Ramadan: The month of fasting

In Indonesia, about 85% of citizens claim Islam as their religion, and many of these people observe the fasting month of Ramadan. In the Indonesian language, the word for fasting is “puasa”. The Ramadan fasting tradition has very specific rules: people cannot eat, drink, smoke, drink coffee, or have sex from before sunrise (around 4 am) to sunset (around 5:30 pm). The purpose of the fast is manifold and main reasons for fasting include a need to clean oneself in the eyes of Allah, to learn how to control desires and emotions, to understand the feelings of hunger and thirst, and perhaps most important the belief that a person is truly Muslim only if he or she observes the fast each year. The result is that many restaurants are not open during the day, and everyone is even slower and more relaxed than normal since they are dehydrated and perhaps have low blood sugar during the workday. The slow-down effect includes government workers – a few weeks ago I read a report about government employees who were reprimanded for shopping at the mall during office hours! Apparently this is a common problem during Ramadan. Because the majority of Indonesian people cannot eat during the day at this time of year, it is considered a bit rude to be seen eating or drinking on the street. I must be careful to eat only in restaurants if I go out for breakfast or lunch, and then only if the restaurants cover their windows so that diners cannot be seen from outside.

Children learn how to fast around age 7, bribed by treats such as trips to McDonalds or toys. Often children are only expected to fast for part of the day, until 10 am or noon or 3 am. By the time they reach high-school age, most practicing Muslims are fasting throughout the day. The hour of breaking the fast or "buka puasa", at about 5:40 pm, has become my favorite time of the day because it is filled with such excitement and is (of course) highly-anticipated. When the fasting breaks, mosques announce the moment with joyful chanting and there is very little traffic because everyone is eating or drinking. Typical food for buka puasa is fruit with syrup, hot sweet tea, fried bananas, and other treats rich in simple sugars and fats.