Eid al-Adha will be celebrated on Tuesday November 16th, 2010
Prayer location
Hajj in Islam and the celebration of Eidul Azha
Mufti Mohammad Shujaath Ali
Hajj literally means “to continuously strive to reach one’s goal.” It is the last of the five pillars of Islam. (The other four are a declaration of faith in one God and in Prophet Muhammad, the five daily prayers, offering regular charity, and fasting the month of Ramadan.) Pilgrimage is a once-in-a-lifetime obligation for those Muslims who have the physical and financial ability to undertake the journey.
Hajj is essentially a reenactment of the rituals of the great prophets and teachers of faith. Pilgrims symbolically relive the experience of exile and atonement undergone by Adam and Eve after they were expelled from Heaven. They also retrace the footsteps of Hajar as she ran between the hills of Safa and Marwah, searching for water for her thirsty baby. Lastly, the pilgrims also commemorate the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son for the sake of God. God later substituted a ram in place of Abraham’s son as mentioned in the holy Quran ...
Every year, Millions of pilgrims from all over the world converge on Makkah on the appointed days of hajj to perform this obligation. Hajj occurs from the 8th to 12th day of
Dhu al-Hijjah, which is the 12th and last month of the Islamic calendar.They retrace also in this journey the footsteps of millions who have already made the spiritual journey to the valley of Makkah since the time of Adam.
Eidul -Azha is the second Islamic festival. It is as important as the celebration of Eidul- Fitr which is celebrated upon the completion of the month of fasting. Eidul-Azha culminates hajj. Muslims around the world including Pilgrims celebrate it with great joy and happiness in the commemoration of the great sacrifice performed by prophet Ibraahim peace be upon him. It occurs every year on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah according to the Islamic lunar calendar. Muslims on this day and subsequently 2 more days slaughter domestic animals such as cow, goat, sheep buffalo and camel in the recognition and commemoration of the willingness of prophet Abraham to sacrifice his son for the pleasure of God. But God later replaced a ram in place of his son ismael peace be upon them.
For Muslims, it is not merely the time of joy and celebration, it is rather a time to go though some deeper reflections and spiritual as well as moral transformations, such as to be more committed to the religion and obedient to our Lord .and to open our hearts towards one another and cherish goodwill for all people. For humanity is one family as the holy Quran says that Allah has created all human beings from one single couple that is Adam and Eve peace be upon them. Hajj breaks down all the barriers that separate one race from the other, one ethnicity from the other and one color from the other. This is the sprit of Eid and also the sprit of Hajj. May God grace us all with his infinite mercy. Ameen