look.hear.capture
This is one day in my life which I can claim to be ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ with absolutely stellar conviction. From 29th October 1978 to 29th October 2007, it has been 29 years (yes, I am just a year short of that fascinating age most people dread).
Learnt, loved, lost, lived, died, resurrected, travelled, searched, found, lost, climbed, fell…quite some, but still not as much though…
The past 10 days or so have really been filled with a lot of activity, with me travelling to 3 locations in as many days. Home-back-Pilani-back-Aligarh-and-back-again. I think there is quite something I really feel like writing about. Specially about one mind boggling trip I had in between, which by all means was not a trip which involved physical transportation. I shall surely get down to it…
The month of Ramazan came and went by. And the feeling this year was no different from the feelings during any other past Ramazan. Each day just felt like another grain of sand slipping from between the fingers of your hands, and the closer you get to the end of the month, the days practically fly past. If you have ever seen sand slipping through an hourglass, you would know how it feels. And as it comes to an end, just like each year, you are left wondering at the nagging feeling of whether you could actually make good use of this month. I don’t think I did, but then for that matter I don’t feel any sane minded practicing Muslim would think so either…or rather wouldn’t think so either!
One of the good things about this year’s Ramazan was that I managed to more or less to get to hear the Quran being fortunate enough to attend Taraweeh all through the month. The not so good things…that feeling of maybe-if-I-should-have-exercised-better-self-control…but then I’ve already said that earlier.
Food, as always did form an integral part of the month. Successive weekends were spent at Purani Dilli with early morning Sehri meals consumed out of deep china dishes at Kareem’s. Although the raison d e’tre through any Ramazan – Nihari – did make its presence felt all the more by its absence. As early as we would try to reach for Sehri in order to comfort our abstaining souls with a bowl of that evanescent soup guaranteed to brim our souls with effervescence, it seemed that we were late. Notwithstanding though, we had to work around in order to satiate ourselves, and successfully so we did.
At this juncture, I feel the need to clarify upon something which has been asked from me by a lot of my non-Muslim friends. I guess its felt by and large that we should be hogging through the night after fasting through the day without food and water for 12 hours plus. But then, how much can you actually eat…I mean how much can you actually eat? Anyone who has fasted through the day would know that it isn’t mortally possible to stuff yourself with food as soon as you break your fast at Iftar. And it isn’t allowed by your body’s metabolism either. In fact, the body’s metabolism does slow down a bit more than the day time fasting levels (I guess that’s because of immediate after-effect of the food ingestion after a prolonged duration). And by the time you are a bit over your sagging senses, its time for Taraweeh. And post Taraweeh, you can just have a smal meal before you hit the sack in an effort to wake up early for Sehri.
Flying time and before you know it, its Eid. Though the wait was protracted due to 30 days of fasting, rather than the 29 days which people in this sub-continent rather fancy. The moon did take the liberty of not showing itself this year, so we had to remain content with waiting for another day. So Chand Raat it was after 30 days of fasting, and keeping your body and mind to exercise abstinence in all forms. The significance of Chand Raat is also something which probably isn’t very widely known outside Muslim circles or people who have stayed in close contact with Muslims. I got to know this when a journo friend of mine called me up for a thought on a story she had to do on Ramazan and Eid. If you ask me, the simplest way I would define Chand Raat would be the night Iblis is set free again 
On a serious note, and to draw an analogy, its probably akin to what Christmas eve is. Man…you should see the way folks get out on to the streets, in the markets, in the by-lanes, shopping, eating, making merry…it actually does hit you sadly a bit at times when you feel introspectively that rather than being joyous over the fact that the morning is Eid, people are making merry because Ramazan is finally over…finally!
