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Believers try to pray more than usual during Ramadan in order to become even better Muslims. According to Islamic teaching, prayer functions as a way of fulfilling the needs of the spirit, just as food, water, and exercise Get some fast facts on Ramadan.

fulfill the needs of the body. Prayer puts believers in touch with God, helping them remember his greatness and think of ways they can develop good qualities in themselves. Prayer is an opportunity to think about one’s life and see how one’s actions meet with God’s desires. Most Muslims make an effort to give up their bad habits during Ramadan. In particular, people try to avoid disagreements and anger, instead keeping positive, pleasant thoughts in their heads at all times. n Sunni and Shii Muslims Muslims today are divided into two main groups, the Sunnis and the Shiis, that formed soon after the founding of Islam in the early 600s. When the prophet Muhammad died in 632, he left behind close to 100,000 Muslims without a leader. They did not all agree on who should succeed Muhammad. One group elected Abu Bakr, a close friend and father-in-law of Muhammad, as the next leader, or caliph . Another group believed that Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali ibn Abi Talib, should be the caliph. Ali accepted Abu Bakr as caliph and Abu Bakr was the leader of Islam until his death in 634. Twenty-two years after Abu Bakr’s death, Ali became the fourth caliph of Islam. (There were two other caliphs between Abu Bakr and Ali, Umar ibn al-Khattab and Uthman ibn Affan.) Some of Ali’s original opponents still resisted his leadership, however, and eventually the conflict grew into a civil war. The two groups split into religious factions. The supporters of Abu Bakr became known as Sunni, or “one who follows the Sunna.” (“Sunna” are the words and actions of Prophet Muhammad.) The supporters of Ali became Shii, “supporters of Ali.” Sunni Islam is now the largest denomination of Islam. Sunni Muslims live throughout the Middle East, Central Asia, North Africa, and Southeast Asia. Between 10 and 15 percent of Muslims are Shii.Most of them live in theMiddle East, especially in Iran. Both groups believe in the Five Pillars of Islam, but they differ on various specifics, including when to start and end Ramadan.

Origins of Ramadan n

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