RAMADAN-RELIGION/EGYPT-MUSAHARATY Egypt Musaharaty continues age-old tradition

Record ID: 149026

  • Title: RAMADAN-RELIGION/EGYPT-MUSAHARATY Egypt Musaharaty continues age-old tradition
  • Date: 30th June 2015
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF MAHMOUD WAKING UP PEOPLE
  • Embargoed: 15th July 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Egypt
  • Country: Egypt
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA1TH4PGTZYGLVNFGKA7VR2H7QZ
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Just before dawn, Abdel Aziz Mahmoud takes to the streets of Alexandria and begins his working day.
    The 57-year old is a Ramadan musaharaty, a man who wakes people up for their pre-dawn meal before beginning the day's fast.
    Mahmoud uses a handmade drum, which he makes himself using rabbit or goat leather and porcelain.
    After wetting the leather he pulls it over a porcelain plate.
    For Mahmoud his job of musaharaty isn't only about continuing with a Ramadan tradition, but it's also a family tradition, as his father and grandfather also took on the same role during the holy month.
    He's been doing this for more than three decades. But he says times are changing, and people don't always pay attention to his efforts.
    "Ten years ago, Ramadan was more beautiful. There was a lot of goodness 10 years ago - a lot of it. Every year is different from the year before. It used to be that, 10 years ago, during Eid, we would bring a cart with seven or eight bowls in it, and we would collect sweets and many other things. So, every year it's worse. Today, it's been seven or eight years, we get nothing. Those who used to give us sweets no longer make them - they say they buy two or three kilos from the patisserie," Mahmoud said.
    "Goodness has decreased between people. There used to be a lot of goodness. People used to be giving. They used to be happy about Ramadan. Now goodness has decreased, and those who give don't give like they used to. People's goodness has decreased. But the older generation are used to the old fashions, you see. The older ones are used to the giving, but the young generation don't know (these traditions)," he added.
    Beating his drum and walking around the city's streets, residents come out to greet him. But some say the role of the musaharaty is no longer needed, with people using alarm clocks, or alarms on their phones.
    Some residents like Ahmed Othman say everyone is awake when the musaharaty passes in the streets, making the role of the Ramadan drummer redundant.
    "It used to be that people would be sleeping - the homes would be silent, you see. So, when he [the musaharaty] used to arrive, the people used to give him a warmer welcome. Now the musaharaty passes by while everyone's already awake, so they don't feel the same happiness as before,'' said Othman.
    But others welcome and praise his efforts saying he adds a certain mood to the holy month.
    "The Musaharaty in Egypt is different from any other place, of course he brings happiness and joy and he wakes up people and children up and wishes them happy Eid, etc - it's different from any other place,'' said Alexandria resident Ibrahim Mohamed Shaaban.
    And with just over two more weeks to go until Ramadan ends, Mahmoud still has a lot more drumming to do. He's also keen to keep the tradition in the family, with his son also taking on the same role.
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