Fasting during Ramadan is known as Sawm, the fourth of the Five Pillars of Islam. The Arabic term refers to fasting as an act of worship and disciplined abstention.
During Ramadan, able Muslims generally abstain from food, drink, smoking, and sexual activity between dawn and sunset. The fast begins with the predawn meal called suhoor and ends after sunset with iftar. Ramadan fasting is intended to cultivate piety, self-control, gratitude, and empathy for people experiencing hardship.
The Five Pillars are Shahada, the profession of faith; Salat, ritual prayer; Zakat, obligatory almsgiving; Sawm, fasting; and Hajj, pilgrimage to Mecca. These names are sometimes confused because each is an Arabic religious term, but only Sawm identifies the fasting pillar.
Islamic law recognizes exemptions for circumstances such as illness, travel, pregnancy, breastfeeding, old age, or menstruation, with different obligations for making up missed fasts or providing compensation.