Does Sunday 14th February 2016 have special significance
for you?
Have you made any special plans on what you want to do on
that day?
Have you wondered and given some thought to what Sunday
14th February 2016 means to different people in the world?
And what their plans are for that day?
For many people, especially in the Western world, what is the
first thought that comes to mind when this date is mentioned?
It is Valentine’s Day, right?
For many people it is a very special day for loving couples to
say “I love you”, to buy flowers, exchange presents and also
romantic poems with the ones they love and enjoy good food
in candlelight dinners. It is a very happy time where a lot of
people celebrate and have fun.
This is perfectly fine.
Nothing wrong with that.
Have you heard that there are reports that the governments of
some countries have declared that Valentine’s Day should not
be celebrated and some have even banned the celebrations on
Valentine’s Day?
And people who are caught celebrating can be arrested and
punished severely?
It was reported that some people have condemned Valentine’s
Day as “decadent” and called it a “useless” day!
Many anti Valentine’s Day groups are Muslims because they
feel that celebrating this special day is against their religoius
beliefs. They think it encourages drinking of alcohol, “could
encourage obscene behavior” and some even call Valentine’s
Day “shameless” and a “festival of obscenity”!
Now, before anyone jumps to the wrong conclusion that this
is all about the religion of Islam, do you know that there are
some Hindus in India who also protest against the celebrating
of Valentine’s Day for similar reasons? They say the festival
“spreads depravity” and “ruins morality” of youths because
it encourages unmarried ones to come too close together!
As you can see, this is not about religion but more about
“perceived morality loss”…if there is such a term, or
moral decay.
These extremist views can be very dangerous because they
can cause some people to be recruited into terrorist groups.
However, the blame should not be put on any religion.
It is the people who have deviant extremist views who must
be held responsible.
These extreme groups have distorted ideologies that are not
practised by true believers of the different religions.
We should not generalise and blame all Muslims and Hindus
or any people of any other religions for strongly opposing the
celebration on Valentine’s Day.
It must be noted that there are still many people who are very
faithful to their own different religions, who are moderate in
their thinking and who are not against other people who want
to celebrate this special festival on Valentine’s Day.
Why do you think are the reasons for so much controversy
over such a simple one day celebration?
Why are there so much extremist opinions?
Is it because the origin of Valentine’s Day is related to St
Valentine and it is regarded as a festival for people of the
Christian faith only?
Or is the main reason that some people in other religions
feel threatened that the celebration of Valentine;s Day
will erode their own religious beliefs?
Or are there other ulterior motives?
If Valentine’s Day is a very special day for you and you can
celebrate, enjoy yourself and have a Happy Valentine’s Day.
If you do not want to spend money, you can just say “I love
you” to the one you love and give a good hug. This simple
gesture can be much more appreciated than any other gift.
While Valentine’s Day is a special day when we can express
our love, we should not forget to also show our love on other
days when we feel like doing it.
If people can show their love more often, we will have more
peace in the world. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
For those who are still in celebration mood and celebrating the
Chinese New Year of the Monkey, Sunday 14th February 2016
is the 7th day of the normal 15 days of celebrations and is also
called “human day” or “birthday for everyone”.
And for many couples, especially the young modern ones, this
day can be a very special double celebration day when they can
enjoy traditional good home cooked food for lunch and then go
out to have a cozy Western dinner with their love partners.
Some people may not be celebrating on this day because they
are very superstitious. They may not like this day since in the
Chinese language, “fourteen” sounds very much like “sure
cannot survive”.
There is no need to allow superstitions to spoil your fun and
celebrations.
If you believe too much in superstitions, you will not be able
to make much progress in life. After all, how you interpret
numbers is very subjective and open to debate.
While many people are happily celebrating, we should not
forget about the people who are less fortunate.
For those people in Christchurch, New Zealand, who have just
been affected by the earthquake, best wishes for quick help
to come to you and for a fast recovery.
Sunday 14th February 2016 is a day with different meanings
for different people or may be just another ordinary day for
some people.
Whatever you are doing or plan to do, always be alert to be
safe at all times.
Do not drive and text.
Do not walk and text.