Ramadan 2021 has also begun in Kenya.
On the Swahili coast above all, but also in the Islamic districts of Nairobi and in the North East regions, Ramadan is always a celebration, as well as a month of prayers and "spiritual cleansing". This year the gathering will be reduced and already for days the admonitions of the imams, the Islamic spiritual leaders, have been directed towards observing the pandemic restrictions so as not to turn spiritual fasting into a major outbreak of the virus.
The concern of the authorities is obligatory, because Africa has also made this sacred holiday a time of socialisation, with after-dark dinners in communal houses, with banquets of local gastronomic specialities often prepared by mothers and grandmothers.
In Mombasa, this is clearly visible in the Old City, which from as early as 4 p.m. becomes a kind of open-air fair (rain permitting), and in Malindi, markets come alive in Arab neighbourhoods such as Barani and Shella.
This year Ramadan began in the evening of yesterday, Tuesday 13 April, after the moon came out and was almost simultaneously fully visible in Mecca.
Ramadan corresponds to the ninth month of the Muslim calendar and the cadence of this period varies from year to year.
During this month, which corresponds to the period when the Qur'an was revealed as a guide for mankind and a clear proof of righteous direction and salvation, Muslims are required to fast, abstaining from eating, drinking, smoking, having sexual relations during the day and limiting themselves to eating a small evening meal called iftar after a prayer that breaks the fast until the next morning. Refraining from observing Ramadan are children, the sick, travellers, pregnant and breastfeeding women and menstruating women.
During Ramadan, it is common practice for believers to go to the mosque to pray. In addition to the usual five daily prayers, a special prayer called Taraweeh (night prayer) is added during this period. On the evening of the 27th of the month, which coincides with the belief that Mohammed received the revelation of the Holy Qur'an on that day, Muslims celebrate Laylat-al-Qadr (the night of power).
The end of Ramadan is celebrated, on the first day of the month of Shawwal, with a three-day festival (Id-al-Fitr) that sees the reunion of friends and relatives, exchanges of gifts and family meals.