I Guds namn, Den Barmhärtigaste, Den Nådigaste

 

Ramadan: Månaden under vilken Koranen uppenbarades

Ramadan är den månad under vilken Koranen 
uppenbarades, 
för att förse människorna med vägledning, 
tydliga läror, och lagboken. 
De ibland er som bevittnar denna månad 
ska fasta däri...[2:185]

Notis: Det följande är en reproduktion av artiklen ”RAMADAN: The month the Quran was revealed” i December-upplagan 1999 av Submitters Perspective, den månatliga bulletinen av United Submitters International.

Ramadan är den månad under vilken Koranen uppenbarades, för att förse människorna med vägledning, tydliga läror, och lagboken. De ibland er som bevittnar denna månad ska fasta däri. De som är sjuka eller reser får använda sig av lika många andra dagar i stället. GUD önskar bekvämlighet för er, inte svårighet, så att ni ska kunna uppfylla era förpliktelser, och prisa GUD för att ha väglett er, och för att uttrycka er tacksamhet. [2:185]

Ramadan är den nionde månaden i den Islamiska kalendern (månkalendern). Muslimer (Underkastade) i hela världen fastar varje dag under denna månad från gryningen till solnedgången. Under fastan avstår Muslimerna från att äta, dricka och från sexuella kontakter enligt vad Gud fastställt i Koranen:

… Ni får äta och dricka tills den vita randen av ljus går att urskilja från den mörka randen av natt vid gryningen. Sedan ska ni fasta till solnedgången. Sexuellt umgänge är förbjudet om ni bestämmer er för att dra er tillbaka till moskén (under de sista tio dagarna av Ramadan). Detta är GUDs lagar; ni ska inte överträda dem. GUD klargör på så sätt Sina uppenbarelser för människorna, så att de ska kunna uppnå frälsning. [2:187]

Vad är en månad enligt månkalendern?

En månad enligt månkalendern är ca. 29.5 dagar, vilket är tiden det tar för månen att gå runt jorden. Eftersom mån-månaden, i genomsnitt, är en dag kortare än sol-månaden, är ett mån-år 10-12 dagar kortare än ett solår. Därför kommer månaden Ramadan 10-12 dagar tidigare varje år. På detta sätt får vi fasta när dagarna är varma och långa under sommaren och även när de är kalla och korta under vintern. Denna fantastiska design av Gud fungerar även som ett test för oss för att se om vi kommer att fasta oavsett hur långa eller varma dagarna är under Ramadan.

Början av en ny mån-månad är stunden, under månens bana runt jorden, då månen står i konjuktion med solen, och solens ljus träffar månens sida bort från jorden. I denna position säger man att månen är en ”nymåne,” med sin mörka sida vänd mot jorden. Enligt definition är en ny-måne inte synbar från jorden eftersom solens ljus endast lyser på den del av månen som inte är vänd mot jorden.

Allteftersom månen fortsätter sin bana runt jorden, börjar en månskära formas. Detta kommer att vara minuter efter ny-månen trots att månskäran inte kommer att vara synlig förrän efter flera timmar. I en del traditionella Muslimska länder börjar inte Muslimer fasta förrän de kan se månskäran i skyn. I dessa länder kan även den som ser månskäran först belönas. För att få belöningen brukar en del människor kampa på toppen av berg där synbarheten är bäst.

Är det nödvändigt att se månen?

Gud gav oss vetenskaplig information för att exakt kunna fastställa när en mån-månad börjar och slutar. Därför finns det ingen anledning till att försöka se månskäran för att börja fasta. Vilket observatorium eller astronomiskt center i ert område bör ha den informationen. En del almanackor, tidskrifter och tidningar brukar också rapportera om månens faser. För att fastställa när man ska börja fasta, jämför tiden för då ny-månen inträffar med tiden för solnedgången, vilket innebär början på en ny dag i den Islamiska kalendern.

Vad är en Islamisk Dag?

