Today marks the start of Ramadan – the Islamic religious observance, marked most prominently by a month of fasting.

I’ll be honest – up to this point in my life, the only thing I really knew about Ramadan was that it was practiced by Muslims. Sad, I know. However, there is good news – my limited knowledge is about to change. Two of my NYU colleagues are Muslim and have been gracious enough to share their thoughts and feelings about Ramadan. So rather than direct you to a Wikipedia article, I though it would be more interesting to share their thoughts (which I will break up into multiple blog posts).

To start, Sarah (one of my colleagues) shared insights about the origins of Ramadan:

“Ramadan is the ninth month of the lunar calendar. It is the month in which the Quran was first revealed to Prophet Muhammed peace be upon him.

The Quran was first revealed in Ramadan but the entire Quran was revealed throughout a period of 23 years. The Quran is what Muslims believe to be the direct word of God which was revealed by the angel Gabriel to Prophet Muhammed peace be upon him. We believe Muhammed to be the final messenger but we believe in all prophets that came before him…from Adam to Noah…David…Moses & Jesus (peace be upon all of them).”

So, we hope you enjoy learning about the month with us and take time to wish any Muslims you know “Ramadan Kareem”!

Sarah also shared this clip from a show about Muslims in America. Several families share their perspectives of Ramadan – definitely worth watching.