Muslim Festivals and Ceremonies — Page 17
Eid Festivals. Eid is an Arabic word which means ‘a day which returns often'. . There are two Eid festivals in a year. The first one is called Eid-ulFitr and the second which comes about ten weeks later is called. Eid-ul-Adhia. . Eid-ul-Fitr. This festival is celebrated at the end of the month of fasting, that is why it is also called the festival of the breaking of the fast. Fasting in the month of Ramadhan is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is, therefore, a practical requirement of the faith and is regarded as an act of devotion. . Fasting regulations. The Holy Quran gives the commandment in the following words: ○ Ye who believe fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may guard against evil (2:184). . A person who is observing the fast is required to abstain from food, drink and even smoking from the first flush of dawn to sunset, each day throughout the month of Ramadhan. The fast is obligatory upon every healthy, adult Muslim, male or female, but there are certain exemptions. A sick person, a person who is travelling, a pregnant woman or one who is breast-feeding her child, one who finds the severity of the fast hard to bear on account of age or other infirmity, are exempt from observing the fast. When the reason for the exemption is only temporary as, for instance, illness from which the person recovers, the number of days of the fast which are missed should be made up at any time after recovery. Should the cause of exemption continue over a lengthy period of time or become permanent as in the case of old age or a chronic infirmity, the exemption is absolute, but the person concerned, if he can afford, should arrange to provide food for a poor person throughout the month of Ramadhan, or give the equivalent amount to charity known as FIDYA. 17