THREE MOST COMMON PERCEPTIONS AND THEIR REASONS PAKISTANIS (AGED ABOVE 50) HAVE REGARDING VALENTINES DAY:

Pakistan officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is an Islamic country and majority of the population has Islam as its religion; this directly affects the perceptions of the majority on the festival having its roots linked to Christianity. One of the most common and continuously debated perceptions of elderly people on Valentines Day is: un-Islamic nature of the day and its relation to Christianity. The elderly people of Pakistan consider Valentines Day against their religion and attacks the moral values and culture of the society. According to them, it contradicts with the basic teachings of Islam and is a part of Western culture which the young generation of Pakistan is adopting with immense pleasure. People aged above 50 also perceive that the day is against Islam owing to its Christian origins. They believe that Islam was completed 1400 years ago when Prophet (pbuh) delivered the last sermon and there is no room for any addition to it; Islam is the best religion and young generation should take pride in their own culture and traditions rather than following West blindly. Some of them reject the day ruminating Islam doesnt specify a single day to express love. Moreover, they surmise that its an attempt of West to indulge young generation of Pakistan in un-Islamic ways. They contemplate that when west doesnt celebrate any single day of Islam so why do people of Pakistan, especially youngsters celebrate theirs; western people do not celebrate Eid so the point of celebrating Valentines Day by Pakistani young generation with such zeal and zest is mere a wrapper of westernized thinking by following them. According to them, this is the way of attack on our society and our religious values and norms. Usually the people aged above 50 in Pakistan count Valentines Day unnecessary when Muslims have many other days to celebrate and promote love like Ramadan days, Eid days, 12th Rabi-ul-Awan, Lailatul-Qadar, ShahbeBarat and many more. Also, they see it a complete waste of both time and money. It is not uncommon among the people of this age group to mull over the day as a tool of flirting and promoting loose morals in the society and hence, distracting the young people who often go out of their way to express what they believe is love, in ways that are not necessary. A section of the age group doesnt reject its concept of being the day of love but they reason that since it is the day purely for intimate couples, its against Islam and condemned. They conceive the day as a message to spread love and dating in girls and boys and a chance or instigator of showing flirty love to the opposite sex, thus cutting the very roots of Pakistani culture and Islam. A large percentage of these people believe that the Valentines Day promotes unethical values and behavior in youth who have raw brains and get attracted to everything different and unique.

One of their most common perceptions about the day is also its specification of the expression of love on a single day. They believe that the day specifies the love to be promoted and put across a single day out of the 365 days calendar. Thus, they condemn it. According to them, Pakistani people do not need a commercial holiday to express love to their beloved ones; instead being the messengers of peace of love across the world they enunciate it to their family every single day of the year. Thus, at the end I would summarize by saying that a large section of people aged 50 or above in Pakistan rebuke Valentines Day considering its connection with Christianity, a tool of promoting loose morals in the society and a futile attempt of West of distracting the young generation from Islam. They reject it also because their religion doesnt specify a single day to verbalize love.