–important for Guyana’s progress, President Ali says

PRESIDENT Dr Irfaan Ali has urged Guyanese to embrace inner peace, humility and unity, warning that peace remains fragile globally and must be actively nurtured within families and communities.

The Head of State made the call on Saturday as Muslims gathered for Eid-ul-Fitr Salaat at the Muslim Youth Organisation (MYO) on Woolford Avenue, Georgetown.

Reflecting on global challenges, President Ali noted that “peace is elusive,” and cautioned that those who live in peaceful societies often take it for granted.

“Sometimes, as people who enjoy this, we forget how important and beautiful peace is for our existence, how beautiful peace is for our families, our communities and our country,” he said.

Eid-ul-Fitr marks the end of the Holy Month of Ramadan, during which Muslims engaged in fasting, prayer, charity and reflection.

The President said Ramadan provides an opportunity for believers to demonstrate compassion, discipline and respect for others, particularly parents and elders.

Central to the President’s message was the pursuit of inner peace and how important it is to cultivate inner peace through faith, patience and service to others.

“When we achieve inner peace, we are able to spread peace with those around us. We’re able to be peaceful to those around us. We’re able to be positive with those around us. We’re able to lift those around us up. We’re able to spread joy. We’re able to teach patience in our own life and, of course, we cannot cultivate that inner peace without prayer, without repentance, without trusting Allah’s plan, without kindness,” President Ali said.

He drew important life lessons from Islamic teachings, the life of Prophet Muhammad and the Quran to underscore how several principles, including a reassured soul and God being one’s foundation, are key to attaining inner peace.

He said, “Allah allows us to appreciate every aspect of life, the painful aspect, the joyful aspect, and every aspect and circumstance that we face in our daily lives.”

President Ali further underscored that contentment with the creator is fundamental for inner peace.

The third aspect is accepting Divine Decree and trusting God’s plan, which the President noted can reduce anxiety and self-doubt.

He told the gathering: “You know many times the hardest trials for us is when we have to place someone in their final place in the grave, when you’re broken to pieces and you have to find the strength to pick up, the strength to lift yourself up, the strength to reassure those around you, it is then that you have to trust in Allah the most, trust in His plan, accept His plan, and even in those times of hardship, accepting it with patience, accepting it with honour, and in times when we are blessed, being thankful, being thankful for those blessings,.”

The other aspect is the purification of one’s heart and protecting it against negative traits such as jealousy, pride, greed and hate.

After highlighting those fundamental pillars, the President said, “If we are able to do these things, as we have demonstrated to ourselves in Ramadan, we will be building a heart and an inner being that understands what inner peace is, that experience inner peace not based on what someone else says to us or how someone else judges us, or how society places us, but by how our heart is protected, how we build our system to protect ourselves and protect our inner peace.”

HARMONY

In a strong appeal to social harmony, the President called for all to remember the elderly, parents and overall, community, emphasising that: “I want to remind you that even if our parents are no longer with us, we are reminded that we have a duty in maintaining kinship and friendship, upholding ties with relatives and honouring, visiting or helping the friends of deceased parents.”

The President said that too many families are broken by siblings fighting against each other.

In this regard, the President made the call, “Let this Eid be the one in which you bury your pride and regardless of the circumstances, pick up the phone and call your sibling and just say, ‘Eid Mubarak, Eid Mubarak, Eid Mubarak.”

Islamic scholar, Shaikh Moeen ul-Hack, in a sermon, noted that Eid-ul-Fitr is more than just a day of celebration but a demonstration of one’s discipline and faith.

Notably, he spoke about health and one’s well-being, underscoring the importance of physical and spiritual strength.

He also addressed pressing social concerns, especially the need for stronger community involvement to address challenges, such as bullying.

In addition, the sermon stressed the importance of education and self-reliance as pathways out of poverty and Moeen ul-Hack encouraged all to take advantage of the free scholarships being provided and employment opportunities, drawing on Islamic teachings on the dignity and value of earning through honest work.

Reinforcing that “we are each other’s keepers,” he encouraged all to reject harmful elements like selfishness and instead, actively support one another.

“Ramadan helped us to remove selfishness, selfish thinking and inculcated in us a sense of responsibility. We are each other’s keepers. We are Guyanese and known for our hospitality. Let us be kind and helpful to each other, and we will succeed individually and collectively,” he said.