BREAKING THE FAST, TOGETHER
A mosque in Ramkhamhaeng offers a home away from home to out-of-town Muslims during Ramadan
For the last decade Hussein, a lanky Muslim Rohingya, has been breaking his Ramadan fast — or iftar — at the century-old Jami-ul-Islam Mosque in Soi Ramkhamhaeng 53. For Hussein, the mosque on this busy eastern neighbourhood of Bangkok is more than just a house of worship; it has become his second home, especially during Ramadan, the fasting month when family usually gathers round at sunset to eat the first meal together. Hussein, 27 and a father of one, misses his parents and relatives who continue to reside in refugee camps in Bangladesh.
The Jami-ul-Islam Mosque is also a home-away-from-home for another group of Muslims: students from southern Thailand. Thousands of them cluster around the Ramkhamhaeng area. In the month of Ramadan, the atmosphere at the mosque before and after the fast-breaking time — around 18.40pm — is filled with the lively chatter of a few hundred people. Some sit and read the Koran in a corner, others pray. Once the muezzin announces the time by singing melodious verses into the microphone, everyone breaks the fast — maybe a piece of date first, then water and later a meal. After that, it’s time for prayers that, for some, last into the night.
For Muslims, being away from home during Ramadan is an emotional experience, either for a Rohingya migrant or a southern student. This year’s Ramadan will end on June 14.
Hussein, who’s a roti vendor pushing his cart around the area, shared his feeling about celebrating Ramadan away from his family for a decade.
“Each Ramadan I feel I am on an emotional roller coaster,” he said. “I feel sorrow thinking about my family — my mother is 86 — having to go through enormous hardships. In the camps food is scarce, and the fasting month is often no different.
Despite receiving food supplies from Muslim donor countries, each Rohingya refugee doesn’t get their hands on much as the number is very large. The money I send to my family is a pittance, so they cannot afford to purchase any special items during Ramadan.
“Being the month of fasting makes me more emotional knowing that they cannot enjoy the good food, the freedom and companionship that I get to experience here in Bangkok.”
Hussein, who is the eighth of nine siblings, said the fate of most Rohingya is still hanging by a thread, either in Rakhine or in the refugee camps. For Muslims around the world, Ramadan is the holy month where abstinence from food is believed to bring one deeper into the realm of the spiritual. But for the Rohingya, the absence of food is not a religious practice but a routine. (Several news agencies have reported about “calculated” food shortages, though the Myanmar government has denied it.)
Hussein said that his people are fearful to draw the attention of Myanmar soldiers, and as a result they not only do not have enough food rations to get by but they live in morbid fear.
“My family told me that food donated during Ramadan to the Rohingya by various donor countries hardly gets to them,” he said.
The feeling may be not as dire for Numan Doloh, 24, and a fourth-year student of Islamic studies from Narathiwat province, and his friend Niasran Pengyiding, 21, a political science junior at Ramkhamhaeng University. But still, their hometowns in the Deep South of Thailand are also plagued by violence and uncertainty.
At Jami-ul-Islam Mosque, Numan and Niasran sit in the same circle of worshippers breaking their fast. There are dozens of other students there every evening.
“Of course, I miss my mother’s cooking and relatives during the month of fasting,” said Numan. “Attending iftar at the mosque in a way makes me feel I have a new family. We are all close knit. The food on the menu also changes every day so I get to anticipate something new and delicious to eat each day.
“Eating and praying together at the mosque bring back fond memories.”
The area of Ramkhamhaeng University — colloquially called “Na Ram”, meaning “in front of Ramkhamhaeng” — is a student hub and a predominantly Muslim enclave, so many things are similar to back home. Apartments and dormitories house a diverse mix of young people from every part of the country, and many from the Deep South. These students — and the fact that Ramkhamhaeng has a couple of big mosques — have transformed the area into an Islamic subcultural pocket that’s even more pronounced during the Ramadan month.
Numan admits that being away from home, however, means some students are led astray by temptation, such as drugs.
Niasran said like a number of Muslim students away from home during Ramadan, the option to have iftar at the mosque makes most sense because you get to pray and eat among believers who are like a big family. Also, the food at the mosque is free for all.
“As students, coming to the mosque for iftar helps us to save money. Jami-ul-Islam is also closer to my dorm, so that is another plus. The food from the first year I arrived till now has been delicious,” he said.
Both young men shared their desire to be good examples to fellow Muslims during the Ramadan period.
Imam of Jami-ul-Islam Sutee Gateprasit said the mosque receives a lot of out-of-town worshippers, most of whom are students from the three restive southern provinces of Patani, Yala and Narathiwat. They also get Muslim refugees and foreigners occasionally.
“As it’s Ramadan, we try our best to make everyone feel right at home,” said Imam Sutee. “Our mosque is located near a community, so the young generation of Muslims have ease of access to us. The students we get come from usually conservative families, so it becomes difficult for them to keep the faith, if they don’t receive proper spiritual guidance.
“As the Imam, I encourage all our staff to create an environment for the worshippers, especially because I know that a number of them are students who are away from loved ones.”
Imam Sutee said this year they had added additional servings to the food as the numbers had swollen from 360 worshippers last year to 500 each day. Students make up 85% of the total people who attend.
“My biggest worry for the youngsters today is drug addiction,” said Sutee. “Besides speaking with the owners of the dormitories to look out for their well-being, I encourage them to speak with our elders.”
Ramadan, he said, is the time when every Muslim reflects on their life and devotes themselves to prayers and charity.
“That’s the spirit we want to see,” said the imam. “The people who come here may not really belong here — they’ve come from Myanmar or Narathiwat or whatever — but they’re all family here. And we try to look after them.”