Ramadan goes hi-tech on phones


  1. John A. Afful, AfricaNews reporter in Takoradi, Ghana
    Ancient Islamic traditions are going high-tech with modern digital technological facility offered by Apple to fuse everything worshipers need to know to observe Islam's holiest month, in which Muslims worldwide observe daily daylight fasting.
    mobile phone
    The Mobile phone application like "iPray" or "iKoran" offers a beeping reminder of requisite prayer times, while the "find Mecca" and "mosque finder" programmes help travellers in unfamiliar cities find the nearest place to pray.

    According to Orange news, the applications would not serve only Ramadan but other Islamic-themed programs that will help users find the nearest supermarket offering foods prepared according to Islamic dietary rules, learn the correct Arabic pronunciations in a daily prayer, or count how many pages of the Koran they have read that day - all on a mobile phone.

    Other applications offered by Apple or apps, intends to cater for the holy books of several other religions, from the Catholic Holy Bible to the Bhagavad Gita, a sacred Hindu scripture.

    A 24-year-old native of Turkey Sumeyye Kalyoncu was triumph over with nostalgia the very first time she heard the Adhan - or call to prayer - through surround-sound speakers on her iPhone dock welcoming it as a tool that can now fulfill her daily spiritual obligations by counting prayers on her iPhone on the commuter bus to work using her headphone.

    "These are traditions and these have been in our lives for ages, like almost 15 centuries, so they seem very old," she said. "I think this is like combining together the technology and the things that we do daily."

    It is believed that Kalyoncu uses an iPhone app called iPray Lite, keeping track of daily prayers with a programme that simulates the clicking sound of prayer beads or the turning wheel of a handheld metal counter Muslims use to keep count of prayer repetitions.

    However, dates of Ramadan still are determined by the lunar calendar, and calculations can differ among Islamic communities around the world.


Reactions

  1. Image of racksjackson


    6 berichten
    Lid sinds February 2013


    I did not know much about iPray Lite App. Thanks for sharing vital information.

    Regards,
    Best iPhone Accessories



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