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Etiquette OF Eid-ul-Fitr

Ramadhaan is coming to the end and Eid ul Fitr is fast approaching us. I felt it necessary to share with you some information about Eid ul Fitr . Firstly Let me tell me the Sunnats that a Muslim should observe on the day of Eid and then I would warn you of some evils which have spread amongst us during this day.

THE SUNNAHS

1. Doing Ghusl before going out to the prayer.
It was narrated in a saheeh hadeeth in al-Muwatta’ and elsewhere that ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar used to do ghusl on the day of al-Fitr before going out to the prayer-place in the morning. Al-Muwatta’ 428.

2. Eating before going out to pray on Eid al-Fitr and after the prayer on Eid al-Adha:
A hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari from Anas ibn Maalik, who said that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used not to go out on the morning of Eid al-Fitr until he had eaten some dates of which he would eat an odd number. Al-Bukhaari, 953.

It is mustahabb to eat before going out to emphasize the fact that it is forbidden to fast on that day and to demonstrate that the fast has ended. But on Eid al-Adha it is mustahabb not to eat anything until one comes back from the prayer, so he should eat from the udhiyah if he has offered a sacrifice. If he is not going to offer a sacrifice there is nothing wrong with eating before the prayer.

3. Zakaat al-Fitr is due on this day .
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) enjoined that it should be paid before the Eid prayer.

It is permissible to pay it one or two days before that, because of the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) which was narrated by al-Bukhaari: “They used to give it one or two days before (Eid) al-Fitr.” If it is paid after the Eid prayer, it does not count as Sadaqat al-Fitr, because of the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas: “Whoever pays it before the prayer, it is Zakaat al-Fitr, and whoever pays it after the prayer, it is ordinary charity.” It is haraam to delay Zakaat al-Fitr until after the Eid prayer. If one delays it with no excuse then it is not acceptable zakaah, but if there is an excuse,  such as if a person is traveling and does not have anything to give or anyone to give it to, or he is expecting his family to pay it and they are expecting him to pay it, then in this case he should pay it when it is easy for him to do so, even if that is after the prayer, and there is no sin on him because he has an excuse.

4.  Takbeer on the day of Eid
One of the greatest Sunnahs on the day of Eid is saying Takbeer because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“(He wants that you) must complete the same number (of days), and that you must magnify Allah [ i.e. to say Takbeer (Allaahu Akbar: Allah is the Most Great)] for having guided you so that you may be grateful to Him”[al-Baqarah 2:185]

Al-Daaraqutni and others narrated that on the morning of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, Ibn ‘Umar would strive hard in reciting takbeer until he came to the prayer place, then he would recite takbeer until the imam came out.

The Day Of Eid-ul-Adha

The Day of Eid ul Adha (Day of Sacrifice) is an important occasion celebrated by Muslims globally on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah to honor the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham)(peace be upon him) to sacrifice his son Ismael (Ishmael)(peace be upon him) as an act of obedience to Allah Ta’ala before Allah Ta’ala intervened to provide him with a ram to sacrifice instead.

It reminds us how obedience to our Lord Allah Ta’ala is the answer to everything. This means surrendering your life, your whole being, all that you are, all that you have, and all that you identify with to and only for Allah Ta’ala.

When you sacrifice everything that you identify with to Allah Ta’ala, He gives to you your authentic and eternal self. That is the spiritual secret so many of us seek. Both Eid-ul-Adha and Hajj serve as special occasion that definitely gets one in touch with this secret.

Eid-ul-Adha is a day on which a Muslim should bring himself or herself even closer to Allah Ta’ala by means of doing good deeds such as Prayers, Qurbani(sacrifice), caring for the poor and the needy, visiting the sick people, helping those who are in need and refraining from evil practices such as harming people and severing ties of kinship.

In short, `Eid Al-Adha is a model for the Muslim community which maintains love, care, brotherhood and sisterhood, beauty, and solidarity. `Eid has significant social, educational, devotional, and spiritual messages that Muslims should grasp and translate into a complete way of life.

Excellence Of Eidayn And Method Of Performing The Eid Prayer

I. Hadrat Anas reported that when the Holy Prophet came to Madinah, the people had two days in which they used to entertain and amuse themselves. He asked: What are these two days? They said: We used to amuse ourselves and take pleasure in these two days during the Days of Ignorance (jahiliyyah). The Messenger of Allah said Allah has substituted for you something better than these two; the Eid of Adha (sacrifice) and the Eid of Fitr. [Sunan Abi Dawood – Book on Prayer, Vol 1, Page 162]

II. Hadrat Abu al-Huwairith reported that the Messenger of Allah wrote to Hadrat Amr ibn Hazm, when he was in Najran, asking him to observe the prayer early on the Eid of Adha (sacrifice) and late on the Eid of Fitr, and admonish the people. [Mishkaat – Book on Prayer, Vol 1, Page 127]

III. Hadrat Jabir ibn Samurah reported, I prayed with the Messenger of Allah the two Eid prayers more than once or twice, without an Adhan or Iqamah. [Sahih Muslim – Book on the two Eid Prayers, Vol 1, Page 290]

IV. Hadrat Anas reported that the Messenger of Allah did not go (to the place of prayer) in the morning on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr till he ate some dates, and he used to eat an odd number. [Sahih Bukhari – Book on the two Eid Prayers, Vol 1, Page 130]

V. Hadrat Buraidah reported that the Holy Prophet did not go out on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr till he had eaten some food; and that he did not eat any food on the day of Eid-ul-Adha (sacrifice) till he had prayed. [Sunan Tirmidhi – Book on the two Eid Prayers, Vol 1, Page 120]

VI. Hadrat Jabir reported that on the day of Eid the Holy Prophet used to return by a different route from the one he had taken when going out. [Sahih Bukhari – Book on the two Eid Prayers, Vol 1, Page 134]

Important Notes:

1. To greet, embrace and shake hands with one another, after the Eidayn prayer is an act of reward; which is also a means of increasing love and affection between Muslims and a way of expressing one’s joy and happiness.

