LIGHTENING CANDLES IS NOT ISLAMIC
BUDDHIST TRADITION CHANGING PERCEPTIONS
No “Sawab” just a mourning ritual
A long time back I saw a movie on the life of Buddha. An old lady wants to light a DIVA for Buddha. She has no money , so she sells her pigtails. With oil bought from selling her hair, she lights a Diva in a ritualistic place. A storm comes and Demons are behind it. All lights are extinguished but her lamp keeps on being lit, even under the bitterest winds. The power of lighting candles in the Buddhist tradition is shown. Unfortunately this is not in the case of Islam.
Yes, there is a tradition of lighting Lamps on graves as well as Mazars of Sufis, and we have plenty of that. But even that is just a sweet ritual, which consoles oneself, nothing more. Our greatest traditions lie in the RECITATION OF QURAN at times of mourning as well as at graves, or at such occasions, and that is Quran Khawani. In fact reading and understanding the Quran is the foremost duty of any Muslim.
We are quickly learning and adapting to foreign ways, without resorting to our own tradition. In fact the infiltration of foreign lobbies in our way of life is immense. Our intellectual life is put to test by lowering of the standards of many aspects of life. Even our humour is now STREET SMART HUMOUR and nothing to do with our developed abilities to create enjoyment for ourselves. I think a wave should be created to develop ijjtehad in a way to further our existence of peace. But also the beauty of what is being done must be considered too. Aesthetics are part of our life only if we take them forward.
