On Thursday a video went viral, wherein a Maulvi was seen cutting off a sacred thread from a child’s neck in the exchange for some relief material. Reportedly, the video is from Noakhali, Bangladesh.
In the video, a small boy could be seen standing in knee-deep water where a Maulvi in a skull cap, along with two other young men, stops him and displays a bag of relief materials.
The Maulvi cuts off the sacred thread which the boy was wearing around his neck, while another man hands the boy a plastic bag. The boy asks the Maulvi to return his Holy thread and one of the young men can be heard saying that it would bring bad luck and a curse if the boy took it back.
One of the youths can be heard saying in Bengali in the video, “taale tumaake shraap debe,” which translates to “you will be cursed otherwise.” Another youth again warns the boy that he will not receive the relief materials again if he asks for the thread.
Then the two youths ask the boy to look into the camera and wave goodbye. He tells that boy in Bengali, “Jaao, jaao, khishi toh, tata dao”, which translates to “go, go, hope you are happy, say goodby”.
In the video, it is not clear whether the boy is a Hindu or a Muslim, the Maulvi can be seen removing the sacred thread from the child’s neck in exchange for relief material.
Such things are symbolic of increasing the radicalisation as a Puritan form of Islam insists on not following such practices. The apologists can claim it simply a maulvi doing his job but these are symptomatic of how Jamaat ideology is growing rapidly.
In recent years the attacks on Sufi shrines in Pakistan and Afghanistan have increased, driven by Salafists and other jihadist sects that view such practices as haraam (forbidden) within their interpretation of Islam. These extremist groups worship at dargahs (shrines), the use of tabeez (amulets), kalawa (sacred threads), and other Sufi rituals as heretical behaviours, which they believe deviate from the teachings of Islam.
The opposition of Salafists and jihadists to Sufism has led to violent attacks on Sufi shrines especially in Pakistan and Afghanistan. These attacks include bombings, shootings, and other forms of terrorism aimed at destroying the shrines and instilling fear in their devotees.
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