Eid al-Adha

" festival of sacrifice "), also called Feast of the Sacrifice , the
Major Festival , [ 1 ] the Greater Eid and Bakrid , [ 2 ] is an
important 3-day religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide to
honour thewillingness of the prophet ʾIbrāhīm (Abraham) to sacrifice
his young first-born son Ismā'īl (Ishmael) a as an act of submission
to God's command and his son's acceptance to being sacrificed, before
God intervened to provide Abraham with a ram to sacrifice instead. [ 3
]
Eid al-Adha is the latter ofthe two Eid holidays , the former being
Eid al-Fitr . The basis for the Eid al-Adha comes from the 196th verse
of the 2nd sura of the Quran . [ 4 ] Theword "Eid" appears once in the
5th sura of the Quran, with the meaning"solemn festival". [ 5 ] The 3
days and 2 nights of Eidal-Adha are celebrated annually on the 10th,
11th and 12th day of Dhu al-Hijjah , the twelfth andlast month of the
lunar Islamic calendar . [ 6 ] In the international Gregorian calendar
, the dates vary from year to year, drifting approximately 11 days
earlier each year.
Like Eid al-Fitr , Eid al-Adha begins with a Sunnah prayer of two
rakats followed by a sermon ( khuṭbah ). Eid al-Adha celebrations
startafter the descent of the Hajj from Mount Arafat , a hill east of
Mecca . Ritual observance of the holiday lasts until sunset of the
12th day of Dhu al-Hijjah. [ 7 ] Eid sacrifice may take place until
sunset on the 13th day. [ 8 ] The days of Eid have been singled out in
the Hadith as "days of remembrance". The days of Tashriq are from the
Fajr of the 9th of Dhul Hijjah up to the Asr of the 13th of Dhul
Hijjah (5 days and 4 nights). This equals 23 prayers: 5 on the
9th-12th, which equal 20

Eid al-Adha: The Festival of the Sacrifice

The Festival of the Sacrifice (Eid al-Adha) is one of two major
Islamic celebrations and takes place on the tenth day of the Islamic
month Dhul-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar in which
millions of Muslims from around the world make an annual pilgrimage to
Makkah in order to worship Allah and to commemorate the willingness of
the Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) tosacrifice his son Ishmael in
response to a command from God. Satisfied with Abraham's devotion, God
replaced Ishmael with a sheep at the last second, and the sheep was
slaughtered instead. While pilgrims in Makkah re-enact this scene by
slaughtering sheep of their own,Muslims who can afford it in the rest
of the world also participatein this rite by slaughtering sheep,
camels and cows. One third of the meat is distributed to the poor, one
third to neighbors and relatives while one third is kept by the person
who offered the sacrifice for use within his or her own family.
India is home to approximately 150 million Muslims who celebrate the
Eid in the same way as their non-Indian brothersand sisters in faith.
It is a very happy time which is marked by special prayers, visits to
family and friends, gifts to children and, of course by food. For
manyfamilies, it may be one of the few times during the year that they
have the opportunity to enjoy meat, and only the best dishes are
served. The following are some recipes for Indian dishes which are
popular on Eid al-Adha:

The festival of sacrifice - Eid ul Adha

This is a four-day public holiday in Muslim countries.
The festival remembers the prophet Ibrahim 's willingness to sacrifice
his son when God ordered him to.
Ibrahim's sacrifice
God appeared in a dream to Ibrahim and told him to sacrifice his son
Isma'il. Ibrahim and Isma'il set off to Mina forthe sacrifice.
As they went, the devil attempted to persuade Ibrahim to disobey God
and not to sacrifice his beloved son. But Ibrahimstayed true to God,
and drove the devil away.
As Ibrahim prepared to kill his son God stopped him and gave him a
sheep to sacrifice instead.
Celebrations
Ibrahim's complete obedience to the will of God is celebrated by
Muslims each year.
Each Muslim, as they celebrate, reminds themselves of their own
submission to God, and their own willingness to sacrifice anything to
God's wishes.
During the festival Muslims who can afford to, sacrifice domestic
animals, usually sheep, as a symbol of Ibraham's sacrifice. (British
law insists that the animals must be killed in a proper
slaughterhouse.)
The meat is distributed among family, friends and the poor, who each
get a third share.
As with all festivals thereare prayers, and also presents.

Meaning of the Festival

The festival commemorates God's gift of a ram in place of Isma'il
(Ishmael), whom God had commanded Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice. (In
Judaism and Christianity , the child in this story is Ishmael's
brother Isaac.)
The Devil tried to persuade Ibrahim to disobey God and not to
sacrifice his beloved son,but Ibrahim stayed absolutely obedient to
God and drove the devil away. Eid al-Adha is a celebration of this
supreme example of submission to God, which is the cornerstoneof the
Islamic faith ( islam means"submission").
Eid al-Adha Observances
On Eid al-Adha, families that can afford it sacrifice an animal such
as a sheep, goat, camel, or cow, and then divide the meat among
themselves, the poor, friends and neighbors. In Britain, the law
requires that this be done in a slaughterhouse. The sacrifice is
called Qurban . During the sacrifice, thefollowing prayer is recited:
In the name of Allah
And Allah is the greatest
O Allah, indeed this is from you and for you
O Allah accept it from me.
Eid al-Adha is a public holiday in Muslim countries. Like 'Id al-Fitr
,'Id Al-Adha begins with communal prayer at daybreak on its first
day,which takes place at the local mosque. Worshippers wear their
finest clothes for the occasion. It is also a timefor visiting friends
and family and for exchanging gifts.

--


- - - - -

And Allah Knows the Best!

- - - - -

Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

- - - - - - -