Ramzan has always been the time to look inwards, build bridges

ramzan, ramzan, muslim festival, religious festival, ramzan month, mosque, ramzan fast, islam, sri lanka church attack, new zealand mosque attack, indian express — In India, Ramzan started in the middle of the country’s general elections, whose verdict left Muslims feeling further alienated. (PTI)

As things stand across the world today, religion cannot be a private experience for Muslims — even if they want it to be. Burdened, demoralised and anguished with terror attacks in the name of Islam, Muslims find themselves — and their faith — implicated in global events almost every day. More recently, the targeting of mosques in New Zealand or churches in Sri Lanka have made Muslims either helpless victims or motivated perpetrators of violent attacks. Closer home, rising Islamophobhia coupled with an almost non-existent political representation in the government, have driven India’s Muslims to the edge. It is amidst such a feeling of fear and siege among Muslims that Ramzan, Islam’s holiest month, began, and is set to draw to a close in a couple of days.