Ramadan
Ramadan is a Muslim festival that is not well known outside the Islamic culture. This festival lasts a month long and focuses on purifying one's body and dedicate to Allah(God). Ramadan is on the 9th month of the Islamic calendar(lunar calendar) when the first crescent of the full moon is sighted, therefore this festival does not have a specific date in the western calendar that is widely used nowadays. Ramadan is a long festival with numerous rituals and stages of it.
The start of Ramadan is very important and is strictly monitored. The beginning of Ramadan is important because in countries mostly in the Middle East that follows the Muslim law this is a national holiday. Days before the 8th month ends according to the Islamic calendar, astronomers carefully observe the first sighting of the full moon that marks the start of the 9th month, the beginning of Ramadan. Since there is no specific date to when this festival begins, everyone turns on their television or radio a day or two before the anticipated date and waits for the astronomers to announce the official sighting of the full moon. When the sighting is announced, most students are cheerful by the fact that there is no school.
Once the festival begins, Muslims start to enter a time of spiritual reflection, charity, increased devotion, and worship, however the most predominate ritual is the fasting that lasts for the entire festival. Fasting beings from sunrise to sunset. During the fasting not only is eating but drinking too is not allowed. Young children, disabled people, travelers, pregnant women, menstruating women, and breast feeding women are excused from fasting. Once the sunsets the streets cluster with street vendors, and homes are overloaded with an abundance of food on the table.
The last day of the festival is called "Eid al-Fitr" simply called Eid. Depending on the area, Eid is celebrated anywhere from one to three days. The most common greeting on this day is Eid Mubarak ("Blessed Eid"). Muslims are encouraged to forgive and forget any wrong doings someone did to that individual during year. Fasting is forbidden during this day and the day starts off with a morning prayer before the sunrises. Before attending the Morning Prayer, it is customary to eat a small date. After the Morning Prayer families visit their relatives or friends and gather for a communal celebration. Eid gifts are given to immediate families or children.
Ramadan is truly one of the biggest festivals in the world that focuses on self cleansing and dedication to Allah. It is both interesting and fascinating to witness Ramadan's rituals. Anybody planning to visit a Muslim state should highly consider visiting it at this time of the year.
Hi! I enjoyed your writing and this is my feedback^^!
ReplyDelete1. I think thesis statement is “Ramadan is a long festival with numerous rituals and stages of it.”
2. As background information, it is stated that Ramadan is a Muslim festival that lasts a month in order to purify one’s body and show devotion to Allah(God). There is no exact date in western calendar since Ramadan is based on lunar calendar. It is on the 9th month of Islamic calendar when the first crescent of full moon rises.
3. In the three body paragraphs, there are different parts of the process. First body paragraph demonstrates about the period before the Ramadan starts and how the beginning of Ramadan is carefully monitored. In second body paragraph, it is shown how exactly the Ramadan period goes on. And the last body paragraph explains about the last day of Ramadan.
4. I think the process organized well in a logical sequence.
First, before the Ramadan start, astronomers carefully observe the first sighting of the full moon that indicates the beginning of the 9th month to officially announce the Ramadan period. Then, once the Ramadan begins, Muslims have spiritual reflection, charity, increased devotion and worship as well as fasting periods. Finally, on the last day of festival called “Eid al-Fitr”, people are encouraged to forgive and forget any wrong doings of others and they visit relatives and friends after they attend Morning Prayer. Also they gather for a communal celebration.
I make my comment again since I missed some parts of feedback somehow!
ReplyDeleteI am very sorry about this inconvenience!
Hi! I enjoyed your writing and this is my feedback^^!
1. I think thesis statement is “Ramadan is a long festival with numerous rituals and stages of it.”
2. As background information, it is stated that Ramadan is a Muslim festival that lasts a month in order to purify one’s body and show devotion to Allah(God). There is no exact date in western calendar since Ramadan is based on lunar calendar. It is on the 9th month of Islamic calendar when the first crescent of full moon rises.
3. In the three body paragraphs, there are different parts of the process. First body paragraph demonstrates about the period before the Ramadan starts and how the beginning of Ramadan is carefully monitored. In second body paragraph, it is shown how exactly the Ramadan period goes on. And the last body paragraph explains about the last day of Ramadan.
4. I think the process organized well in a logical sequence.
First, before the Ramadan start, astronomers carefully observe the first sighting of the full moon that indicates the beginning of the 9th month to officially announce the Ramadan period. Then, once the Ramadan begins, Muslims have spiritual reflection, charity, increased devotion and worship as well as fasting periods. Finally, on the last day of festival called “Eid al-Fitr”, people are encouraged to forgive and forget any wrong doings of others and they visit relatives and friends after they attend Morning Prayer. Also they gather for a communal celebration.
5. There are several facts and details throughout the body paragraphs. For example, facts about fasting; how long does it continue or cases of exception. I think supporting details are demonstrated very well. But, I was a little bit curious about the exact purpose of fasting; why it is considered as the most predominant rituals of all for Muslim.
6. In the conclusion, I could see both evaluation and recommendation. The writer mentioned that Ramadan is interesting and fascinating festival which focuses on self cleansing and dedication to Allah and therefore it is recommended to visit a Muslim state at this time of the year.
This comment is from Yujin Lee to Tae-Hwan Park!
DeleteHi! I enjoyed reading your essay~
ReplyDeleteHere's my feedback!
1. The essay has a thesis statement. The last sentence of the introduction summarizes the entire essay. It says, "Ramadan is a long festival with numerous rituals and stages of it." It is clear in your thesis that you are going to elaborate on the different stages of Ramadan in your body paragraphs.
