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Muslims all around the world are blessed with two special days called Eid. The first one is Eid ul-Fitr and the other one is Eid Ul-Adha. Eid ul-Fitr symbolizes the conclusion of the Holy Month of Ramadan. Eid ul-Adha is celebrated for commemorating the Pilgrimage of Hajj, a spiritual journey that is compulsory for all able Muslims.
I hope that these facts about Eid will be helpful for both Muslims and non-Muslims. Muslims might get a fact-check and non-Muslims will learn something new!
Let’s start with the facts about Eid ul-Adha.
Facts about Eid ul-Adha
- Eid ul-Adha is celebrated on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, the twelfth and final month in the Islamic calendar.
- The Eid prayers can be done anytime after sunrise but before the dhuhr (afternoon) prayer.
- As soon as the day starts, as usual, Muslims pray their morning salah (prayers) they get ready for the Eid.
- They will make sure they get ready with extra care from the personal hygiene and then wear the best dress they have for the day as it’s sunnah (our prophet Muhammad Nabi (peace be upon him) showed us to do this way).
- They wear the best clothes and best smile on their face.
- Eid prayers take place in a common gathering in open land and that place is called eidga. Separate arrangements will be arranged for the ladies by a partition between men and women.
- If eidga isn’t available, we can pray at the mosque too.
- The salah (prayer) consists of 2 rakats.
- After the prayer, there will be a khutbah (sermon). It is mandatory to listen to this as listening to the khutbah completes your Eid salah. It will be approximately 15 to 20 minutes long.
- After the prayer, everyone embraces each other whether you know them in person or not, but women embrace other women and men embrace the men.
- Everyone exchanges greetings after this and then they head towards home in a different path from the way they came as it’s sunnah to do so.
- The different path is because during the day of judgment even these paths will speak up for us. And we might meet different people and get an opportunity to greet them.
Qurbani (Sacrifice)
So now comes the main picture of the Eid ul-Adha: the Qurbani.
Muslims perform the Qurbani ritual, which entails sacrificing a goat, cow, buffalo or camel. The sacrificed meat is then divided into three parts. One portion of the meat is for their family, the second portion is for their neighbor and finally, the third portion is for the poor.
This is to make sure that everyone gets an opportunity to be happy on Eid. No home and no person should be left out.
- Caring for others is a major quality in Islam.
- A Muslim must care for the other humans and be sympathetic towards others in a positive manner.
- It’s sunnah to meet the people who are sick and to meet families so usually they do this.
- It’s a day to rejoice and cherish the joy in memories.
Facts about Hajj
Hajj is a spiritual journey that every Muslim in the world aspires to go on. There is a lot of information associated with Hajj and it is important for a person to perform Hajj in his/her best intentions and also do it in the correct manner. There are thousands of things that need to be taken care of while performing Hajj but I’m sharing here a little bit which I know of.
- Islam consists of 5 pillars starting from Shahada, salah, fasting, zakat, and Hajj. Hajj is the 5th pillar of Islam.
- Performing Hajj is compulsory for every Muslim at least once in their lifetime, and only if we fulfill other pillars properly.
- The Hajj period occurs between 8th and 12th of Dhul Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar.
- Muslims who have completed Hajj are called Hajjis. Some even add the title as Haji to their name.
- During Hajj, men are required to dress in Ehraam which is basically two pieces of big white cloth that they wrap themselves up with. Women are required to dress as usual, meaning a Hijab.
- Pilgrims stay at Mount Arafat first and then they move towards the Muzdalfah and Mina. There they perform the stoning ritual at Jamaraat. All Muslims follow this setup as it was demonstrated by our Prophet Muhammad PBUH.
- Prophet Muhammad PBUH delivered his final sermon at Mount Arafat where he preached on how men should treat women; that all Muslims are brothers and sisters and everyone should stay united.
- Jamaraat are three walls located in close vicinity to each other that denote the exact spot where the devil, in human form, tried to mislead Prophet Ibrahim against following Almighty’s instructions. Prophet Ibrahim rebuked him by throwing stones at him and he went away.
- Millions of Muslims today follow in the same ritual and stone the three walls at the Jamaraat.
- After the stoning ritual, Muslims perform Udhiya, also known as Qurbani, in which they sacrifice a goat, sheep, cow, or camel. The meat is distributed to the poor and the needy as well as neighbors and relatives. Many people hand over their Qurbani to the poor.
- Pilgrims perform the Tawaf Al-Wida after Hajj before heading home. Tawaf-al-Wida entails walking around the Holy Kabaa inside Masjid Al-Haram in circle 7 times.
- Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) performed Umrah 4 times and Hajj once.
- Millions and millions of people perform Hajj each year and the count will be increased as days goes by!
I hope all these facts about Eid will be helpful for you to understand the meaning of Eid as well as the Hajj pilgrimage. I am glad you have read this post of mine and if you are interested in learning more or getting additional ideas on helping your kids with Eid facts, I’m here for you! You can contact me anytime!
Related Posts
Welcome to our second Hajj for Kids blog hop! Hajj is the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca that takes place in the last month of the Muslim calendar, and that all Muslims are expected to make at least once during their lifetime. This blog hop is intended to share ideas to teach children about this special time.
Be sure to check out our last Hajj for Kids series, plus you can find more resources on our Hajj for Kids Pinterest board:
Participating Blogs
Alizeh My Soul on Multicultural Kid Blogs: Facts About Eid ul-Adha and Hajj
A Crafty Arab: Kaaba Painted Bookbag Tutorial
The Multilingual Home: Hajj Inspired Art Projects
Jeddah Mom: Let’s Go for Hajj Activity Pack for Children
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Thanks for sharing such a useful article on the facts of this event. Indeed event is all about Muslim celebrates the day and offers sacrifice in remembrance of the spirit of the Prophet Ibrahim (A.S).