GOING BACK TO MY ROOTS – MOULOOD AL NABI IN THE BO-KAAP BY WEAAM WILLIAMS

Naphtalim Vector
Jan 4, 2015
3 min read

This year the annual “Tweede Nuwe Jaar” celebrations in Cape Town were postponed in honour of Moulood -Al-Nabi i.e. birthday of the Prophet Muhammad Sallaalahu Alay Wasalaam. The Klopse (coon carnival) as per tradition usually parade from District Six through the city centre into the Bo-Kaap. However, these areas are lined with mosques partaking in the commemoration of the Prophet’s (SAW) birthday.

The Prophet Muhammad SAW was born on the 12th day of the Islamic month of Rabi al-Awwa 571 AD and in Islam is believed to be the Almighty’s last messenger. Titled the most influential man in history by Michael Hart “…but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels. Of humble origins, Muhammad founded and promulgated one of the world's great religions, and became an immensely effective political leader.”

“And your face that shines like the sun has been unveiled on this finest night. The night of your birth bestowed happiness on religion and splendour on this day.” The Holy Quran.

I visited Longmarket Street mosque in Bo-Kaap on Friday 2nd January 2015, to participate in the woman’s Moulood. In the Cape we have a longstanding tradition of cutting orange and lemon leaves which are then smoked with incense and infused with rose water and citrus oils, and later packaged in tiny decorative cloth bags.

Oral tradition holds that this ritual is Indonesian in origin and links the Cape Muslims to their ancestral home. It is believed that the fusion of these fragrances was the Prophet’s favourite scent.

My visit to Longmarket Street mosque was overwhelmingly nostalgic as childhood memories flooded back in vague filmic grain… holding my fathers hand who escorted me to the entrance point of the women’s section of the mosque where I would meet up with my posse of Bo-Kaap cousins, the scratchy flower girl dress and the sweet powerful fragrance which floods the senses.

The melodious vibration of Thikr and the warm feeling it leaves in my heart.

The memory, emotion and resonance of the Arabic tongue playing chords to the tune of Omnipotence, a natural progression as wholesomely raw as an untrained musician.

Many years later, I am in the mosque as a mother and media practitioner taking photographs in HD. Times have changed but the tradition of Moulood is still practised in the Bo-Kaap exactly as how I remember it.

On the night of Saturday 3rd of January, the boys and men visit the mosque for the male Moulood celebrations. They do the obligatory prayers followed by Thikr. During the Thikr rose water is passed through the Masjid (mosque), which the men use to dampen their faces, handkerchiefs or fez – a fragrance associated with memory of the prophet. Thereafter, the rampies (orange and lemon leaves) prepared by the girls and women the previous day are distributed in the Masjid.

My journey with documenting Moulood began with my project “Ancestral Omega – The Medora”. Aside from weddings, the Medora is traditionally worn on Moulood Al Nabi by Muslim women in the Cape.

At this year’s Moulood celebration, my daughter and niece above, are wearing Medoras woven by my great-grandmother, which have been in our family for five generations. In the mosque I notice many women wearing medoras in different colours with varying intricacies and designs.

It makes me realize and understand the colourful islandic nature of our Cape Muslim culture, contrary to Meccan Wahibism. I mean the Wahibi fold no disrespect, in fact have very high regard for its ideology. However, I am incredibly happy to be a part of this celebratory, vibrant, and integrated Muslim community in the Cape, where I feel free as a woman in Islam.