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Traditional
special dishes for Ifter adds festivity to Ramadan. Photo: Shamsul
Huda
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Ramadan
arrives in Bangladesh with serenity, sanctity, festivity and philanthropy.
Overflowing mosques with devotees, quitters streets, illuminated and
ornamented shopping malls and markets, and festive villages make this
month a symbol of blessing by Allah.
Throughout the whole Ramadan mosques remain overflowed with devotees.
Even non-practising Muslims goes the mosques regularly. Most people
pray long twenty Rakats of Tarabih after Esha prayer. Mosques make
the arrangement of completing the recitation of Holy Quran in the
Tarabih prayer. Muslims seldom miss the chance of completing the recitation
of the Holy Quran through Tarabih prayers.
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Baitul
Mukarram, the national mosque of Bangladesh is seen overflowing with
devotees. Having no place inside the mosque, people are praying at
adjacent streets.
Photo: Daily Inquilab |
Ramadan comes as a month of the Holy Quran. Mosques and other organisations
arrange various programmes of teaching how to correctly recite the
Holy Quran. A slogan of 'Recite Quran, understand it and build the
life with its light' has becoming increasingly popular. Many organisations
organise Tafsir Mahfils and other programmes in order to spread the
teachings of the Holly Book. This month attracts the mass, especially
the educated elite, to the holy Quran. Special fairs on the Quran
and related books are organised with lucrative discounts.
The month comes with special significance to those who have made it
the ultimate goal of their lives to raise the flag of Islam. They
try to utilise each moment of this holy month in spreading the light
of Islam. They exchange Quranic gifts like Tafsir books, audio CDs
and cassettes of Tafsir Mahfils and try to spread the call of Islam
to as many people as possible. Advanced leaders and activists observe
'I'tekaf' by staying in the mosque for the last ten days of this blessed
month.
As 'Eid-ul-Fitr', the biggest festival of Bangladeshis, follows the
holly month of Ramadan, this month is also marked by festivity. Shopping
malls and markets are illuminated with colourful lights to attract
customers. A number of special dishes called 'Iftari', meaning the
foods for breaking the fasting, adds the festivity of the month. Special
items like 'Piazu' made of onion, 'Beguni' made of brinjal, 'Jilapi',
a spiral juicy sweet etc, are the traditional items of Iftari.
The festivity of Ramadan touches the lives of people living even in
the remote villages, perhaps in a greater dimension. Their festival
starts from the sighting of the moon that indicates the beginning
of the holy month. People gather under the open sky to see the moon.
They chant slogans like 'Allahu Akber' meaning Allah is Great after
the moon is sighted. Young people and boys take the responsibility
of waking up the villagers so that they can take their 'Saheri' at
pre-dawn time by singing Islamic songs.
Ramadan helps maintain the family and social bondage in the country.
Those who hail from countryside and stay in the cities go back to
meet their family members and celebrate the festival of 'Eid-ul-Fitr'
with them during the last days of Ramadan.
This is the month when most people pay their Zakat, a 2.5% share of
the poor in the wealth of the rich, to the poor. This helps the poor
participate in the festival. Since Muslims believe that any good deed
in this month is repaid by Allah manifolds, the rich increase their
charity activities. A month long fasting also helps them feel the
hardship of the poor.
A culture of Ifter Party has become very popular in Bangladesh. Different
organisations including political parties, trade unions and student
organisations arrange Ifter Parties which also act as forums for bringing
people of different social and political background together.
People of Bangladesh are generous to express their love for this month
by many means including naming their sons as 'Ramzan' the way 'Ramadan'
is pronounced in Bangladesh.
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