Having just brought a new baby into the world you might have thought it was time for some private, quiet bonding and healing. Think again, says Amany Abdel-Moneim. The time has come for major celebration and fanfare A tiny baby is surrounded by relatives and one older woman who incessantly bangs a copper mortar and pestle near his head. "Listen to your mother and not your father," she sings out as everyone giggles and joins in the banter. It is but one stage in the sobou' ritual -- the Egyptian equivalent of a baby shower or naming ceremony -- a celebration which is held on the seventh day after the birth of a baby to introduce him or her into the family and community. According to Laila Shamseddin, professor of anthropology at Cairo University, " sobou' is one of our most cherished ceremonies -- an old tradition involving all family members -- and is observed by both Coptic and Muslim communities and in both rural and urban areas." Nawal Abdel-Rahman, a 68-year-old grandmother several times over and the designated sobou' planner in her extended family, described the ceremony in great and intricate detail. According to Abdel-Rahman, the ceremony begins on the sixth night after the baby's birth when he or she will be given a warm bath and then dressed in a new outfit. A large metal basin, filled with the baby's bath water -- called the 'kings' water' -- is placed beside the baby's bed overnight. A clay jar filled with water and topped with a candle is placed at the centre of the basin and dry beans are sprinkled on the bath water. In rather obvious symbolism the jar is with a spout when the baby is a boy, and without one if it's a girl. The candle is kept lit overnight, as an offer of thanks to the baby's seven guardian angles for having protected the baby during his/her first seven days of life. On the other side of the baby's cot, a tray is placed holding seven different types of grain, namely wheat, oat, broad bean, rice, corn, barley and fenugreek. All of this, explains Abdel-Rahman is called " tabiytet Al-sobou' ", or sobou' eve. In The Encyclopaedia of Customs and Beliefs, Mohamed Kamal Abdel-Samad writes that on the seventh day, family members used to drink the jar's water to strengthen family ties. Also, an egg would be placed on top of the jar and eaten by an older member of the family who would then wish the new-born a long life. It was inevitable perhaps that the tacky commercialism that has given us battery-operated, singing Ramadan lanterns would make its mark on the sobou' ceremony as well. Now you can get your sobou' jar dressed up in a boy or girl doll, with the candle sticking out of the doll's head. Fawzia Diab, in her book Values and Social Traditions, describes additional rituals marking tabitet Al-sobou such as the custom of putting vegetables underneath the baby's head on the sixth night to grant him or her happiness and wealth and to bring prosperity to the family. And to prevent demons from entering the baby's room and harming him, the new mother puts a knife under her pillow. The arrival of the seventh day brings about the beginning of more participatory and festive rites. Female guests arrive with their children and begin the celebrations in the morning. At this time the baby's eyes are encircled in blue kuhl -- blue powder instead of the usual black -- a tradition especially practised in rural areas. "This ritual is believed to strengthen the baby's eyesight and widen his or her eyes," explains Abdel-Rahman. The real fun, however, starts around sunset after family and friends partake in a nice meal. Salt is showered on the mother and around the house to keep away the evil eye. And the baby is placed in a large sieve -- ghorbal -- decorated with bright coloured ribbons, among candies, silver coins and nuts. Guests then carry lighted candles, circle the new mother who carries her baby in the ghorbal and marches with it throughout the house to chants such as: ya rab ya rabina tekbar we tebaa adina (May you grow to be as old as we are, by God's will). This brings us to the mortar and pestle episode -- the idea being that the loud sound will make the baby alert and brave as well as scaring evil spirits away from the baby's path for the rest of his/her life. During this process, a grandmother or older aunt will gently shake the ghorbal to purify the baby's spirit. "The traditional ghorbal -- made of wood and horsetail hairs -- has holes large enough to allow the candy placed with the baby to fall out when it is shaken -- the significance being that the baby will grow up to lead a rich life," explains Abdel-Samad. During this ceremony, incense is burned while the mother steps over the baby in the ghorbal seven times to protect it from future illnesses. "After the mother has retrieved her baby from the ghorbal, the latter is put on its edge and rolled. The further it rolls the longer the baby's life span," added Abdel-Rahman. The day's events are concluded with the serving of moghat -- a hot beverage made of fenugreek toasted in butter combined with copious amounts of sugar, sesame and toasted nuts. In the end, little packages of chocolates, nuts and other goodies are also distributed. "In the past, midwives used to arrange the whole ritual, but now -- due to the retreat of their role in society -- an experienced older woman from the family usually manages the ceremony," says Shamseddin. And whether you hold the celebration on the seventh day or later, at home or at a five-star venue, just for family or for everyone, it is considered bad luck for your new born if you don't throw a sobou'. So put that postpartum fatigue behind you and get ready to celebrate Sobou' supplies Head to Darb Al-Barabra off of Attaba Square for authentic -- and kitch -- accessories to complete your sobou'. Choose from among the following items: * Modern ghorbals decorated with satin, tull and coloured ribbons cost between LE7 and LE70. * A singing version of the ghorbal is the latest fashion and costs LE75. * Electric-powered plastic doll which could be lit up ranges between LE20 and LE65. * Plastic or cardboard boxes used for packing sobou' chocolate and other goodies are available at an average of LE7 per 100 bags/cardboard. * An extensive selection of bonbonnières are available and cost between LE5 to LE60 per one without chocolate. * A big candle attached to a plastic doll costs LE2.5 or buy 10 small candles decorated with coloured ribbon for LE7.