Den Islamiska dagen är densamma som den Hebreiska dagen. Den börjar vid solnedgången och slutar vid nästa solnedgång. På detta sätt kommer natten före dagen. Därför, i en del traditionella Islamiska länder, när de exempelvis talar om Fredag natt, syftar de i själva verket på Torsdag natt som vi ser det eftersom den natten i själva verket tillhör Fredagen enligt deras definition av dagen.

Början av Ramadan

För att fastställa när Ramadan (eller någon mån-månad) börjar behöver vi ha två bitar information. Den första är tiden för ”ny-månen,” och den andra är tiden för solnedgången samma dag som denna ny-måne. Trots att mån-månaden teoretiskt sett börjar med denna nya måne, börjar i praktiken månaden med den första solnedgången efter denna nya måne.

Om tiden för den nya månen för månaden Ramadan inträffar före solnedgången, börjar man fasta nästa dag vid gryningen (fajr). Men om tiden för den nya månen inträffar efter solnedgången anses den natten tillhöra din sista dagen av den förra månaden (Sha’ban). Därför, även om tiden för den nya månen inträffar före gryningen, börjar inte Ramadans första dag förrän vid nästa solnedgång. Således börjar man fasta vid gryningen som inträder efter påföljande solnedgång.

Slutet av Ramadan

Man måste använda samma system för att fastställa slutet av månaden för att vara konsekvent. Om tiden för den nya månen för månaden efter Ramadan (månaden Shawwal) inträffar före solnedgången, slutar man fasta vid solnedgången eftersom nästa dag kommer att vara den första dagen i månaden Shawwal. Om tiden för den nya månen inträffar efter solnedgången måste man fasta nästa dag också eftersom den dagen då tillhör månaden Ramadan.

Ramdan Detta År (1999)

Tiderna för den nya månen som ska användas för att fastställa början och slutet av Ramadan får ni nedan i GMT tid (Greenwich Mean Time).

10:32 P.M (22:32) den 7:e December.

6:14 P.M (18:14) den 6:e Januari.

Den egentliga tiden för varje tids-zon står i förhållande till GMT. Tucson är exempelvis sju timmar efter GMT. Så när det exempelvis är 10 P.M (22:00) enligt GMT tid, är klockan 3 P.M (15:00) i Tucson. Baserat på informationen ovan, om Gud vill, kommer den första dagen av Ramadan för Tucson vara den 8:e December, och den sista dagen den 6:e Januari. Ödets Natt börjar med solnedgången den 2:a Januari år 2000.

Dessa datum för Ramdan gäller för hela den Nord,- och Sydamerikanska kontinenten. Människor i Europa , Mellanöstern, Afrika och Asien, ska å andra sidan börja sin Ramadan den 9:e December, och avsluta den den 7:e Januari år 2000.

Ha en trevlig Ramadan.

 

Mer om Ramadan på engelska:

http://www.masjidtucson.org/submission/practices/ramadan/ramadangiftrememberance.html

http://www.masjidtucson.org/submission/practices/ramadan/medicalbenefits.html

http://www.masjidtucson.org/submission/practices/ramadan/misunderstandings.html

http://www.masjidtucson.org/french/publications/books/SP/2002/nov/page1.html

Understanding The Islamic Calendar and Others

Notis: Det följande är en reproduktion av artiklen ”Understanding The Islamic Calendar and Others”

The Islamic Calendar, is as old as Islam (Submission). It dates back to the oldest known civilization. God in the Quran tells us that , our religion, Islam (Submission in English), is the oldest and same religion known to mankind. All God’s prophets and messengers came with the same message of submission (Islam), to submit to the One and only God.

