Bitalsudan بت السودان : Welcam Ramdan رمضـــان كـريـــــم

Welcome Ramadan

O People! The month of Allah (Ramadan) has approached you with His mercy and blessings. This is the month that is the best of all months in the estimation of Allah. Its days are the best among the days; its nights are the best among the nights. Its hours are the best among the hours. This is a month in which he has invited you. You have been, in this month, selected as the recipients of the honors of Allah, the Merciful. In this holy month, when you breathe, it has the Sawab/thawab (heavenly reward) of 'Tasbeeh' (the praise of Allah on rosary beads), and your sleep has the thawab of worship. Your good deeds are accepted in this month. So are your invocations. Therefore, you must invoke your Lord, in right earnest, with hearts that are free from sins and evils, that Allah may bless you, observe fast, in this month, and recite the Holy Qur'an. Verily! The person who may not receive the mercy and benevolence of Allah in this month must be very unfortunate having an end as bad (in the Hereafter). While fasting, remember the hunger and thirst of tomorrow in Qiyamat. Give alms to the poor and the needy. Pay respects to your elders. Have pity on those younger than you and be kind towards your relatives and kinsmen. Guard your tongues against unworthy words, and your eyes from such scenes that are not worth seeing (forbidden) and your ears from such sounds that should not be heard by you. Be kind to orphans so that when your children become orphans they also may be treated with kindness. Do invoke that Allah may forgive your sins. Do raise your hands at the time of Salat (Prayers), as it is the best time for asking His mercy. When we invoke at such times, we are answered by Him, when we call Him, He responds, and when we ask for anything, it is accepted by Him. O People! You have made your conscience the slave of your desires; make it free by invoking Him for Istighfar (repentance/forgiveness). Your back is breaking under the heavy load of your sins, so prostrate before Him for long intervals and make it lighter. Do understand fully well that Allah has promised in the name of His Majesty and Honor that He will not take to task such people who fast and offer Salat in this month and perform 'sajda' (prostration), and will guard their bodies against the Fire of Hell on the Day of Judgment. O People! If anybody amongst you arranges for the 'Iftar' (food for the ending of the fast) of any believer, then Allah will give him a reward as if he has set free a slave. He will forgive his minor sins. Then the companions of the Prophet (S.A.W.) said: "But everybody amongst us does not have the means to do so?" The Prophet told them: - Keep yourself away from the Fire of Hell, by inviting for 'Iftar', though it may consist of only half a date or simply with water if you have nothing else. O People! Anybody who may cultivate good manners in this month will walk over the 'Siraat' (Bridge) in 'Qiyamat', though his feet may be shaking. Anybody who in this month may take light work from his servants (male or female), Allah will make easy his accounting on the Day of Judgment. Anybody who does not tease others in this month, Allah will keep him safe from His wrath in Qiyamat. Anybody, who respects and treats an orphan with kindness in this month, Allah shall look at him with dignity in Qiyamat. Anybody who treats well his kinsmen, in this month, Allah will bestow His mercy on him in Qiyamat, while anybody who maltreats his kinsmen in this month, Allah will keep him away from His mercy, in Qiyamat. Whoever offers 'Sunnat' (Recommended) prayers in this month, Allah will give him a certificate of freedom from Hell. Whosoever offers one 'Wajib' Salat in this month, for him the Angels will write the rewards of 70 such prayers, which were offered by him in any other months. Whosoever recites repeatedly 'Salat and salam' on me, Allah will keep the scales of his deeds heavy, when in Qiyamat the scales of others will be tending towards lightness. Whosoever recites in this month only one 'Ayat' (verse of the Holy Qur'an), he will be rewarded in a manner as if he had recited the full Qur'an in the other months. O People! The Gates of Paradise remain opened in this month. Do invoke that the gates may not be closed on you, while the Gates of Hell are closed. Do invoke that these gates may never be opened. During this month Shaytan (Saten) is imprisoned so ask your Lord not to let him have power over you.

Ramadan in Sudan

One wouldn't usually expect to hear a rhythmic drum beat accompanied by young men's voices at 3:30 a.m. But this is Ramadan in Sudan, and the call is to awaken Muslims intending to embark on another day of fasting.

