Merced area Muslims prepare for Ramadan

Ramadan, the month of fasting for Muslims, will most likely begin on Wednesday in Merced.

The Islamic celebration begins when an observer first glimpses the crescent moon -- and that varies according to geography.

Muslims forego food, water and sexual relations from dawn until dusk during Ramadan. The month teaches Muslims self-control, self-discipline and compassion for the less fortunate.

"The purpose of the month of Ramadan is cleanse your heart and soul. It's not just staying away from food -- it's staying away from such human desires as greed, speaking falsely or treating people badly," Yaheya Quazi, director of administrative computing and systems at UC Merced, said.

This year, the local Muslim community is looking to hold iftaars -- or breaking of the fast at dusk -- and evening prayers somewhere in the city, according to Quazi.

At last count, Quazi said there are 112 Muslim families in the Merced area. Merced's Muslim population is ethnically diverse, including Arabs, Bangladeshis, Pakistanis and Indians, he said.

"I used to live in L.A., and I moved here. And what I like about here is we are able to build, and that gives us a satisfaction of building a community," Quazi, who is Bangladeshi, said.

There is the Islamic Center of Merced, on Ashby Road, which also offers iftaars and evening prayers, according to Monir Ahmed, who has lived in Merced for about 10 years. Social, educational and outreach activities take place at the Family & Community Circle of Merced on South Melody Lane, which is "a nonprofit, social organization based on the principle of Islamic faith," he said.

In the Central Valley, where temperatures can reach into the 100s, fasting for most of the day may seem daunting -- but it isn't.

"It's a lifelong practice that Muslims practice from very early on," Ahmed explained. "I don't think anybody will complain about that. The idea of fasting is to be able to get a sense of, 'what if you didn't have the ability to afford food?' so it's a mind-set issue."

Ahmed, who serves as faculty adviser to the Muslim Student Association at UC Merced, said there are about 100 Muslim students on campus.

Muslims eat iftaars at dusk, and suhoor, or a meal before dawn each day. They also attend additional evening prayers during Ramadan.

"Basically, they'll (Muslim students) have hot meals available after sunset, and then they will also have takeout breakfast items they can pick up and go," said Brenda Ortiz, public information officer with the Office of Communications at UC Merced. That service is also available to anyone, she said. Quazi said Islam teaches Muslims to be considerate of others' needs. "Just because 9/11 happened doesn't mean we all bomb," Quazi said. "It (violence) is forbidden in our religion. Just because somebody did this, it doesn't mean that the religion is at fault."

He said the real reason behind Ramadan is "to cleanse your heart and cleanse your mind and train your heart so you can continue to do this all year long. This being good, speaking the truth, making sure you are polite with people.

"Politeness is not just with Muslims -- it's with anybody. For those of us who have employees that we manage, you need to be extra careful when you talk to them: are you hurting their feelings? The thing is many of us we fast over the month and as soon as it's over, we go back to what we were. The teaching is not just this month, but to continue on."

Ramadan ends in about 30 days with Eid ul-Fitr, a communal celebration.

Reporter Ameera Butt can be reached at (209) 385-2477 or abutt@mercedsun-star.com.