World Bulletin / News Center

The end of Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah, marks the beginning of the Islamic holiday called Eid ul-Adha, the Festival of Sacrifice. It is the second of the two major Islamic holidays. Eid ul-Adha takes place on the tenth day of the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar and is a time of much celebration among the world's 2 billion Muslims.

It is often referred to as the "Kurban Bayramý" (from Turkish) or "Sacrifice Feast". Eid ul-Adha is also known as Hari Raya Haji/Qurban in Singapore and Malaysia, Hari Raya Idul Adha in Indonesia and Tabaski in West Africa. In Bangladesh it is commonly called Qurbani Eid, while in other parts of the Indian subcontinent it is known as Bakr-Id.

Eid-ul-Adha is a day of remembrance. It celebrates the occasion when Prophet Abraham willingly accepted to sacrifice his son, Ishmael to show his obedience to God. In return Allah spared the boy's life and instead substituted a sheep.

Muslims all around the world celebrate this 'feast of commitment', obedience and self-sacrifice to Allah. People sacrifice a lamb, goat, or any other animal and give the meat to family, friends, relatives and the poor.

Eid-ul-Adha is a four-day holiday with celebrations marking the occasion. The Muslims mark a special start to the day by wearing new clothes and praying to Allah in open spaces. People visit each other's home and partake in festive meals.

Eid-ul-Adha is also a time when Muslims pray for forgiveness. Fasting is absolutely barred during these days.

Eid call

For many Muslims the day began with dawn prayers in a mosque, where the sermons often mentioned the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Iraq.

At a mosque in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, Shia Muslim cleric Shaikh Ahmad Kurani blasted what he called the US "invasion of our lands (Iraq) ... seeking to humiliate us".

In Iraq itself, the streets of the capital Baghdad were quiet in sharp contrast to Wednesday's five bombings.

Cleric Muhammad al-Sumaidi spoke of the city's plight in his sermon.

"Baghdad is the city of science, city of kings, city of believers. It has now become the city of explosions and hideout of criminals," he said.

Saudi King Fahd and Crown Prince Abd Allah bin Abd al-Aziz marked the start of Eid al-Adha with a call on Muslims to disavow terrorism, which they said was taboo in Islam.

"The meanings of the Eid in Islam are many. They include the Muslim's sympathising with the needs of fellow Muslims ... and cooperating with them in what is good ... away from excess and extremism," they said in a joint message.

Muslims should embark united on "a course that disavows terrorism, which spreads mayhem and seeks destruction and was forbidden by Islam", said the message to Muslims reported by official media.

What is Hajj?

All able-bodied Muslims are required to make the pilgrimage or Hajj at least once in their lifetimes, if they can afford it. About two million pilgrims perform the Hajj each year.

The pilgrimage begins with the circling of the Kaaba, the large cubic stone structure in Makka that Muslims face during their five daily prayers.

Pilgrims go to the nearby Mount Arafat, where Islam's 7th century prophet Muhammad gave his last sermon in AD 632, three months before his death.

After the devil-stoning ritual, which will be performed until Saturday this year, pilgrims will shave their heads or clip a lock of hair, and then return to Makka for a final circling of the Kaaba.

Even as the cries of Allah akbar, God is great, shook from the minarets of Sydney's mosques and trees of roadside loudspeakers, war drums could be heard beating. Spilling from the mosques into the streets, Muslims yesterday celebrated Eid al-Adha, or day of sacrifice, their most important festival after Ramadan. Eid al-Adha commemorates the prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, at Allah's divine command.

Dressed in their best, wearing suits and the long white shirt of the jalabia, a crowd of mainly Lebanese Muslims started arriving at the Lakemba Mosque at about 5am. Two-and-a-half hours later, thousands of worshippers crowded Wangee Road in front of a big screen relaying the images of prayer from inside.By the road, prayer mats were put down over plastic tarpaulins and discarded shoes were tossed in the gutters in the rush to supplication.

For student Yousef Waleed of Kingsgrove it was a day of devotion and reflection, a day when, as is the Islamic tradition, his father will either sacrifice a sheep or pay another to do so on his behalf. This is not a blood offering, Mr Yousef said, and the meat is distributed to relatives and the needy.

Carrefour Offers French Muslims "Ready" Udhiyah

Carrefour, the French hypermarket chain, is for the first time offering French Muslims slaughtered and frayed Udhiyah (sacrificial animal) during the four-day `Eid Al-Adha, starting Tuesday, January 9.

"We are preparing to provide 3,000 slaughtered and frayed sheep for French Muslims in our shops across the country," a Carrefour media officer told IslamOnline.net on Monday, January 9.

"The chain has sought advice from French Muslim religious leaders and groups about the rules of slaughtering animals in accordance with Islamic Shari`ah," he added.

The move was welcomed by the French Interior Ministry as one solution to the problem of random butchering outside registered slaughterhouses.

French Muslims usually slaughter between 150,000 and 180,000 sheep every year during `Eid Al-Adha, in most cases outside registered slaughterhouses.

Eid Celebrations Around the World

Muslims praying at the mosque at the famous Taj Mahal site in Agra, India

Muslim women at Eid prayers in Indonesia - this little one is a bit tired!

A family in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, take a break from the Eid celebrations

A Muslim girl takes a peek at the men's prayer section from the women's section before the start of Eid prayers in Jakarta, Indonesia

Eid is the festival that ends the holy fasting month of Ramadan. This picture was taken in Cairo, Egypt

Two Muslim girls offer prayers in Calcutta, India

Acehnese residents offer prayers for the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha, or day of sacrifice, in the tsunami-devastated city of Banda Aceh on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Survivors in tsunami-hit Aceh crowded battered mosques to pray during an Islamic festival on Friday as aid workers found many toddlers in Indonesia were likely among the 225,000 killed by the Indian Ocean wave.

Muslim women pray during the Muslim holiday of Eid al- Adha or day of sacrifice at the grand mosque in the tsunami-hit city of Banda Aceh, on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Survivors in tsunami-hit Aceh crowded battered mosques to pray during an Islamic festival on Friday as aid workers found many toddlers in Indonesia were likely among the 225,000 killed by the Indian Ocean wave.

Muslims pray during the Muslim holiday of Eid al- Adha or day of sacrifice at the grand mosque in the tsunami-hit city of Banda Aceh, on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

Juliana, 16, Ani, 15, Yeni, 17, and Winda, 21, eat Acehnese batok fruit after the Eid al-Adha feast at their refugee camp in Banda Aceh.

Women offer prayers for Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of the Sacrifice, at a mosque Friday, in Jakarta, Indonesia. Eid al-Adha is an Islam event of the end of the annual hajj period. The celebrations recall the story of Abraham, who was provided a ram by God to avoid sacrificing his son.

 

 

Time to feast ... Muslims at the Lakemba Mosque yesterday commemorate Eid al-Adha, the festival of the sacrifice.

The Hajj tragedy had yet to happen when Indonesian Muslims began celebrating the feast of Eid al-Adha.

Palestinian youths in east Jerusalem made handprints from the blood of a freshly slaughtered sheep.

Egypt and the Middle East saw the main celebrations of this important religious feast.

Prayers in Cairo gave way to a party atmosphere under bunting and balloons.

It is a time for sacrificing animals in honour of the "Feast of Sacrifice", camels included.

Not everyone can afford to buy their own sacrificial beast so Sarajevo butchers were donating sheep to local charities.

Eid al-Adha is not all about celebration - visits to the cemetery are also part of the event.