Moniel Hashmi explains the focus of her fast during Ramadan.

Why do people do it? Why do I, as a Muslim, fast during the month of Ramadan? 

Ramadan is the holiest month for Muslims, as we believe that the Quran was revealed to the Prophet Mohammed. Many Muslims believe that Ramadan is not only about giving up food and water. Allah doesn’t need your hunger or dehydration. He wants you to focus on other aspects of the world: the good you can do and the bad habits you’re willing to give up during this time. No one really thinks about how much time we spend just eating and focusing on things that distract us from reality and the problems in the world.

Ramadan is a time when I spend a lot of time alone reflecting on myself and the decisions I make. I enjoy staying busy. Anything I do in life provides an opportunity to learn something new. My biggest struggle is staying focused. To stay focused, you also need a break. School and work responsibilities, along with fasting, can be overwhelming. Going on a walk, talking to some friends, and allowing yourself to breathe helps. 

If you ever feel that religion is complex and have trouble grasping it in your mind, trust that you’re not the only one who feels this way. It can be difficult, not just for Muslims but also for others, to truly understand what their faith represents and teaches them. It’s easy to find ways around rules and unanswered questions that leave you itching for more, wishing God could just directly tell you the answer as if he were teaching an infant. That’s how I felt for most of my life, way before I even started wearing a hijab. 

I think many believe that because I wear this hijab, I’m always confident in my knowledge of Islam. That is far from the truth. 

I didn’t start wearing a hijab until I got to college. I wanted a fresh start. I knew college would come with responsibility and maturity, and I wanted those to align with my faith. Growing up, I was always aligned with what my mother and father would tell me about Islam. However, I was nervous to dig deeper and ask them questions about my faith. 

After I graduated from high school, Ramadan became more important to me. I felt more disciplined and took it more seriously. I had more questions about my faith, and I stopped being afraid of having them. But asking questions made me feel like I was straying away. I felt truly empty inside. I always feel a rush of guilt inside me. It’s a feeling I still struggle with. 

Questioning my faith didn’t just happen suddenly. Social media intensified them. Seeing misinformation, conspiracy theories, and rumors pushed me to research my religion deeply to understand its teachings.

It’s as simple as seeing a video on Instagram with thousands of hateful comments towards your religion, or pages mocking prophets you were taught to honor as significant figures in history. It’s made me stop in my tracks and wonder how people feel towards me. Do people around me look at me with my hijab on with hatred and disgust or plain curiosity? 

My interactions with other Muslim students at Manor has been my biggest motivation to be better, especially during Ramadan. They come to me with questions about Islam: How to pray, how to improve their lifestyle, and what advice I can give them. Sometimes, I wonder why they feel comfortable asking me. What is it about me that makes it seem like I know what I’m talking about? Although I love having conversations like this with other students, it gives me a chance to think about my own struggles and what I’ve done to improve, while not feeling afraid to tell them where I fall short. 

Ramadan is one of the months when I feel like Muslims unite with each other. I feel seen both in my neighborhood in Northeast Philly and at Manor.

Ramadan, at least for me, isn’t about not eating or drinking, or about the “sacrifice.” It’s about what I do with my time during it. It’s about growth, self-reflection, and wisdom.

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Moniel Hashmi is a General Management major at Manor College. She is a Presidential Ambassador and a member of Phi Theta Kappa.