Eid al-Adha
| Eid ul-Adha | |
|---|---|
| Official name | Arabic: عيد الأضحى |
| Also called | The Festival of Sacrifice, Sacrifice Feast, Tabaski, Eyd-e Qorban, Kurban Bayramı, Qurbani Eid (In Bangladesh), |
| Type | Islamic |
| Significance | Commemoration of Prophet Ibrahim's (Abraham's) willingness to sacrifice his son for God. Marks the end of the Pilgrimage or Hajj for the millions of Muslims who make the trip to Mecca each year. |
| Observances | Prayer, Sacrificing a Goat/Sheep, Eating with Family and Friends |
| Ends | 12 Dhu al-Hijjah |
| Date | 10 Dhu al-Hijjah |
| 2025 date | |
| Related to | Eid ul-Fitr, the other Islamic festival, which occurs the first day after Ramadan |
Eid ul-Adha (Arabic: عيد الأضحى), (Persian: عید قربان) occurs on the tenth day of the Islamic month of Dhul Hijja. It is one of two Eid festivals that Muslims celebrate. Eid ul-Adha is celebrated by Muslims worldwide as a commemoration of Prophet Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son (Ishmael) for (Allah) God. Others celebrate Eid-ul Adha as it marks the end of the Pilgrimage or Hajj for the millions of Muslims who make the trip to Mecca each year. Like Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha also begins with a short prayer followed by a khutba. In Mecca, the Khutba is delivered from Mount Arafat.
The story behind Eid ul-Adha
Muslims believe that Ibrahim (Prophet Abraham) wanted to have a son but he was too old. And then Ibrahim invoked, he promised that he would sacrifice his most liked thing for God (Arabic:Allah) if he could have a son. Then he evangeled that he will had a son, Ismail (Ishmael) and Ibrahim sacrifices a camel for Allah. But there was an examination for Ibrahim after several years. Allah revealed in a dream to Ibrahim that he should sacrifice his son Ismail (Ishmael). Ibrahim and Ismail set off to Mina, Mina (Saudi Arabia) for the sacrifice. As they went, the devil attempted to persuade Ibrahim to disobey Allah and not to sacrifice his beloved son. But Ibrahim stayed true to Allah, and drove the devil away. As Ibrahim prepared to sacrifice his son, Allah stopped him and gave him a sheep to sacrifice instead. This is the story behind Eid ul-Adha. Muslims celebrate Eid-ul Adha as it marks the end of the Pilgrimage or Hajj for the millions of Muslims who make the trip to Mecca each year.
Observing Eid ul-Adha
It is celebrated on the 10th day of the month of Dhul Hijja (ذو الحجة) of the lunar Islamic calendar, after Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. This happens to be approximately 70 days after the end of the month of Ramadan.
While Eid ul-Fitr is considered to be one day long, Eid ul-Adha is supposed to last for three days. Some Islamic cultures consider Eid ul-Fitr to last three days and Eid ul-Adha to last for four, but this is not part of original Islamic teachings. The first day is the primary holiday, on which men, women, and children are expected to dress in their finest clothing and perform prayer (Salah) in a large congregation. Muslims who can afford to do so sacrifice domestic animals, usually sheep, as a symbol of Ibrahim's sacrifice; this sacrifice is called "Qurban." The meat is distributed amongst their neighbours, relatives, and the poor and hungry. The regular charitable practices of the Muslim community are demonstrated during Eid ul-Adha by the concerted effort to see that no impoverished Muslim is left without sacrificial food during this day. Coming immediately after the Day of Arafat (when Muhammad pronounced the final seal on the religion of Islam), Eid ul-Adha gives concrete realization to what the Muslim community ethic means in practice.
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Other names for Eid ul-Adha
Eid ul-Adha is also known as Hari Raya Haji/Iduladha/Qurban in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines; Eid el-Kbir in Morocco and Libya; Tfaska Tamoqqart in the Berber language of Jerba; and Tabaski or Tobaski in West Africa, "Ciidwayneey" in Somalia and somali speaking regions of Kenya and Ethiopia.
In Bangladesh, Pakistan and India it is also called Id ul-Zuha, and commonly referred to as Bakr-Id بکرا عید "Goat Eid" as goat is the major sacrificial animal in those countries.
In Turkey it is often referred to as the Kurban Bayramı or "Sacrifice Feast". Similarly, in Bosnia and Albania it is referred as Kurban Bajram.
Eid ul-Adha in the Gregorian calendar
While Eid ul-Adha is always on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year since the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. Each year, Eid ul-Adha (like other Islamic holidays) falls on one of two different Gregorian dates in different parts of the world, due to the fact that the boundary of crescent visibility is different from the International date line. Furthermore, some countries follow the date in Saudi Arabia rather than the astronomically determined local calendar.
- 2005: January 21; January 20 in Saudi Arabia (See note 1 below.)
- 2006: January 10 or January 11; also, December 31
- 2007: December 20
- 2008: December 8
- 2009: November 28
- 2010: November 17
- 2011: November 7
NOTE 1: The Saudi authorities had originally confirmed that Eid ul-Adha in 2005 would begin on Friday, January 21 ([1]), but subsequently moved up the date by one day to January 20, possibly for better crowd control by avoiding Hajj during the weekend ([2], [3], [4]). The official reason was that the new moon was sighted earlier than expected, starting the month of Dhul Hijja one day early.
External links
- Sending Eid Greetings
- Eid ul Adha (BBC Religion) with dates