”The only religion approved by God is ’Submission’ (Islam in Arabic), those who received the scripture are the ones who dispute this fact, despite the knowledge they have received, due to jealousy. For such rejectors of God’s revelation, God is most strict in reckoning.” 3:19

Adam, has to be the first submitter, being the first human being, was ordered to submit to the One and only God, and when he sinned, the Most Merciful gave him the key for repentance. Reviewing the history of calendars show that , when God created the universe, He created the Lunar and Solar calendar. In the Quran in 9:36, we read;

”The count of months, as far as God is concerned, is twelve. This has been God’s law since the day He created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred…..” 9:36

In the first chapter of the Bible, ”the Story of Creation”, we read

” Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and for years.” (Genesis i. 14)

It might be interesting to know that God used the word ”MONTH” 12 times throughout the whole Quran and the word ”DAY” 365 times throughout the whole Quran. No-coincidence, is the relationship here to the solar year. In Chapter (Sura) 18, in the story of the people of the cave (the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus), God told us that they stayed in their cave three hundred years, increased by nine. 18:25. It turns to be that three hundred solar years are equal to 309 lunar years. Another no-coincidence where God is using the solar system and the lunar system combined, in the Quran.

The calculation for the Lunar year is emphasised in the verse;

[Yunus 10:5] He is the One who rendered the sun radiant, and the moon a light, and He designed its phases that you may learn to count the years and to calculate. GOD did not create all this, except for a specific purpose. He explains the revelations for people who know.

The calculation for the Solar year is emphasised in the verse;

[bani Isra’il 17:12] We rendered the night and the day two signs. We made the night dark, and the day lighted, that you may seek provisions from your Lord therein. This also establishes for you a timing system, and the means of calculation. We thus explain everything in detail.

The day and night are the result of the movement of the sun as we know.

HISTORICAL REVIEW:

Historians have been talking about the calendars as a creation of man, completely ignoring the reasons behind the perfect system in the sky that enabled man to mark his days, weeks, months and years. They missed the fact that the calendars are a deliberate design of the One and ONLY Creator, God Almighty, the Most Gracious the Omniscient the Cognizant.

Throughout the existence of mankind, people have been aware of the special rhythms of the sun and the moon. The rudiments of a calendric system may have been constructed as long ago as 2000 BC, when stone alignments were used, it is believed, to determine the length of the solar year by marking the progress of the Sun along the horizon.

Centuries after the Quran came with the notion that the sun and the moon are moving in a measurable orbit, did the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) came up with the idea that, the sun stood still, and the earth was one of a group of heavenly bodies moving around it, and that as the earth moved in a measurable orbit around the sun, the moon traveled around the earth in its own measurable path. See Quran, 55:5, 36:38-39, 10:5, 31:29 and 39:5

ANCIENT CALENDARS:

The ancient Sumerians devised the first known lunar calendar about 5,000 years ago. The Moon’s phases occur over an easily observed interval, the month; religious authorities declared a month to have begun when they first saw the new crescent Moon. During cloudy weather, when it was impossible to see the Moon, the beginning of the month was determined by calculation. The interval from new moon to new moon, called a synodic month, is about 29.53 days. Hence, calendar months contained either 29 or 30 days. Twelve lunar months, which total 354.36 days, form a lunar year, almost 11 days shorter than a tropical (solar) year. Later Babylonians divided months into weeks and a week into 7 days. The Jews, once captive in Babylonia, used the Babylonian 7-day week, as did the sun-worshipping Egyptians, who developed a 52 week solar calendar based on the 7-day week.

A lunar year is not suitable for agricultural purposes. To keep in step with the Sun, lunar-solar calendars were formed by adding an additional (leap) month when the observation of crops made it seem necessary. Hundreds of such calendars, with variations, were formed at various times in such different areas as Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome, India, and China.

Romans, during the late republic, used various lunar-solar calendars. These calendars were supposedly based only on observation, but in fact they were influenced by political considerations. The Roman calendar was in error by several months during the reign of Julius Caesar, who recognized the need for a stable, predictable calendar and formed one with the help of an astronomer, Sosigenes. The year 46 BC was given 445 days, to compensate for past errors, and every common year thereafter was to have 365 days. Every fourth year, starting with 45 BC, was to be designated a leap year of 366 days, during which February, which commonly had 28 days, was extended by one day. The rule was not correctly applied, but the calendar was corrected by Augustus Caesar by AD 8.

