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      • American Samoa

      • Armenia
      • Australia
      • Azerbaijan
      • Bahrain
      • Bangladesh

      • Bhutan

      • Brunei

      • Cambodia

      • Central Asia
      • China
      • Cook Islands

      • Cyprus
      • East Asia
      • East Timor
      • Fiji

      • French Polynesia

      • Georgia

      • Guam
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      • Hong Kong
      • India
      • Indonesia
      • Iran
      • Iraq
      • Israel
      • Japan
      • Jordan
      • Kazakhstan
      • Kiribati
      • Kuwait

      • Kyrgyzstan
      • Laos
      • Lebanon
      • Macau
      • Malaysia
      • Maldives
      • Marshall Islands
      • Micronesia

      • Mongolia

    • Column Three
      • Myanmar

      • Nauru

      • Nepal

      • New Caledonia

      • New Zealand

      • Niue
      • North Korea

      • Northern Marianas
      • Oceania
      • Oman

      • Pakistan

      • Palau
      • Palestine

      • Papua New Guinea
      • Philippines
      • Qatar

      • Samoa
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore

      • Solomon Islands

    • Column Four
      • South Asia
      • Southeast Asia
      • South Korea
      • Sri Lanka
      • Syria
      • Taiwan
      • Tajikistan
      • Thailand
      • Tibet
      • Tokelau
      • Tonga
      • Turkey

      • Turkmenistan

      • Tuvalu
      • United Arab Emirates
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      • Wallis and Futuna
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      • Yemen
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Ramadan in Pictures

Indian Muslims take a break as birds fly around Firoz Shah Kotla Masjid after prayers on the first Friday of Ramadan in New Delhi on August 13, 2010. (Pedro Ugarte/AFP/Getty Images)
Indonesian women pray during the first night of Ramadan in Jakarta on August 10, 2010. The fasting month of Ramadan, which started on August 11, is the ninth month of the Muslim Hijri calendar, during which the faithful abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and having sex during daylight and, in the evening, eat small meals and conduct evening prayers. (Adek Berry/AFP/Getty Images)
A Bangladeshi salesman displays saris at a textile shop during Ramadan in 2009. Ramadan is the Muslim majority nation's busiest time for retail sales with clothes the most popular item given during Eid-ul-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan. (Munir Uz Zaman/AFP/Getty Images)
Indonesian Muslims attend Friday prayers on the third day of Ramadan at the Jakarta Islamic Center on August 13, 2010. The mosque complex, which also includes a center for Islamic studies, was built in 2003 in northern Jakarta on the ruins of an infamous red-light neighborhood. (Adek Berry/AFP/Getty Images)
Indian Muslim vendors break their fast during Ramadan in a market area of Allahabad in 2009.  (Diptendu Dutta/AFP/Getty Images)
Pakistani Muslim worshippers offer Lailat al-Qader prayer at the Grand Faisal Mosque in Islamabad in 2009. Lailat al-Qader, (Night of Power), on which the holy Koran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, falls on the 27th night of Ramadan. (Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images)
Indonesian children from poor families receive a bag of gifts before they partake in an Iftar or breaking of the fast with fruits, rice cakes, water, and juice at Darussalam mosque in central Jakarta on September 5, 2010. (Romeo Gacad/AFP/Getty Images)
A Karachi beautician applies traditional henna designs to the foot of a customer at a beauty salon ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr in 2009. (Asif Hassan/AFP/Getty Images)
A Kashmiri vendor blows bubbles to attract customers ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr festival at a market in Srinagar on September 9, 2010. (Sajjad Hussain/AFP/Getty Images)
Indian Muslims pray during Eid-ul-Fitr prayers at the Jama Masjid in 2009 in New Delhi. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)
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Muslims around the world are celebrating Ramadan, which started on August 11 this year. The holy month of Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim Hijri calendar, believed to be the month in which the first verses of the Koran were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. For some Muslims, though, the fasting will only begin if the moon, or a peculiar waxing crescent, is sighted, an issue that often divides Islamic nations over exactly when to begin the festival.

Muslim communities have celebrated Ramadan since the founding of Islam. A typical day of fasting consists of consuming an overnight breakfast at dawn, restricting any food, drink, and sexual activity until sunset. Muslims may continue to eat and drink after the sun has set until the next morning's fajr prayer at dawn.

As one of the five pillars of Islam, fasting during Ramadan requires Muslims to reflect upon their lives. It is against the spirit of Ramadan to denigrate, diminish, and devalue other practices, as the essence of the holy month is to become humble, simple, and free from ill-will, anger, and hate.

However, challenges and controversies still surround the holy month in many parts of the world. In countries like Pakistan, for instance, consumers are hit by spiralling prices of essential food items even before the sighting of Ramadan. In 2010, moreover, Pakistan's miseries have been compounded by devastating floods across the country, with millions of acres of agricultural land destroyed by the raging torrents that have displaced an estimated 14 million people.

Related links:
Islam in Southeast Asia

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