Adherents bow toward the Kaabah in Mecca when praying. Go here to learn how the prayer is performed . To find the prayer time in your area take a look at this web site. During the month of Ramadan, thanksgiving is expressed, discipline shown, and communal solidarity and reconciliation affirmed. Practitioners abstain from food, drink, smoking and sexual relations from dawn to sunset.
Charitable causes receive support in more spontaneous manners, as needs arise.
At least once in a lifetime, during the twelfth month of the calendar, a Muslim takes a trip to Mecca. No one goes on Hajj without first ensuring that family members are provided for in their absence. Financial and health concerns may also determine whether a person goes on Hajj. Some seriously ill individuals who go on Hajj go with the realization that if they die in Mecca, their souls will go directly to heaven. See also the CNN report on the 2000 hajj .