Hosay, Carnival share weekend
Posted: Tuesday, January 3, 2006

By Terry Joseph

The religious observance of Hosay and contrarily raucous National Steelband Panorama semi-final, dubbed the "Savannah Party", will both take place on the second weekend in February, bringing events of sharp contradiction into simultaneous reckoning.

Determined by the Muslim month of Muharram, Hosay is a moveable commemoration.

Its date is calculated from a lunar perspective, causing it to occur at various times of the year, whereas the national festival climaxes on the two days immediately preceding the Christian observance of Lent, fixing it inside a six-week period starting no earlier than February.

Simultaneous occurrence of these events is rare, happening at 35-year intervals.

This year, Hosay falls smack in the frenzy of Carnival, making for possible spillover of the pervading mood into the religious observance.

For openers, pan and tassa will be simultaneously rehearsing for their respective events, with Hosay's daylight parade of moons and big tadjahs falling on February 10, a mere day before the National Panorama semi-final for conventional steel orchestras.

Hosay producers have long campaigned against spectators dancing lewdly to the tassa drumming that drives the procession, or openly consuming alcohol along the route, the main thrust of an education programme designed to thwart such behaviour coming in the form of distributed flyers saying "Hosay is not a Carnival".

That programme began in the 1980s and while it achieved a measurable degree of attitude modification on the part of spectators during the intervening years, over that testing period Hosay took place at great calendar distance from Carnival and consequently avoided any temptation to flagrantly disrespect the commemoration. For the next three years, exactly the opposite is the case.

In 2007, Carnival days fall on February 19 and 20 while Hosay is calculated to begin on January 30 and in the year following, with the parade of the bands set for February 4 and 5, Hosay's opening night is listed as January 19.

Raiaz Ali, president of the St James/Cocorite Hosay Association (which produces the most spectacular demonstration), yesterday said he recognised the challenge presented by the proximity of the commemoration to Carnival.

"We already looked at this and there might be problems," Ali said. "We understand there is no stopping either Carnival or Hosay. All we are asking is that the people respect the religious nature of the observance. We cannot stop people from selling liquor or keep other people away but we hope when the tadjahs are on the road, people remember it has nothing to do with Carnival."

"Hosay is not just a Shi'ite Muslim event," Ali said. "Just the mix of people involved will tell you that but in fact, we commemorate not just the martyrs at Kerbala but all people who died for worthy causes and in our prayers we ask on behalf of all people. This year, that would even include the Trinidad and Tobago football team. It is not just religion or race but it is about everyone."

Another respected Hosay historian, who asked that his name not be used, predicted: "The odd drunk might react to the power of the drums in a fashion not in keeping with the nature of the observance. Someone could get carried away by the overall mood of the time and tend to misbehave but I don't think such people would do so purposely. It would really be the combination of the rhythm and alcohol."

Pan Trinbago president Patrick Arnold, however, sees no cause for anxiety.

"If anything, it is evidence of the multi-cultural and multi-religious society that is Trinidad and Tobago," Arnold said. "While, you might have some over-zealous fete people seeing Hosay as pure rhythm and wanting to dance and wine as is Carnival time.

"Frankly, I think most people would generally respect the event and behave appropriately. Although the pervading Panorama mood is not consistent with the meaning of Hosay, I don't think our clientele will in any way interfere with that event," Arnold said.

Come 2009, the coincidence shifts somewhat.

Although there will be two commemorations of Hosay in that year, the first starts on January 7 well before Carnival heats up.

The second observance in that calendar year, however, falls smack in the middle of Christmas celebrations, with its "flag night" calculated to fall on December 27.

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