As part of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, the Muslim Students Association sponsored a Fast-a-Thon Thursday, where students of various faiths united with Muslim students for one day in the sunrise-to-sunset fast.
According to Deniz Balgamis, assistant director of the Center for Turkish Studies and lecturer at UW-Madison, Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim lunar calendar.
The 30-day fast observes the month the Prophet Mohammad first received the Holy Quran, Balgamis said.
She described the fast as a time 'to see how other people feel who do not have the necessary means to buy enough food for themselves...so that we can appreciate our own situation,' Balgamis said.
Not only are food and drink not allowed during the daylight hours, but indulgent activities such as smoking and sexual relations are also prohibited, Balgamis said.
The Fast-a-Thon for students of all faiths is a nationwide event that provides 'a great way for our friends to experience what we are experiencing,' UW-Madison freshman and MSA member Farha Tahir said.
'There's a certain fear [among students]: Will I be able to go through with it the whole day? What will it be like'? Tahir said.
'But when you're not eating, you have that time to think about everything else and it's really a good time for introspection. So it's really not about the food anymore ?? it's more about, 'What am I learning out of this'? Tahir said. 'I think that's what draws a lot of people to participate.'
The Fast-a-Thon, held at Chadbourne Residential College, featured speakers and allowed students to discuss the meaning behind their day, including UW-Madison freshman Christine Esche and UW-Madison sophomore Karisa Weske.
'I did it once before and it was hard, but this year I decided to do it again,' Esche said. 'I'm very interested in Islam'the cultural, religious aspects of it.'
Though Weske said it was hard for her breakfast to last 12 hours, fasting 'was one of the most interesting things to get to know what it would be like to be a member of another culture, just for a day.'
