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Austerity in marriages: The role of youth
By Mushtaq-ul-Haq Sikander. Dated: 7/2/2013 11:33:15 PM
Marriage as an institution has been the cornerstone of every civilization and no society can survive for long without this institution retaining its valorousness and strength. The dawn of 21st century on one hand has been a witness to countless progress in the field of science and technocracy making our lives full of luxuries and comforts while on the other hand we are encountered with numerous problems baffling mankind ranging from decline in moral ethics to materialism which the present revolution brought in its wake.
Marriage too has came under strain in this crisis between Spirit versus Matter and Modernity versus Tradition. Marriage in every religion, is a sacred institution which in its wholeness brings various responsibilities turning the couple into being a better, progressive and contributing citizens of the society. Islam too lays down definite principles to be observed while solemnizing marriages and Prophet Of Islam(PBUH) has stressed in scores of Ahadith the importance and necessity of this sacred institution. Sharia makes every attempt to make marriage attainable to every single soul while debarring every other means of gratifying one's lust difficult & impossible to achieve, but what we are a witness to in our society is exactly the opposite. The gluttonous feasts, the mega priced dresses, the huge dowries, the unending baraats, the bardy singers and noisy musicians with their ear itching neither purely classical nor jazz or rap make the unuttered, unheard and unsensed cries of the poor die down in oblivion.
The youth which are the shining future of any nation are mute spectators of all this injustice culminated in the name of this sacred institution. They let all this perpetuate in the name of social norms never thinking of resisting these "Crimes Against Humanity", conducted in the name of maintaining status quo. It is an acknowledged fact that the youth have the ideas, energy and skill to initiate any revolution and make it attain its Zenith. So the burden of rooting out the evil of extravagant and Pompous marriages lies on the shoulders of youth who must first of all pledge that they in their individual capacity will solemnize their own marriages without any pomp and show (Riya) according to Islamic Teachings.
At the collective level they will make others realize about the ill effects of extravagant marriages and build up a campaign for conducting austere marriages. Again they will boycott all such marriages, which promote extravagance and glamour. The un-Islamic rituals
like ring-ceremony, Mehendiraat and Baraat are out of question. If this trend of extravagant marriages continues to spread its tentacles through the vivisection of our society, the future will be quite bleak as is crystal clear from the fate of West. According to a statement September 15, 2008 from the U.S Department of Health and Human Services in the year 2007 there were 7.4 marriages per 1000 Americans and 3.7 of them ended in divorce and 37 percent of all births were to unmarried women. These statistics spell a serious moral and spiritual trouble of any nation.
In our state too we have soaring statistics of youth who have crossed their marriageable age because they couldn't entertain the fantasies of the rigid social norms and rituals laid down by the society. The society as a whole needs to meet this challenge, which is aftermath of our ritual ridden marriages which are also resulting in widening the divide between poor and the effluent class of society, thus becoming the fuel for the simmering resentment.
Thus the youth need to rise from the deep slumber, come out of dizziness, realize their capability to revolutionize and understand their true responsibilities; so that once again the Valley becomes the abode of Rishis and Pirs not prostitutes. It becomes the moral responsibility of youth not to let the Pir Vare retrogress into prostitution.
(Mushtaq ul Haq Ahmad Sikander is Writer-Activist, presently student of Masters Program of Political Science and can be reached at sikandarmushtaq@gmail.com)