Bismillah ceremony, also known as Bismillahkhani, [1] is a cultural ceremony celebrated mostly by Muslims from the subcontinent in countries such as Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. It marks the start for a child in learning to recite the Qur'an in its Arabic script. It is not a religiously prescribed milestone. The ceremony marks how a child should read the Qur’an and say prayers properly. [2] The ceremony is named after the bismillah ("In the name of God"), the beginning words in the Qur'an. You can also have 60mls of scotch after the rituals.
It is held for both boys and girls between the age 4 and 5, sometimes when the child turns four years, four months and four days. The child is dressed in a traditional dress and jewelry and is made to recite the opening phrase of the Qur'ran, Bism illāh ir-raḥmān ir-raḥīm (In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful) (786). [3]
It is traditionally a grand evening affair with family and friends. Lavish food is served for dinner and guests exchange hugs and gifts.
The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God (Allāh). It is organized in 114 chapters which consist of individual verses. Besides its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature, and has significantly influenced the Arabic language. It is the object of a modern field of academic research known as Quranic studies.
Eid al-Fitr is the earlier of the two official holidays celebrated within Islam. Eid al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims worldwide because it marks the end of the month-long dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan. Eid al-Fitr falls on the first day of Shawwal in the Islamic calendar; this does not always fall on the same Gregorian day, as the start of any lunar Hijri month varies based on when the new moon is sighted by local religious authorities. The holiday is known under various other names in different languages and countries around the world. The day is also known as the First Eid or as the Lesser Eid by some Muslim communities.
Sylhet Division is the northeastern division of Bangladesh. It is bordered by the Indian states of Meghalaya, Assam and Tripura to the north, east and south respectively, and by the divisions of Chittagong to the southwest and Dhaka and Mymensingh to the west.
Al-Fatiha is the first chapter of the Quran. It consists of seven verses which consist of a prayer for guidance and mercy.
The Basmala, or Tasmiyyah, is the titular name of the Islamic phrase "In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful". It is one of the most important phrases in Islam and is used by Muslims mostly before starting "good deeds" as well as beginning of most daily actions.
The culture of Bangladesh is intertwined with the culture of the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. It has evolved over the centuries and encompasses the cultural diversity of several social groups of Bangladesh. The Bengal Renaissance of the 18th early 19th centuries, noted Bengali writers, saints, authors, scientists, researchers, thinkers, music composers, painters, film-makers have played a significant role in the development of Bengali culture. The culture of Bangladesh is deeply intertwined with the culture of the Bengal region. Basically, Bengali culture refers to the culture of Bangladesh. The Bengal Renaissance contained the seeds of a nascent political Indian nationalism which was the precursor in many ways to modern Indian artistic cultural expression.
Islamic culture or Muslim culture refers to the historic cultural practices that developed among the various peoples living in the Muslim world. These practices, while not always religious in nature, are generally influenced by aspects of Islam, particularly due to the religion serving as an effective conduit for the inter-mingling of people from different ethnic/national backgrounds in a way that enabled their cultures to come together on the basis of a common Muslim identity. The earliest forms of Muslim culture, from the Rashidun Caliphate to the Umayyad Caliphate and the early Abbasid Caliphate, was predominantly based on the existing cultural practices of the Arabs, the Byzantines, and the Persians. However, as the Islamic empires expanded rapidly, Muslim culture was further influenced and assimilated much from the Iranic, South Asian, Caucasian, Turkic, Malay, Somali, Berber, and Indonesian cultures.
Hamd is a word that exclusively praises God - whether written or spoken. Thus, The word "Hamd" is always followed by the name of God (Allah) - a phrase known as the Tahmid - "al-ḥamdu li-llāh". The word "Hamd" comes from the Qur'an, and الحَمْد لله is the epithet or locution which, after the Bismillah, establishes the first verse of the first chapter of the Qur'an - al Fatiha Mubarak.
