Paper Example. Cultural Identity Task

Cultural identity is perceived to be the feeling of being part of a certain group, for instance, a certain religion, ethnicity, generation, social class, or nationality. Cultural identity is usually important since it helps people develop a sense of self and improve how they interact and relate with other people (Schwartz et al., 2008). In most cases, people usually use various objects or instruments that have a certain meaning to illustrate and express their respective cultural identities. In this case, we will focus on Bakhoor, which is considered to be the wooden chips that are usually soaked in oud oils and are mainly used to produce fumes that are used in performing houses. Bakhoor has to be burnt using charcoal to release the woody and sweet smell, which acts as an alternative to the dangerous chemical air freshener. There are different types of Bakhoor, which include the incense stick, the loose fine Oudh incense, and the natural Oudh wood chips. This paper intends to discuss how and why Bakhoor represents an aspect of my UAE culture.

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Bakhoor represents an aspect of my cultural identity because it has been used in the United Arabs emirates for many generations in various events such as weddings and during related times. In Muslim history, Bakhoor was initially used by the prophets on various religious occasions, thus making agar woods to be recognized as a distinct or key item of paradise (Zarshenas et al., 2013). Since them, Bakhoor has continued to be passed on to the Muslim generations as a custom and a religious ritual that has a particular meaning to them. Bakhoor can, therefore, be used by the UAE population to illustrate and express their feeling of being part of a certain group.

Bakhoor is usually special to me due to various reasons: first, it helps to calm the body, particularly by removing the negative and destructive energies, minimizing fear, creating enhanced awareness, and creating the feeling of harmony vigor. Secondly, it helps to reduce obsessive and neurotic behavior and also creates balance and harmony in most homes. Thirdly, Bakhoor is considered to be effective in enlightenment, meditation relaxation, and deep tranquillity. Fourth, Bakhoor helps to connect me to other individuals in my group or religion since it symbolizes the things we have in common.

Bakhoor relates to some of the cultural principles such as religion, and ritual through various ways such as, it represents and expresses the religious beliefs that exist within the Muslim community for instance in the past it was considered to be a distinct object of paradise (Zarshenas et al., 2013). Such religious and spiritual beliefs have continued to be embraced by generations and have also helped to create a strong bond between Muslims. Bakhoor has also been used as a form of ritual that is performed by a certain group of people. For instance, the Muslims use Bakhoor to perfume the houses and cloths in order to boost or create positive energy, evoke vigor and harmony and calm the mind and body. Therefore, Muslims believe that using Bakhoor in rituals helps them relax and overcome all the obstacles that are likely to affect their normal lives.

Conclusion

Developing a cultural identity is considered to be very crucial since people are able to develop the feeling of being part of a certain group and also develop a sense of self, which improves how people interact with each other. Currently, most people within the society usually use different instruments to highlight their respective identities. For instance, the UAE population uses Bakhoor to illustrate their cultural identity to the population. In most cases, this instrument usually helps to create strong bonds and beliefs between the Muslims that help them improve their interaction. The Bakhoor relates to several cultural principles of the UAE population, such as religion and rituals.

References

Schwartz, S. J., Zamboanga, B. L., & Weisskirch, R. S. (2008). Broadening the study of the self: Integrating the study of personal identity and cultural identity. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2(2), 635-651. http://www.sethschwartz.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Personal-and-Cultural-Identity.pdf

Zarshenas, M. M., Zargaran, A., Müller, J., & Mohagheghzadeh, A. (2013). Nasal drug delivery in traditional persian medicine. Jundishapur Journal of natural pharmaceutical products, 8(3), 144. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3941896/