Muslims all over the world seek to revive the customs and traditions inherited and associated with the holy month of Ramadan, while diversifying and renewing their application methods.
Jordanians, like other peoples of the Arab and Islamic worlds, practice various inherited rituals during Ramadan, including what is common, and others that have become rare, most notably the “dish of goodness”, which has become a habit that is limited to a limited group of people.

And the “dish of goodness” is a mobile dish of food and a visitor knocks on the doors of Jordanians, and it is carried by hands that want to prove that Ramadan is not like the rest of the months of the year, and some groups found in it a way to achieve love and intimacy between them and a way to revive the habit of solidarity and compassion.

Loving and giving

From the portal “Transferring Love and Giving” in Ramadan, the Jordanian young woman, Marwa Bani Hudhail (35 years old), launched an initiative with the same name, “The Dish of Goodness”, as part of a project that contains many initiatives through which she seeks to reactivate some of her country’s customs that have become almost forgotten.
Marwa said, “One of our inherited customs during the holy month of Ramadan is the exchange of dishes between neighbors, family and friends of various dishes (foods) that the family prepares as a meal for breakfast.”
And “this habit plays a major role in achieving harmony, interdependence, and a sense of others, and the breakfast meal is not only for the family, but for others as well,” she added.
And she added: “From here, I liked to revive the dish of goodness and its value among Muslims, especially after the habit has disappeared due to the various circumstances, especially during the Corona pandemic and people’s preoccupation with their own affairs.”
Marwa explained that “in 2019, through my own story-writing project, which I called “Their Story is a Story”, I sought to focus on reviving the value of social solidarity through the story of the dish of goodness.”
And she indicated that “The Dish of Goodness initiative was launched through a story told by the dish itself, in which it talks about its history of exchanging good and the best foods, and the importance of reviving it in our new generation and the next generation through our children who will read the story.”

Usually rare

Yousra Al-Ramahi (33 years old), a housewife, indicated in her speech that “eating and drinking is a basic human right and it is a natural thing, and I make sure that people taste what I make of food during the month of Ramadan and exchange dishes with them with affection, goodness and social solidarity.”
And she added: “You do not know, perhaps the timing of the dish is appropriate for the one to whom it is sent, and it is not necessary that the dish be served to a person of knowledge .. I see that symbiosis is achieved when food is served to someone you do not know.”
While Rasha Abu Hanish (39 years old) said that this habit is “a social and inherited habit, concerned with the exchange of food dishes between neighbors and loved ones, and it increases familiarity and love between people, strengthening relations and making new friendships, and this habit is active in Ramadan.”
As for Hanadi Al-Jabr (48 years old), she described this habit as “love and goodness,” pointing out that “goodness existed among people in the past, and the exchange of dishes is now a rare habit that needs to be revived and renewed.”

Upbringing of generations

“Such initiatives are very important for raising generations and educating them to do good deeds, solidarity, and solidarity among the members of society, which were practiced in the past,” according to academic and researcher in sociology, Hussein Khuzaie.
Khazaee added, “Unfortunately, at the present time, we have begun to notice that it is not being practiced due to urban expansion, isolation, and the desire” to live in (small) nuclear families, which constitute 76 percent in the Kingdom, which is twice the global percentage.
And he added, “Such habits are not known to children at the present time. My understanding is very important for their upbringing and informing them of positive behaviors in the past and the strength of the bonds that were between parents and neighbors, which we feel are diminishing at the present time.”
Khuzaie called for the revival and promotion of these practices, “because they support families economically, as families depend only on one meal (one type of food), and by exchanging dishes, meals are formed and multiplied, as well as learning about food culture among neighbors, especially since cities usually have People of many nationalities.
He also stressed that “these customs strengthen the bonds between the members of the community and support their positive and supportive relationship in all circumstances, participation in all events and occasions with neighbors, family and relatives, and enhance acquaintance with each other.”

(Anatolia)