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| TOMORROW, Muslims across the globe will celebrate the anniversary of Prophet Mohamed's birth. In Egypt, the Mulid Al-Nabi celebrations are yet another opportunity for revellers to feast on copious amounts of food. Topping children's wish-lists are dolls for the girls and horses for the boys which, traditionally, are fashioned out of sugar. Even though in recent years the toys have been made out of plastic, edible presents are not going out of fashion anytime soon, with a variety of hard candies made of sugar, nuts and desiccated coconut remaining a great favourite.
Although the actual date of the Prophet's birth remains a subject of heated academic debate, 571AD is the popularly accepted date. According to popular lore, the Prophet Mohamed would withdraw for a month each year to a cave outside his hometown of Mecca to meditate. He received his first divine revelation at the age of 40. The rest is history.
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