What Is the Significance of Eid Al-Adha?

 

The day of Eid al-Adha is known all over the world as “Al-Eid Al-Kabir“, or the Major Feast.

It is distinguished from “Al-Eid Al-Saghir“, which is the Minor Feast, known also as Eid al-Fitr.

This is actually celebrated by Muslims two months and ten days before the Major Feast.

The word “Eid” means “a recurring festival”. The name of Eid al-Adha means “the Feast of Sacrifice”. It is celebrated on the tenth day of the lunar month of Dhul-Hijjah.

A Holy Journey

On the ninth day of Dhul-Hijjah, pilgrims proceed to the plains of the Mount of `Arafah, outside Makkah and they spend their time totally in worship.

This is the core of the worship of Hajj, without which no Hajj is said to have been performed. On that evening, pilgrims proceed from Arafah to Muzdalifah.

Early in the morning of the 10th day of Dhul-Hijjah, the pilgrims having offered their prayers at Muzdalifah, proceed to the three pillars to cast seven stones at the symbols of Satan.

This ceremony of casting stones has been performed since the days of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) (peace be upon him).

It is a ceremony which indicates that one should cast away the evil of Satan repeatedly and resolve never to listen to him again, nor to succumb to temptations.

In fact, the word for the casting process in Arabic is “rajm“, which means throwing of stones.

Then, pilgrims return to Mina, with a pure slate of mind and heart, where they perform the sacrifice of animals. This process commemorates the event when Prophet Ibrahim was about to sacrifice his most beloved treasure, his son…

It was his only son, whom he begot in old age after sincerely having implored Allah, for a son for a very long time.

It was Ismail–his beloved and righteous son–who was destined also to become a prophet. He is known as “Adh-dhabih“, or the chosen sacrifice of Allah.

Hajj is, in fact, considered a re-affirmation of the faith of Prophet Ibrahim, whom is considered the “father” of all prophets.

For Those Who Cannot Attend Hajj?

For those who did not go to Hajj, this year–like most of us–it is celebrated as a feast. We begin with the prayers of Eid, following which, sacrifices of animals are made and the meat is shared with the poor.

It is a pity that over scores of years, the act of sacrifice has lost its meaning.

It has become a mere ritualistic performance among Muslims who sometimes slaughter goats, sheep and cows annually and mechanically, without understanding the underlying significance.

There is a difference between mere charity and sacrifice. Charity is a regular all-time practice of helping the needy and no particular day is fixed for it.

Sacrifice is an annual ritual, which is to be performed on the prescribed days commencing with Eid al-Adha. - aboutislam.net

If Eid Is on Friday, Is There Jumuah?

The Obligation of Jumuah Despite Eid Prayers

Jumu`ah  (Friday Prayer) is an essential symbol of Islam, which Muslims are obligated to establish, regardless of whether we have prayed Eid prayer or not.

Eid is a Sunnah, and, therefore, its performance does not or cannot absolve us from establishing Jumu`ah.

Scholarly Differences on Jumu’ah After Eid Prayer

However, while all schools of jurisprudence agree on the fact that we must establish Jumu`ah in spite of holding Eid prayers, there is a difference of opinion among them on the issue, namely, whether everyone who has attended Eid prayer needs to be present at the Jumu`ah as well.

Both the Hanafi and Maliki Schools unanimously assert that praying Eid does not lift the obligation from anyone of praying Jumu`ah. They ask: How could a fard (obligation) which has been mandated by the Qur’an be lifted by a Sunnah?

Both the Shafi`i and Hanbali schools, however, hold a different view. According to them, an exception is made for those who have performed Eid prayer to allow them to skip Jumu`ah.

They base their position on certain reports transmitted from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) which indicate that he did allow people to skip Friday Prayer if they wished to do so after having attended Eid prayer.

However, as explained by some scholars of the Shafi`i school, the above concession is especially granted for those who are coming to the city for Eid prayer from far away suburbs or villages, in which case, it may prove to be a real inconvenience for them to make another trip for Jumu`ah.

When seen in this light, it is best to look at this concession as it really is: simply a concession granted to those who are otherwise burdened or inconvenienced from undertaking two separate journeys.

It is, therefore, most reasonable to assert that one must not consider the above permission to skip Jumu`ah as a blanket permission for everyone.

Why It’s Best to Still Attend Jumu’ah After Eid

As one scholar has rightly put it, “It is best to attend it.” And even if certain individuals were to make use of this concession, as a community we are held accountable to establish the Friday Prayer.

The traditions that have been cited by scholars for granting the above concession are not at all of a status that can be considered as unquestionable. This fact has always remained a major point of contention in dividing the scholarly opinion on this issue.

