Ramzan Mubarak: Government and religious leaders have appealed Muslims to follow social distancing guidelines and do not gather for Taraweeh prayers or evening iftar feast.
The sacred month of Ramadan will begin on Saturday as the crescent moon was sighted in different parts of the country on Friday.
As people saw the present moon in the sky and the same was confirmed by Chaand Committees across the country, messages of Ramzan Mubarak and Happy Ramadan poured in on social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp.
Fasting started in in the coastal districts of Karnataka and Kerala after the sighting of the crescent moon on Thursday.
Ramzan (also spelt as Ramadan) is the ninth and the most sacred month in the Islamic calendar during which Muslims observe fast from dawn to dusk. The fast begins before the sunrise with a small meal called sehri and is broken with an evening feast called Iftar.
The holy Ramadan signifies fasting, charity and spirituality for the Muslim community. Ramadan is the month when it is said that the Holy Quran was revealed to Mohammed, the prophet. Besides fasting, recitation of Qur'an has special significance in the month.
The month culminates with the celebration of Id-ul-Fitr festival after 29 or 30 days of fasting.
Amid nationwide lockdown over coronavirus, the government and religious leaders have appealed Muslims to follow social distancing guidelines and do not gather for prayers or evening feast.
In Delhi, Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, Syed Ahmed Bukhari appealed Muslims to ensure that there are not more than three people in a room while offering prayers with the family.
"I appeal to all, do not invite your neighbours to your house to offer prayers during Ramzan. Ensure, there are not more than 3 people in 1 room even while offering prayers with family. COVID-19 will end only when we'll unite," Bukhari said.
There are fixed timings of sehri and iftar for each day. Sehri timing means that the meal has to be finished before the given time and iftar timing is for breaking the fast.
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