Muftija Pitić: Bajram is celebrated by those who return to their true nature

(Patria) - The Ramadan period each year reminds us of the importance of refraining from that which displeases the Creator, as well as of our own capacity for self-control – a quality believers strive to preserve throughout the entire year. The days of Bajram, after a period of special discipline, we experience as joy and a time of gathering, but also as a reminder to preserve the values acquired during Ramadan.

Muftija of Goražde, Remzija-ef. Pitić, emphasises that Ramadan is often mistakenly viewed as a time of deprivation, while its essence is a return to the nature of man and the purpose of his creation.

– During Ramadan, we do not deprive ourselves, but rather return to the nature (fitrah) of the purpose of our creation, so that we can truly rejoice. Only those who have returned to that nature can truly celebrate Bajram – said Muftija Pitić.

He stresses that the modern consumerist view of life sees deprivation as a limitation, while Islam understands deprivation as a protection of man from that which harms him.

– Deprivation means preserving oneself within God's order of things from what is forbidden, but also from excessive attachment to what we do not need – he pointed out.

Speaking about the values that are important to preserve even after Ramadan, Muftija Pitić indicates that it is not realistic to expect the state from Ramadan to continue with the same intensity, but it is possible to retain its trace.

– It would be good if each Ramadan we left behind some of our weaknesses and never returned to them. Continuing the good Ramadan condition after Ramadan would be a true victory over oneself – he said.

He particularly emphasised the importance of gratitude as a foundation of faith, which is manifested not only in words but also in deeds.

– And we will best thank Allah if we refrain from His prohibitions and do not cross the boundaries He has established and determined. We will be grateful when we receive our wages and wonder whether we truly earned them. We will be grateful when we carry out our trust and entrusted tasks in the best possible way. No person who constantly asks 'where am I in this' will ever be grateful – he said.

On the second day of Bajram, when the Day of Martyrs is observed, Muftija Pitić reminds of the permanent obligation to preserve the memory and trust of those who gave their lives for the homeland.

– They are not dead as long as they gather us for the Day of Martyrs. We have initiated a process in Goražde for 300 people to recite two pages of the Qur'an each in that hatm for the noble Bosnian martyrs. It is shameful, and we have such practices, for only imams to recite the hatm. We will visit the noble soil of this land where they lie and once again commit ourselves to preserving the trust they left us – he emphasised.

In the context of the Bajram message, Muftija Pitić stresses that the Ramadan experience should remind us of refraining from comfort, convenience, greed, conceit, self-love, self-sufficiency, selfishness, serving what is worse than oneself, and all kinds of abuses.

– Introducing self-control, order, humility, sociability, generosity, responsibility, modesty, and similar values that lead us to a state of Gratitude bring us into the fullness of Bajram joy – concludes Muftija of Goražde, Remzija-ef. Pitić.