Overspending becoming a habit during Ramadan

By Majd Othman

KUWAIT: Ramadan, which is a holy month for Muslims where they fast from sunrise to sunset for 30 days, has turned overtime to a month that has a different purpose, away from Islamic practices. It has become a month that includes various celebrations and cultural events, diverging from the main goal of empathizing with needy people who don’t have enough food and provisions to survive.

In Kuwait, several celebrations have started to be highlighted more in the past few years, such as the ghabqa, which is a gathering held between the time of breaking the fast and sunrise; Girgian, mainly a celebration for children, when people distribute candy to them over three days; and iftar gatherings, where people eat their first meal after fasting, not to mention the recent trend of Ramadan home decor.

These gatherings and events give people a good vibe during the month and help them forget the hardship of fasting, but are becoming a way to show off and cost people too much money, turning into a financial and social extravagance. Kuwait Times asked people for their opinion about the extra expenses and asked them how much Ramadan cost them this year. Manal Assad, an expat, said she spent almost KD100 on Ramadan clothes like the daraa, which is a traditional dress in Gulf countries, along with accessories.

But probably she will not be able to wear them during next Ramadan, because she will “need to have a different look.” Assad explained there is also a weekly iftar gathering, which costs more than KD200 to invite the family, in addition to expenses of Girgian. She said although she did not spend much this year on it, total expenses reached KD400 for all events and gatherings this Ramadan. Abrar Abdullah, a citizen, said she also spent almost KD400, but only on celebrating Girgian this year, noting that her friends spend triple this amount in a day to enjoy Girgian, as they consider it a social obligation that must be held every year, but expenses differ from one year to another.“

Unfortunately, this celebration has turned into a competition between grownups away from the basic goal of bringing joy to children,” she rued. Abdullah added that her friends book lounges and pay thousands to celebrate for one day only, pointing out that some celebrations include people distributing one gram of gold as a souvenir for the guests, saying this behavior is only for competition and showing off and is the not the core principle of Ramadan and Girgian. On the other hand, Fatima Hussain, also a Kuwaiti, said she rejects all these behaviors due to the huge waste that remains after events, whether food, candy or drinks.

She pointed out that many people prefer simplicity in celebrating, as these gatherings and events are a traditional habit that have a cultural value, whether for adults or children, stressing it should be far from spending lots of money on useless things.“It’s better to give it to needy people or save it to spend it on other useful things,” she said.

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