Hi everyone! My name is Mubina Sami and I am so excited to be back on Jillian’s blog today to share more about the Eid Day Celebration. If you missed my last post and would like to know more about Ramadan, check it out here!
Eid-ul Fitir or Eid is the first day of the Islamic month of Shawwal and marks the end of Ramadan. A lot of people ask me if Eid is like Christmas and I say yes – in a way. Maybe not from a religious standpoint but definitely as traditions go like gift exchanges, prepping a feast, wearing new clothes, and going for Eid prayer. In our house, Eid is celebrated on a large scale.
Eid starts with Chaant Raat (Moon Night) the night before Eid. The significance of this night is that it marks the end of Ramadan, bringing in the new Islamic month of Shawwal. Chaant Raat signals the subsequent Eid day. We celebrate this night with friends and family and do fun stuff like last minute shopping, prep huge amounts of food for Eid day, and get Mehndi (henna) done on our hands.
Eid day is kind of like Christmas day for Muslims. During Ramadan, we do quite a bit of prep work for this day. We buy new clothes, decorate our house, and start buying gifts in advance for the kids, parents, family and friends. Every family has different traditions for Eid. On my husband’s side of the family, they get together at one of his uncles or aunts houses for a potluck dinner. Honestly, I kind a like this over one person cooking everything. But with my side of the family, my mom hates when people bring food over to her house. So my sisters and I would stay up all night to help her cook what has got to be at least 11 dishes! Then, she would almost always say that it’s still not enough…and if you have brown mom you know what I’m talking about lol!
There are so many reasons why Eid is special. For me, growing up was all about the food and the Eidi (money/cash). If you’re younger, this is the day you get rich!! Pretty much every elder person (family and friends) has to give you Eidi. But now that I’m older, the tables have turned and my husband and I have to give cash to all the young people. On my side of the family, we exchange gifts because my son, niece, and nephews are all quite young and like toys and games instead.
On the day of Eid, we wear our new or best traditional clothes and get ready for the Eid prayer and the Eid sermon. When it comes to food, I like to make something sweet like Sheer Korma (vermicelli pudding) in the morning for breakfast. Eating something sweet before Eid prayer is called Sunnah (religious Muslim tradition). After prayer, we greet everyone by giving hugs and well wishes of Eid Mubarak (Happy Eid)! After greeting everyone, we all either head to our friends and families homes to exchange gifts, wish them Eid Mubarak, or we head home to wait for guests to arrive. As soon we come home, we open gifts and give out Eidi. Needless to say, the day heads into the night and is filled with lots of laughs, thousands selfies, and a TONS of food!!
I hope you guys enjoyed reading about Eid day!!
Cute post! Eid Mubarak to you all. Since you are educating many potential non Muslims let’s be clear chaand raat is an Indian /. Pakistani cultural tradition. It’s is not a religious tradition and is not celebrated elsewhere in the Muslim world. It’s fun and I love to partake as an Arab married to an Indian but it’s not part of our religion. Lots of love
Thank you. I loved reading about Eid. My son came home all excited that his friends would not be at school because they were celebrating Eid!
What a beautiful celebration. Thank you for sharing.