Eid Mubarak !!
Hi ! This is a festive week in India with great celebration of Eid and Navratri festival. People are in festive mood all over the country and it will continue till Diwali, one of the biggest festivals of India. Today is Eid !! My greetings to all on this festive occasion. Have a Wonderful Festive Time !!
Eid
Eid ul-Fitr often abbreviated to Eid, is a Muslim festival that marks the end of Ramazan, the Islamic holy month of fasting. Eid is an Arabic word meaning "festivity", while Fitr means "to break fast"; and so the holiday symbolizes the breaking of the fasting period. It is celebrated after the end of the Islamic month of Ramazan, on the first day of Shawwal.Muslims are commanded by the Qur'an to complete their fast on the last day of Ramadan and then recite the Takbir all throughout the period of Eid. It is a big festival of Muslim community, celebrated with great joy and ferver.
South Asia
In Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal, the night before Eid is called Chand Raat, which means, night of the moon. People often visit bazaars and shopping malls, with their families and children, for last minute Eid shopping. Women, especially young girls, often paint each others' hands with traditional "henna" and wear colourful bangles.During Eid, the traditional greeting is Eid Mubarak, and frequently also includes a formal embrace. Gifts are frequently given—new clothes are traditional—and it is also common for children to be given small sums of money (Eidi) by their elders.It is common for children to "salam" parents and adult relatives, they usually get money from the adult relative, After the Eid prayers, it is common for families to visit graveyards and pray for the salvation of departed family members.
Special celebratory dishes in Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, and Fiji include sivayyan, a dish of fine, toasted sweet vermicelli noodles with milk & dried fruit. In Bangladesh, the dish is called semai.In India the some popular places where Muslims congregate to celebrate Eid at this time are the Jama Masjid in New Delhi, in Kolkata there is a prayer held on the Red Road. People can be spotted in thousands, there is a lot of excitement in the celebration of this festival. Eid is a public holiday and is celebrated all over India. Even non-Muslims visit their Muslim friends on this occasion, to convey their good wishes.
Southeast Asia
Hari Raya Aidilfitri
In Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, Eid is also commonly known as Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Hari Raya Idul Fitri or Hari Raya Puasa. Hari Raya literally means 'Celebration Day'. Muslims in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore celebrate Eid like other Muslims throughout the world. It is the biggest holiday in Indonesia and one of the biggest in Malaysia and is the most awaited one. Shopping malls and bazaars are filled with people days ahead of Hari Raya, causing a distinctive festive atmosphere throughout the country. Many banks, government and private offices are closed for this holiday.
The night before Eid is with the takbir which is held in the mosques or musallas. In many parts of Indonesia as well as Malaysia, especially in rural areas, pelita or panjut or lampu colok (as known by Malay-Singaporeans) (oil lamps, similiar to tiki torches) are lit up and placed outside and around the house. Eid also witnesses a huge temporary migratory pattern of Muslims, from big metropolitan cities to rural areas to celebrate the Eid with family members because the majority of Muslims are from rural areas. This is known as balik kampung in Malaysia or mudik in Indonesia — it means going back to the hometown. Special dishes like ketupat, dodol, lemang (a type of glutinous rice cake cooked in bamboo) and other Indo-Malay (and in the case of Malaysia, also Nyonya) delicacies are served during this day.
It is common to greet people with "Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri" or "Salam Aidilfitri" (in Malaysia) which means "Happy Eid". Muslims also greet one another with "mohon maaf lahir dan batin" in Indonesia and "maaf zahir dan batin" in Malaysia, which means "Forgive my physical and emotional (wrongdoings)", because Eid ul-Fitr is not only for celebrations but also the time for Muslims to ask for forgiveness for any sin which they may have committed but was cleansed as a result of the fasting in the Muslim month of Ramazan.
It is customary for Muslim-Indonesians and Muslim-Malaysians to wear traditional cultural outfits on the Eid. The outfit for men is called baju melayu or baju koko which is worn together with kain samping (made out of songket) and songkok (a dark coloured headgear); in Indonesia the men will usually wear pants with similar color to the shirt or (normal black pants) and a (black head cover called) [Peci]. The women in Indonesia and Malaysia wear what is known as baju kurung and baju kebaya. It is a common practice however for the Muslim-Malays in Singapore to refer to the baju kurung in reference to the type of outfit, worn by men. Once the prayer is completed, it is also common for Muslims in Indonesia and Malaysia to visit the graves of loved ones. During this visit, they clean the grave, recite Ya-Seen, a chapter (surah) from the Qur'an and also perform the tahlil ceremony. All these are done to ask God to forgive the dead and also those who are living for all their sins.
The rest of the day is spent visiting relatives or serving visitors. Eid ul-Fitr is a very joyous day for children for on this day adults are especially generous. In Malaysia, children will be given token sums of money, also known as "duit raya," from their parents or elders.In Indonesia there is a special ritual called halal bi-halal. During this, Muslim-Indonesians visit their elders, in the family, the neighborhood, or their work, and show respect to them. They will also seek reconciliation (if needed), and preserve or restore harmonious relations.
