Eid ul-Adha is celebrated by Muslims and marks the end of the Hajj. The Hajj is when Muslims make a pilgrimage to Makkah (originally Mecca) in Saudi Arabia. The pilgrims visit a shrine said to be built by Ibrahim and his son Isma’il as requested by God.
Eid-ul-Adha takes place on the 10th day of the last month on the Islamic calendar. It’s a public holiday and can last from 1 to 3 days.
Eid ul-Adha means Sacrifice Celebration or Feast. It celebrates Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his own son for God. The legend is that God appeared to Ibrahim in a dream asking him to sacrifice his son Isma’il as a show of obedience. The devil tempted Ibrahim not to make the sacrifice, but Ibrahim stayed loyal to God. At the last minute, God appeared to Ibrahim and told him he could sacrifice a lamb instead of his son.
In honor of Ibrahim’s sacrifice, Muslims who can afford it, sacrifice a sheep or goat on Eid ul-Adha. They then share the meat with their family, friends, and with the poor. People are supposed to dress in their nicest clothes for this holiday. They go to the mosque to pray. They visit friends and family and give gifts. They’re also expected to give donations to the poor.
Eid Mubarak can be said for most Islamic holidays, meaning “Have a blessed holiday”.
Happy Eid ul-Adha!
Lisa
This article was posted on Tuesday, January 10th, 2006 at 2:08 pm and is filed under Countries & Cultures, Eid ul-Adha, Holidays Around the World, Muslim. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
One Response to “The End of the Hajj – Eid ul-Adha: January 10-13, 2006”
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January 10th, 2006 at 6:24 pm
In France, we hear it called Aïd el Kbir – العيد الكبير – (the big feast) opposed to Aïd el Sghir (the little feast) the other name for Aïd el Fitr – عيد الÙ?طر – (at the end of Ramadam). It seems it’s more or less the same in Europe and North Africa. It’s also called “La fête du mouton” (The sheep feast) .