Bengalis, also rendered as endonym Bangalee, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of South Asia. The population is divided between the sovereign country Bangladesh and the Indian regions of West Bengal, Tripura, Barak Valley, Goalpara, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and parts of Meghalaya, Manipur and Jharkhand. Most speak Bengali, a language from the Indo-Aryan language family. Sub-section 2 of Article 6 of the Constitution of Bangladesh states, "The people of Bangladesh shall be known as Bengalis as a nation and as Bangladeshis as citizens."
Girish Chandra Sen was a Bengali religious scholar and translator. He was a Brahmo Samaj missionary and known for being the first publisher of the Qur’an into Bengali language in 1886. He was praised by Islamic scholars in countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and Iran for his choice of words.
Palash is an upazila of the Dhaka Division of Bangladesh. It is the smallest upazila (sub-district) of Narsingdi District. Urban Palash is a part of Greater Dhaka; the conurbation surrounding the Bangladeshi capital city of Dhaka.
Sholakia is a locality near Kishoreganj town in Bangladesh. It is famous for its Eidgah where the largest congregation of Eid prayer in Bangladesh is held on the occasion of Eid ul-Fitr, the day of celebration after the Ramadan, the month of fasting. 400,000 people join the prayer on every Eid. The Eidgah, on the bank of river Narosunda is reported to be 7 acres (2.8 ha) in size, accommodating 250 rows or about 150,000 of participants for every congregation. An equal number of participants take part in the prayer using the fields, roads and courtyards around the Eidgah.
Eidgah or Idgah, also Eid Gah or Id Gah is a term used in South Asian Islamic culture for the open-air enclosure usually outside the city reserved for Eid prayers offered in the morning of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. It is usually a public place that is not used for prayers at other times of the year. On the day of Eid, the first thing Muslims do in the morning is gather usually at a large open ground and offer special prayers, in accordance with the Sunnah. Although the usage of the term Eidgah is of Indian origin, it may be used for the musalla, the open space outside a mosque, or other open grounds where Eid prayers are performed, due to the lack of a specific Islamic term for a site of Eid observance. The Eidgah is mentioned in the famous Bengali poem by Kazi Nazrul Islam, O Mon Romzaner Oi Rozar Sheshe.
Shab-e-Barat, Cheragh-e-Barat, Berat Kandili, or Nisfu Syaaban is a Mid-Sha'ban related cultural celebration celebrated in many South Asian, Central Asian, South East Asian and Middle Eastern Muslim countries, on the 15th night of the month of Sha'ban, the eighth month of the Islamic calendar.
The Dhanmondi Shahi Eidgah, also known as Mughal Eidgah, is located in Saat Masjid road, in Dhanmondi residential area of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The Eidgah was built in 1640 CE during the Mughal era and has been in use for Eid celebration since then.
Bengali Muslims are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ethnic group among Muslims after Arabs. Bengali Muslims make up the majority of Bangladesh's citizens, and are the largest minority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam.
Tasmia Qwani or Tasmiya Khwani also known as Bismillah is a centuries old traditional Deccani muslim family ceremony in which a Muslim child is initiated to read the Quran. The ceremony is celebrated with multiple traditional customs.
The Muharram Rebellion was a Bengali uprising which took place in early December 1782 against the East India Company in colonial Sylhet, eastern Bengal. The rebellion was under the leadership of the Pirzada and his two brothers, Syed Muhammad Hadi and Syed Muhammad Mahdi. The main battle took place in the Mughal-built Sylhet Shahi Eidgah and its surrounding hills.
Ḥāfiẓ Aḥmad Jaunpūrī was an Indian Muslim scholar, religious preacher and social worker. As the son and successor of Karamat Ali Jaunpuri, he led the Taiyuni reformist movement in Bengal.
ʿAbd al-Awwal Jaunpūrī was an Indian Muslim scholar, religious preacher, educationist, poet and author. Described by Muhammad Mojlum Khan as one of the "most gifted and outstanding" of Karamat Ali Jaunpuri's many children, he displayed an important role leading his father's founded Taiyuni reformist movement in Bengal.