GREGORIAN CALENDAR:

The Julian leap-year rule created 3 leap years too many in every period of 385 years. As a result, the actual occurrence of the equinoxes and solstices drifted away from their assigned calendar dates. As the date of the spring equinox determines that of Easter, the church was concerned, and Pope Gregory XIII introduced what is now called the Gregorian calendar. Wednesday, Oct. 4, 1582 (Julian), was followed by Thursday, Oct. 15, 1582 (Gregorian); leap years occur in years exactly divisible by four, except that years ending in 00 must be divisible by 400 to be leap years. Thus, 1600, 1984, and 2000 are leap years, but 1800 and 1900 are not.

The Gregorian civil calendar is a solar calendar, calculated without reference to the Moon. However, the Gregorian calendar also includes rules for determining the date of Easter and other religious holidays, which are based on both the Sun and the Moon. The Gregorian calendar was quickly adopted by Roman Catholic countries. Other countries adopted it later, sometimes choosing only the civil part. It was not adopted by the Soviet Union until 1918; Turkey did not adopt it until 1927.

YEAR BEGINNING:

The year used to begin at different times in different localities. The Roman year began in March; December, whose name is derived from the Latin word for ”ten,” was the tenth month of the year. In 153 BC, Roman consuls began taking office on January 1, which became the beginning of the year. This practice was retained in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, although other starting dates continued to be used; England and its colonies, for example, used March 25 and the Julian reckoning until 1752. Thus, George Washington was officially born on Feb. 11, 1731, Old Style (O.S.); this is Feb. 22, 1732, Gregorian, or New Style (N.S.).

WEEK:

The Babylonians used a nonastronomical, 7-day interval, the week, which was adopted by the Jews. The seventh day, the Sabbath, was given a religious significance. Independently, the Romans associated a cycle of 7 days with the Sun, the Moon, and the five known planets. Their names became attached to the days of the week: Sunday (dies solis, ”Sun’s day”), Monday (dies lunae, ”Moon’s day”), and Saturday (dies Saturni, ”Saturn’s day”) retain their names derived directly from the Roman culture, and Tuesday (”Tiw’s day”), Wednesday (”Woden’s day”), Thursday (”Thor’s day”), and Friday (”Frigg’s day”) are derived from the Germanic equivalents of Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus, respectively.

YEAR:

In ancient calendars, years were generally numbered according to the year of a ruler’s reign. About AD 525, a monk named Dionysius Exiguus suggested that years be counted from the birth of Christ, which was designated AD (anno Domini, ”the year of the Lord”) 1. This proposal came to be adopted throughout Christendom during the next 500 years.

The year before AD 1 is designated 1 BC (before Christ). Dionysius had referred the year of Christ’s birth to other eras. Modern chronology, however, places the event at about 4 BC. The 1st century of the Christian Era began in AD 1, the 2d in AD 101; the 21st will begin in 2001.

THE HEBREW CALENDAR:

The Hebrew calendar in use today begins at the Creation, which the Jewish scholars calculated to have occurred 3,760 years before the Christian era. The week consists of 7 days, beginning with Saturday, the Sabbath; the year consists of 12 lunar months–Tishri, Heshvan, Kislav, Tebet, Shebat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Ab, and Elul–which are alternately 29 and 30 days long. Because a year is some 11 days longer than 12 lunar months, a 13th month ve-Adar, is added seven times during every 19-year cycle.

THE ISLAMIC CALENDAR (HIJRA CALENDAR):

The Islamic Calendar began at the day and year (July 16, 622, by the Gregorian calendar) when the Prophet Muhammed emigrated from Mecca to Medina. There are 12 lunar months of alternate 30 and 29 days, making the year 354 days long. The months are Muharram, Safar, Rabi I, Rabi II, Jumada I, Jumada II, Rajab, Shaban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Zulkadah, and Zulhijjah. The Islamic calendar divides times into cycles 30 years long. During each cycle, 19 years have the regular 354 days, and 11 years have an extra day each. (notice that number 19 is mentioned in verse 30 in the Quran in Sura 74 (7+4=11), so 19, 30, 74 (7+4= 11) are all there in the solar system designed by the same God who put number 19 in verse 30 of sura 74.) It is also interesting to know that the sun, the moon and the earth all align in the same relative position once every 19 years.

