CAIRO: For the majority of new converts to Islam, abstention from food and drink in the Muslim fashion is one of their biggest challenges as they set out to observe the five pillars of Islam. According to Yahia Maqurerran, a Dubai-based Serbian convert, 47, "The different forms of worship could be seen and reported by others, but fasting is a kind of religious practice that involves only the individual and Allah. The challenge of fasting is twofold: a cultural one related to the practice of fasting in a non-Muslim environment; and a personal one which isn't restricted to the denial of the demands of the flesh but also the struggle of resisting actions that were natural parts of their former lifestyle. Speaking of the socio-cultural challenge, Molly Carlson, 25, a Cairo-based American convert told Daily News Egypt: "When I converted in 2005, Ramadan came in October. My mother, with whom I lived, didn't know I had converted to Islam. And because I was scared of revealing that secret to her, I had to observe the holy month very cautiously. She recalls how she secretly had to carry all her food and drink to her bedroom in preparation for the suhour. "I was afraid my mother would catch me eating in the middle of the night and start inquiring. "And until I told her of my conversion, I was alone in observing a kind of worship that is built on communities of friends and family gatherings. Now that Molly is married and living in Cairo, she has managed to overcome the feeling of loneliness in Ramadan. "This is my first Ramadan in a Muslim country and it makes a sea of difference to be surrounded with the gorgeous lights and people's joy over the beginning of the month. But for Lorry Hegazy, 44, a US-based American teacher who is married to an Egyptian businessman, the experience began differently. When Lorry converted in the 1980s, she didn't take fasting seriously. "This was due to the physical and psychological strain involved in the practice, especially when you aren't accustomed to it, Lorry told Daily News Egypt. Having fasted regularly for the past few years, Lorry is now fully convinced that fasting is an uplifting spiritual practice. But her only problem is fasting at the workplace. "[It's hard] being the only Muslim teacher in a non-Muslim staff, said Lorry. She continued: "It's difficult to relate to others when it comes to fasting. It's difficult for them to understand how the stress is compounded during Ramadan. Most Americans don't know what fasting is about and it's difficult to explain to people unless they experience it, so I keep quiet. For Irving Karchmar, 63, who converted to Islam in 1992, the transformation was both spiritual and cultural. A few years after he converted, Karchmar became a sufi dervish. "Fasting was indeed a challenge for me, an unworthy dervish as I was and still am, Karchmar told Daily News Egypt. "Each passing year opens my heart to the love of my brothers and sisters, other dervishes and all Muslims. He explains that for a dervish, fasting is not only about abstaining from food and drink for the proscribed time, but also from all that Allah forbids at all times. "We strive to fast with the heart not just with the body. We fast with the eyes, the ears, the tongue, the hands and the feet, he said. "This is the true spiritual experience. The dhikr (the remembrance of Allah) that a dervish repeats with each inhalation and exhalation of his breath becomes our food and drink. For those recently initiated into fasting, their experience could mark only a phase in the beaming spirituality of such a dervish. Their spiritual progress, however, matures as they attempt from year to year to overcome the challenges related to the physical aspects of fasting. An avid eater and smoker, Maquerran initially found it extremely difficult to fast. Others interviewed for this story, who were reluctant to reveal their names, said the main difficulty was overcoming their excessive sexual desire. "I used to have a girlfriend who I had to leave after I converted, said Eissa Saed (his name has been changed). "But living without her left me in a constant state of unsatisfied desire. The cure for this was fasting. New Muslim centers, however, offer guidance to initiators. They advise them not to begin fasting before undergoing certain preparations. Islamic websites such as Islamonline.net appeal to recent converts to read extensively about Ramadan and the problems peculiar to fasting beginners. They are advised to fast twice a week before Ramadan begins, during which time they should recognize their own weaknesses and attempt to exert self-control. They also warn against being carried away by the festive atmosphere specific to Ramadan in Muslim countries, for Ramadan could mean extra worldly events for the majority of Muslims. But these celebrations don't usually represent the true spirit of the holy month.
