Vibes of Ramdan In Egypt

• 16 / 5 / 2023

Ramadan in Egypt with the confirmation of the vision of the crescent of the great month of Ramadan, the Egyptian street turns into a beautiful celebration, so the movement of people in the markets is active to buy the usual Ramadan supplies, and the streets are decorated with colorful leaves and lanterns, and the sight of children carrying traditional Ramadan lanterns with them singing some folk songs, the most famous of which are: sweet, sweet..... Ramadan is generous and sweet.

The Egyptian street is distinguished in the month of Ramadan by the voices of the well-known Quran reciters in Egypt, including Sheikh Mohammed Rifaat, Sheikh Abdel Basset Abdel Samad, Sheikh Mohammed Siddiq al-Fanshawe, Sheikh (Ramadan Abdel Moez), religious singer (Mustafa Atef), Mahmoud Khalil al-Hosri and the prayers of Sheikh Mohammed Metwally Al-Shaarawi, which are listened to everywhere, to preserve the spirituality of this holy month and preserve the worship of fasting.

Ramadan dishes in Egypt,
Perhaps the first dish is the dish of beans, and this Ramadan dish is hardly devoid of a Ramadan table, where Bean sellers are spread everywhere in Egypt, with their distinctive voice urging people to buy, saying: if the beans are saved, I am not responsible. What came into your mind one day, you break the fast with us.

The Ramadan table is very rich and varied, as people start breakfast with dates, drinking milk, moonshine, carob, and eating "kasha", and some may like to drink fresh juices such as orange, mango, or cantaloupe, and after returning from the Maghrib prayer, people start eating foods that fill the tables with all kinds of foods and many, such as Mallow, soup, vegetables, pasta with bechamel, the table is decorated with a green salad or yogurt salad with cucumber, stuffed with grape leaves, grilled chicken or some women compete with each other in preparing food, exchanging vows and feasting with parents and relatives.

After breakfast is over, you should have some desserts, some of the most famous of which are: kunafa, Qatayef, baklava, muhallabiya, Umm Ali, and blah al-Sham.

A mosque during Ramadan in Cairo,
People go to perform Taraweeh prayers in various mosques, where they are filled with worshipers of different age stages. Women have a share in this field. many mosques have allocated a section for women to perform these devotional feelings. Taraweeh prayers are medium-length prayers where the imam recites a part or a little less of it, but this is not the whole. there are many mosques where worshippers pray in three parts, and there are even those who pray in ten parts where he begins to pray after dinner and ends late at night.

The Lantern of Ramadan in Egypt,
Ramadan lanterns are one of the most important popular manifestations in Egypt during the month of Ramadan, as they give a distinctive festive character that reminds them of the joy and the words that characterize the joys of Arabs and Muslims to sing and sing Ramadan songs, and many also see that the lantern represents a symbol of the blessed month of Ramadan, especially in beloved Egypt.

The beginning of Ramadan in Khan al-Khalili,
One of the main phenomena and features of Ramadan in Egypt is that its mosques are filled with worshippers, which is what prompts some mosque imams on the first Friday of Ramadan to deliver a distinctive sermon that worshippers used to hear every year about why there are not so many on ordinary days of the year,  The Qiyam prayer (Tarawih) is also witnessing a strong turnout, especially in the last ten days, and on the night of fate.

One of the new phenomena in this context is the turnout for the tahajjud prayer, which runs from midnight until Suhoor time, as well as frequent Itikaf in major mosques, and the peak of Ramadan events on Laylat al-Qadr, where thousands of worshippers flock to major mosques, such as the "Amr ibn al-Aas" mosque since the noon prayer. It is associated with previous manifestations of seeing a lot of Quran readers on public transport, stopping serving alcohol, and a large number of bars voluntarily closing their doors. This is in addition to scenes of official religious activities through the Ministry of Awqaf, Al-Azhar, and others, such as Convoys of Preachers, The Forum of Islamic Thought, and the travel of preachers and readers to various parts of the world to commemorate the nights of Ramadan; which is greatly influenced by current global events.

The Mediterranean Bride of Alexandria,
What is happening in Ramadan in Alexandria is very similar to what is happening in Cairo, where mosques are filled with worshippers and praying of Tarawih and Tahajjud are spread in mosques. And the traffic in the city gradually decreases until it is completely absent at the time of Maghrib until the evening adhan and after the adhan, the streets are filled with people and the Ramadan tents are spread in the city and the Customs and traditions inherited for hundreds of years begin, in the first week of Ramadan, the exchange of visits, eating and feasting with parents, relatives and friends begins, and children buy lanterns, decorations and lanterns hang all over the city, and Tahajjud and Taraweeh prayers abound, and one of the most famous mosques organized in the city is the Qaed Ibrahim mosque, where crowds of worshippers come from all regions and neighborhoods the huge number of worshippers in Ramadan, especially in the last ten, reaches several thousand Worshippers gather from around the mosque to RAML Station Square, Corniche and even to areas far from the mosque and even next to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, traffic is completely disrupted and some streets are closed because of the large number of worshippers, especially in the last ten of Ramadan from midnight until the early hours of Dawn, and mosques are distinguished by many sheikhs with a wonderful voice and the most famous of them is the young Sheikh Hatem Farid. The tables of Mercy are also spread in the city and alms are distributed to the needy throughout the month of Ramadan, the reading of the Holy Quran is sealed in homes and mosques, affection and mercy are spread among people differences are forgotten, and minutes before the Moroccan adhan, volunteers are deployed on the roads to distribute water, dates and juices to those who are late to go home to break the fast. Fireworks (bumblebees and Rockets) are also launched into the streets as the sun sets.

