During the holy month of Ramadan, a little over a billion
Muslims around the world practice their faith by fasting and
praying from sunrise to sunset to show their devotion to God.
Though the month is exclusive to the Islamic religion, the
concepts of self-discipline and purification that Ramadan embraces
are integrated within the fabric of all major faiths throughout the
globe.
Christianity has 40 days of sacrifice during the pre-Easter
season of Lent. Judaism has two major days of fast (Yom Kippur and
Tisha B’Av) and five other days throughout the year. Millions
of Hindus throughout the world practice self-control on the
eleventh day of every lunar month, called Ekadashi. And in the
Buddhism religion, practitioners are encouraged to live lives of
renunciation and simplicity.
While each religion’s practice of fasting (which is
typically also associated with community service and abstinence)
has very different historical significances, the widespread
practice reflects the similarity that exists between the teachings
behind major faiths.
“It’s a very interesting correlation ““
religions’ uses of fasting,” said Elliot Dorff, rector
and professor of philosophy at the University of Judaism in Los
Angeles. “It’s demonstrating something serious. … You
don’t fast in joy; you feast in joy. When you are fasting,
you are marking something that is serious.”
In many faiths, the seriousness of their practice results from
the significance of the event they are commemorating when they
fast.
In Islam, Ramadan marks God’s first revelation to the
Prophet Mohommed through whom God sent guidance to the people, said
Muzammil Siddiqi, the director of the Islamic Society of Orange
County.
Like in Ramadan, the purpose of fasting in the Hindu faith is to
dedicate time (one day out of every month) to God and focus on
doing good works, said first-year undeclared student Anand Ghandi,
who practices the religion, but added that he does not always
observe Ekadashi.
Meanwhile, Christianity’s practice of sacrifice is
associated with the belief that Jesus sacrificed his life on the
cross as a symbol of God’s outpouring of love, said George
Grose, co-founder of the Academy of Judaic, Christian and Islamic
Studies at UCLA.
In the same sense, instances in which Jews fast are often
associated with tragedies that occurred to the Jewish people in
history, Dorff said.
While times of Jewish and Christian fasting indicate periods of
mourning, the mood associated with Ramadan is more celebratory,
Siddiqi said.
“Ramadan is a very pleasant time; we celebrate our
devotion to God. … It’s a celebration of the Word of
God,” he said.
Similarly, the Buddhist faith preaches the achievement of
happiness through fasting and leading a life of simplicity.
“Renunciation is the practice, and simplicity is the
result,” said Kusala Bhikshu, a monk from the International
Buddhist Meditation Center in Los Angeles. This tradition contrasts
from a life of consumption, he said: “Consumption is the
practice, and complexity is the result.”
To lead a good Buddhist life, Bhikshu told a handful of students
gathered at the University Catholic Center on Gayley Avenue, one
should begin by giving up ““ giving up killing, lying and
stealing to find peace and tranquility in life.
The differences in individual faiths aside, many believe that
self-sacrifice shows commitment while strengthening individuals of
all faiths.
In Judaism, many fast by not taking in food or drink, not
engaging in sexual intercourse, not taking full showers and ridding
themselves of luxury, Dorff said.
In many faiths, “people are giving up food and some of the
other necessities and luxuries of life in an attempt to try to
symbolize their commitment to God in some form or the other,”
he added.
Gandhi agreed that this commitment is beneficial.
“The concept of sacrifice (and) of giving up everything
that you are attached to, you gain mental control,” Gandhi
said. “Your mind grows stronger. … Everything in our lives
is for physical well-being, but this is for your spiritual
well-being.”
Several religious leaders believe that the commonality of
fasting is symptomatic of the connection between different cultures
throughout the world.
Though there are different reasons behind religious practices,
these similarities show that “even if we think we are
different, we are all connected,” Bhikshu said.