The strangest customs in the amazing Comoros archipelago
In the dark sky with the last sunlight of 2009, on board one of the Ethiopian Airlines flights, and through an oval window that reveals a group of plateaus and mountains with high peaks overlooking the Indian Ocean, my heart was racing, announcing all manifestations of anticipation and fear before landing at the Amir airport yard. Saeed Ibrahim" International Airport on the island of "Ngazika", the largest of the islands of the Republic of the Comoros, far from being alone on this trip, but the idea did not leave my mind that a few months had passed since the accident of the Yemeni Airlines plane crash in the same place and perhaps from the same height Of the more than 150 passengers, only a single girl survived.
In the reception hall was "Masoud" the architect who received me at the airport from the company I contracted to work with on a mission that may not exceed a year. He speaks Arabic fluently and, like the majority of Comorian citizens, converts to Islam. He is married and has three children.
“Masoud” brought me to my new small apartment, which the company allocated to me near the workplace in “Heart of Fire”, this frightening name that he told me, as it is given to the capital “Moroni” because it is located at the foot of Mount “Kartala”, the legitimate father of the volcano The rebel who embraces the capital, one of the most dangerous active volcanoes, and the owner of the largest crater in the world.
Life in the heart of fire
The weather is not classic, although I was in the summer, and the land of the island is almost rocky, but the temperatures are moderate, perhaps because of the rain that falls in abundance, which soon gives way to the sun's rays that are not scorching to spread the warmth in the air.
The weather is not classic, even though I was in the summer, the temperatures were moderate, and the rains fell heavily
The Comorians speak the Comorian language among themselves. Bantu is the national language of the country, and is written in a mixture of Arabic and Latin letters, but they are fluent in speaking and writing in Arabic and French, which are among the official languages in the country.
Being a complete stranger, Masoud volunteered to take me in my early days to the places that I would need to frequent: the old commercial market, which includes a huge number of clothing, perfumery, foodstuff, and home furnishing stores, scattered here and there several hotels, hospitals, schools, small shops, pharmacies, and medical clinics, in addition to To quite a few diverse companies, and in the heart of the city is an old area, which can be clearly distinguished through the unique urban design of its various buildings, and in the middle of it is the oldest landmark of the ancient city, which is a unique urban mosque called by the Comorians in their language as "Muskevondrudi".
Masoud's house.
About two weeks after my arrival in "Nagazika" - which is known to the world as "Great Moon" - my practical and living conditions have stabilized, and I can move between the crowded streets of the capital, which is the economic and administrative capital of the country.
"Masoud" invited me to his house, which is located in the old neighborhood of "Makazi", one of the cities near the capital, to get to know his small family. "Hamida" his wife received me while she was wearing the "cheromeni", the traditional dress for women from the local citizens of the Moon Archipelago, which is a long dress It was made of colored cotton with a loose skirt in the middle, while the children wore the "sarong", which is one of the traditional costumes and is a long, colorful and loose skirt.
With a friendly welcome, and a smile that did not leave her face, Hamida served us lunch: the Tsolola is one of the main traditional dishes of the archipelago, a mixture of fish, cow and sheep meat cooked together, in coconut milk, with makatra.
The "chirumini" is the traditional dress for women in the archipelago, and it is a long colored cotton dress with a loose skirt in the middle, while the "sarong" is the loose colored children's dress
After an enjoyable meeting and acquaintance, Hamida invited me to attend the wedding of her older brother, who lives in the city of Mitsamiouli, which is located on the northwestern coast of Ngazika. Of course, I did not hesitate to accept the invitation as I was filled with curiosity to discover the traditions of the country. I did not imagine that I was a few steps away from unique rituals that I had not witnessed or read about before.
Great marriage ritual
The minarets of "Mitsamiouli" were chanting the takbeers of the holiday at an untimely time when I arrived in the city. Hundreds of women and men dressed in the traditional clothes of the archipelago gathered in a wide square filled with ornamental lights and flags leading to the groom's house, while the people crowded on the balconies and on the rooftops overlooking the square, where I was received. "benign".
The attendees were dressed in wreaths of flowers and holding sweet pies that were distributed on both sides of the crowded streets, while drums and tambourines sounded throughout the wide square, and groups of young people danced local dances, before a number of children surprised us by breaking through the ranks of the crowded street, chanting phrases I did not understand, “Hamida” told me They are heading for the bull ring at the far end of the field, where the men play.
Young people can get married legally, but they must announce their marriage in the "big marriage" ceremony, which may take place after decades of marriage and is very expensive.
The yard of the "groom's" house was very crowded. I wondered where the owner of that promised night was. "Hamidah" answered me that her brother was with the rest of the men at the "dhikr" ceremony in the main mosque in the city. Shortly after, the "groom" came with a large number of sheikhs dressed in The usual clerics, and the youth began to offer the feast to the sheikhs, before they took their places after they finished eating, then the children gathered around the table after the youth left.
I was surprised when I saw the "bridegroom", a dark-skinned man with thick white hair, carrying a sword around his waist, and wearing a traditional dress with a green scarf around his neck. He appeared to be in his fifties.
