I got married at the age of 20. Dad forced me to get married! Anyway, at least I didn't go down without explaining myself first. On the first and last night of the marriage, I was awakened by my wife's call. He used to say with a kind of command, "He is giving Azan, come to the prayer."
My father is a teacher in a madrasa. He has been leading the mosque for 30 years. The day you don't see me in the mosque for Fajr prayers, I don't have food on my forehead half the day. Dad is a very strict person. Except for the grandmother, not a single person in the house dares to fight without her order.
As a child, if the Fajr prayers were missed, it was limited to a few messages. These are strict rules since growing up. Mother, of course, would eat quietly.
But my father got me married and there was another problem. My father's name is Afia. Father's student. His main job is to complain to my father about what I don't do all day.
When he suddenly missed the Fajr prayers for some reason, he would laugh and say, "Stop eating today." Really, after marriage, if I miss prayers, I stop eating till noon.
Now you must understand how I grew up in a family. The father, of course, had an argument behind this strict rule. He used to say, "The fool who destroys the eternal sleep for the sake of a momentary restful sleep is a fool. And the eyes and ears have to be opened with the punishment of fools."
We are four brothers and sisters. Pithapithi's two elder brothers are in the department of 'Al-Quran and Islamic Education' at Kushtia Islamic University
Reading and writing. They are also married. Hafez is the elder sister of Quran. He also got married a year ago.
I am the youngest in the family. My father wanted me to study in a madrasa and become a big Maulana. I was there until I was 7 years old.
One day my father came home in the evening. Grandma sent word to me to call my father.
Baba saluted and sat next to his grandmother.
Grandmother looked at her father in silence for a while and said,
"Khalil, do you remember what illness your father was dying of?"
Hearing this, my father started eating. He probably didn't expect that. Because the grandmother always told her father various things to rule over her grandchildren. She may have thought that such a thing would happen.
Dad said in an unprepared voice, "Yes, I remember Mom. Dad had cholera, died without any treatment."
Grandmother winked and said, "There was no doctor in the seven gerams. If there was, your father might still be alive."
"Yeah. Mom. Maybe God could have survived." Saying this, the father wiped his eyes with the Punjabi sleeve.
I was standing at the door. Grandma brought me to the side and sat me down. He turned his hand on my head and said to my father, "I want one of the pola doctors of the family to serve the people." Grandma paused and looked into her father's eyes. "You should not teach Abdullah in a madrasa but in a school."
The next day my father admitted me to the school at the word of my grandmother. My lifestyle changed radically!
I left my white Punjabi hat, put on my pants and shirt and started going to school.
After SSC, I fell in the company of friends and came home clean shaven. Dad did not allow me to enter the house. Holding a statue of fire, he said in a loud voice,
"A Jew-Christian who turns around can't be my son. You go out."
I'm head over heels. I could not utter a word. I was thinking, the hostel is closed, where should I go and what should I do.
Dad suddenly picked up my bag lying on the ground and handed it to me. He showed me the way out and said,
"On the day when the beard grows on the face, I will come home with full circumcision, not before."
Grandmother came out when she heard the noise. Said in a sharp voice,
"Khalil, what happened, Ray? Why are you taking out the Thai house?"
"Mommy why did you get out of this body? Go inside."
"I don't see your courage less. You will take my grandson out. At this age, you have not grown a beard properly."
Grandma looked at me. Thurthur came forward and took my hand inside the room.
Even so, I rarely talked to my father. He would call me if there was any need. That night my father came to my room himself. I was trembling with fear of the unknown. I was mentally preparing to digest his words. He said softly, "Have you eaten rice, father?"
I was a little shocked by his sincerity. I nodded and said in a weak voice, "Yes."
"Do you know why I rule you so much?"
I'm silent. Not answering. The father said again, "Fathers never want the child to be bad. I rule so much so that you don't fall into the trap of bad companions."
"Dad, I'm wrong. I'm sorry."
"Look, people will make mistakes. But it's not right to make mistakes knowingly; cheating on yourself, cheating on yourself, these mistakes are very serious. Do you know which period men will take directly to the grave?"
"No, Dad."
Dad smiled and replied, "Beard is the only circumcision that can go to the grave with a man."
I wanted to say something, my father stopped and said, "Clean shave means smart. Smartness of ideal Muslims means to keep beard from youth. Many people say let's get married, have children, then I will keep beard?
To be continued..