Waking Up to Ramadan The young men energetically make their way through Khartoum's suburbs to ensure that Muslims aren't sleeping. Their spirited alarm bells come about an hour-and-a-half before the Prayer call for Fajr (the first of Islam's five compulsory Prayers) when Muslims stop eating until sunset during Ramadan. It is prescribed that Muslims have sohour, a meal before the Fajr Prayer commences, and it seems the young men want no person to skip this early morning breakfast. Their vigorous stomping would liven up even the sleepiest among us. Although there wasn't really a sense of buildup prior to Ramadan in Khartoum, the ninth Islamic month has certainly delivered change in daily activities and market prices. On the first day of Ramadan, I witnessed the tough bargaining required at the market, Souk Al-Arabi, when a friend, Hashim Farah, asked me to accompany him to purchase some fruits and vegetables. Ramadan Market The market was bustling with other shoppers doing the same. "Certain fruits and vegetables will cost more in Ramadan because more people need them to make certain meals. Natural products are used in quite a few traditional Ramadan meals and drinks in Sudan. A very popular and typical Sudanese drink is abreh," informs Badawi. "There's red and white abreh, and it's made of sorghum. It helps you deal with your thirst. We also have another natural meal, roegag, made of wheat flour and mixed with milk. It's like corn flakes, and it's delicious." Food is of course not the only priority in Ramadan, and at this time of the year also means that "mosques will be full." Charity in Ramadan "There is not so much emphasis before Ramadan starts, as in minority communities, but during Ramadan there is a lot of religious activity in Sudan. There are also many radio tv programs about Ramadan," the nongovernmental sector also plays a significant role in assisting persons in need during Ramadan. "Many aid agencies will prepare mass iftar programs in Ramadan. We're offering fruits and food to students at hostels and we are also organizing Qur'an and Sunnah lessons after iftar," says Ibrahim. "We also have volunteers who give dates and water at the time of iftar to persons who are on the road. The volunteers will be at stop streets, and anyone who couldn't make it home for iftar will get some dates and water." Prayers After the Fajr Prayer, men gather in a circle and recite the Qur'an chapters in unison. The Qur'an - believed by Muslims to be the words of the one true God, Allah - was first revealed in Ramadan. After Zhuhr (Noon) Prayer, men also gather in the mosque to recite the Qur'an and quite a few take comfort from the exhaustive heat by taking a nap inside the air-conditioned sanctuary. on some days the electricity cuts out in various parts of Khartoum, making the temperatures that could shoot up to more than 40 degrees Celsius a bit uncomfortable. But this is normal in a developing city where water cuts are also common and it's no surprise to see a donkey-cart next to a raging bus during peak hour traffic. After `Isha', men and women also gather at the local mosque for the Tarawih Prayer. These extra voluntary prayers in the evening are adopted by Muslims who seek to increase their faith during Ramadan. Interestingly, there are more women than men at the local mosque. The top section of the mosque is for women while the bottom section is for men. Both sections are packed but at the back entrance of the mosque, one finds about 60 women praying on mats. There is no space for them in the top section. During the Tarawih Prayer, the mosque vicinity is also alive with little boys and girls playing on the well-kept grass lawns. The boys chase bugs, and the girls race one another. Their giggles and bursts of energy add to the charming atmosphere of this communal space of worship. Sharing Iftar On the second day of Ramadan, I was still in Kalakla. Farah's family had invited me to spend the previous night at their place, displaying the familiar Sudanese warmth and hospitality. In the late afternoon, Farah and I decided to take a short walk. By the time we made our way back to his house, the neighbors had set up their straw mats and iftar meals in the street. I discovered that this is an age-old tradition in Sudan during Ramadan. Any passerby is welcome to join the gathering for iftar. The neighbors invited Farah and me to join them. We didn't dare disrespectfully decline. Iftar this way is meant to strengthen relations between neighbors and also serve as a means to assist those Muslims on the road, perhaps not able to make it to their families, to conclude their day of fasting.