Amidst the flurry of reactions following the mosque affair, there is one piece that I would like to signal to your attention. It was written by one of my colleagues at the Faculty and was published by The Mauritius Times.
It is worth the read and I cannot but agree with her that it is high time for the Mauritian society to set the norms for living together ‘en bonne intelligence’ as sane, rational and respectful individuals rather than in a highly competitive religious environment where the muezzin’s ‘azaan’, the pandit’s incantations, the christian churches’ bells and so on are pitched one against the other.
It is up to us to build a true Republic, not a bazaar…
Read her article here
Wonderful comparison: bazaar!!!
Very good article which gives a very good “inside” view for outsiders like me … 🙂
You are perfectly right in your comments, Christina.
it is a shame that people in Mauritius do not distinguish between the Executive, the Legislature and the Parliament…
those “tete brules’ in my l’endroit (Plaine-Verte) do not know about how laws are made in Mauritius… and that the PM cannot modify a particular legislation just to fit in our religious values…
Education matters in this case, and when people are not educated enough in certain areas, they create their oen beliefs and principles.., and this becomes the Danger! Not only for the person, but for the whole muslim community!
People -i mean muslims- should ask themselves one thing: Does the loudspeaker has any particular religious values to Islam? The Azaan is of deep religious value and importance but definitely not the Loudspeaker!
Above all, Azaan should be read by those exceptional persons who have the most melodious voice… but instead, we hear people who do not even have a single good note in their voice… If only people in Mauritius hear those muezzins from Saudi, then u will see, there will be no need for loudspeakers to bring people to prayer…
Religion is a private acquiescence with GOD and it becomes real embarassing when REligion is being used as a tool by people who are in desperate need of recognition…
I am not sorry to be able to say my thoughts about the Azaan.
To Yumn Zaynah,
my dear, i have come across your opinion on this site, and i would like to add a little to it.
Firstly, true the loudspeaker should not be made as an issue for the Azaan, But you will surely agree that in todays world, even if you shout no one will hear you, taking into consideration the level of noise pollution that we Mauritians are getting used to nowadays.
Secondly, the azaan or call for prayer is not a song where only the best singer or most melodious voice prime. even if the voice is not melodious it is the meaning that one must understand.
also, as related in many islamic books (you should read a little more before professing such judgements) the call for prayer is not only telling you to come and pray or that is is time to pray. It is telling you that you must consolidate your faith and belief in God almighty and ask for your repentance.
you should be thinking that this guy is an integrist or racist. No, i’m none of these, just that before you say something, you must first of all know yourself. and when speaking about religion, then please do yourself a favor, educate yourself on your religion.
moreover, if you were a true mauritian, then you would surely know that most MAURITIANS awaits the Azaan to start their daily activities.
and i don’t think that 3 minutes at most can disturb a person.
even if you are not sorry for sharing your thoughts on this subject, yet on the day of judgement you will be heard and judged accordingly by the Almighty and i’ll pray that you are forgiven.
You seem to be the type of person who will sell themselves out so as to benefit in the society no matter what.
I really pity you. yet i’m not to judge you as i may not be better than you.
it is common nowadays to see youths showing no respect to religion, they seem to adore either actors, singers or politicians or pets. i’ve always heard from my grandparents that in the early days Mauritians were like one family, it doesn’t seem to exist nowadays, we are more sectarian, integrist, racist and sexist, all due to the politicians who play with our feelings and our religions.
@ Shajad,
I have approved your comment for this time but I entreat you to please be respectful of your counterparts in the future. Please do not make any personal attacks (such as ‘please do yourself a favour, educate yourself’ or ‘on the day of judgement you will be heard and judged’ or ‘if you were a true Mauritian…’ etc.).
I think such attacks do not allow for rational thinking and can become very unpleasant (for e.g. how do you expect Zaynah to react except by adopting the same tone against you? That’s a recipe for leading to spiralling conflicts with no issue.)
Please present your arguments; do not make any personal attacks. All views are welcome here from all sides; but I will not tolerate personal vindications on my forum!
Please respect that. Do share your views but please make sure that the debate remains sane and healthy and society at large will benefit…
Thanks