Just think about it, a lantern costs 150 taka. Again, a sweater on the sidewalk costs 150 taka. A lantern will fly once, the sweater can be worn for a few years. A blanket of good quality can be bought for the price of two lanterns, which can be used for 4-5 years. Why doesn’t the shivering of the city’s uprooted children, the homeless elderly or the bones of the people of North Bengal on a severe winter night shake the conscience of people? Can’t people put two clothes on the wall of humanity with the money of a lantern? Putting a smile on people’s faces is much more valuable than burning lanterns.
Thousands of lanterns will fly on this Thirty First Night, and the light will shine brightly in the dark night for some time, but have you seen that darkness? The one that is in the eyes. You must not have seen that darkness. If you saw it, you would not have been able to do anything like flying lanterns. Couldn’t you have stood with a little compassion for the person who has not received food, meaning the one who is not receiving treatment or whose education has been halted due to the hardships of poverty? Not giving back to the beggar who asks for two paisa in front of you, or flying a lantern – which is more important for human civilization? Well, should I call flying a lantern a work or a non-work? Leave those things alone!
By flying a lantern, you are trying to brighten the dark night. You are trying to dispel the darkness of the night with a lot of noise for just one night, but the eyes of some people around you remain dark for the rest of their lives. Have you ever looked at them with a heart of compassion? Have you thought about their helplessness? How many people are freezing in the open air on this winter night on the streets in the cold, suffering from hunger. Oh, humanity is crying all over the city! Do you hear that? An entire generation is growing up without meat. Do something! Stand by them.
The lantern will fly. How far will it fly? How long will it stay? Where will it go? – You don’t know. Now, either with the money for the lantern or the money you saved to waste on Thirty-First Night, buy a blanket and give it to someone. Buy a sweater or some food and donate it to the helpless people. While eating, have a good and bad conversation with the abandoned elderly in the old age home or with the neglected children growing up in the orphanage. Your work will reach beyond the sky, it will last until the Day of Judgment. You will get peace of mind in this world, in the Hereafter Allah will reward you. Leave aside the talk of the Hereafter, you will get mental satisfaction – I guarantee it.
Stand in the dead of night next to a sleeping man with a blanket. If you feel like taking a picture, take it anyway, but help the person. Maybe some of your sins can be erased or some danger that is rushing towards you can be stopped. Lampposts do burn brightly in the dark night, illuminating the night. Take the responsibility of lighting the light in people’s minds. Empathize with people’s pain and extend a helping hand. Be a human being at least once in your life.
When a lantern flies, the sky is illuminated. Come on, let’s illuminate the earth now. Become a lamppost at least once in the darkness of someone’s life. Do this work only once in your life. I promise you, you will want to do it again and again in your life. At least the dislike of wasting money and time on useless work like lighting a lantern will go away. There is no greater work than this under the sky and on the earth.
More importantly, the nights belong to birds-insects and animals. They also have the right to live safely and securely. If we scare animals with loud noises and unwanted lights, human sins will increase. It is important to protect animals from the animal-animal behavior of others. It is important to ensure that animals and birds live and survive without any hindrance. The curse of animals and birds is terrible. The Creator listens to them first.
Moreover, in the name of flying lanterns, countless fire accidents occur every year. People’s lives and dreams are burned. Property is destroyed. It is inappropriate for conscientious people to participate in such destructive activities as flying lanterns. The conscious and educated generation should stay away from activities that are wasteful and threaten safety. Those nations are honored in the pages of history whose past deeds leave behind good deeds. Flying lanterns is not a good deed in any way. There is not even a trace of intelligence and conscientious thinking in it. Think ahead of tomorrow and decide to be human.
