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In front of the Phoenix Convention Center Tuesday, more than 4,000 Muslims gathered and cheerfully greeted each other with the saying “assalamu alaikum,” meaning “peace be with you,” before they entered the building for Eid of Eidul Fitr, marking the end of Ramadan this year.Ramadan is a 30-day fast in which Muslims refrain from eating or drinking until sundown.
During their time of fasting, they also refrain from bad habits, such as smoking or negative thoughts.
Ramadan is intended to be a training month for Muslims to become deeper in their faith and become closer to Allah, or God.
Eid is the celebration for the end of Ramadan and for people of Muslim faith to look back and reflect on the lessons learned during Ramadan.
At Tuesday’s Eid celebration, some women and children were dressed in traditional clothing with bright colors from their home country.
There is an additional prayer during Eid that is added to the usual five prayers that are practiced daily.
“We start off with a morning prayer, and then usually we go out with family and friends to celebrate and eat,” said Nazeef Ebrhim, office manager of the Islamic Community Center of Tempe.
Public Relations Senior Nidah Chatriwala said Eid is so important to her that she skips her classes to spend the day with her family and friends.
“It’s a holiday; it’s like Christmas,” Chartriwala said.
Chartiwala further explained that some people, usually young children, receive money as a gift from their family.
Unlike Chartiwala, who has been celebrating Eid with her family in Phoenix for the past 13 years, some ASU students were spending Eid without their families for the first time.
“I am going to be around my friends so it won’t be all that different,” economics freshmen Tayseer Bharucha said.
In Bharucha’s home country, Pakistan, Eid is a national holiday where he usually visits family and friends throughout his neighborhood.
Tayseer said that through Ramadan he realized what it is like for those people who are starving from hunger every day.
“They don’t have food for days but we do have food at least at sunset, so it does make you feel bad,” Bharucha said.
During the month of Ramadan, Muslim adults fast and try to rid themselves of their bad habits for 30 days.
For Ibrahim Alajaji, a student in the American English program at ASU, this Ramadan was about getting rid of his anger and learning patience.
“I was moody and angry about anything,” Alajaji said “When you fast it’s easier to get angry very fast.”
Alajaji said that through experiencing Ramadan he has learned patience and feels it has made him a better person.
Reach the reporter at shurst2@asu.edu
