Asha broke into a cold sweat at the medical clinic. "Asha, you are going to have a baby," repeated the kindly doctor while Asha sat on the examining table with an ashen look. Her husband's thundering voice echoed in her head. "Another girl and we won't be able to live! Where will I find the money for the dowry?"
After what seemed like an eternity to the puzzled doctor, Asha slowly broke into an insincere smile. The older woman's eyebrows furrowed as she asked, "What is the matter?" Asha wasn't sure if she could trust the kindness of this elderly doctor, but in her vulnerability, she needed a shoulder to cry on. She sobbed, "If I have another girl, my husband will harm the baby."
Like other women within the Merat Rajput community, Asha is under pressure to give birth to sons rather than daughters. According to their customs, Merat girls must marry men from a higher caste. Marrying into a higher caste means paying a larger, often unaffordable, dowry to the groom's family. Although the Merats are Muslims, their culture and religion is a hybrid of Hindu and Muslim traditions.
* Scripture Prayers for the Merat (Muslim traditions) in Pakistan.
Pray that dehumanizing cultural beliefs and practices would be overturned by a saving knowledge of Christ.
Pray for God's Kingdom to come to the Merat community in such a way that righteousness, justice, and love would define them, and Christ would be glorified.
Profile Source: Global Prayer Digest |
People Name General | Merat (Muslim traditions) |
People Name in Country | Merat (Muslim traditions) |
Population this Country | 87,000 |
Population all Countries | 435,000 |
Total Countries | 2 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 1 ● |
Unreached | Yes |
Frontier People Group | Yes |
Pioneer Workers Needed | 2 |
Alternate Names | Kathak; Mer; Mer Kathak; Mera; Merat Kathat; Meri; Mewati; मेरात (मुस्लिम ट्रेडिशन्स) |
People ID | 17532 |
ROP3 Code | 112954 |
Country | Pakistan | ||||||
Region | Asia, South | ||||||
Continent | Asia | ||||||
10/40 Window | Yes | ||||||
National Bible Society | Website | ||||||
Persecution Rank | 8 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) | ||||||
Total States on file | 5 | ||||||
Largest States |
|
||||||
Specialized Website | South Asia Peoples |
Country | Pakistan |
Region | Asia, South |
Continent | Asia |
10/40 Window | Yes |
National Bible Society | Website |
Persecution Rank | 8 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) |
Total States | 5 |
Punjab 61,000 | |
Sindh 25,000 | |
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 700 | |
Islamabad 200 | |
Balochistan 80 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Language | Saraiki (32,000 speakers) | |||||||||
Language Code | skr Ethnologue Listing | |||||||||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | |||||||||
Total Languages | 9 | |||||||||
Secondary Languages |
|
Primary Language | Saraiki (32,000 speakers) |
Language Code | skr Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 9 |
Secondary Languages | |
Punjabi, Western 27,000 | |
Sindhi 14,000 | |
Urdu 11,000 | |
Marwari 3,900 | |
Pahari-Potwari 900 | |
Dhatki 700 | |
Hindko, Southern 700 | |
Hindko, Northern 400 | |
People Groups | Speaking Saraiki |
Primary Language: Saraiki
Bible Translation ▲ | Status (Years) |
---|---|
Bible-Portions | Yes (1888-2009) |
Bible-New Testament | No |
Bible-Complete | No |
Possible Print Bibles | |
---|---|
Amazon | |
World Bibles | |
Forum Bible Agencies | |
National Bible Societies | |
World Bible Finder | |
Virtual Storehouse |
Resource Type ▲ | Resource Name |
---|---|
Audio Recordings | Audio Bible teaching |
Audio Recordings | Story of Jesus audio |
Film / Video | Jesus Film: view in Saraiki |
General | Biblical answers to your questions |
General | Gospel resources links |
Text / Printed Matter | Literacy primer for Saraiki |
Primary Religion: | Islam |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
0.00 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical 0.00 %) |
0.00 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
0.00 %
|
Islam |
100.00 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.00 %
|
Unknown |
0.00 %
|
* From latest Pakistan census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Photo Source |
(Representative photo) Copyrighted © 2022 Isudas All rights reserved. Used with permission |
Map Source | People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project. |
Profile Source | Global Prayer Digest |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Read more |