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Ramadhan Lantern: Symbol of hope to light the way from the darkness

 SHAFAQNA– The lantern has been a symbol of Ramadhan for hundreds of years. Lantern is a symbol of hope to light the way from the darkness. When it comes to Ramadhan, every country has its own unique traditions based on its culture and heritage, but one common tradition you will find all over Qatar, Egypt and the rest of the Middle East is the use of colourful lanterns or ‘Fanoos’ in Arabic.

Often, these colourful lanterns will be seen adorning people’s homes, hanging in  hotels and restaurants and all over the markets. They may just be there for decorative purposes and to give Ramadhan a more festival feel, or they may be glowing with scented oils or candles giving off a beautiful scent in the surrounding air and emitting dazzling and colourful patterns on surrounding walls, according to iloveqatar.net.

Fanoos Ramahdan is of various kinds, in many shapes, materials and colors. It is also of many hues and degrees of brightness, and even both real and imaginary. It is frequently made from recycled tin cans, plastic lanterns or colored-glass used mainly during the holy Month of Ramadhan. Many lanterns whatever they are made from or their shapes have singing records playing traditional Ramadhan songs, which runs on batteries and has flashes and colorful lights. But copper lanterns with colored-glass still remain quite popular, familyholiday.net mentioned.

lanterns was used by people as a special means of lighting especially when going to Mosques at night and then it transformed into a Ramadan tradition. In Islamic history, you find that Egyptians are the first to invent the idea of the “Ramadhan Lantern” where it dates back to the era of the Fatimid state to then move from Egypt to all countries of the world.

The origin of the lantern was associated with the presence of the Mesaharaty who walked the streets, calling on sleepers to wake up to eat the Sahur (last evening meal before fasting). At that time, he walked the streets with a young child carrying a lantern, Daily News Egypt reported. Although the majority of stories recount that the launch of the lantern industry is in Egypt, but its association with Ramadhan over time spread throughout Islamic countries, to become a manifestations of the holy Month of Ramadhan.

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