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Eid Dinner with the Other
Ayesha Malik Nasson
PakistanGALLERYCONVERSATION
I’m Pakistani-American and often miss the colorful festivities of Islamic holidays here in the US. When my husband and I first...
My friend is an Audrey Hepburn-like waif: all eyes, style, and merriment. In her middle school, she learned about Hinduism of course, but she also memorized the Muslim salat (prayer) and details of other national religions. That type of curriculum (limited even then) is largely gone now, a vestige of a more idealistic era in India, but it made me wide-eyed with wonder to hear tale of it.
I grew up in Pakistan and the US and learned about the dominant religions in both countries through school. I can't imagine either nation encouraging children to respectfully learn about minority beliefs in such detail without there being self-righteous protests and anger about “protecting our heritage” (read: history that makes the majority look good).
Later, when we mentioned the dinner to some Pakistani Muslim family and friends, there was scandalized consternation that we had spent a sacred holiday with non-Muslims – and Hindus on top of that. This was replaced in some cases with a “perhaps they’ll convert to Islam” attitude - as if the only reason to have relations with non-Muslims was to proselytize.
When our friends spoke to other Indians about commemorating Eid with Muslims, many of them recoiled also. In the worst but all too common cases of stereotyping and prejudice, Hindus are looked upon as unclean and malevolent by Pakistanis, while to Indians, Muslims are not only unclean but are also a potential “fifth column” whose loyalties are always questionable – even six decades after Partition.
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