GHANA – Ramadan Around the World

THE days of Ramadan begin early in the morning. Around 4.00 am drummers walk round the village from house to house playing their drums and singing to wake everyone up. Then people begin preparing the Sohoor (pre-dawn) meal – everyone’s favorite is soup with “tuo zafi”, a soft meal made from maize flour. The fast begins from dawn till sunset.

Fruit for the fasting

Just before sunset people gather in Mosques and read the Qur’an as they wait for the the Athaan (call to prayer) to mark the end of the fast. People bring fruit and water to the Mosque to share with each other. In Ramadan they like to invite friends and relatives to their houses where they share a meal after sunset. The days continue like this until thirty days have passed.

Eid drums

At the end of Ramadan they celebrate Eid. The Eid prayer is held in an open field where Muslims from the nearby villages and towns gather. After the prayers, the chiefs ride majestically on horseback while the people follow them playing drums and singing Muslim songs through the streets until they reach the chief Imaam’s house. Everyone gathers at the Imaam’s house to make supplication and share some food and drink together.

Before leaving for home, people visit the poor and sick and give them food and money so that everyone can enjoy the day of Eid – rich and poor.

Story time

Later on in the day children put on their best clothes and visit people in the village. Everyone likes to give them food, money and sweets. After nightfall, a few of the elders gather the children together in the middle of the village to tell stories. Sometimes they recount religious stories about the Prophet ﷺ‎, his companions; and famous scholars  and other times they tell traditional stories about their tribes and where they came from, their history and the battles they fought in the past.