I have heard of a married astronaut with three children who was accused of trying to kidnap and kill a rival for the affections of a fellow astronaut. Some people I know think of an astrounaut as someone with a high education background and a vast amount of knowledge. As such, they think he or she would be prim if not proper and would be the last to be thought of as a would be kidnapper or killer. With the right vocation and education, lowly people can stand tall, I suppose. Well, enough of that side track thinking. Malaysia presently is in a euphoria over Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor a.k.a the first Malaysian astronaut. He had in fact lift ed off from the Baikonur site cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, together with a Russian and a US astronaut. Being the first Muslim to fly in space during the holy month of Ramdan, he will treat his crewmates to a celebratory meal and he will for the rest of his time, observe the dawn-to-dusk fasting rules of Ramadan. Muslim clerics in Malaysia have even prepared special guidelines for him on observing religious rules while on the ISS. He will use a wet tower to clean himself before praying and is not not obliged to kneel in zero gravity or face Mecca while praying.
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