New Hijri year begins tonight: Have we as a nation and as individuals learned anything from our difficult past

(Patria) - According to the Almanac of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the new Hijri year begins tonight with the evening prayer (Maghrib), and the 1st of Muharram 1445 AH is on Wednesday, July 19.

The Muslim calendar is a lunar calendar, and its year is 10 days shorter than the solar calendar year. This method of timekeeping was adopted during the caliphate of Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, and the Hijra – the migration of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, from Mecca to Medina – was taken as the beginning of the calendar.

The Hijra occurred in 622 AD.

"The Hijra has its temporal meaning and significance, but also a timeless message and imperative. The temporal context and significance of the Hijra for Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and his companions, as well as the Ansar, are described in detail, and are described and spoken about anew each year.

However, Muslims today in general, and Muslims of Bosnia and Herzegovina in particular, have not yet grasped the timeless message and imperative of the Hijra.

The Hijra in a broader sense means change and movement, and as a historical event in Islam, by which Muslims calculate their calendar, it refers not to the individual, but to the collective, the nation, and the Ummah. Change and movement are the two fundamental messages of the Hijra," stated the chief imam of the Islamic Community Council (MIZ) Jajce, Zehrudin-ef. Hadžić, for the MINA Agency.


He added that the Quranic verse "Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change themselves" actually means that a people who are not ready for change and movement are doomed to stagnation and ruin, and to a life without blessings.


"We are witnessing daily attacks on the entire identity of Bosniaks and the integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. After genocide, urbicide, and culturecide in Bosnia and Herzegovina, sociocide is now on the scene – state institutions are being attacked from outside and inside – a scenario similar to that of the recent past.

And have we, as a nation and as individuals, learned anything from our difficult past for a better future?! We were, for several years, admittedly in different ways, both muhajirs and Ansar. Have we learned the lessons of the Hijra?" he asked.


He emphasized that only "when we responsibly respect the order of magnitude, will the Gracious God grant us the blessings of the majority, so that we are not carried away like sea foam by various waves from outside and inside, right and left."


"The Hijra is a universal message about the principles of faith and the lifelong search for peace in life, which we find in the constant struggle for justice, regardless of dreams, because the meaning of a dream is not a life imperative. And the Hijra is a reminder – that we must do and change something, and not just complain, talk a lot, and wait – because blessings are in movement and change," concluded Zehrudin-ef. Hadžić.