Iftar meals ancient Islamic custom

Iftar meals for the needy or travelers to break their fast, or “Banquets of God” as the custom is known among Muslims, is an ancient Islamic custom.
Taha Al-Bashir, a researcher in Muslim customs, said: “Historians differ on how the custom originated. Some people believe it goes back to the era of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) when he was in Madinah. When a delegation from Taif came to see him to convert to Islam, he ordered that they be given food every morning and night.
“The other story is that this custom first started during the era of Ahmad ibn Toulon, who invited Egyptian dignitaries to a banquet to break their fast and asked them to feed the poor from what they ate. He told them that this should go on during the whole month of Ramadan. This became an Egyptian custom, and was later copied in other countries.”
Regardless of the controversy over its origin, some observers believe that it's better to provide the food directly to the poor at their houses and gathering places.
Ahmad Hamzah, imam of Al-Rahmah mosque, told Arab News that “to do so is better because this preserves their dignity and does not embarrass them. It's much better than having them line up at the mosque to wait to be served,” he said.
“I believe this is where charities should step in. They have lists of the poor and needy families, or the families with low incomes. And they can take the food to them.” He said iftar meals at mosques often see people who are not poor come for food.
Some wealthy families offer these meals to the poor at “Ramadan tents” that are erected for this purpose.
Ikram Husseini, a Pakistani cook, said that he has been working for a wealthy family for five years, who “offer these meals to the poor in Ramadan.”
Al-Azhar University recently conducted a study about the Banquets of God in Egypt. It found that in Ramadan people offer 21,000 meals at a cost of more than 1 billion Egyptian pounds (SR535 million) in Cairo, while people in other provinces spend another billion pounds. It also found that these banquets feed about 3 million people, and are organized by 10,000 parties or institutions.