Jakarta Globe | August 10, 2010
Workers clean a mosque in Manado, North Sulawesi, on Sunday ahead of Ramadan. Several Muslim groups in Indonesia have already begun fasting to mark the holy month. (Antara Photo/Basrul Haq)
Jakarta. Even though the government has not officially announced the start of the holy month of Ramadan, followers of Tarikat Almufridun, a Muslim group in Langkat, North Sumatra, began fasting on Tuesday.
According to Metro TV, the group conducted their first tarawih (evening prayers) on Monday.
Besides Almufridun, around 1,000 followers of Tarekat Naqsabandiyah, another Muslim group in Padang, West Sumatra, began fasting on Monday.
Makmur Syafri, head of the group, told RCTI, a television station, that they had determined the start of Ramadan by date.
“Our method is by calculating the date or Hisab Munjid. According to our calculations, Ramadan started on Sunday night so we started fasting on Monday,” he said.
The An Nadzir religious group in South Sulawesi also started fasting on Monday.
Hundreds of the followers, who live on the banks of Lake Mawang in Gowa district, South Sulawesi, held evening prayers on Sunday.
Lukman Bakri, leader of the group, told mediaindonesia.com that they had determined the start of Ramadan by observing the signs of nature.
“We observed the movement of the moon during high tide and based on what we saw, we’re confident that Ramadan started on Monday,” Lukman said.
The Ministry of Religion is expected to announce the official start of Ramadan today.
Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, is a time of introspection for Muslims and a time to seek God’s mercy and forgiveness. During the month, fasting Muslims are not allowed to eat, drink or have sex, among other things, from dawn until sunset.
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