A cook prepares food for Muslims to Baida Mosque for fast-breaking meal after sunset.[Photo by Hu Yongqi/China Daily]

"The mosque receives about 1,200 Muslims each day before and after Ramadan, but during Ramadan more than 3,000 Muslims come for prayers each day," Abdu Rahman said. "The biggest number of people we have had is 10,000."

Abdi Ghufur, the muezzin who calls believers to pray at the mosque, said adult Muslims other than pregnant women, the elderly, the sick and the infirm must fast and pray. About 80 percent of fasting Muslims coming to the mosque were 18 to 35 years old.

In Ramadan, four hours of sleep a day had left Abdi Ghufur and his fellow believers doing 20 hours of service a day at the mosque with eyes that were dry and red.

"Fasting is a personal choice," said Siemat, of the Islamic Association of Tianshan district in Urumqi. "The tradition of Ramadan has been rooted in our lives for hundreds of years, and fasting is a tenet of our religion, so we can stand hunger and thirst for 18 hours each day."