Ramadan, The month of Fasting

Ramazan, the Muslim equivalent of Lent, is the ninth month of the lunar calendar, and fasting during Ramazan is one of the basic tenets of Islam. For thirty days Muslims must fast from dawn to dusk. Besides total abstinence from food and water, they must also refrain from such things as cigarettes, sex, evil thoughts, and lying. Fasting is a cleansing process for the body and the soul. By fasting, one concentrates less on food and materialism and gives the body a month’s rest to detoxify. This cleansing has recently become fashionable in the West by going to health spas.