Guest columnist: Rigors of Ramadan take a physical toll, but have lasting benefits

I am an experienced physician who has learned to keep personal feelings in check when interacting with patients and families. But that afternoon, the tears came out with no warning.

I was chatting with a young patient and her mom at their final visit with me. The girl was moving on to an adult program. We started reminiscing about her first visit with me years ago. Right in the middle of a sentence, I choked up and my eyes filled with tears. Both the patient and her mom teared up. I was embarrassed at my unprofessional display of emotions. Normally, I would have wished them well, given a hug and thanked them for the present they had given me, a framed copy of "Footprints," but would not have shown such raw emotion.

Becoming easily emotional is one of the effects of fasting during the arduous month of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Muslim lunar calendar. I also get vivid dreams, almost always about long-lost relatives or events that have disappeared in the fog of time. This may have to do with a break in the normal sleep cycle and fewer hours sleeping.

Ramadan is not just about abstaining from food and drink but also controlling your speech, actions and even innermost thoughts. The verse in the Quran that pronounces this edict is clear that fasting is a tool in lighting the spiritual torch within. Prophet Muhammad underlined this purpose by stating that those who fast without correcting their personal foibles "may get nothing out of fasting but hunger."

The Quran also says that this exercise of fasting is part of other faiths. I find echoes of it in Lent, which is about self-denial and spirituality. Muslims in the month of fasting try and give up anger for calm, stinginess for generosity, condescending attitude for humility and much more.

Becoming sensitized to the plight of the disenfranchised is another benefit that may accrue through a fast. The pangs of hunger may remind us of the poor, homeless and hungry. It is worth remembering that as hard as the daylong fast might be, the poor do not end the fast with a sumptuous meal. Often they may have just enough food to survive till the next day.

Unlike the emotional and spiritual consequences, the physical effects of fasting are easier to discern. It is not uncommon to run out of energy and start feeling weak by the end of the 17-hour day. The idea is to fast while maintaining the normal work routine; that is the best way to fill the spiritual cup.

Muslims in the Chicago area wake up around 3 a.m. and eat a meal. In our household, we make sure there are enough calories and fiber in the morning meal to allow for a slower emptying of the stomach. Steel cut oats with walnuts and a drizzle of honey, bananas, apples, eggs, multi-grained bread and other staples are commonly eaten. We also hydrate like crazy and end the meal at dawn.

The fast is broken with a couple of dates and cold water or fruit juice like lemonade. The long hours without eating or drinking make the dates taste sweeter and the lemonade more refreshing than ever before. This is followed by sunset prayer and dinner and after a short rest still more congregational prayers, called Taraweeh. The Taraweeh are heavily attended and the recitation of the entire Quran is accomplished during the month.

Breaking the daily routine with a radically different sleep, awake and eat cycle has a profound effect on the psyche. I feel I have stepped out of my life and am looking in. I feel detached watching the world go by in slow motion. There is more of an urge to reflect. The Quran exhorts Muslims to reflect upon nature and history and the meaning of existence "standing, sitting and laying on your side."

This is also the month when giving Zakat is encouraged. Zakat is different from charity in that it is obligatory. Additional charity that may be given voluntarily is called Sadaqa. The Quran points out that to attain righteousness you must give from things "that you cherish most." The etiquette is to give surreptitiously, eliminating the differential that develops between the one who gives and the one who receives. The Zakat is given because it is essential to being a Muslim and not because you are charitable. Economists point out that Zakat results in a vertical circulation of wealth between the rich and the poor.

The month has come to an end. I have lost a few pounds, am ravaged by lack of sleep and my emotions are fragile, but I hope I am a better person both as an individual and as a member of the society.

Javeed Akhter is a physician and freelance writer from Oak Brook.