The bounties of blessings

The culmination of the holy month of Ramazan not only brings with it joy and thanksgiving, but also underscores an indispensable responsibility to share and cheer. This is an auspicious day wherein the Almighty wants the mankind to bow in gratitude and take care of the downtrodden in all humility. Indeed, this is the essence of fasting and supplications, intended to look around in society and ensure that the bounties bestowed are for all, and the thin line of otherness is done away with by embracing the estranged and carrying along the near and dear ones. The day of Eid-ul-Fitr at the same time is a reminder that the month-long pious deeds were not time-barred, and the spirit of submission, sympathy and solicitude lives on.

This year the festive occasion has come at a time when we, as a society, are at a standstill, and the surging economic hardships in the form of inflation are testing our nerves. This must be taken as an opportunity to further the serenity of the spirit of Ramazan in the year ahead, and plan out prospects to make life easy for those who are in dire straits. The mandatory giving in the form of zakat and fitra are noble commandments that can turn around the environs into a welfare society; and it’s high time, they are realised in letter and spirit.

While four per cent of Pakistan’s populace has further gone down the poverty line, it can only be overcome by reinventing the spirit of compassion and tender-heartedness. Likewise, our society is in dire need of being knitted in brotherhood, and the prevailing sense of disgust in political, ethno-lingual and sectarian domains must come to an end.

A cheering embrace on the day of Eid can make the ultimate difference with its fragrance living on for times to come. Ushering in smiles and undoing bitterness is the lesson of the holy month of Ramazan, and it can further the mosaic of undoing social apartheid in a miraculous way. And this healing touch is the need of the hour. A cordial Eid Mubarak to all!

Published in The Express Tribune, April 10^th, 2024.

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