TEACH ENGLISH IN SAUDI ARABIA Islam and the Muslim Year
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The Islamic religion regulates every aspect of life and behaviour. The word "Islam" means submission to God (Allah). The Qur'an (Koran) is the holy book of the Muslims, incorporating the word of God revealed to the Prophet Mohammed.

There Are Five "Pillars of Islam":

1. Faith - the acceptance that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of God.
2. Prayer or salat - performed five times per day.
3. Zakat - setting aside a proportion of your possessions for those in need.
4. Fasting - during the holy month of Ramadan.
5. The Haj - the pilgrimage to Makkah (Mecca) by those who are physically fit and financially able to perform it.

Friday Prayers

• Friday is the weekly day of rest, although government offices and many private companies also close on Thursday afternoon or all day Thursday. The special Friday noon prayer at the mosque is particularly well attended.

The Muslim Year

• Saudis generally use the hijra calendar, which is a lunar one.
• However, the Qur'an requires an actual sighting (ru'iya) of the new moon at the start of a month. This is particularly important at the start of fasting during the holy month of Ramadan.
• The lunar calendar has 12 months of 28 to 30 days, or 354 days per year, so the Muslim year starts about 11 days earlier every year reckoning by the 365-day Gregorian solar year used in the West.
• Therefore it is not possible to say that Ramadan begins on the same specific Western date every year, and the month-long fast, the pilgrimage to Makkah and the two Eid festivals occur a little earlier in every Western year.
• Unlike other lunar calendars, the Islamic one does not add a thirteenth month, and for this reason the hijra months therefore do not keep in line with the seasons.
• The Muslim calendar was begun by Caliph Omar. It takes as its starting point 16 June 622 AD, the year of the hijra (emigration) of the Prophet Mohammed and his followers from Makkah to Medina to escape persecution.
• Because the term "AD" (anno Domini) conflicts with Muslim beliefs, Western, Gregorian, years are often referred to as "CE" (Christian era) and sometimes as "G", eg 2005 G.
• Saudis also use a solar astrological calendar. This is the same as the Gregorian calendar but the months are referred to by their zodiacal names. The national budget and school holidays follow this zodiacal calendar.

Muslim Months

• The 12 Muslim months are:
  • Muharram
  • Safar
  • Rabi' al-Awwal
  • Rabi' ath-Thani
  • Jumadi al-Ula
  • Jumadi al-Akhirah
  • Rajad
  • Sha'ban o Ramadan
  • Shawwal
  • Dul al-Qida
  • Dhu al-Hijah

The Holy Month of Ramadan

• Ramadan, the ninth month of the Muslim calendar, is considered to be especially holy, as it was during Ramadan that God first began his revelations to the Prophet Mohammed.
• Between dawn and dusk throughout Ramadan, Muslims abstain from food, drink, and sensual pleasures, such as smoking and sex.
• The first light of dawn is when a white thread can be distinguished from a black one, about two hours before sunrise.
• People who are sick, pregnant women, children and travellers are excused fasting, but any days missed should be made up as soon as possible, before the next Ramadan.
• Non-Muslims should not eat, drink or smoke in public during the hours of fasting throughout the month of Ramadan, and restaurants are closed until dusk. Particular care should also be taken to ensure that neither your dress nor behaviour could give offence during this period.
• During Ramadan daytime and nighttime activities are virtually reversed. Working hours during the day are reduced. Businesses may open for a short period in the morning but do not open again until dusk, often staying open very late, even banks.
• After dark there are visits to family and friends, with meals late into the night.
• A nap is often taken the following day to make up for the sleep lost.

Lailat al-Qadr (Night of Power and Greatness)

• This night on 27 Ramadan is considered to be the most holy time in the holiest month. It commemorates the occasion of Mohammed receiving his first revelations. It is believed that prayers of petition made on this night will be answered.

Eid al-Fitr

• The first of the two Eid festivals, which starts on 1 Shawwal, and is sometimes called "the lesser feast" is a period of special celebration and festivity. It marks the end strict abstinence of Ramadan. The holiday usually continues to the second or third day of Shawwal.
• After communal prayers, usually at dawn, families and friends gather for merrymaking, and during the day they visit one another and exchange gifts. New clothes are worn and special Eid sweets eaten.

The Haj

• Muslims are required to make a pilgrimage (Haj) to Makkah at least once in their lifetime if they are physically fit and financially able to without hardship. The Haj takes place from 9 to 12 Dhu al-Hijah.

Eid al-Adha

• The second of the Eid festivals, known as the feast of sacrifice, or "greater feast," starts on 10 Dhu al-Hijah and marks the end of the Haj.
• Animals are slaughtered to commemorate Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son, and much of the meat is distributed to the poor.
• As at Eid al-Fitr, Muslims offer special prayers, dress in new clothes, visit each other, and give presents, particularly to children. Offices close for anything from four days to two weeks.

Saudi National Day

• This is the only official holiday which falls on the same date each year in the Gregorian calendar, and is not so widely observed as the others.
• It is on the first of Meezan (first of Libra) which is equivalent to 23 September, and commemorates the formal founding in 1932 by King Abdul Aziz of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.