sokode mosque before morning prayer
This morning was the beginning of the period when Laylat al-Qadr can take place. Laylat al-Qadr, or "the night of power," falls during "the last third of Ramadan, commemorates the revelation of the first verses of the Qur'an, and is considered the most holy night of the year." This morning also brought a magical walk with friend Champion to Sokodé's Grand Marché around 4 am to eat the corn paste and sauce that my skittish fasting taste buds desired. As we walked, the women could be heard preparing food and a few old men could be seen studying the Qur'an in the glowing mosques. There is something about the distinctive sounds of a Ramadan morning that for a month find their home in the silence of the pre-dawn hours. The young men that circulate through the neighborhoods chanting their wake-up call, for women to prepare food, around 2:15 am, the Coran recitations ringing out from blasting stereos and radios, the sounds of women at work preparing food and the almost celestial smattering of light orbs coming from the lanterns illuminating their work. And then come the calls to prayer that wean you off the food and water and usher you into another day of fasting.
