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BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan – As the crescent moon dimly shone the first of August, Muslims across the world began their holy month of Ramadan.
Ramadan is a time of fasting and refraining from food, drink and other physical needs during the daylight hours.
“It’s a cleansing process to think about the more important things in life, like God and helping others,” said 1st Lt. Shuja Kazmi. “It cleanses the body and the soul, and it gives you more time to be thankful for what you have.”
Kazmi and other Islamic soldiers are celebrating the holy month through fasting and prayers while deployed to Afghanistan.
In the Islamic faith, these soldiers are exempt from the fasting of Ramadan, but they choose to adhere anyway. Those traveling or in combat, pregnant women, and the sick and elderly do not have to follow the fast, since it could be detrimental to their health.
“My doing Ramadan is my personal choice,” said Kazmi, the command group administrative officer for the 101st Sustainment Brigade. “My dad actually told me not to, but I wanted to as a challenge to myself. “
During his first deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, Kazmi served as a medic for daily convoys, and he was unable to perform his duties while observing the fast. This deployment, he’s able to follow the traditions of Ramadan.
“I appreciate going through the whole work day, 8 in the morning until 2300, with keeping the fast,” he said.
The sun rises around five in the morning in Afghanistan, and stays in the sky for 14 hours. The long days can be challenging with a fast, but the exclusion of food allows one to narrow his sights on other tasks.
“I think what people need to realize with Ramadan, is that it’s not about starvation,” Kazmi said. “If you don’t get anything other than losing weight, you really didn’t gain anything. When you take something away, you focus on what you still have.”
In addition to prayers at the mosque on Bagram Airfield, Kazmi is concentrating on his duties while deployed.
“I’m able to focus more on military things and forget about food,” he said. “After a while, you forget about food.”
When the sunsets into the mountains west of Bagram, Kazmi said he communes with others to break the fast. The various mix of local nationals, contractors, interpreters and other soldiers, gather at the mosques here to share meals and fellowship.
“We use that time to create brotherhood, sisterhood, camaraderie,” he said.
During the daylight hours of working in the Lifeliners headquarters, Kazmi finds support from his fellow soldiers. He said they are showing their support by fasting with Kazmi, as best they can.
“Everyone’s really supportive,” he said. “The brigade commander goes out of his way to make sure I don’t see him eating. It’s an internal brotherhood, the soldiers are very considerate.”
With the smorgasbord of cultures in the Army, soldiers are exposed to people of different backgrounds on a daily basis. This leads to better understanding amongst the ranks.
“I think it’s exclusive to the military,” Kazmi said, “that’s something you wouldn’t see in the civilian world.”
| Date Taken: | 08.12.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 08.13.2011 11:14 |
| Story ID: | 75306 |
| Location: | BAGRAM AIR FIELD, AF |
| Web Views: | 202 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Lifeliner observes Ramadan in Afghanistan, by Michael Vanpool, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
