TayoBlog

My second BLOG on Ramadan comes after visiting a mosque in a different part of the city. Being a lower middle class neighbourhood, there were not as many cars obstructing the road. Most people have walked to the mosque, and there was not much for carguards. But the streetlights were down, making it both quiet and peaceful, and somewhat ominous.  This mosque was a neighbourhood mosque, and contrasted sharply with mosques surrounded by cars rather than homes and people on the streets.

There was so much more activity in this mosque. Worshipers streamed in and out all the time. I got there a bit late, but I was not alone. Many groups completed the primary prayer, and then joined the  main congregation. And during the night prayer (tarawih), people kept going out after 2, 4, 6 and 8 cycles. When I walked out after 10, I found some young men standing outside. Not yet ready to go home, they were not also going inside.

The night prayer (tarawih) was led by trainee reciters. They made a few mistakes in remembering their portion of the Qur’an. Sometimes they found their way quickly back to the texts that they had memorized, but sometimes they needed more extensive prompting. Their reading was clear, pronouncing the words and elongating at the right places. But it was also clear that this was the beginning of a long career.

This was not unusual. Children memorized the Qur’an and were given an opportunity to show their skills. They waited eagerly to be invited to step forward to lead the prayer. During Ramadan, adults supported them with words of encouragement. There was no shortage of attention directed at them until the end of the month. In fact, huffaz (those who memorized the Qur’an) became mini celebrities during Ramadan. Everyone knew them. In Cape Town the Boerhaanol published their names in a special catalogue.

This tradition ensured a steady flow of students of the Qur’an, with aspiring parents waiting to hear 11-year or 12-year-olds reciting the Qur’an in front of the whole congregation. In the last few years, many girls have started memorizing the Qur’an. I am not aware of any opportunity for them to show and support their skills.

The recitation this night did not cover a "perceived" over-riding theme. It dealt with a whole range of topics: virtue, retribution, inheritance, Ramadan, superstition, pilgrimage, jihad, menstruation, marriage, and many more. Each topic was dealt with briefly, perhaps too briefly, before moving to the next. Many issues were left out, and many questions remained unasked and unanswered.

In some way, this rapid succession showed that all aspects of life were important. They together were part of a life lived in the shadow of the divine. Fasting and other rituals were part thereof, but so too was the importance of bequeathing something for one’s parents, and other relatives. Entering homes through the front door was also part of it, but so was responding in like measure to aggression. Do not go too far in responding to retaliation, but do not turn the other cheek!

On the other hand, the brevity of treatment of each topic conveyed something else. The details of these acts were not that important, the spirit counted above else. Fasting you must, but you can do it another day when travelling or ill. I am near, God said. Good relations between husband and wife must follow clear guidelines, but do not let an oath bind you from doing good, and acting justly.

You might find the treatment of each topic in the Qur’an inadequate. I will not argue with that. But you might miss the gems of ethical guidelines deeply embedded in these brief treatments. For example, the best of provisions is self-conscioussness.