I heard a loud recitation of the Holy Quran as I walked into my mother’s room. “Did you talk to the doctor about Pa ji (elder brother),” she asked with tearful eyes. I shook my head and sat next to her. “Doctors think he will not survive much longer as his lungs are fully infected with Coronavirus,” I said it in one breath as I knew she will break into tears before I finished my sentence.
After listening to the news, she started reciting the Holy Quran even louder. At the same moment, my phone bell rang. It was my uncle’s roommate who wanted to give us the latest information.
If someone is infected with Coronavirus, it is neither a crime nor a matter of shame
“I spoke to doctors and they said, he is all fine and recovering, there are no signs of Coronavirus what so ever. There were minor symptoms, but he came out of it, so he is all fine”, said Gharib Nawaz Khan who has been living with my uncle, Annayat Ullah Malik, for many years. My uncle died the next morning because of the novel COVID-19.
Since the burial of my uncle, I have spoken to many Pakistani and Indian Americans who have symptoms of Coronavirus and, surprisingly, all of them were in a state of denial. This state of denial is also a leading factor of this lethal spread.
Iftikhar Hussain, from Brooklyn New York, his son and wife are in isolation after being diagnosed with COVID-19. I have known Iftikhar since my childhood and still, he was hiding the fact that he had Coronavirus. This attitude of denial might have caused the transfer of the virus to his family.
While gathering data about Pakistani Americans who are infected with this disease, I realised that most of these individuals are scared that, if they died, they will not get a proper funeral and burial. As Muslims have their obligation towards their dead such as cleaning, clothing conducting special funeral prayer before the burial, it is a common fear among all Muslim communities in America. “I heard they will either burn (cremate) the body or dump it in a mass burial place,” said Muhammad Yasin who is now recovering from COVID-19. “I would rather die here in my room than horrible end at the hospital,” he said in such a shaking voice that I could only guess what he said.
I feel honoured that I arranged the funeral and burial of my Mammo (uncle) who died from COVID-19. It was a proper Islamic burial with all funeral-related services. Since it was a pandemic-related death, they gave us the deceased body in a special bag. The Imam did “Tayamam” and put it in a casket at the funeral home. At the time of the funeral, the body was taken to a Muslim cemetery where “Namaz-e-Janaza” was offered and then the body was laid into the grave. A prayer, led by the Imam, was offered by everyone who participated in burial.
In my opinion, we are living in a very challenging time where everyone has access to publish, act as an editor and pretend that he/she is the primary source of information. Even though social media platforms have done a good job in limiting the dissemination of life-threatening misinformation that could worsen the pandemic but still the misinformation, rumours, myths, and conspiracy theories slip through the net, and new threats may yet emerge. As a Muslim, we must authenticate and validate news before believing or passing it over to others.
If someone is infected with Coronavirus, it is neither a crime nor a matter of shame but if you hide and don’t do anything about it, it is a crime and shameful act. As a community, it is our responsibility to use all guided precautions and help each other in this difficult time.
The writer is a technology expert who is working with US government based in Washington DC