The Islamic day as we can now appreciate is the same day used by the oldest civilization, the same as the Hebrew day. It begins at sunset and ends at the next sunset. In the Story of Creation, in the Bible, it says: ”And there was evening and there was morning one day.” Evening marked the beginning of the new day. In the Quran, God always mentions the night before the day.

”And He is the One who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon; each floating in its own orbit. ” 21:33

When God ordered us to fast Ramadan, He ordered us to eat and drink first until dawn then fast to the night. A great sign that Ramadan (and every lunar month) starts at night (sunset) and ends at night.

[al-Baqarah 2:187] ……….. You may eat and drink until the white thread of light becomes distinguishable from the dark thread of night at dawn. Then, you shall fast until sunset. ……….

HOW TO CALCULATE THE NEW ISLAMIC MONTH:

To calculate when a new lunar month begins we need to know two facts, the first is the exact time of the birth of the new moon, and the second fact is the exact time of the sunset of the same day. The new lunar month begins theoretically at the birth of the new moon, but begins practically at the first sunset to follow the birth of the new moon. God already gave us enough knowledge to calculate the beginning of the first day of Ramadan for the next hundreds of years. Sighting of the moon, to determine the new Islamic month, is an invention by the scholars that they took after the Jewish Rabbis who insist on sighting of the moon for their Jewish Lunar months. Sighting of the moon is not in the Quran, but was a way of recognizing the beginning of the lunar month for those who lived in the desert and have no other means to recognize the beginning of the new month. God in the Quran reminds us that the phases of the moon are only a tool to calculate the calendar and the time for pilgrimage (Hajj), see 2:189. God never said in the Quran that sighting of the crescent moon is a requirement to determine the beginning of the new lunar month.

God is all Omniscient, Knower of everything, He knows that different generations will have different means of calculating the time of the birth of the new moon. God left it open, not because He forgot, God does not forget, (19:64), but He left it open, out of His mercy so we do it our way in our time. Now, with all the knowledge we have, we cannot sit still knowing that the month has already started and wait for a scholar to go look for the crescent moon that may or may not be visible because of many factors, the most common of them is the weather condition. It is time to believe God in His own book and realize that God meant it when He said that His book, the Quran, is complete, perfect and fully detailed. And that it has the details and explanations of everything we need for our salvation.

”The day will come when we will raise from every community a witness from among them, and bring you as the witness of these people. We have revealed to you this book to provide EXPLANATIONS FOR EVERYTHING, and guidance, and mercy and good news for the submitters.” 16:89

”In their history, there is a lesson for those who possess intelligence. This is not fabricated Hadith; this (Quran) confirms all previous scriptures, provides the DETAILS of EVERYTHING, and is a beacon and mercy for those who BELIEVE.” 12:111

Allahu Akbar

REFERENCES:

#The Glorious Quran

#Mathematical Miracle of the Quran, An Appendix in the English Translation of the Quran by Dr. R. Khalifa

#The Bible

#Grolier Electronic Publishing, Encyclopedia:
Archer, Peter, The Christian Calendar and the Gregorian Reform (1941);
Asimov, Isaac, The Clock We Live On (1963);
Keane, Jerryl, Book of Calendars (1981);
Michels, A. K., The Calendar of the Roman Republic (1967; repr. 1978);
Monaco, James, The French Revolutionary Perpetual Calendar (1982);
Philips, Alexander, The Calendar: Its History, Structure, and Improvement (1921);
Schocken, W. A., Watkins, Harold, Time Counts: The Story of the Calendar (1954).