One of the most popular ones cited in this respect is that reported by Abu Dawud on the authority of Abu Hurairah, which states that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “In this day two `Eids have fallen concurrently, so if anyone wishes to skip the Jumu`ah he may do so, but we are holding the Jumu`ah anyway.”

The hadith belongs to the category of mursal traditions (hadith with a broken chain of narrators), and, therefore, does not belong to the category of a well attested tradition of the first degree.

However, after having examined the various isnads(chains of transmissions) and similar reports on the issue, Imam Ibn Hajar has concluded that the above report can be considered as being worthy of citation.

In conclusion, the special permission to skip the Friday Prayer granted to those who have prayed `Eid on Friday is simply an exception given to individuals, and not a general directive issued to the community to cancel the Jumu`ah prayer.

Jumu`ah must be held and the imam is held accountable for it.

In such contentious issues, as has been rightly pointed out by one scholar, the safest route to follow is to make use of this allowance only when someone is facing a genuine inconvenience or hardship.

We must never lose sight of the fact that Jumu`ah is an important symbol of Islam, and, hence we are obliged to treat it with due reverence.

Allah Almighty knows best.

- aboutislam.net

About Sheikh Ahmad Kutty

Sheikh Ahmad Kutty is a Senior Lecturer and an Islamic Scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada

How to Reinforce Faith by Remembering Allah?

 

The Remembrance of Allah

However, sometimes they do come from what seems to be nowhere without explanation. There may very well be a satanic element to this as well, whereas there is something or someone from the Jinn world bothering you.

Either way, you have to make a more concerted and stronger effort to engage in a daily spiritual exercise (wird) and a lot more remembrance of Allah (zikrullah), preferable after or before morning (fajr) prayer every morning.

I don’t know if you are in contact with any scholars or religious people nearby to where you are living but if you are, ask them for a daily litany of zikr you can do to help build up your spiritual defenses. And whenever possible, remember Allah.

It is good to always recite the three Quls, the last three chapters of the Quran, whenever possible. Do this constantly, make lots of duah (supplication) for Allah to protect you and your heart, and make sure not to miss any of your five daily prayers (salat), as well as refraining from any deeds that might attract negative elements to you. All of these are very important.

Remember what Allah tells us both in the Quran and Hadith about the importance of His remembrance:

{Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest.} (Quran13:28)

and:

{And remember your Lord much and exalt [Him with praise] in the evening and the morning.} (Quran, 3:41)

The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said:

“Remember Allah during times of ease and He will remember you during times of difficulty.” (At-Tirmidhi)

Remembrance in the Sunnah

We know that the Prophet (peace be upon him) always remembered Allah – this is why we have duah and adhkar for almost everything we do: from entering into the restroom to what to say when someone compliments us.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) also had specific remembrances that he said every morning and every evening (they can be found here).

Each of these words and phrases are precious – not only do they polish your heart and cleanse them of their disturbances, but the Prophet (peace be upon him) would say them for protection, and that in itself should give us peace of mind and heart.

Yaqeen (certainty) is so important – if the Prophet (peace be upon him) has told us that saying certain words will have an effect – we should have no doubt.

We should take the time to understand these words, so that they truly enter our hearts.

May Allah make us of the people:

{who remember Allah while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], “Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You [above such a thing]; then protect us from the punishment of the Fire.} (Quran, 3:191)

- aboutislam.net

About Dr. Abd. Lateef Krauss Abdullah

Dr. Abd. Lateef Krauss Abdullah is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Social Science Study’s Community Education and Youth Studies Laboratory, Universiti Putra Malaysia. He received his B.A. from the University of Delaware (U.S.), his M.S. from Columbia University (U.S.) and his PhD from the Institute for Community & Peace Studies (PEKKA), Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2005 in the field of Youth Studies. Abd. Lateef is an American who has been living in Malaysia since 2001. He is married and has 2 children.

The Best Day: Value of the Day of Arafah

The day of Arafah is a significant day when the rewards for our deeds surpass our efforts. It holds immense value due to its extraordinary level of spiritual blessings and rewards. To explore the profound significance of the day of Arafah, watch this video! - aboutislam.net

10 Simple Deeds that Have the Reward of Hajj

 

Undoubtedly, no deed is actually equivalent to the divine and sacred ritual of Hajj nor will any such deed give your heart the same level of spiritual contentment as Hajj. But Allah is indeed the Most Merciful and Most Generous.

