The Five Pillars: Saum

• Fasting from dawn to dusk during the entire month of Ramadan.
• Self-denial and self control.
• Control over all senses of the body and the mind itself.
• Subjects the rich and poor to the same challenges.
• Fasting makes the person more empathetic toward the displaced and the dispossessed.
• Loosens the bond between man and material things.
• Fasting makes a person feel more spiritual.
• During this month Muslims gather every night to recite a portion of the Qur’an in special prayers called the Taraweeh.
• This provides an intense communal activity with few parallels.
• This month is linked to the revelation of the Qur’an and also the obligation of compulsory giving or Zakah.