Muslim Student Association and Pakistani Student Organization teamed up to host the Iftar dinner on March 26. Iftar is a holy time in Islam when Muslims break their fast during Ramadan. Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset on Ramadan and Iftar is when the sun sets and the fast can be broken. Muslim Student Association and Pakistani Student Organization helped people fasting come together and break their fast. The event was attended by many Muslim and non-Muslim students, where they learned and celebrated Islam and Ramadan.
“Iftar is essentially the time of the day where you break your fast,” explained Arnaz Tariq, a Muslim student who was also there to celebrate Iftar. “You start fasting at sunrise and you break your fast at sunset. We have a special prayer for sunset called Maghrib. That is when we break our fast and the food that is served afterward is basically what Iftar is.”
The ceremony started with an introduction to Islam and Ramadan. Since there were many non-muslim people in the audience, the hosts first introduced the audience to the concept of Ramadan and why it is celebrated. They also took questions from the audience who seemed to have many questions and cleared any confusion that people had about Islam and Ramadan.
The hosts also prayed to Allah and asked him to help Gaza and the Palestinians. The hosts spoke strongly against Zionism and prayed for the war to end. They condemned Israel for the war crimes they have been committing and encouraged everybody, especially Muslim students, to stand up for the rights of the Palestinian people.
The fast was then broken with a date. Dates are used to break the fast because it is believed that Prophet Mohammad used to break his fast with dates. So now Muslims break their Ramadan with a date as a sign of respect to Prophet Mohammad.
After breaking their fast with dates, most Muslim students then got ready to pray for Maghrib. Maghrib is one of the five mandatory salah in Islam. It is the fourth prayer of the day and is done right at Iftar. Maghrib is the prayer to ward off Shaytan. In addition to that, the students also thanked Allah for the food they were about to receive.
The fast was then completely broken with halal food. Halal food is the food that is considered permissible to eat in Islam. There are some foods that a Muslim should never consume according to Islam, like pork and alcohol. Meat being halal or not depends on how the animal was slaughtered. For meat to be halal, the jugular vein, the carotid artery, and the windpipe must be cut and the blood must be drained from the body.
The event was a success. Muslim students looked proud to celebrate their culture and non-Muslim students got to learn more about Islam and Ramadan. The event worked very well to fight against Islamophobia and bring Muslim and non-Muslim students together. The Iftar event helped spread awareness about Ramadan and Eid.
