Over this weekend, I got to go home and spend time in Carmel, IN which is North of Indianapolis. While looking through the paper I came across the Indianapolis Middle Eastern Festival that was taking place over my time at home. I decided to go with my friends to experience the food, dance, music, and more importantly see if I could find someone to talk to about being Muslim in America.
Coming with a hungry appetite, I was able to try authentic Middle Eastern foods, make contacts, and explore further into my voice. I asked around and found that according to the Quran, Allah allows the Muslim people to eat any animal that he would eat. He prohibited Muslims to eat any harmful or bad foods. This included the prohibition of alcohol, drugs, pork, carnivorous animals and birds, or any animal that has died of natural causes. Another interesting custom is that food needs to be eaten with the right hand. Muslims believe that the left hand is considered unclean. During the festival I got Falafel which is chick pea and fava bean with sauce and hommus. I even tried some lamb which I never had before. A large number of the traditional food is made with lamb because it is ample in where Muslims live.
An interesting fact was that I found out is that this festival was put on by Orthodox Christians. The founders of this particular church in Indianapolis were from the Middle East. Even though these people were the host, it was still an ample place for my voice. I tried to take in the experience and mostly asked about food, since it was truly delicious. But over conservations, I mentioned the project and one of my major interest was in the holiday of Ramadan. This holiday follows the Muslim calendar and is expected to start September 1st. In this month Muslims fast, or do not eat during the day. It is meant to be a time of concentration of faith, worship, and contemplation. They are restricted from eating or drinking during daylight hours. From what I gather, this can be tricky if they play sports, or in a labor intensive job. The meal at the end of the day is called a "iftar". During this iftar, it is a time for Muslims to visit. One of my new friends, "John", explained that they are "not off the hook" during the daytime for just eating. He said that things such as lies, cheating, greed, and other sins can cancel out the fast for the day. These are considered as a "slap in the face" to Allah. Towards the end, Muslims celebrate the Night of Power. This was the time when Muhammad first received the Word about the Quran. The very end is an additional celebration called the Fast Breaking. During this time gifts are exchanged, family and friends come together along with prayers and big meals. John says that Ramadan can be the most challenging part of being a Muslim but through this time, they concentrate hard on their culture and this is a way to stay connected with past members of the Islamic faith which has been a custom for thousands of years.
Overall, I got to experience culture, make new contacts and felt better connected to my voice. It is always interesting to find out about customs and cultural food because through a meal, it is a time to share, for any culture it seems.
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