American Omani Ramadan

I started my fast today. I've decided to go all the way through till Eid in joining with the rest of the Omani community in their celebration of this month. My reasons for not participating early on were that I was not living or working with a Muslim on a daily basis, and therefore it would be difficult for me to maintain that sense of community and unity that is the Ramadan experience. For a while it was enough to simply observe a little from the outside - the stocking up of groceries the night before the first fast, the closing of all restaurants during the day until the sun went down, the restrictions on water or food consumption in public places.

It was strange that at first I felt guilty for not observing the fast, like I was breaking the rules, even though I am not myself Muslim. Yet there is an energy here that moves without words that seemingly pervades all aspects of life, and reminds you of where you are and what is happening. And so a bit guilty I was.

My decision to begin my fast has more to do with my desire to understand the community of which I am trying to become a part. I want to integrate myself into the people and culture as much as possible, and feeling what they feel is part of that - through doing what they do. Actually, those desires thrust themselves upon me, and it was not until I actually began the fast that I understood all the things that it could actually teach me.

The act of fasting is so very personal as each person has to cope with the challenges on an individual level, yet the support of the act in common provides a foundation for unity unlike any I have been able to see before. I have been told things like this about Ramadan before, but like most other understandings, you must live it to know it.