Last Saturday Muslim students at SF State ended their month-long fast known as the holy month of Ramadan.

Ramadan is a time when more than one billion Muslims worldwide sacrifice the use of all things that bring them pleasure, such as food, water, and sex to show ones loyalty to Allah (God). According to this year’s lunar calendar, Ramadan started October 15 and ended November 12.

“The purpose of Ramadan is to show your loyalty to God by controlling your desires,” said Jasenao Sabanobic, member of the Muslim Student Association at SF State who is originally from Bosnia Hertsogovina. “You cannot put anything in your mouth – food or water. You must control your temptations so that you don’t break your sawm (fast).”

Ramadan is considered by Muslims to be a celebration of spiritually and ethically cleansing themselves in order to be acceptable to God, to their families, and to their communities. They prophesize that if they pray and fast and are charitable, then those around them will see their example and follow suit.

Kadra Ahmed, junior cellular molecular biology student and member of the Muslim Student Association, said that giving up one’s pleasures reminds you to value all of the blessings that God grants us each day.

“You learn to appreciate the value of a simple sip of water on your thirstiest day,” said Ahmed who moved to the Bay Area from Somalia in 2001. “There are millions of people who do not have access to water the way we do and giving it up during Ramadan makes you realize the beautiful gifts from God.”

From “suhoor” (the break of dawn) to “iftar” (the setting of the sun), Muslims are not permitted to eat or drink. However, they are permitted to have meals prior to “suhoor” and after “iftar.”

According to Ahmed, Ramadan is much more than just fasting. She said that Muslims also must prove they are good people through good deeds. Among the ways of accomplishing this, Muslims must refrain from saying negative things about other people.

“We also pay a lot of charity to the needy people by giving them food, money, clothing and other things,” said Ahmed. “When you give charity during the month of Ramadan, you will be rewarded by God several more times than what you gave.”

According to the Quran, Muslims must give 2.5 percent of their total savings to charity once per year. Many Muslims wait until this holy month to give this donation in order to garner the benefits from God of giving during Ramadan.

“Lailat ul-Qadr is the 27th day of Ramadan and is very special to Muslims,” said Sabanobic. “It was when the angel Gabrielle informed Mohammad that he was the chosen one. It takes place the last 10 days of Ramadan, which is when we give most of the charity for the year.”

After her afternoon prayer in the Muslim Student Association office, Dorothy Ali, an SF State student, wished to speak of the recent passing of Yassir Arafat, leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and practicing Muslim.

"Ramadan is a hehad - a self struggle to make yourself a better person so that you are accountable to God," said Ali. "I think it is remarkable that Arafat died on Lailat ul-Qadr. He is the Gandhi of the Palestinian people. He spent his life fighting for justice for the Palestinian people. He lived his life selflessly. And since he died in the last 10 days of Ramadan - which are the holiest - means that he is with Allah. This really is a special Ramadan."

Luay Abralshammat, who is a master's student in economics at SF State and a Muslim from Saudi Arabia, said that Arafat's passing during Lailat ul-Qatr is good for the Palestinian people.

"It is not for me to say that (Arafat) is with God right now," said Abralshammat. "But it is definitely a blessing for him, his family and his people that he died during Ramadan."

Muslims usually pray five times a day, according to Ahmed. However, during the month of Ramadan, they participate in an additional daily prayer that lasts at least one-and-a-half hours after iftar. This particularly long prayer is called “tarawih.” The person leading “tarawih” reads several chapters from the holy Quran. By the last day of Ramadan, the entire Quran has been read.

“On the last day [of Ramadan], there is a mandatory day of zakah (charitable giving) where everyone in the family, even a one-month old baby, has to give between $5 and $7 to feed another person who cannot afford lunch," said Ahmed. "It’s how we make sure that all Muslims have something to eat on Eid al-Fitr (the celebration that ends Ramadan).”

"La illah il alah," said Ali. "It means there is no god, but God."