Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, the month were the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w), the month that contains laytul-qadr and the month where fasting has been made obligatory for those who are able to from sunrise to sunset (and yes, not even water…). 

“Oh you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may learn piety and righteousness.' (Quran, 2:183).

However, despite the untold blessing that are within the month it is hard to escape the feeling of repetition that can make - even the most optimistic of us - rather unmotivated and lethargic. For the second year in a row our ability to see our friends and family, conduct taraweeh and spend the last ten nights in itikaf have been restricted yet again and can almost dampen our enthusiasm for the upcoming Ramadan. 

Much is made of the month for fasting every year it comes around, but here at Riwaya we we thought that during what is now the second Ramadan in UK lockdown we’d instead focus on using Ramadan as an opportunity to reset. To take stock of the last year; our achievements, our struggles and our overall actions, and use this amazing opportunity to refresh both physically but also spiritually. 

For us at Riwaya, Ramadan last year was around the time that we started work on the platform that would eventually become Riwaya. We launched in February this year, taking us one step closer to achieving our goal of being the best online marketplace to cater specifically for the Muslim population. There’s been highs and lows along that journey so far, but we would like to take this opportunity to firstly thank all those who have supported us and secondly for us to take a step back and realise how fortunate we are to be in a position to create something like this. 

The chances are that if you are reading this, you would have internet, a home, food and some form of healthcare and income. You are therefore statistically likely to be in the top 10% of the world’s population! Living in the west, it is easy to get caught up in the ongoing competition that embodies modern capitalistic societies. What does he/she have? Why don’t I have this? What makes them special? – these are the inherent competitive questions that we always ask ourselves, and in doing so we easily forget how fortunate we actually are. That we have accesses and privileges that billions across the globe could only dream of and for those British Muslims who have immigrant ancestors, we could have easily been on the other side.

So let’s together change our approach and our perception and tackle this Ramadan with a renewed sense of appreciation, gratitude and humility that a) we are blessed to see another Ramadan and b) that we get to see it in such relative comfort in comparison to the world’s population. 

Ramadan always has been so much more than just no food and drink during the day, its been about resetting your manners, your priorities and renewing your Iman for the year ahead. So from everyone here at Riwaya, we pray you have a very happy Ramadan, achieve your goals and use this time to reset!