FAREWELL TO JUMA'TUL-WIDA 1445 AH

 

The last Friday of Ramadan 1445 AH has also passed. This last Friday of Ramadan, known as "Juma'tul-Wida" all over the world, is not held in the Grand Mosque Skardu every year, but is held in the Imamia Eidgah Sundus due to the large number of people. The founder of the Iranian Revolution, Ayatollah Syed Ruhollah Khomeini, dedicated this day to the freedom of Quds. This is why Muslims all over the world, especially Shia Muslims, participate in the last Friday of Ramadan. In Juma'tul-Wida, in addition to the two usual sermons, the story of the liberation of Quds and Zionist atrocities are also narrated. The Friday prayer leader also mentions other issues such as the determination and payment of Fitrana, and exhorts the congregation to be honored with morality such as piety and abstinence. After the Friday prayers, the large crowd of people takes on a protest form and marches from Eidgah to Yadgar Chowk Skardu. Juma'tul-Wida held at Skardu Imamia Eidgah is perhaps one of the largest gatherings in the country, with a large number of people in attendance. Ever since we have come to consciousness, we have been continuously seeing this practice (condemnation of the usurper Zionists and intense sloganeering) and the series continues till now. Now, some young people are also performing the ritual of marching in military uniform. It seems that our youth have become accustomed to performing “Rituals” only. The trend of stepping into practical life (Mastery of modern sciences) is disappearing.

It is important to point out the critical aspect here. It has been more than 30 years that we Muslims have been content with slogans and emotional gestures, while our opponents are leading the way in the development of science and technology and economic growth. They have succeeded in gaining access to resources from the depths of the earth to the heights of the sky, and we are not ready to move beyond our traditional ways of doing things. In such a situation, when there is no question of an equal competition, then sloganeering and expressing anger in the streets, neighborhoods, and squares is the only solution left. Is it not possible that we can learn something from the struggle and hard work of our opponents and try to be equipped with modern knowledge? I believe that the day we start diving into the ocean of knowledge while remaining attached to the Gate of Knowledge (Hazrat Ali), the world will also listen to us and our demands will be automatically resolved. If we do not take this path and continue to chant slogans and protest, there will come a time when these processions of ours will continue, but they will have lost their significance. People (others) will imitate these processions and protests as entertainment and will simply capture a few videos and pictures on camera and move on.

This year, this Friday was also unique because it allowed for the expression of sympathy with the most oppressed people in the world today: the people of Gaza. Sympathy for the oppressed is a natural human emotion. Here, an entire people is being systematically destroyed. In the past several months, over 30,000 people have been killed in the ongoing Israeli bombardment of Gaza, including a large number of innocent children. Despite repeated calls from the international community, the Israeli military has not stopped its attacks. They believe that they can do whatever they want in the name of defending their own rights. At the moment, "whatever they want" means killing innocent people.

The human conflict between Palestine and Israel has been going on for the past several decades. On one side is Israel, which is supported by major countries in the world, such as the United States and Britain. On the other side is Palestine, which is supported by the majority of Muslim countries in muted words, and even this support is nothing more than a play on words. However, may Allah Almighty help the oppressed and thwart all the conspiracies of the oppressors.

Dr. Riaz Razee | April 5, 2024 | Skardu Imamia Eidgah