Srinagar, March 2 : The holy Muslim fasting month of Ramzan started in Jammu and Kashmir along with the rest of the country on Sunday as lakhs of devout Muslims woke up before dawn to eat a 'Sehri' meal after mosques, shrines, and drum beaters announced the beginning of the predawn meal.

Muslims keep the monthlong fast and engage in prayer, penance and charity to seek Allah's blessings during the sacred month of Ramadan.

A devout Muslim keeps the daylong fast and breaks it only after sunset. Mosques and shrines are the most thronged places during this month, where sermons of piety, purity, tolerance and brotherhood are delivered by the preachers.

'A devout Muslim shall not harm any fellow human being. He/she will rise to help the needy, feed the hungry and protect the orphan,' -- this is the eternal message the Prophet of Islam gives to his followers during Ramzan.

Markets were flooded with shoppers on Saturday evening as they bought dates, sherbets, raisins and basil seeds, which are extensively used by the faithful during Ramadan. Roadside makeshift shops had come up in the evening in Srinagar and other towns and cities of the Valley. Rates of dates, raisens, basil seeds and other items varied according to the quality of the item. A Kg of dates varied in price according to its quality between Rs 200 to Rs 4,000, and the buyers bought these to suit their purse.

Children are not required to keep the fast, but most insist on keeping the first day of the fast as a pleasure exercise to compete with elders during this holy month.

As different institutions of charity have come up in the Valley to support the needy, including orphans and the infirm, Kashmiri Muslims are seen lavishly giving charity to these institutions. Even crowdfunding by patients needing kidney replacement, liver replacement and heart operations have been funded within days of such helpless families putting out appeals. The good thing is that this charity is not restricted to fellow Muslims only.

A needy patient whose family makes genuine crowdfunding appeals for help is lavishly helped regardless of the religion followed by the needy.

It is for this very reason that some unscrupulous persons have been going around in loudspeaker-fitted vehicles making fervent appeals for cash contributions to help a so-called patient. Police and religious scholars have cautioned people not to fall prey to such anti-social elements and not to make contributions without verifying the details of those going public with such appeals.

In one such case, a family seeking help after a blaze in Gotlibagh village of Ganderbal district was exploited by a so-called social worker, who had collected lakhs of rupees in the name of these fire victims.

During the Ramzan days, the normal activities of life usually start late in the Valley as locals prefer to sleep longer after the predawn meal and after offering the morning prayers. The holy month ends after 29 or 30 days as per the phases of the moon since Muslims worldwide follow the lunar calendar.

The holy festival of Eid is celebrated after the month of fasting ends as a thanksgiving and joy that follows the monthlong fasting, prayers and penance.

/IANS