"Hasti Bibi like Jalebis" by KUMAR MANISH, TIMES NEWS NETWORK , Times of India, Feb 20, 2010
In Ahmedabad,when a child is sick,worried parents
often carry the infant to a tiny dwelling in a Jain neighbourhood,the humble shrine or gokhlo of Hasti Bibi.An empathetic Muslim woman whose ability to heal through laughter has accorded her saintlike status,Hasti Bibi (the laughing saint) does not stop to check whether the teary eyes are that of a Hindu or Muslim parent.
Tejal Vadke,29,the owner of a jewellery shop opposite the shrine,prays to her every day."During exams,we used to keep our pen at the shrine before we left for the exam centre.Whenever I am faced with any problem,I come to Hasti Bibi for help and she has always made me smile," says Vadke.His father brought young Tejal to the shrine when he was a boy.
The gokhlo is a simple marble cavity with a clay lamp resting on a bed of roses and mogra.Its most endearing feature is that it is built fairly low in order to allow a child to peer inside."Hasti Bibi was a family member of Hazrat Sheikh Bin Abudullah Al Edrus,a sufi saint.She was given a boon by Allah that whoever comes to her doorstep with any worries will go smiling due to her pious nature and devotion," says Mukhtiar Ahmed Arab,caretaker of the shrine.Although this is a communally sensitive area,both Hindus and Muslims worship at the shrine on Thursdays."On Thursdays,people start coming from 6 am and this continues till late in the night," says Arab.
If the child gets well,the parent can light a stick of incense,or,give the laughing saint the one treat she most enjoys,a hot jalebi.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
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Thursday, February 25, 2010
Visiting the Shrine of Hasti Bibi in Ahmedabad, India
"Hasti Bibi like Jalebis" by KUMAR MANISH, TIMES NEWS NETWORK , Times of India, Feb 20, 2010
In Ahmedabad,when a child is sick,worried parents
often carry the infant to a tiny dwelling in a Jain neighbourhood,the humble shrine or gokhlo of Hasti Bibi.An empathetic Muslim woman whose ability to heal through laughter has accorded her saintlike status,Hasti Bibi (the laughing saint) does not stop to check whether the teary eyes are that of a Hindu or Muslim parent.
Tejal Vadke,29,the owner of a jewellery shop opposite the shrine,prays to her every day."During exams,we used to keep our pen at the shrine before we left for the exam centre.Whenever I am faced with any problem,I come to Hasti Bibi for help and she has always made me smile," says Vadke.His father brought young Tejal to the shrine when he was a boy.
The gokhlo is a simple marble cavity with a clay lamp resting on a bed of roses and mogra.Its most endearing feature is that it is built fairly low in order to allow a child to peer inside."Hasti Bibi was a family member of Hazrat Sheikh Bin Abudullah Al Edrus,a sufi saint.She was given a boon by Allah that whoever comes to her doorstep with any worries will go smiling due to her pious nature and devotion," says Mukhtiar Ahmed Arab,caretaker of the shrine.Although this is a communally sensitive area,both Hindus and Muslims worship at the shrine on Thursdays."On Thursdays,people start coming from 6 am and this continues till late in the night," says Arab.
If the child gets well,the parent can light a stick of incense,or,give the laughing saint the one treat she most enjoys,a hot jalebi.
In Ahmedabad,when a child is sick,worried parents
often carry the infant to a tiny dwelling in a Jain neighbourhood,the humble shrine or gokhlo of Hasti Bibi.An empathetic Muslim woman whose ability to heal through laughter has accorded her saintlike status,Hasti Bibi (the laughing saint) does not stop to check whether the teary eyes are that of a Hindu or Muslim parent.
Tejal Vadke,29,the owner of a jewellery shop opposite the shrine,prays to her every day."During exams,we used to keep our pen at the shrine before we left for the exam centre.Whenever I am faced with any problem,I come to Hasti Bibi for help and she has always made me smile," says Vadke.His father brought young Tejal to the shrine when he was a boy.
The gokhlo is a simple marble cavity with a clay lamp resting on a bed of roses and mogra.Its most endearing feature is that it is built fairly low in order to allow a child to peer inside."Hasti Bibi was a family member of Hazrat Sheikh Bin Abudullah Al Edrus,a sufi saint.She was given a boon by Allah that whoever comes to her doorstep with any worries will go smiling due to her pious nature and devotion," says Mukhtiar Ahmed Arab,caretaker of the shrine.Although this is a communally sensitive area,both Hindus and Muslims worship at the shrine on Thursdays."On Thursdays,people start coming from 6 am and this continues till late in the night," says Arab.
If the child gets well,the parent can light a stick of incense,or,give the laughing saint the one treat she most enjoys,a hot jalebi.
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