Holding fast: Muslims celebrate blessings of Ramadan

At a table against the far wall of the cafeteria, Nadia Kergaye's friend Nicole is eating her lunch: french fries and a cookie. If you look around, there is lunch as far as the eye can see — plates of french fries, cheeseburgers, pepperoni Hot Pockets — and the whole room smells good, in a greasy kind of way.

No problem, though, says Nadia, who is sitting next to Nicole's lunch but is lunchless herself. As a young Muslim woman, Nadia is used to the temptations and self-discipline that make up the holy month of Ramadan. Nadia, who is a sophomore at Brighton High, has been observing the Ramadan fast once a year since she was about 10.

The world's 1.2 billion Muslims began this year's Ramadan on Oct. 27, the morning after the first sighting of the new moon. Like Nadia, they will fast the 12 hours from sunrise to sunset for 30 days, eating and drinking nothing. This means no water, not even a few sips at the water fountain between classes. And no gum. No teeth brushing, either, from sunrise to sunset. The rules of Ramadan are clear and exhaustive.

But the Ramadan fast is not just about lack. It also "gives you a purpose to do good," says Nadia.

Observing Ramadan is about "serving God," says Asha Patel, 22, who converted to Islam two years ago. So intention is central to observing it correctly, she says. "Are you fasting truly out of service, or because your parents want you to?" Did you swallow water by mistake or because you meant to? Did you decide to watch TV instead of doing one of the five daily prayers?

"What it really forces you to do is decide what's important to you," says Patel.

Yes, it requires personal discipline. But some people look forward to the fasting and in fact cry on the first day of Ramadan because they're so happy it has started, she says. "The whole year round we have the opportunity to serve Allah, but during Ramadan there are special blessings one can receive. . . . During Ramadan it says that all a person's sins will be forgiven."

According to the Quran, during Ramadan "the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates to hellfire are locked and the devils are chained."