Days and Dates of Islamic significance

The Islamic religious year is known asHijri year. It began with the
Hijrah of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) from Makkah to Madinah in the
year 622 of the common era. Thetwelve-month year is based on a purely
lunar cycle of 354 days. Thus Islamic dates have no fixed relation to
the seasons of the 365 day solar year. Over the course of years all
Islamic events may occur in spring, summer, autumn or winter.
Twelve Islamic months are as follows:
1.Muharram ul Haram
2.Safar
3.Rabi-ul-Awwal
4.Rab-ul-Akhir
5.Jamadi-ul-Awwal
6.Jamadi-ul-Akhir
7.Rajab
8.Sha'aban
9.Ramadhan
10.Shawwal
11.Dhul Qadah
12.Dhul Hijjah
Important Days
Following are the most important religious days in Islam:
Friday:
This is the main day of weekly religious service in Islam. Mosques are
usually filled to capacity with worshippers on this day. Worship
service which consists of sermon and congregational prayer is held
around noon time. In most Muslim countries Friday is also a weekly
holiday. Government offices and schools are closed on this day.
Muslims respect Friday because, according to Islamic tradition, it was
thefirst day of creation when God created the heavens and earth. It is
also believed to be the day when theresurrection will take placeand so
it will be theDay of Judgment. Muslims believe that Friday has a
special cosmic significance and it is a veryblessed day of the week.
Ramadan (9th month):
Ramadan is theninth month of Islamic lunar calendar. Muslims consider
this whole month a blessed month. They fast during the days of this
month and make special prayers at night. People also give more charity
and do extra righteous deeds.
During the month of Ramadan, Prophet Muhammadreceived the first
revelation. The angel Gabriel came to him while he was in the cave of
Hira, near Makkah, and told him that God had appointed Muhammad as His
last Messenger and Prophet. Muhammad began his prophetic mission from
that time and started preaching the divine message that continued
coming to him at different intervals during the rest of his life for
23 years. Ramadan is thus the month of celebration as well as the
month of discipline and self control.
Laylat al Qadr:
This is aspecial night of the month of Ramadan. The Qur'an has spoken
about this night in Surah 97, al Qadr. It is mentioned that the Qur'an
was sent down in the Night of Qadr. The Night of Qadr is better than
one thousand months. The whole night is blessed, it is full of peace
and angelic presence. Although it is not told exactly which night of
the month of Ramadan is the Night of Qadr, Muslim make special prayers
in the last ten nights of the month of Ramadan, hoping that one of it
is the blessed Night of Qadr.
Popularly the night of the27th of Ramadanis celebrated with special
prayers and vigils. Mosques are full of worshippers and special
prayers services, readings from the Qur'an and religious chants are
performed in mosques or private gatherings.
Eid-ul-Fitr (1st of Shawwal, 10th month):
At the conclusion of the month of Ramadan, on thefirst day of the 10th
month of Islamic lunar calendar occurs Eid-ul-Fitr. This is one of two
main festivals of Islam and is celebrated by all Muslims throughout
the world
The ceremony of Eid-ul-Fitr starts early morning with aworship
service. This service is generally held in a large open place and is
attended by thousands of Muslims. After the prayer the leader of the
prayer (Imam) delivers a short sermon and then people greet each
other. The rest of the ceremonies are held generally privately with
families and friends.
The significance of Eid is that it is a day ofthanksgiving to
Allahthat He gave the opportunity to Muslims to benefit from and enjoy
the blessings of the month of Ramadan.
The Day of Hajj (9th of Dhul Hijjah, 12th month):
Pilgrimage (Hajj)is one of the five pillars of Islam. Every adult
Muslim who can afford it physically and financially must perform Hajj
at least once in his/her life. The Hajj takes aboutfive days,
beginning from the eighth day until the twelfth . The twelfth month of
Islamic year is named after Hajj and is called Dhul Hijjah.
Hajj ceremonies take a pilgrim from Makkah to its surrounding
historical places Mina, `Arafah and Muzdalifa. The main day of Hajj is
the 9th day of Dhul Hijjah. On this day all pilgrims must gather in
the valley of `Arafah from mid day until sunset. Muslims in other
places who are not on pilgrimage often observe this day of `Arafah
with fasting. It is an optional fasting and is considered very
meritorious.
