Every year 14th February comes and goes. Every year there is a lot of hustle and bustle, in the opinion sections of the Internet, where self righteous people of every kind flock to make head way on their point of view about what is right and what is wrong. The activity starts to build up in the beginning of February and chokes every forum till finally the day is over.
Such is the colossal power of globalisation and media that every Pakistani now knows about the 'importance' of the day. But it is very sad to note that if not all then most of us just skim the surface and derive ideas out of the mirage.
Almost none of the flockers know the roots of the tradition and people make very absurd statements about its origins.
Very little is known about the Saint Valentine, after whom the day is named. But all accounts do not point to any relationship between this day and expression of sentiments of courtly love as we know them today.
Nonetheless due to concentrated efforts of the capitalists the day is celebrated almost all around the world. It is celebrated in US since as early as 1840's and in Europe under different names. In Asia the day is celebrated in China, Japan, The Koreas and most of the Muslim countries.
It has been reported that Saudi authorities have banned the sale of red roses atleast until after 14th February 2008. This step has been taken after a religious edict was passed by the religious authorities.
Celebration of Valentine's day, in Pakistan, as a ritual has taken momentum in the recent seven years. With more and more people gaining access to the information highway and becoming aware of the global trends the tradition is settling in. But mature Pakistani population sees the tradition in a different light. This point of view is even stronger in the more religious and fundamentalist group of the population. But blame is to lie on both sides of the divide.
My point of view is simple. The world is shrinking into a village. We can not remain un-affected by whatever is happening around us. We can not and should not close our eyes to the reality facing us in the eye. But we can do one thing for sure. We can mold the traditions that find a middle way between both extremes. We can mold the tradition to make it possible with our own traditions. At least some of the European cultures clebrate the Valentine's day in their own traditional way. We can do the same here in Pakistan. We can follow the Japanese tradition of exchanging gifts amongst everyone without any perversive connotation.
The choice is simple, either mold or be molded. Take your pick!
Technorati Tags: Valentine, Valentine's day, Society
Such is the colossal power of globalisation and media that every Pakistani now knows about the 'importance' of the day. But it is very sad to note that if not all then most of us just skim the surface and derive ideas out of the mirage.
Almost none of the flockers know the roots of the tradition and people make very absurd statements about its origins.
Very little is known about the Saint Valentine, after whom the day is named. But all accounts do not point to any relationship between this day and expression of sentiments of courtly love as we know them today.
Nonetheless due to concentrated efforts of the capitalists the day is celebrated almost all around the world. It is celebrated in US since as early as 1840's and in Europe under different names. In Asia the day is celebrated in China, Japan, The Koreas and most of the Muslim countries.
It has been reported that Saudi authorities have banned the sale of red roses atleast until after 14th February 2008. This step has been taken after a religious edict was passed by the religious authorities.
Celebration of Valentine's day, in Pakistan, as a ritual has taken momentum in the recent seven years. With more and more people gaining access to the information highway and becoming aware of the global trends the tradition is settling in. But mature Pakistani population sees the tradition in a different light. This point of view is even stronger in the more religious and fundamentalist group of the population. But blame is to lie on both sides of the divide.
My point of view is simple. The world is shrinking into a village. We can not remain un-affected by whatever is happening around us. We can not and should not close our eyes to the reality facing us in the eye. But we can do one thing for sure. We can mold the traditions that find a middle way between both extremes. We can mold the tradition to make it possible with our own traditions. At least some of the European cultures clebrate the Valentine's day in their own traditional way. We can do the same here in Pakistan. We can follow the Japanese tradition of exchanging gifts amongst everyone without any perversive connotation.
The choice is simple, either mold or be molded. Take your pick!
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Technorati Tags: Valentine, Valentine's day, Society
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