E-Paper
Date with God: Be it kirtan or namaz, meet Almighty virtually amid lockdown
With a complete end to the Covid-19 lockdown nowhere in sight, the religious souls are exploring the virtual space to maintain their religious routine by maintaining social distancing from each other but not God.
Earlier, when people would organise prayers online, they’d be ridiculed or accused of doing so for putting an appearance of being gen fast forward. But since the lockdown has forced us to stay cooped up inside our houses, praying online has gone from being labelled as fashionable to becoming the need of the hour.
To stop social distancing from turning into a state of isolation, people are turning to the virtual medium to keep their religious routines and faith intact. While many churches around the world are web streaming their mass and services online, temple-goers in India are sharing prayers on WhatsApp, and those observing the holy month of Ramzan are even sharing Sehri on Zoom calls with friends and family members.
Asha Sukh, a homemaker from Delhi’s Rajendra Nagar, says she’s in regular touch with her friends who accompanied her to the local temple, to ensure she doesn’t miss her religious routine. She says, “I had been going to the temple for decades, and to not to be able to do that now was making me feel like my day is incomplete. So we started sharing kirtan links online; some days we even get on Skype to pray together. Hum toh yehi mangte hain bhagwan se ki ye corona khatam ho (We pray to God that this pandemic comes to an end).’’
Some have also turned to online pooja services since the lockdown has been never-ending. Santosh Agarwal, who runs a popular website called PujaBhandar.com, informs that some residents have reached out to him to avail such services. “We take about four to five days to make all the arrangements and we conduct the rituals on video call, mostly via WhatsApp; with priests who sit in the temple on behalf of the individuals organising the pooja.’’ With the lockdown expected to extend further beyond May, he feels more people will take to online conduction of ceremonies.
Abu Sufiyan, is one of the Delhiites from a group that’s running a campaign titled #IbadatGharSe. Herein people share photos of the makeshift mosques they have created at their home during the Ramzan, to be able to pray with their families without venturing out. “We are asking people to stay at home and not congregate outside. Social media helps us in feeling a sense of inclusion even during this time,” says Sufiyan describing how his father keenly watches Tarawih (ritual prayers in the month of Ramzan) live from Mecca. And Mohammed Furqan, a resident of Agra, Uttar Pradesh, says he’s perturbed by the lockdown but stays connected with his relatives on zoom calls. “It makes me feel I’m not alone during this time,” adds Furqan.
In Mayur Vihar, Crossway Church of Delhi is organising Sunday sermons online, both on Facebook and Zoom, for its community members. Pastor Stanley Thomas Isac says that the services have been appreciated by regular church-goers due to their inability to make it to the church due to the lockdown. “It’s easier for people to connect online, specially in a place like Delhi where most complain of traffic and work stress. Moreover, people get a good opportunity to learn to be with God while they are alone at home. Though the physical touch is missing, but something is better than nothing,” he smiles.