Eid-ul-Adha (from 10 12 of Dhul Hijjah, 12th month):
Following the day of Hajj comes Eid-ul-Adha. It begins from the10th
day of the 12th month of the Islamic lunar calendar. This is the
second main annual festival in Islam. On this day also exactly like
the previous celebration, festivities begin with a prayer service held
in an open place in the morning of the first day. This prayer is
attended by a large number of Muslims. Since this festival occurs
immediately after the Day of Pilgrimage those who go to make
pilgrimage celebrate it in Mina, near Makkah. Other Muslims around the
world also join with the pilgrims in their joy and thanksgiving.
Another significance of Idul Adha is that it is a time of sacrifice.
Muslims commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his
son, Ishmael. Since God gave Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) a
lamb to sacrifice instead of sacrificing his only son, Muslims also
offer the sacrifices of animals. The sacrifice can be done after the
prayer on the 10th until the 12th before sunset. The meat of the
animals is given to needy people and friends and a portion of it is
also kept for one's own consumption. Often people cook this meat
during the holidays, make feasts and enjoy the celebration.
Other important days:
The above days are universally recognized by all Muslims. There are
some other important days that are often celebrated by Muslims with
varying degrees of enthusiasm and devotion. Some Muslims do not
consider them as religious holidays at all.
New Year Day (First day of Muharram, 1st month):
The New Year Day of Hijrah reminds Muslims of theHijrah (migration) of
the Prophet Muhammadpeace be upon him - from Makkah to Madinah in the
year 622. It is well known that the Hijrah did not take place on the
first day of Muharram, it probably occurred in the month of Rabi'ul
Awwal (3rd month). Also the Hijri calendar was instituted some time in
the reign of Caliph 'Umar (634 644 C.E.). However, due to the
association of Islamic calendar with Hijrah, new year day becomes an
important day to remember the meaning and significance of Hijrah.
In modern times, some Muslims also began using it to send greeting
cards and celebrate new year. There are, however, no religious
services associated with this day.
Ashura (10th of Muharram, 1st month):
After his arrival in Madinah in the year 622, Prophet Muhammad - peace
be upon him institutedfasting on the 10th of Muharram. A year later
this fasting was replaced with the mandatory fasting in the month of
Ramadan. However, fasting on `Ashura' remained a voluntary fasting.
Many Muslims usually fast on this day also.
This day is also associated with themartyrdom of Prophet Muhammad's
grandson Hussain ibn Ali. He was killed in the battle of Karbala' on
the 10th of Muharram in 61 A.H. (October 10, 680 C.E.). It is a day of
sadness for all Muslims. Shi'ahs in particular attach a great
significance to this day and mark this day and the whole month of
Muharram with mourning. Special gatherings (majalis) are held to
remember the suffering of the Imam and his family and the events that
led to Karbala'.
Maulid al Nabi (12th of Rabi'ul Awwal, 3rd month):
This day is remembered as theBirthday of the Prophet peace be upon
him. It is a very popular day of celebration. It, probably, began
early in the Fatimid Egypt (beginning of tenth century C.E.) where
people began distributing sweets and making special chanting and
festivities on this day.
There are no special prayers or religious services associated with
this day, but many Muslims use this day to talk about the Prophet, his
life and example. They use it as a time to express their love and
devotion for Prophet Muhammad. It is now celebrated with varying
degrees of enthusiasm throughout the Muslim world and wherever Muslims
live. Some people, however, criticize it because it has no sanction in
the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet and the early community
(salaf) did not mark this day with any special festivities.
Night of Isra' and Mi'raj (27th of Rajab, 7th month):
Night journey of the Prophet Muhammadpeace be upon him from Makkah to
Jerusalem and then his ascension to Heavens occurred in the year 620
C.E. It is mentioned briefly in the Qurán (Surah 17 and 53). The
Hadith literature gives much more details of this experience of the
Prophet.
Muslims remember this day as a day of great miracle and honor of the
Prophet. On the eve of the 27th of Rajab, gatherings are held in the
mosques and homes to remember the event and the whole story is told in
poetry, chants or lectures. Sweets are distributed and great happiness
and joy is expressed.
There are also no special prayers associated with this night. Muslims
remember this day with varying degrees of enthusiasm and devotion.
Some people do not celebrate it at all.
Night of the Middle of Sha'ban (15th of Sha'ban, 8th month):
There are all kinds of legends associated with this night. In some
countries it is celebrated with firework.
People make special prayers at night and consider it a "night of
destiny". There are no authentic ahadith about this night. There are,
however, a number of weak (da`if) ahadith that mention that the
Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him - used to make special prayers on
this night. He used to visit the Cemetery of Muslims and pray for
those who passed away and used to fast the following day. The
cumulative effect of these ahadith make them acceptable to some. On
the basis of these reports some consider fasting on this day a blessed
act. Again, this night and its following day are not universally
accepted by all Muslims.