Tradition Merges with Modernity during Ramadan in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Text by Bedrana Kaletovic for Southeast European Times*
To Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Ramadan is a special month when the holy Qur'an was revealed and God decreed that Islamic followers should be particularly devout by fasting from dawn to dusk.
According to Islamic beliefs, those who fast can expect forgiveness for past sins.
"It is a period of purifying the soul from bad habits and that is why each true Muslim, the real spiritual traveler, should fulfill it with good deeds, which is a precondition for spiritual progress," Tuzla imam Muhamed Lugavic told SETimes.
This year, Ramadan falls in summer and believers spend about 16 hours without food and drink. It may appear a difficult feat, but BiH Muslims claim otherwise.
"If you are a true believer who fasts to obey God, it is not hard. My days of fasting are filled [with work], I complete my tasks every day and I don't feel it as hunger," Almir Seckanovic told SETimes.
Iftar, the time when a believer is allowed to eat, begins when mosques turn on their lights after sundown.
The elderly in Tuzla recall with nostalgia times when iftar was announced by cannons booming from the hills. But in today's technologically advanced times, even the muezin's voice calling from the minaret has been replaced with high quality sound-reproducing devices.
Modernisations aside, many associate Ramadan with family and friends.
"Times are changing, but some customs are constant. We still gather with family and friends over iftar. Traditionally, a table groaning with food is a good chance for family gatherings," said Muhamed Sehic, of Kladanj, a municipality between Sarajevo and Tuzla.
Others, like Samra Hidanovic, describe a sense of happiness around iftar. "I have been doing it for 12 years and enjoy it more if I spent Ramadan fasting."
Believers and non-believers alike agree that it is the delicious Afghan bread -- baked traditionally in old stoves -- that completes the experience.
Sead Hukic, who works in a Tuzla bakery, the oldest in BiH, prepares Ramadan breads as they were baked several hundred years ago. "There is nothing more beautiful than when you pass the street and smell Afghan bread and caraway, the seeds of spice put on it," he said.
During Ramadan, modesty and giving are the main Bosnian traditions. In the spirit of the holiday, many try to help the poor and the sick, while religious organisations arrange cultural events to promote spiritual harmony.
At the many Ramadan concerts and exhibitions throughout the country, the traditional Islamic levhas -- framed copper discs on which Koranic verses are engraved by traditional methods -- always seem to attract the most interest. Times may be changing, but the accent on tradition and spirituality remains the same.
*This text is courtesy of the Southeast European Times (SET), a web site sponsored by the US Department of Defense in support of UN Resolution 1244, designed to provide an international audience with a portal to a broad range of information about Southeastern Europe. It highlights movement toward greater regional stability and steps governments take toward integration into European institutions. SET also focuses on developments that hinder both terrorist activity and support for terrorism in the region.
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