View source for Suhur

{{short description|Islamic meal eaten at dawn time during Ramadan}}
{{Italic title|reason=[[:Category:Arabic words and phrases]]}}
[[File:Suhur.jpg|247x247px|thumb|An example of a [[Jordanian cuisine|Jordanian]] ''suhur'' table]]
{{Meals}}
'''''Suhur''''', '''''Sahur''''', or '''''Suhoor''''' ({{IPAc-en|UK|s|ə|ˈ|h|ɜːr}};<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/suhur|title=Suhur|work=[[Collins English Dictionary]]|publisher=[[HarperCollins]]|access-date=May 15, 2019}}</ref> {{langx|ar|سحور|suḥūr|lit=of the dawn', 'pre-dawn meal}}), also called '''Sahari''', '''Sahri''', or '''Sehri''' ({{langx|fa|سحری}}) is the meal consumed early in the morning by [[Muslim]]s before fasting ([[sawm]]), before dawn during or outside the [[Islam]]ic month of [[Ramadan]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Kashmir {{!}} History, People, & Conflict|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Kashmir-region-Indian-subcontinent|access-date=2021-05-08|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> The meal is eaten before [[fajr prayer]].<ref name="auto">{{Citation  | title = BBC - Schools - Religion - Islam  | url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/religion/islam/ramadan.shtml  | access-date = 11 April 2010 }}</ref> Suhur corresponds to [[iftar]], the evening meal during Ramadan, replacing the traditional three meals a day ([[breakfast]], [[lunch]], and [[dinner]]),<ref name="auto"/> although in some places dinner is also consumed after iftar later during the night.
Being the last meal eaten by Muslims before fasting from dawn to sunset during the month of Ramadan, suhur is regarded by Islamic traditions as a benefit of the [[barakah|blessings]] in that it allows the person fasting to avoid the crankiness or the weakness caused by the fast. According to a [[hadith]] in ''[[Sahih al-Bukhari]]'', [[Anas ibn Malik]] narrated, "[[Muhammad|The Prophet]] said, 'take suhur as there is a blessing in it.'"<ref>''Bukhari'': Book 3: Vol. 31: Hadith 146 (Fasting).</ref>
==Musaharati==
The musaharati<ref>{{cite web|title=Pictures: Celebrating Ramadan Around the World|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/07/pictures/140719-ramadan-islam-muslim-holiday-festival-culture/#/173261229-10_81773_600x450.jpg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140720183030/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/07/pictures/140719-ramadan-islam-muslim-holiday-festival-culture/#/173261229-10_81773_600x450.jpg|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 20, 2014|publisher=National Geographic Society|access-date=10 August 2014|date=July 19, 2014}}</ref> is a public waker for suhur and [[Fajr prayer|dawn prayer]] during Ramadan.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Linda Wong|title=Sentence essentials: a grammar guide|year=2002 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin, 2002|isbn=9780618154821|page=100}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=Angelo Colorni|title=Israel for Beginners: A Field Guide for Encountering the Israelis in Their Natural Habitat|year=2011 |publisher=Gefen Publishing House Ltd, 2011|isbn=9789652294838|page=84}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=Jamāl Ghīṭānī|translator=Farouk Abdel Wahab|title=The Zafarani Files|year=2009 |publisher=American Univ in my world Cairo Press, 2009|isbn=9789774161902|page=333}}</ref> According to the history books, [[Bilal ibn Rabah]] was the first musaharati in Islamic history, as he used to roam the streets and roads throughout the night to wake people up.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Rima Al-Mukhtar|title=Ramadan Mesaharati|url=http://www.arabnews.com/node/387195|access-date=10 August 2014|publisher=Arab News|date=10 August 2011}}</ref>
The occupation is described by a [[Damascus]] musaharati: "My duty during the holy month of Ramadhan is to wake people up in the old city of Damascus for prayers and Suhur meal."<ref>{{cite news|author1=HUMMAM SHEIKH ALI|title=Charm of Ramadhan in Damascus|url=http://www.bt.com.bn/art-culture/2011/08/19/charm-ramadhan-damascus|access-date=10 August 2014|work=Xinhua|publisher=Brunei Times Sdn Bhd|date=August 19, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812203527/http://www.bt.com.bn/art-culture/2011/08/19/charm-ramadhan-damascus|archive-date=12 August 2014}}</ref> According to a [[Sidon]] musaharati, the attributes every musaharati should possess are physical fitness and good health, "because he is required to walk long distances every day. He should also have a loud voice and good lungs, as well as an ability to read poems. A musaharati should supplicate God throughout the night to wake the sleepers."<ref>{{cite news|author1=Vivian Haddad|title=The Musaharati, Still Part of Sidon's Ramadan Tradition|url=http://eng-archive.aawsat.com/vivian-haddad/lifestyle-culture/the-mesaharati-still-part-of-sidons-ramadan-tradition|access-date=10 August 2014|publisher=[[Asharq Al-Awsat]]|date=23 Jul 2014}}</ref>
The tradition is practiced in Egypt, Syria, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Palestine. However, there has been a gradual disappearance of the musaharati due to several factors, including: Muslims staying up later; using technology such as alarm clocks to wake for suhur; and louder and larger homes and cities that make the voice of the musaharati harder to hear.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Rima Al-Mukhtar|title=Ramadan Musaharati|url=http://www.arabnews.com/node/387195|access-date=10 August 2014|publisher=Arab News|date=10 August 2011}}</ref> However, the old [[Dhakaiya]] tradition of singing [[qasida]]s can still be found in the streets of [[Old Dhaka]] in [[Bangladesh]].<ref name=bpedia>{{cite web|author=Sirajul Islam|author-link=Sirajul Islam|url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Qasida|title=Qasida|publisher=[[Banglapedia]]: The National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh, [[Asiatic Society]] of Bangladesh, [[Dhaka]]|access-date=5 May 2018}}</ref>
In Indonesia, a [[slit drum|kentongan]] is used to wake households up to eat the suhur meal.<ref>{{cite news | author1=Aman Rochman | title=Malang village children find joy in 'sahur' activity during Ramadhan | url=https://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2018/05/20/malang-village-children-find-joy-in-sahur-activity-during-ramadhan.html | access-date=17 April 2021 | publisher=The Jakarta Post | date=20 May 2018}}</ref>
== References ==
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[[Category:Breakfast]]
[[Category:Fasting in Islam]]
[[Category:Ramadan]]
[[Category:Islamic cuisine]]
[[Category:Islamic terminology]]