Eid al-Adha 2017: What You Need to Know about Islam's Festival of Sacrifice
The Muslim community is observing another important holiday later this week, the Eid al-Adha, which literally translates to "festival of sacrifice."
After celebrating the Eid al-Fitr last July, which marked the end of the month-long Ramadan, the Muslim world is observing the Eid al-Adha this Sept. 1. This celebration is in honor of Ibrahim, who is known as Abraham in the Christian world.
As Ibrahim is known for faithfully obeying God when he was instructed to sacrifice his son Isaac, which was later revealed to be only a test of his faith, Muslims celebrate the Eid al-Adha to celebrate the symbolism of Ibrahim's sacrifice and also to mark the end of the Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca which thousands of Muslims all over the world take part in. Those who cannot embark on a pilgrimage to Mecca, though, visit graves or mosques as an alternative.
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Eid al-Adha is celebrated on the 10th day of the 12th and final month in the Islamic calendar, which, incidentally, falls on Sept. 1 this year, a Friday. On this day, pilgrims in Mecca reenact Ibrahim's rejection of Satan and cast stones at a pillar, which represents Satan.
As Ibrahim later sacrificed a ram as a substitute to Isaac, Muslims also sacrifice animals, such as goats, cattles, sheeps, or camels during the Eid al-Adha. However, only a third of the meat of the sacrificed animal is left to a family as the rest is given to the poor. With charity to the poor being a core value of the Islam faith, and Eid al-Adha being a festival of sacrifice, many Muslims from around the world give up even their most prized possessions.
"Believe in Allah and his messenger, and give charity out of the (substance) that Allah has made you heirs of. For those of you who believe and give charity – for them is a great reward." (57.7)," goes the scripture in the Muslims Quran that stresses the importance of charity.