2. Information about when the Ramadan begins, how long it lasts, and its purpose are background information that can be found in the introduction. For instance, in the essay it says, "This festival lasts a month long and focuses on purifying one's body. Ramadan is on the 9th month of the Islamic calendar."
3-4. Each paragraph presents a different part of the process and they are organized in a logical sequence. The first paragraph describes the start of the Ramadan. People wait for the full moon to rise. Then, the second paragraph talks about what the Muslims do after the festival begins. They enter a time of spiritual reflection and fast. Finally, the third paragraph describes "Eid-al-Fitr," the last day of the festival.
5. The body paragraphs have facts and details about the different events during Ramadan. Certain terms that the readers don't know are explained in the passage. For instance, "Eid-al-Fitr" was explained.
6. The writer recommends the readers to visit a Muslim state during Ramadan.
2nd Draft
ReplyDeleteRamadan is a Muslim festival that is not well known outside the Islamic culture. This festival lasts a month long and focuses on purifying one's body and dedicate to Allah(God). Ramadan is on the 9th month of the Islamic calendar(lunar calendar) when the first crescent of the full moon is sighted, therefore this festival does not have a specific date in the western calendar that is widely used nowadays. Ramadan is a long festival with numerous rituals and stages of it.
The start of Ramadan is very important and is strictly monitored. The beginning of Ramadan is important because in most countries in the Middle East that follows the Muslim law, this is a national holiday. Days before the 8th month ends according to the Islamic calendar, astronomers carefully observe the first sighting of the full moon that marks the start of the 9th month which is the beginning of Ramadan. Since there is no specific date to when this festival begins, everyone turns on their television or radio a day or two before the anticipated date and waits for the astronomers to announce the official sighting of the full moon. When the sighting is announced, most students are cheerful by the fact that there is no school.
Once the festival begins, Muslims start to enter a time of spiritual reflection, charity, increased devotion, and worship, however the most predominate ritual is the fasting that lasts for the entire festival. The purpose of the fasting is to redirect a person from the common daily activities that require a lot of energy; and focus on God. Fasting beings from sunrise to sunset. During the fasting not only is eating but drinking too is not allowed. Young children, disabled people, travelers, pregnant women, menstruating women, and breast feeding women are excused from fasting. Once the sunsets the streets cluster with street vendors, and homes are overloaded with an abundance of food on the table.
The last day of the festival is called "Eid al-Fitr" simply called Eid. Depending on the area, Eid is celebrated anywhere from one to three days. The most common greeting on this day is Eid Mubarak ("Blessed Eid"). Muslims are encouraged to forgive and forget any wrong doings someone did to that individual during year. Fasting is forbidden during this day and the day starts off with a morning prayer before the sunrises. Prior to attending the Morning Prayer, it is customary to eat a small date. After the Morning Prayer families visit their relatives or friends and gather for a communal celebration. Eid gifts are given to immediate families or children.
Ramadan is truly one of the biggest festivals in the world that focuses on self cleansing and dedication to Allah. It is both interesting and fascinating to witness Ramadan's rituals. Anybody planning to visit a Muslim state should highly consider visiting it at this time of the year.
Ramadan
ReplyDeleteRamadan is a Muslim festival that is not well known outside the Islamic culture. Ramadan is on the ninth month of the Islamic calendar (lunar calendar). It is a time of fasting for the Islamic people. Every day during this month, Muslims all over the world abstain from eating, drinking, and smoking. Ramadan is a month long festival with fascinating rituals and days like fasting and Eid day.
First and foremost, figuring out when Ramadan starts is very important. Ramadan is like Easter, it follows the lunar calendar, and as a result there is not specific date in the western calendar widely used today. A few days before the eighth month ends in the Islamic calendar, astronomers carefully observe the first sighting of the full moon. The full moon marks the beginning of the ninth month and Ramadan officially begins. Since there is no specific date to when this festival begins, everyone turns on their television or radio a day before the anticipated date and wait for the astronomers to announce the official sighting of the full moon. Once Ramadan begins Muslims all over the world congratulate each other.
Once the festival begins, Muslims enter a time of spiritual reflection, charity, devotion, and worship, however the most predominate ritual is the fasting that lasts for the entire festival. The purpose of the fasting is to redirect a person from the daily activities that require a lot of energy and focus only on God. Fasting beings at sunrise and ends at sunset. During fasting not only is eating not allowed but drinking is not allowed too. However, young children, disabled people, travelers, pregnant women are excused from fasting. Once the sunsets and the day’s fasting is over, the streets cluster with vendors selling delicious food and snacks like goat meat and fresh dates, and homes are overloaded with an abundance of food.
The last day of the festival is called "Eid al-Fitr" simply called Eid. Depending on which country you are in, Eid is celebrated anywhere from one to three days. The most common greeting on this day is “Eid Mubarak” (Blessed Eid). Muslims are encouraged to forgive and forget any wrong doings someone did to them during the year. Fasting is forbidden during this day and the day starts off with a morning prayer before the sunrises. Prior to attending the Morning Prayer, it is customary to eat a small date. After the Morning Prayer families visit their relatives or friends and gather for a communal celebration and Eid gifts are given to immediate families or children.
Ramadan is one of the biggest festivals in the world. It focuses on self-cleansing and dedication to Allah. If you are not a Muslim It is both interesting and fascinating to witness the rituals that are performed during Ramadan. Anybody planning to visit a Muslim country should highly consider visiting it at this time of the year.