[Indonesia Report] Taraweeh: A Special Prayer in Ramadan Month

Ramadan month has started for Muslims. It is tradition to fast for the whole month from sun rise to sunset. Fasting is not only to bare the thirst and hunger but also to hold oneself from practicing worldly pleasures, such as smoking or gossiping.

In the holy month, Muslims not only do five prayers a day but they have one extra prayer called Taraweeh. After they break fast, they have dinner and do the fifth prayer, and then go to a mosque to do Taraweeh.

Taraweeh is a special prayer that they read during the Ramadan month.

For Muslim living abroad, especially in countries where Islam is not a religion that majority believes, mosques cannot be found in every district or country where Muslims are the majority.

Muslim students in Seoul, South Korea, do Taraweeh with their fellow Muslim students in their community. A group of Indonesian students at Korea University do.

After breaking the fast at around 7.48pm, they then do Taraweeh. They go for Taraweeh together in a prayer room in their dormitory.

One of the male students leads the prayer. The one who leads the prayer is called Imam.

Other male students take a row behind the Imam and followed by the female students behind the male row.

Usually in Indonesian tradition, men wear Muslim clothes called “Baju Koko” in Indonesian.

The prayer clothes that the female student wears are a set of clothes female Muslims wear when they do “sholat” or prayer, called “mukena” in Indonesian.

They pray facing the Mecca direction or what they call “Kiblat” and using a prayer mat, they call “Sajadah.”

The Taraweeh starts at 10.40pm and it takes around an hour.

When they are done with the prayer, they usually have a small chit chat with their fellows and then go back to their rooms to prepare for the early breakfast or sahoor to start another new day of fasting.

Meidyana Rayana Intern Reporter news@theasian.asia