 

Fasting in the Bible and Ramadan

Notis: Det följande är en reproduktion av artiklen ”Fasting in the Bible and Ramadan-Thomas McElwain-Islam in the Bible”

Thomas McElwain
Islam in the Bible

Chapter Seven. Fasting

After discussing prayer in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus approaches fasting. Again, he warns of hypocrisy rather than giving the details of fasting. This is again because the details of fasting were already known. If alms are discussed in preparation for prayer, as representing purification, fasting is an appropriate subject to follow the subject of prayer. Fasting is almost always mentioned in the Bible along with special prayers of petition. Examples of such fasting are in the time of Esther (Esther 4:3 and 9:31), in the experience of Daniel (Daniel 6:18 and 9:3), and in the advice of Jesus (Matthew 17:21 and Mark 9:29). The words of David especially connect fasting with prayer of petition: ”While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again?” 2 Samuel 12:22-23.

In this text we see that fasting appears in the Bible along with weeping. Dressing in sackcloth, sitting in ashes, and not wearing perfume are also mentioned (Nehemiah 9:1; 1Kings 21:27). Proclaiming a fast is often associated with a solemn assembly as well (Joel 1:14; 2:15 et al.). It appears that special months of fasting were instituted during the Babylonian captivity of Judah, probably in view of the crisis (Zechariah 8:19). ”Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.” This verse clearly suggests that these months of fasting would no longer be observed when the reason for their existence, the Babylonian captivity, disappeared.

But there is no specific legislation dealing with fasting. It is assumed in the Bible text that everyone already knows that fasting is a valid practice and how it should be done. This may indicate that some portions of the Torah have been lost, since legislation is assumed. In fact, the only fasting mentioned in the Torah or books of Moses is the forty-day fast of Moses (Exodus 34:28) ”And he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water.” From this we can see that the fast of the Bible is not a partial one as in Christianity, but complete: absolutely nothing can be eaten or drunk. From the fast of Moses, of Elijah (1Kings 19:8), and of Jesus (Matthew 4:2), we can see that on certain occasions a fast of forty days was required. The great length of this fast indicates that, since it is stated to be complete, it must have permitted some eating and drinking during the night.

Although many of the fasts mentioned in the Bible are certainly personal vows and not general practice, some general fasting practices are found. A specific fast day in mentioned in Jeremiah 36:6. ”Therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the Lord in the ears of the people in the Lord’s house upon the fasting day: and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities.” Here we find a definite practice of fasting. The following verses will show that this is not just a day of fasting, but precisely a month. More detail on this day of fasting is given in verse nine: ”And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, that they proclaimed a fast before the Lord to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem.” This is not a special fast proclaimed by a religious ruler, because this particular king was wicked. Nevertheless, he did follow the formality of what was practiced: the month of fasting. The time given for this fasting is stated to be the ninth month.

The season of the fast in this particular year, thought by many scholars to be 604 B.C., is stated to be in the winter. Jeremiah 36:22, ”Now the king sat in the winter house in the ninth month: and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him.” Now the present Jewish calendar adds a thirteenth month from time to time to match the solar year, so that the ninth month of the civil year (used in the dates of kings’ reigns) falls in May or June, summer in Palestine. If we project the lunar calendar presently used in the Middle East back in history, we find that the ninth month falls in November of the year 604 B.C. It appears that during Bible times a purely lunar calendar was used, and the ninth month was a month of fasting.

Bible fasting includes more than just not eating and drinking, however. Isaiah 58 is the great fasting chapter of the Bible. ”Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labors. Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord? Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?” Isaiah 58:3-7. From this we see that fasting includes avoiding certain pleasures on one hand, and doing acts of charity and justice on the other. That is, there are some other pleasures besides food and drink that must be avoided. Also, the central meaning of the fast has to do with feeling for the hunger of the hungry and doing something to alleviate it. In addition, especially the practice of using sackcloth and ashes seems to be condemned. We find the same condemnation, because of its connection with hypocrisy, mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 6.

So we find fasting a basic, though unlegislated, practice throughout the Bible, from Moses to Peter and Paul (Acts 10:30; 14:23; 27:33; and 1Corinthians 7:5). In summary, we can say that Biblical fasting is the complete abstention from eating and drinking and some other pleasures during the daylight hours of the days of the ninth month of the lunar calendar. It includes acts of charity, alms and justice, and the especial avoidance of anger and quarreling.