Eid al-Adha 2016: When is it and how do Muslims celebrate the end of Hajj?

Everything you need to know about the Muslim festival
Eid Al-Adha will fall next week
Getty
Liz Connor12 September 2016

Today marks one of the most important festivals in the Islamic calendar take place, not just in London, but across the world.

Muslims around the globe are expected to turn out to celebrate Eid al-Adha, which marks the end of Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca.

The holy festival is distinct from Eid al-Fitr, the annual date that comes immediately after Ramadan, which was celebrated in July.

The Feast of Sacrifice commemorates what Muslims believe was Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son in accordance with God’s will, though God provides him with a sheep to sacrifice instead.

Want to know more about the day of celebration and prayer? Here’s everything you need to know.

When is Eid al-Adha?

Just like Easter, Eid al-Adha is based on the lunar cycle, meaning it falls on a different day each year.

The timing of the festival depends on when the new moon is seen at the beginning of the Islamic calendar month of Dhu al-Hijjah.

There are varying interpretations across the globe on the exact sighting of the moon, which means that Greater Eid can fall on a different day depending on what sect, mosque or region you are in.

However, Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court announced on Friday it would celebrate the festival on the September 12.

The US, Canada and the Islamic Society of North America all follow the Saudi calendar, as does the European Council of Fatwa and Research - meaning it will be celebrated on the September 12 in London.

Asian countries, however, will celebrate the Greater Eid on September 13.

Why has the timing received so much attention this year?

For weeks before the announcement, when the date was still unclear, Muslims in the US were worried Eid would coincide with the 15th anniversary of 9/11.

Communities were concerned that the festivities would be interpreted as Muslims celebrating the atrocities.

Ibrahim Hooper from The Muslim council on American-Islamic Relations, told Reuters he was concerned it might allow “Islam haters to falsely claim that Muslims were celebrating on 9/11”.

Some mosques even prepared to step up security for the holy day, should it have fallen on September 11, while others were planning to move their celebrations indoors.

Eid in the Square, in pictures

1/12

How is it celebrated?

Eid usually starts with Muslims going to the Mosque for morning prayers to thank Allah for all the blessings they have received.

It is also a time when they visit family and friends as well as offering presents and exchanging cards.

At Eid it is obligatory to give money to charity to be used to help the poor so they can join in the celebrations.

Worshippers also slaughter an animal, such as a sheep or a goat. In Pakistan alone, nearly ten million animals are slaughtered on Eid.

This, however, is not common or legal in many parts of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States or many other countries.

In these countries, groups of people may purchase a whole carcass from a butcher or slaughterhouse and divide it amongst themselves or just buy generous portions of meat for a communal meal on Eid-al-Adha.

The festival is traditionally four days long, but public holidays vary depending on the country.

Follow us on Twitter: @eslifeandstyle

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT