Ramadan

Desert tribes calculated using the moon,

Welcoming it into their lives--

A relief from the murderous sun.

A soft and tender virgin, the sun a tyrant,

Hot, hard, and fierce. 

During the holy month of Ramadan.

The Angel Gabriel appeared, and

Dictated the Koran to The Prophet.

Somewhere among the dictation

Are the prescriptions for Ramadan.

By now you know the story:

How the message brought first peace,

Then war, conquest, science, and art.

During this holy month

There will be fasting during the day.

At sundown there will be feasting.

At dawn the fasting will resume.

Then the calculations of the moon’s regular cycle

Will order the lives of the desert tribes.

--July 19, 2013