I asked her why her brother was late to get married despite his obvious financial ability, which was shown through the celebrations. After loud laughter, no less than the hustle and bustle of the festivities, the sounds of traditional folk music and songs that fill the venue through loudspeakers, she answered me, “I asked her why her brother was late to get married despite his obvious financial ability, which appears through the manifestations of the celebration? After loud laughter, no less than a hustle Celebrations, lullabies, sounds of traditional folk music and songs that fill the venue through loudspeakers, Hamida answered me that the groom has been married for more than a quarter of a century, and he has five children, one of whom is a doctor and the other an engineer, and when I asked her why he is getting married again, she told me that this ceremony is not Announcing a second marriage, but rather a celebration of his first marriage, where is the wife?
In the archipelago, the "big marriage" costs a lot, especially in light of the poverty that people suffer from, and a lot of money is spent on the new dowry, bride's jewelry, gifts for the bride's relatives, and banquets to attend, in addition to the noisy manifestations of celebration in almost all parts of the city, but its rituals are part of the cultural formation of the people lunar.
The large fees for the "big marriage" ritual do not prevent the phenomenon of marriage in the archipelago, where young people can marry legally at the lowest cost without extravagance, but they will be deprived of several political, social and religious rights until announcing their big marriage if they can do so. "The great" is not entitled to run in local or parliamentary elections, just as he is not allowed to lead people in prayer, even if he is educated and religious, and no one uses him in the customary reconciliation and arbitration sessions that spread in various cities, just as he is not allowed to wear the green scarf that symbolizes Social status and distinguish the upper class and their masters.
Without the “great marriage,” a man cannot exercise all his political rights, such as running for municipal and electoral councils, leading prayers, and wearing the green scarf that symbolizes social status and is worn by the gentlemen of the people.
Ramadan in the archipelago
With the beginning of the last week of the month of Sha'ban, the Comoros begin to receive the month of Ramadan in their own way, as the councils for holding the Qur'an and announcing marriage spread, and I used to see a large number of marriage councils in the "Bab Al-Janan" square near the old mosque in the capital, where it was customary to receive The couple Ramadan to reap the blessing of the month by announcing their marriage before it and receiving it together.
Between religious songs to the beat of tambourines and chants of worship and religious supplications, national parties organized by young people spread in various main squares, while children begin to decorate houses and streets, and after the House of Judges announces the sighting of the crescent of the month of Ramadan, children are heard chanting in the streets "Wonha", which means noon. The crescent is in the Lunar language, so that the citizens begin to carry torches and head in large numbers, accompanied by the constant beats of drums, towards the coast, where they enjoy stretching their legs in the waters of the ocean while carrying torches, and this celebration continues until they eat the suhoor together until dawn on the first day of Ramadan before returning again to their homes.
The government prohibits women from wearing tight and short clothes during Ramadan, and it criminalizes eating in public places without excuse
The government by law prohibits women from wearing tight and short clothes during Ramadan, and criminalizes eating in public places without an excuse that prevents fasting. The police are also deployed in various institutions and main streets to implement the law, as the violator is punished with a large fine. While the mosques devote themselves to the sessions of knowledge and interpretation of the Qur’an until the time of Iftar, when most families begin to carry their food that they have prepared and head towards the mosques for collective Iftars without realizing who cooked what, before everyone rushes to clean the mosque for the Isha, Tarawih and Witr prayers.
On holidays, arenas of wrestling and Sufi chants
As usual in all countries with a Muslim majority, government and private institutions stop working during religious holidays, and sacrifices abound, at a time when citizens exchange congratulations and blessings throughout the days of the feast through mutual visits, but Eid al-Adha has a special nature in the "archipelago".
On the Eid al-Adha holiday, wrestling arenas spread across the major squares, and Sufi orders march
I spent the Eid al-Adha holiday in "Mutsamudu", the largest city on the island of "Anjouan", which is more than 100 kilometers away from the Comorian capital, where wrestling arenas were held in the largest fields in the city, where men and women gathered to enjoy the martial arts of the game, while the Sufi orders and their pioneers spread in The main streets raise flags and announce the celebration of the holiday by chanting supplications and Sufi poetry to the tunes of some folkloric instruments carried by some cars and people walking behind them.
When I returned to "Moroni" at the end of the Eid days, I noticed that there were free wrestling rings at the entrances to "Bab Al-Jinan", where "Masoud" told me that it is a traditional annual tournament that takes place in the various islands of the archipelago with the system of internal qualifiers, before the finals take place in the capital to determine the champion of the feast. the new.
Although it is one of the poorest countries in the world, and this is evident in the absence of developing its simplest and most basic facilities, its pristine environment is extremely rich. The charm of the picturesque nature of the Moon Archipelago is able to make you a prisoner of the land of dreams, where the splendor of the view of the Indian Ocean includes what it contains. Of the secrets in its depths, its rocky beaches dotted with palm and banana trees, mountain heights covered with greenery, and aromatic ylang-lang flowers laden with cloves; The rich and diverse national culture of the archipelago remains one of the most important features of this country, which has been able to bring together various ethnic traditions to fuse together, forming one of the unique cultures and customs of countries around the world.
Source : websites Internet