Al-Masharati, the popular personality of young and old, is related to the rituals of the blessed month of Ramadan, as children were carrying lanterns around it, and they sang to the tune of the drum a lot of songs related to the month of fasting, such as: “Hello, sweet Ramadan, oh sweet ... untie the bag and add us to a tip. What do you live, hello? ”

Al-Masharati appeared in Egypt, when the governor, Ataba bin Ishaq, noticed that people did not pay attention to the time of suhoor, and there was no one performing this task at that time, so he himself volunteered for this task, and he was roaming the streets of Cairo at night to wake up its people at the time of suhoor, in the year 238 AH. He roams on his feet from the city of Askar to the Mosque of Amr ibn al-Aas in Fustat, calling on the people: “God's servants be enchanted, for there is a blessing in Suhoor.”

During the reign of the Fatimid state, the ruler, by the command of God, issued an order to his soldiers to pass through the houses and knock on the doors in order to wake the sleepers of Suhoor.

Satellite and stay up late

Although Al-Masharati profession is one of the most prominent and popular Ramadan occupations, but a recent Egyptian study warns that this profession is threatened with extinction, after the spread of satellite channels, and most people stayed up until the early morning hours in the month of Ramadan.

The study, prepared by Dr. Al-Shaymaa Al-Saidi, a researcher with the project of the Atlas of Egyptian Folklore Affiliated to the Ministry of Culture in Egypt: “It has become close to fading the spectacular scenery that awakens people to eat suhoor during the nights of the month of fasting, with his little drum that he carries in his neck, and hangs to his chest or He holds it with his hand and hits it with a special stick, and he calls the owner of the house in his name inviting him to wake up for sahur.

The study indicates that Al-Masharati uses a drum known as the "paza", as he holds it with his left hand, and with his right hand a "belt" of leather or wood, which is drunk in Ramadan at the time of suhoor. And the "paza" is a drum of the same type of dirt, with one side of the skin, fixed with nails, and its back is hollow of copper, and it has a place from which it can be hung, and they may call it the "drum of the magic", and the large of this category they call it "a beauty drum", and repeat Al-Masrati on the impact of his strikes on the "paz", some sentences, such as: "Stand up, sleep and unite the dime," and "suhoor, servants of God."

From the stick to the drum

The study confirms that during the era of the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, they knew the time of suhoor with the call to prayer of the companion Bilal bin Abi Rabah, the muezzin of the Prophet, and knew the date of refraining from eating with the companions of the companion Abdullah bin Umm Maktoum.

It was pointed out that the profession of Al-Masharati appeared in the era of the Abbasid state, specifically during the reign of the victorious Caliph God. Dr. Al-Shaymaa Al-Saidi added in her study that, over time, a man was assigned to carry out the mission of Al-Masrati, and he was calling out: "Oh God's people, get magic." He knocks on the doors of houses with a stick he held in his hand.

The appearance of Al-Masharati developed at the hands of the people of Egypt, who invented the drum, to carry Al-Masharati to hammer, instead of using the stick.

The study showed that this drum was called "Baza", and it is small in size, which Al-Masharati beats regularly, and then the aspects of the profession developed again, so Al-Masratati used the large drum that he beats while touring the neighborhoods, and he was singing with popular poems and a special zigz for this occasion. Among the most famous of these poems are: "I wake up, Naim, unite the dime ... and say that I intend to hate it if I live the month, the dawn and the dawn of Qayyim ... Ramadan Kareem."

A month a year

It is known that Al-Masrati is limited to Ramadan only, that is, it is the only profession whose owner works one month per year, and after that he rested until next year, to return again.

Al-Masharati profession appeared in the era of the Abbasid state.

The appearance of Al-Masharati was developed by the people of Egypt.