2. It is not permissible for females to perform the Eidayn prayers, as there shall be mixing between the men and the women in the Eidgah (the place where the Eid prayer is performed). This is why it is not permissible for females to go to the Masajid to perform salaah with the congregation; whether they go in day or at night; whether for Jum’ah or for Eidayn; whether they are old or young. [This has been stated in Tanwir al-Absar and al-Durr al-Mukhtar Page 114]

Yes, however, before Zawal women can perform the 2 or 4 rak’ats Chasht (Salatud Duha) prayer at home after the Eidayn prayer has finished. [Bahar-e-Shariat  Vol. 1, Chapter 4, Page 94]

3. If only the women have their own congregation for salaah, then this is also not permissible, as the congregation held by women between themselves (to perform salaah) is not allowed, in fact, it is strictly disliked (Makruh-e-Tehrimi). [This has been stated in Fatawa-e-Alamgiri Vol. 1 Page 80, also in al-Durr al-Mukhtar Page 77]

Night Of Lailatul Qadr

Wow! Is it actually that time again? Mash’Allah!  Please do make the time and effort for this auspicious night, as it may or may not come again.

It’s surely unbelieve how quickly Ramadan has almost come to an end this year once again. It feels like the month just began and we were all preparing ourselves for it. Rather now, we are preparing ourselves for Eid ul Fitr instead. Even though at the start of the month, it seems as if we have so many weeks ahead of us to fast and it will take quite a bit of time before we come to the end. I must honestly admit that I miss this beautiful month of blessings once it is all over and done with. And of course, how can I forget to mention all those sehri’s and iftar’s and looking forward to eating dates, fruit chaats, pakoras, dhai baras, paratha’s, etc., etc. on such a regular basis. Foods we hardly pay attention to during the rest of the year, yet they taste so good and we look forward to enjoying them during this blessed month 🙂 It’s kinda funny though, isn’t it?

So most of us are only a night or so away from that ever-powerful and blessed night. The greatest nights of all nights during this month of fasting before the ‘ actual ‘ end rolls around. I would just like to take a moment and convey the message to all, that it is one of the most precious nights of all nights, this night of Lailatul Qadr. Let’s all please pray together as much as we can and remember Allah SWT and his graciousness and mercy that he bestows upon us every day of our lives. Let’s all pray for forgiveness of our sins from the Al-Mighty and request that he accepts repentance for all our mistakes whether made intentionally or unintentionally. Let’s pray that ( as Muslims) we may try to unite and assist one another as much as we can in times of desperation and despair. I don’t feel that anyone should feel helpless and hesitant going to another fellow Muslim brother or sister ( in Islam ) in times of need or urgency. Let’s pray that may Allah SWT always gives us that rank and capability to help one another whenever possible instead of turning our backs and walking away. Whether it be financial, moral, spiritual, or emotional support, we should be there for one another, as that is what Islam and being Muslim is all about. It’s something we should learn from practice not only during this one-month time span but rather all year round.

I don’t think any practice is impossible or difficult if we are just willing to at least give it a chance and seek a reward from Allah SWT only for it at the end of the day. He is the Supreme being that will surely listen to our hearts and know what is on our minds.

Also please do pray for the well-being of Pakistan (as a whole) and our countrymen. Even if you do not directly have family, friends, or relatives living there, I am sure that there would be some sort of connection that your parents or grandparents would have with their roots being attached to Pakistan in one way or another.

Aside from that, I would request that you all remember those women in your special of special prayers that recently died during the dreadful mishap, whilst the distribution of flour (atta) was in progress. It was deeply saddening and disturbing to hear about and view on television the incident that happened with these women and some children of theirs, that was only struggling for the most needed commodity of commodities in order to keep their families fed and alive. After all, isn’t it extremely shameful and disgusting that something like this had to happen over such a commodity of flour? We are not even talking of an item of luxury here people. For the love of God, it was an item of necessity, and something as pathetic and tragic as this had to happen.

It really didn’t have to all happen the way it did and it is unfortunate. Just hearing about it all brought a few tears to my eyes only because of the thought of those children that these deceased women left behind that were needing to be fed. What will happen to them now and where will they go to receive that maternal love and care that they always had and lived for? Will there be a replacement for that unconditional love that they lost within minutes? Someone, please tell me, how fair was that to them and their families? Why did the poor and needy ( who have challenges and struggles in life of their own already) have to be punished for all of this nonsense? And of course, as I write about all this, I tend to get teary-eyed and emotional once again myself.

Last but not least, I would simply request from all of you ( not only during Ramadan) but rather all year round and in all seasons and times to come to try and lend a hand to one another. Even if that means sparing some of your precious time for someone that needs your advice or undivided attention. It doesn’t always have to be financial assistance, even providing moral support may mean a lot to someone. You would never know how they would be benefitting from all that you would be doing for them. Do keep in mind that we often ask others to remember us in their prayers and they expect the same from us, so then at any given time each of us is either praying for someone or someone is praying for us and our good health and happiness. That is how it should be. As the Holy Qur’an and our religion of Islam dictates brotherhood and generosity towards mankind, we should surely be on top of that first and foremost if indeed we are practicing Muslims.

May Allah (SWT) always allow us to be led on the path of goodness and justice. May he also allows us to live a life that safeguards our dignity and self-respect and keeps us away from all evils & sins…Insh’Allah. Beyond all that, Allah swt is well aware of what’s best for all of us.

Thank you all for your time and consideration.