Setting an example of communal harmony, an elderly Sikh in south Kashmir honored a Muslim youth after completing his Aetikaaf (I’tikaf) in the last ten days of Ramadan.
Aetikaaf is a meritorious voluntary act. It derives from a word meaning ‘to stay in one place.’ It is best done in the last ten days of Ramadan since the Prophet did that. Linguistically it means devotion to a thing and sticking to it.
The youth identified as Waseem Ahmed, a resident of the Padibal area of Tral in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district was greeted by the Sikh community after completion of Aetikaaf in a Tral mosque.
Karnail Singh (80) revered alike by both the Muslim and Sikh communities honored Waseem by tying a ‘Dastaar’ over his head.
The video posted by Mufti Islah, a senior Kashmiri journalist has gone viral over social media. “The village has a mixed population – 12 Sikh and 18 Muslim households,” Mufti Islah said.
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Karnail Singh, in 80s, honouring Wasim, 20, in Padibal, Tral as he steps out of mosque, after performing Iʿtikāf – an Islamic practice where a person immerses himself in prayers within mosque confines for 10 or more days. Inputs @qayoomkhan pic.twitter.com/2kCthIm7oZ— Mufti Islah (@islahmufti) May 4, 2022
The netizens describe it as a kind gesture by the Sikhs and a glowing example of communal harmony among Muslims and Sikhs