From: Steve Davies (steve365@btinternet.com)
Date: Tue Jan 07 2003 - 10:12:19 MST
I can answer some of these questions (having been married to a Muslim).
Ramadan does indeed move through the solar year, by about 9 days per year so
while it's in winter at the moment prettry soon it's going to be in summer,
not nice given that you can't drink on top of not being able to eat. The way
being far north or south is handled is by ruling that if you are north or
south of an arbitrary line you follow the time that applies in most of the
Muslim world. That is pretty tough if you don't live far north enough to
qualify but are nearly there e.g. in much of Scotland. I think the problem
on Mars would be solved by following Mecca time but how you would work out
the direction of prayer I can't imagine.
Steve Davies
----- Original Message -----
From: "spike66" <spike66@attbi.com>
To: <extropians@extropy.org>
Sent: Tuesday, January 07, 2003 6:38 AM
Subject: ramadan
> I was viewing a program about Islam. They mentioned
> that true Muslims fast while the sun is up during
> the month of Ramadan. Then they said the month is
> not a specific time of year, but is based on a lunar
> month. I reason that the month of fasting must work
> its way around the calendar, so that sometimes
> Ramadan is in the winter and a few years later in
> the summer. Right?
>
> If that is the case, what happens if Ramadan straddles
> the summer solstice and the believer lives north
> of the arctic circle? Do they just starve? Anders,
> do they have this problem up your way? If Ramadan
> is around the winter solstice, those in the far north
> would scarcely notice. Seems like the true believer
> who didn't like fasting could just move to Damien's
> neighborhood in those years which Ramadan was in July,
> and Sweden when it was in the December.
>
> How would a true believer in LEO work it? Just
> eat quickly while in the earth's shadow? What if
> they were in a polar orbit? On Mars? spike
>
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