Public Face of Islam in Kumasi
By Gracia Clark
Ramadan
Women and children get ready to start prayer at a conservative Eid al-Fitr celebration.
To fast during Ramadan is one of the pillars of Islam, distinguishing Muslims from members of other faiths as dramatically as the routine of daily prayers. Even Muslims who may be casual about their obligations at other times observe this mandate, neither eating nor drinking from sundown to sunset for these six weeks. Along with the discipline and purification of the fast itself, Ramadan is a season for organizing extra prayer sessions and classes to encourage self-reflection and a better understanding of the teachings of the Koran. The whole city’s daily routine changes, starting with the noisy bands who walk the streets well before dawn to wake Muslims in time to eat. Young men gather around flickering fires late at night in the courtyards of their rented rooms, while the smell of grilling meat fills the air.
The Eid al Fitr is the most important holy day in the Islamic calendar, marking the end of the Ramadan fast. It commemorates the drama of Abraham and Isaac, a symbol of their covenant with God honored by Muslims, Christians and Jews. Every family feasts according to its means, slaughtering a sheep if possible and ordering new clothes for the whole family. While other annual holidays each have their own Eid, these smaller festivities have more limited constituencies of neighbors, fellow ethnics or followers of a particular teacher. The Eid al Fitr calls the entire community together in a show of support and rededication that displays its strength and unity to the fullest.
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