What are family holidays and which do you spend with friends?
I assume you are talking about religious or statutory holidays, not vacation time? In the UK when we say holiday we mean basically a three day trip to Poland or a week in Spain usually.So… with friends I have often celebrated Eid at the end of Ramadan even though I am not Muslim, it is a huge festival in London. You break your fast together and eat well into the night. Often with good conversation.Christmas is basically split between work colleagues and family.New year's Eve is often a time for close friends although as I get older I tend to just go to bed and not do anything special, then wake up with my social media going nuts. That's if I am not working.Easter is not really something I celebrate because it is a pagan festival. I get annoyed when Christians celebrate Easter as a big deal because Christians already stole the first day of the week - Sunday - as a day of celebration of the resurrection, so remembering the Crucifixion every spring is a bit of a misnomer. Especially when the churches fail to follow the Jewish calendar to get Easter timed right. So even when I was a bible thumper in my younger years, I pretty much avoided Easter. Although obviously the kids in any family deserve a chocolate egg or something.What else is there? We've never really been big on Halloween in the UK. November 5th is our big night. Catesby and Fawkes tried to blow up a rotten corrupt parliament and an evil paedophile King and they failed. Fawkes got executed for it. Some of us celebrate 5TH NOVEMBER as a remembrance of democracy and that our entire constitution begins and ends with Parliament. Not the Queen. Others celebrate it as a successful take down of wannabe terrorists. Whatever. It's possibly the biggest single item of expenditure of any borough Council or local authority each year. Free firework displays. So you go with whomever can make it to the same place.
What holidays do Muslims celebrate?
There are two holidays.Eid ul Fitr ( feast of breaking fast). It occurs on the first day of the tenth month called Shawwal. It celebrates the breaking of the fast of Ramadan. It is a three day holiday.Eid ul Adha (feast of sacrifice). It occurs on the tenth day of the twelfth month called Thul Hijjah. It commemorates the sacrifice of the ram by Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) instead of Ismael (PBUH), his older son. It is associated with the time of pilgrimage (Hajj). It is a four day holiday.The religious aspects, which are not technically required, include a special prayer, which is altered slightly from the usual prayer, in that there are multiple takbirat or saying Allahu Akbar while raising one 's hand's to one's ears (seven in the first cycle, five in the second). This is followed by a brief lecture. One can sacrifice an animal (sheep, cow, goat), during the Feast of Sacrifice . A portion is given to the poor, a portion is kept for one's family, and one is given to friends.The only religious requirement is that you are not allowed to fast on the first days of each holiday.Otherwise, each culture has various traditions associated with each holiday.New clothing, certain foods, spending time with family and friends.Gifts can be given. Usually, gifts are given to the children. In some cultures, they are given money and the children choose gifts and pay with the money given to them. Some cultures give actual gifts. There is no tradition of Santa Claus or Hannukah fairy (sorry to all of the Jewish Quorans, I know that the Hannukah fairy doesn't exist, like Santa.). There is no naughty or nice. There is no Krampus or Zwarte Pete. There is no Eid tree.Some people do decorate with lights, but there is no religious connotation. I think that people do it to show that we can use lights also. The holidays are meant to be fun!Also, any other holiday that could be mentioned by other writers, are not technically Islamic holidays, in that the Prophet (PBUH) did not celebrate them.The Prophet (PBUH) did not celebrate his birthday. He did fast on Ashura (tenth day of the first month), in order to commemorate the death of the Pharoah and the saving of the people of Moses (PBUH), by there was no celebration. He did not commemorate Isra wa'al Miraj ( the journey to Jerusalem and the ascension to heaven).
Ramadan: How do you reject when friends invite you to Eid party held at sheesha lounge w/o offending them?
Tell them that Sheesha is haraam. Its khamr. Be honest with her, tell her you dont wanna go and you are celebrating Eid with family. Khamr, or intoxicants, are bad for your body and leave a negative effect. Why would they commit such a sin especially on the day of Eid al Adha? The Prophet Muhammad (SAW, PBUH) said: “Every intoxicant is khamr, and every intoxicant is haraam. Whoever drinks khamr in this world and dies persisting in that and without having repented, will not drink it in the Hereafter.” Narrated by Muslim, 2003. Al-Bukhaari (4087) and Muslim (1733) narrated that Abu Moosa said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sent Mu’aadh ibn Jabal and me to Yemen, and I said: O Messenger of Allaah, there is a drink that is made in our land and is called al-mizr, which is made from barley, and another drink called al-bit’, which is made from honey. He said: “Every intoxicant is haraam.” Be straight forward.. She wouldnt get offended If she cared.. You shouldnt be friends with bad people, a bad influence may form..
Which different between Diwali & Id ?
Diwali is a holiday celebrated by Hindus. It is celebrated in October or November, depending on the Indian calender. It signifies the home coming of Lord Ram, his brother Laxma and his wife Sita after 14 years of exile. Lord Ram was an example of how an ideal man should live, a true example of good humanity. During Diwali people light their homes with lights (or diyas as they say in Hindi), purchase new household goods and clothing, make delicious sweets and savories. People in India get a holiday vacation during this time, many travel out of town. The day after Diwali is the Indian new year. One of the things that are done is Hindus hold a Laxmi puja (puja is religious ceremony and Laxmi is the goddess of wealth) in their homes. This is a way to guard their homes with luck and prosperity. Another Diwali/New Year celebration is the Annakut in which people cook at least 1-2 items and bring it to their local temple. Most temples have a Annakut with hundreds and hundreds of items. These items are offered to the deities and then shared amongst all the visitors. Eid is a Muslim holiday. It signifies the end of the 30 day Ramadan fast. During this fast Muslims cannot consume water or food throughout the day. They can eat/drink only when the sun sets. Most Muslims celebrate this time with good food, celebrations at the Mosque and spend more time with family and friends. Eid is celebrated in the same way as Diwali with people lighting their homes and cleaning their houses, they also purchase new clothing/household goods. Every year Ramadan starts 10 days earlier than the previous year so it can fall at any time throughout the year. Bakr Eid is another Eid holiday which Muslims reinact the event in which Abraham had his faith tested by God. Muslims slaughter a goat and have a feast later as a symbolism of this event.
Do Muslims have a day like Christmas?
I'm glad to see that, at least an Iranian Muslim said that they respect Jesus and celebrate New Year there. But, I'm guessing the lady is not in Iran, but a refugee here. Because the media we see about Iran, after the Ayotollahs took over, is horrifying!? They'd stoned a woman to death for prostitution and hung a gay couple, recently, in Iran.
Is it haram to celebrate eid?
I am your friend.