DUSHANBE, October 18. /Dunyo IA/. Ozod Meliboyev, Deputy Chairman of the Center for Uzbek Spirituality and Enlightenment in the Sughd Region of Tajikistan, recipient of the "Dustlik" ("Friendship") Order of Uzbekistan and Journalist, congratulated the people of Uzbekistan on Uzbek Language Day, celebrated on October 21st, in an interview with Dunyo IA:

- In today’s era of globalisation, each of us studies and speaks many languages of the world. These languages serve as a means of communication for us. At the same time, among the languages we use and speak, there is one that holds a special place. This language is not merely a means of communication. It connects us directly to our national spirituality.

This language itself is one of the pillars of our national spirituality. Undoubtedly, it is our mother tongue.

Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi said, "We come from the river and return to the river". In other words, we come from the river and make our way back to it. Imagine a drop that separates from the river, rises into the sky, falls to the earth as rain, is absorbed by trees and soil and, having completed its cycle, returns to the river.

In this sense, we Uzbeks living in different countries around the world also do not wish to become detached from the centre of the Uzbek language — Uzbekistan. The events taking place in Uzbekistan, the centre of our national spirituality, are always at the heart of our attention.

I believe that our generation today faces a very important responsibility. In the words of Uzbekistan’s People’s Poet, Usman Azim: "I said you are the essence of my song; I said you are the core of my heart; you are the legacy from my father and my duty to my child".

We, too, bear the responsibility of cherishing our mother tongue as the apple of our eye and passing it on to future generations.

Speaking of the mother tongue, Hero of Uzbekistan and People’s Poet of Uzbekistan Abdulla Oripov expressed it beautifully: "My mother tongue, as long as you exist, I will undoubtedly turn the nightingale’s song into poetry. On the day you disappear, I, too, will undoubtedly become a parrot".

May each of us be blessed to hear the nightingale sing in our mother tongue and may none of us ever find ourselves in the position of a parrot.

Taking this opportunity, I sincerely congratulate all our compatriots and like-minded people on Uzbek Language Day. Happy holiday, dear friends!