Here are a few effortless actions you can perform so that you catch up with the lucky pilgrims in Makkah:

1. Invoke Allah from Fajr to Ishraaq

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:

Whoever prays (Fajr) in congregation and then sits in the place where he prayed remembering Allah until the sun rises and then prays two rak’ahs has the reward of a complete Hajj and `Umrah. He emphasized “complete” three times.

2. Gaining Knowledge

The Prophet said:

The one who goes out to the mosque wanting only to learn good or teach it has the reward of a complete Hajj.

3. Praying in Congregation

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:

Has Allah not rendered for you the Isha’ prayer in congregation equal to Hajj, and the Fajr prayer in congregation equal to ‘Umrah? (Muslim)

4. Attending the Friday Prayer

Sa’id bin al-Musayyib said that performing the Friday Prayer is “more beloved to Me than a nafl Hajj.”

5. Performing the Eid Prayer

One of the companions said:

Going out to pray Eid al-Fitr is equal to performing `Umrah and going out to pray Eid al-Adha is equal to performing Hajj.

6. Executing the Needs of a Fellow Muslim

Hasan al-Basri said:

“Going to fulfill the need of your brother is better for you than performing Hajj after Hajj.”

7. Obedience to Parents

The Prophet commanded one of the companions to be good to his mother. If you do so, he said:

You are like a Haj pilgrim, a person performing `Umrah and someone striving for the sake of Allah (mujahid).

8. Dhikr

One of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad has been reported:

He who recites Subhanallah 100 times in the morning and another 100 times in the evening is like one who performed Hajj 100 times!

9. Firmly Restraining from Forbidden Acts

Some of the Pious predecessors said:

“To abstain from an iota of wrong is better than five hundred (Nafl) Hajj.”

10. Any Act of Good During the First 10 Days of Dhul Hijjah

May Allah give us the sound ability to perform all these good deeds and the actual Hajj many times In Sha’ Allah.

Source: https://destinationksa.com.

Exhaustion and Hajj Rituals

 

The phenomenon of exhaustion frequently takes place in the summer or in places with high temperature such as during Hajj pilgrimage.

Sometimes, it attacks the person suddenly, but it’s mostly caused by the body being subjected to high temperature which, in its turn, results in losing huge amounts of sweat that contains Sodium Chloride.

The symptoms are general weakness, headache, dizziness and agitation, in addition to many other symptoms like thirst, nausea and anorexia.

The person may also fall fainting out of sickness and he may be pale with a cold body. His pulse becomes weak and fast or strong and slow, the body’s temperature becomes normal or less normal, and the amount of urine becomes lesser with some sort of spasm.

How to Defend Yourself against Exhaustion?

It is very important to know how to defend yourself against this serious malady. Once a person gets subjected to the sun and thus loses considerable amounts of sweat, he has to compensate for this by consuming great amounts of drinks and taking salt tablets in some cases. As for the way of treatment, it is as follows:

Set the sick person in a cold place, take his legs upwards and rub them and give him salty water to drink (a teaspoon of salt added to 1 liter of boiled water). In case he is out of conscience, give him nothing to drink through the mouth.

Thus, a sick person may need to be taken to the hospital and given saline through the vein. In this case, blood pressure will come to its average again and the temperature will be back to the normal.

Cramps attack those people with normal bodies who carry out arduous works under high temperature and thus exert great amounts of perspiration.

Cramps

These cramps always attack those people with normal bodies who carry out arduous works under high temperature and thus exert great amounts of perspiration.

It also attacks sportsmen who do the same job. The main cause for this is the great amount of perspiration lost due to these efforts. This is always accompanied with severe pains in the affected muscle and sometimes in the belly.

After taking some rest, being remote from high temperature, and giving the sick person some saline or salty tablets, the person may feel well.

It should be noted that muscular and articular pains increase according to high temperature. A pilgrim may think of it as being rheumatism.

However, it stems from the infection that occurs in the muscle due to being subjected to change of temperature caused by air conditioners. This results in myosclerosis. Taking aspirin with some warming may be helpful in this case.

The Symptoms of Sunstroke	The Symptoms of Exhaustion
1-	The skin is hot, dry and red colored.	1-	The skin is cold, sweaty and yellow colored.
2-	High body temperature.	2-	The extension of the pupil of the eye.
3-	Severe Fatigue and loss of conscience.	3-	Lack of temperature.
4-	The possibility of loss of conscience.	4-	Body weakness and fragility.

- aboutislam.net

What’s the Reward of Those Who Can’t Afford Hajj?

Some people may not be able to go to Hajj because they can’t afford it. Does this mean they’ll miss out on its benefits and rewards? Dr. Shabir Ally answers this question, sharing tips and ways through which such people can still earn the blessings of Hajj. - aboutislam.net