March 16, 2016

The start and the end of Ramadan

Hassan

When the whole world have embraced science, our friends in the Muslim World are still quibbling about when is the beginning and the end of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting.

 All Muslims, even here in Canada have to endure different dates for the start and the end of Ramadan.

Man has reached the Moon, Mars and beyond. Today, we can, with astonishing accuracy (in micro second and less) know the exact location of most planets and stars in our Galaxy.

Any layperson with access to the internet has this information at the tip of his fingers. Certainly the location of the moon vis-à-vis the earth is readily available in charts, tables and all kind of formats. It is precisely listed for today, tomorrow and years in advance.

Every year, most Muslim religious authority feels compelled to demonstrate that they are the legitimate entity (and the only entity) to declare the official start and end of Ramadan. As a result Muslim families are split; they go into a futile exercise of debating which date is the correct date.

Worst, we see some communities and some members of the same family fastening or celebrating the end of fasting – Eid-ul-Fitr at a different day!

It is about time Muslims leaders embrace science and end this practice.