In the city of Tanta, the bride of the Delta,
What happens in Ramadan in the city of Tanta, which is located in the center of Cairo and Alexandria and is 93 km away from Cairo and Alexandria 120 km is very similar to what happens in various Egyptian cities during the holy month, where an atmosphere of safety and stability prevails and we find streets adorned with lanterns and paper decorations prepared by young people and children, you also find commercial areas full of food and Ramadan Mr. Bedawi with colorful lights and you feel a spiritual atmosphere that is difficult for you to feel outside Egypt and enjoy the Holy Quran There are Ramadan courses organized by young people in the city of Tanta, as well as the sellers of kunafa and Qatif, and people gather at the time of Taraweeh prayers and find the streets crowded to the last, especially in Sayyid al-Badawi Square and the First Sea Street area of Fajr al-Islam mosque and the streets of the city are decorated with paper decorations, especially in young people prepare them themselves and lanterns with their diverse colors that create an atmosphere of joy in the souls of all Egyptians.

Ramadan cannon,
Breakfast Cannon. The hero of this sentence is the cannon, the sound of which was associated in the Egyptian human mind with family reunion and family warmth, no matter how far he traveled or traveled away; the cannon of Ramadan has Tales, stories, and history, some of which were the main hero, others the narrator, and sometimes he was content with the role of a companion, but nevertheless it still always evokes in our souls nostalgia for Ramadan and its nights.

History books tell that the ruler of Egypt in the Mamluk era, "Khoshqadam", was trying out a new cannon given to him by one of the governors, and it happened that the first shot came at the sunset of the first Ramadan in 859 ah, and after that, the sheiks and the people of Cairo flocked to the palace of "khoshqadam" thanking him for firing the cannon at the time of breakfast, so he continued to fire it after that.

Another version is that Muhammad Ali the Great, the governor of Egypt and the founder of the rule of the Alawite dynasty in Egypt from 1805 was trying a new cannon imported from Germany as part of his plans to modernize the Egyptian army, the first shot went off at the time of the Moroccan adhan in the month of Ramadan, so his voice was associated in the minds of the public with Iftar and Suhoor Ramadan, who called that Cannon "need Fatima", because of its association with the month of Ramadan, and his place was in the castle of "Salah al-Din Ayyubi".

In the middle of the nineteenth century, specifically during the reign of Khedive Abbas I in 1853, two cannons were launched for breakfast in Cairo: the first from the castle, and the second from the Sarai of "Abbas Pasha I" in Abbasiya - a suburb of Cairo - and during the reign of Khedive "Ismail" it was thought to put the cannon in a high place so that its sound reaches the largest area of Cairo, and settled in Mount Mokattam, where he celebrated before the beginning of Ramadan the castle stores again.

The function of the cannon has evolved and it was a tool to announce the vision of the crescent of Ramadan, after the vision is confirmed, the cannons are launched from the castle in celebration of the fasting month, in addition to firing 21 rounds throughout the three days of Eid.

Thus, the sound of the Cannon continued to be an essential element in the life of Egyptians during Ramadan through the cannon, which dates back to the era of "Muhammad Ali" until the radio appeared, so it stopped being fired from the castle in many cases, although the audio recording of it was broadcast daily on radio and television until officials decided to broadcast the launch on the air in the ears of Morocco from the castle, as the Egyptian Interior Minister Ahmed Rushdi decided in 1983 to re-launch the cannon from the "castle of Salah al-Din Ayyubi" throughout Ramadan on Suhoor and iftar, so the cannon returned its role and splendor.

However, at the beginning of the nineties, the Egyptian Antiquities Authority asked the Ministry of Interior to stop its release from the castle for fear of the area, which is an open Museum of Islamic antiquities, as it includes the castle "Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi", built in 1183 ad, and the"Marmari mosque", built by the great "Muhammad Ali" according to the Ottoman architectural style in 1830, in addition to the collectors "Sultan Hassan","Rifai", and the"four Castle museums". The authority warned that the firing of the Cannon 60 times on Suhoor and iftar Ramadan and 21 rounds each Azan on the three days of Eid affect the life span of these effects due to the vibrations caused by its firing.

Indeed, it was thought to move it to another place, and the opinion settled on Mount Mokattam again, as two of the three remaining cannons from the family of Muhammad Ali were moved there, and the third Cannon was kept as a tourist attraction in the courtyard of the Police Museum in Salah al-Din castle overlooking Cairo from a High Knoll. Until now, Egyptians heard the sound of cannons on the radio or television screens, which is considered a heritage and tradition of Ramadan in Egypt.