
The entire month of Ramadan ends with a day of celebration, the much-awaited Eid-ul-Fitr, but the theme of counting your blessings is perfectly incorporated right into this day as well. The yearly “Eid alms,” aka Zakaat-ul-Fitr is collected by mosques and organizations throughout the world during the month of Ramadan. Every person with food is obliged to give one full meal to someone without access to food in time for the Eid celebrations. And while Ramadan is just one of 12 months, and Zakaat-ul-Fitr covers just one of hundreds of meals, it is the resolution for Muslims that brings the hungry to their mind and all their blessing to their eyes. For one month, they reach across an unseen barrier to grasp the hands of a hungry brother or sister. Who knows, maybe at the end of that month the grasp of that hand will be so tight that the window will never be shut again.
Maryam Baksh is a student at University of British Columbia. She is a member of the Muslim community and lives in Vancouver with her family
You can read more article on our interfaith Blog, Spiritually Speaking HERE
