the fourth basic duty of a muslim is sawm.

what is sawm?

sawm is fasting in the month of ramadan رمضان every year.

what is fasting?

fasting is not eating or drinking from dawn to sunset.

why must we fast?

allah told us to fast to gain his favour and keep ourselves away from greed, selfishness and all bad deeds.

what else is special about the month of ramadan?

in the month of ramadan after ‘isha’ we pray tarawih تراويح . we take a meal before dawn called suhur سحور . we break our fast straight after sunset; this is called iftar إفطار .

in the month of ramadan there is a very special night. allah tells us in the qur’an that it is better than a thousand months (surah 97). the night is called lailatul qadr ليلة القدر (night of power). it is one of the last ten nights of the month of ramadan. we should pray as much as we can in the night.

what is the festival that follows ramadan?

the festival after ramadan is called idul fitr عيد الفطر. that is a day of thanksgiving to allah. there is a eid prayer in the morning. it is a happy occasion in this night.

we must remember not to lie, break promises or do bad things while we are fasting in ramadan.

ramadan is the month of great blessings and mercy from allah. it is a month of forgiveness.

o allah, help us to fast in ramadan to please you.