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TANGENTS

St. Anthony's Festival

BY IHTISHAM KABIR
Several years ago, I was bicycling with friends through the serene village paths of Kaligonj when we unexpectedly found ourselves in a large field filled with people. The place was Panjora, about 25 km from Dhaka, and it was St. Anthony's Festival, a religious observance of Catholic Christians that takes place every February.
Last week on February 3rd, I revisited the festival to photograph it. As I arrived, people were converging from all directions to the field, which was covered with a giant pink and blue shamiana.
Prayers are a big part of this solemn event which includes speeches and sermons by dignitaries including a Vatican representative. Many people bring manti - offerings for the Saint for realisation of their wishes and prayers (manot) Pigeons, cattle and money are common manti.
At the end of formalities, Brothers and Sisters give sweets to the devotees, signifying communion. Pigeons are ceremonially released to symbolise peace on earth.
Wandering through the crowd, I see a pretty woman posing for the camera of a smartly dressed man standing a few feet away. He introduces himself as Tony Rosario from Dhaka.
“I have come here for twenty years," saysTony.
“What did you pray for?” I ask.
“For my daughter's well-being,” he replies.
The woman joins us. She is Ratna, Tony's wife. Her prayers were also for Anushka, their daughter, who attends the Bacha school.
Nearby, five young women - Cinda, Nita, Jemma, Anondi and Choiti - are chatting merrily when I take their photograph. They live nearby and attend
college. “For our studies," they say in unison when I ask them about their prayers.
Sisters Supina and Bridget are here from Tejgaon, Dhaka. Their prayer was for world peace. Missing the other Sisters who live with them but were unable to come, Supina and Bridget had offered a prayer for them.
Later, Father Proshanto Rebeiro, in charge of Nagori Catholic Church, tells me about the origin of this event.
In the 1700s, the son of a Hindu zaminder was kidnapped by Mogh pirates. While in captivity he dreamed about St. Anthony of Padua. He converted to Christianity and, after his release, started preaching in this area, calling himself Anthony.
Another local story from approximately the same time involves a statue that miraculously disappeared and reappeared at a different place. The statue was of St. Anthony.
Devotees started coming here, possibly as early as two centuries ago, to show their devotion and offer their prayers.
Father Proshanto, for example, remembers coming here as a child with his mother.
Over time, the event grew large and elaborate. This year approximately 40000 people attended, possibly making it the largest gathering of Christians in Bangladesh.
I asked Father Proshanto about special memories from the Festival. “What touched me most is the effort by the people, many walking for miles in the early morning cold, to show their devotion. I found this enlightening.”
As I left, I thought about these devotees and wished for the fulfilment of their prayers.
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