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Eid Ul Fitr: The moon and more
Best wishes to everyone on this special day!
Eid Mubarak to all Nepalese, including the 5.9% of the total population who follow Islam. May this occasion bring peace, happiness, and prosperity to all!
The grace of this festival is based on the beauty and shape of the moon; this is really in the hands of nature. The day of Eid may be different in your country or in the world. If you are not sure when this day will happen, please contact the nearest mosque or Muslim community center. From this day onwards, Ramadan will be over and the last Iftar of this year will be observed a day earlier.
Let's talk about this Eid periphery today, in Hamro Patro, starting with this beautiful couplet.
Oh Moon
Which belief do you come from?
Eid is also yours and Karwachauth also yours.
How beautifully this portrays the beauty of the moon, its universality, and importance upon every creature on this planet. Be it the Hindu Sanatan festival of "Teej" or Karwachauth or be it "Eid", the same moon alarms the festival and commemoration. The shape of the moon is very important in determining "EID". Therefore, according to Islamic custom, everyone looks at the moon on the evening of the last day of Ramadan, and only when the crescent moon is visible in the sky, the difficult fast of Ramadan ends and Rid-ul-Fitr begins.
Background behind EID celebrations
It is a festival of excitement, victory, and equality where every member of the family and community is rich and the poor are filled with smiles and good wishes of virtue, and these good wishes of virtue are exchanged in each other's arms. The prophet of Islam, Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, is believed to have revealed the ideas of the Holy Quran during this month of Ramadan. It is said that all the gates of Hell will be closed during this month and all the gates of Paradise will be open, which is why this month is also called the month of Allah.
The followers of Islam bathe and put on new clothes, otherwise wearing the best clothes they have, they gather at a nearby mosque for special prayers and give thanks to Allah. In this way, when they go to the mosque or prayer meeting, they reach the place by chanting Takbir, i.e. the glory of Allah, from home and exchanging good wishes with everyone they meet on the way.
It is customary to use as many different ways as possible when going to and returning from prayer. After the prayers, the families gather in one place and have a feast in a group, welcoming the Eid ul-Fitr is a joyous and exhilarating atmosphere.
For children, the celebration is even more special because the older ones give them a variety of food, clothes, toys, and sweets, their gifts are called "Edhi". To make the fun even more colorful, in some places children decorate the house with flags and pylons made of different colors and shiny fabrics and paper. A special type of hymn performed on the day of Eid is called Salat which has two parts. These hymns are sung collectively in an open psalm or place.
In doing so, the six special takbirs are also dedicated to Allah by bringing the hand up to the ear saying Allah hu Akbar. Allah Hu Akbar means that Allah is the most important. In Nepal today, the government, various associations, institutions, and political parties are issuing a formal message to wish Muslim brothers and sisters a happy Eid.
Today, special prayers are offered at the Nepali Jame Masjid Ghantaghar Kathmandu and the process of receiving blessings from the elders begins. Another notable aspect of the festival is giving to the poor. Similarly, prayers are offered in mosques and idgahs across the country, including the Kashmiri Mosque in Ghantaghar.
May Allaha address the prayer, may all Salats be answered and wishes responded by almighty. Islam has a special affinity with society and equality. Islamic rituals are specially designed to ensure that all, rich and poor alike, celebrate the festival and remember Allah.
The festival encourages the exchange of brotherhood, peace and good wishes, and also hosts a variety of feasts for poor families to celebrate with respect. Happy Eid-ul-Fitr to all of you in this festival of brotherhood and enthusiasm.
Linking the Darwin's evolution theory with Matsya Avataram , Matsya Jayanti
Following the pathway of Sanatan culture when we dig into the creation of this universe and world, it resembles the first avatar of Lord Vishnu which was the fish. This fish avatar is known as Matsya avatar, this resembles the theory of evolution by Darwin where he states the evolution journey from the unicellular creature, aquatic reformation till today's form of manhood. Matsya Avataar during the Satya Yuga (Initial Yuga of Sanatana era), Matsya appeared during the apocalyptic phase and this fish was a one-horned fish with immense power.
Recalling the role of Matsya avatar during the apocalypse
In every Tritiya 93rd day) of during the bright fortnight of the moon on Chaitra month, Matsya Jayanti is observed recalling the role of Matsya avatar during the apocalypse. This Jayanti occurs in between the Chaitra Navaratri, this Navaratri is the exact replica of Bada Dashain's Navaratri which honors different forms of Goddesses Durga. Matsya Jayanti is a specific day, a huge crowd is seen in the temples of Lord Vishnu with a grand celebration and divinity. the vrata refrains observers from even drinking water, nights are commemorated together with chants and prayers offered to Lord Vishnu. Reciting Matsya Purana and Vishnu Sahastranam is very auspicious, May Lord Vishnu who is gloriously present on the Sesh Naag, who loves the lotus plant and whose omnipresence manifests the truth and compassion in this globe and further, may he bless us and bless this mankind.
Wishes for a meaningful Matsya Jayanti
Matsyanarayan Mela
A month-long fair is held in Malmas at Matsyanarayan's Prastar Temple, which is about 8 km southwest of Kathmandu, whereas in normal years, the fair is held only one day. Thousands and millions of devotees come to visit this fair. During the Malamas period, there is a tradition of worshiping Narayan / reciting Purushottam Mahatmya at the Machhenarayan Temple, four km south of Kirtipur. It is also mentioned in the scriptures that worshiping Lord Narayan destroys all sins. The temple has an artistic entrance of a Garuda wearing a golden jalap and a one-foot-tall four-armed idol with conch shell, chakra, donkey and Padma manifested through the mouth of a fish.
-Suyog Dhakal
