How to Celebrate Eid ul Fitr?
The Holy month of Ramadan is about to end. The most awaited event after ramadan is the event of Eid-ul-Fitr that takes place right after Ramadan on the first of Shawal. Eid refers to happiness, therefore, on that day Muslims celebrate and spread happiness.
The reason why a Muslim celebrates Eid-ul-Fitr are numerous. The first could be because it is a blessing from Allah Almighty, secondly because it is a reward for keeping fast for thirty days and thirdly it can merely be an occasion when Muslims express their love for each other and spread joy all over. The numerous reasons behind the celebration of Eid-ul-Fitr aside, there is a particular way in which a Muslim must celebrate the Eid. This way or ways are the ones that are more close to the way Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) used to celebrate Eid. The lines below discuss a few ways in which you can celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr.
Wear Nice Dress:
Eid is celebration and every celebration requires preparations in general and dressing in particular. Wearing a new dress on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr is the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and it represents the measures a Muslim must take pertaining to Eid celebration. The dress should be worn after proper bath and once the new dress is worn, then a Muslim must apply some perfume over the dress as well, as it is also one of the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Therefore, the morning of the Eid day a Muslim must first ensure that he wears if not new then the best clothes he has available.
Go For Prayer:
The festival of Eid-ul-Fitr is special; therefore, it also has special prayer as well. The offering of Eid prayer is a Wajib, hence every Muslim male must make the effort of offering the prayer with congregation. More than just simple worship, the prayer of Eid symbolizes the fact that as Muslims remember Allah in the days of hardship and patience, they do the same on the days of happiness and joy as well. Therefore, on the day of Eid, after wearing the dress a Muslim must make sure that he goes to the mosque to offer the prayer of Eid with congregation.
Take Different Routes To Mosque:
The celebration of Eid-ul-Fitr is all about greeting all those a Muslim meets and spreading the message of love and joy with greetings. In this regard, a Muslim must take a leaf out of the life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as He is the best example pertinent to celebration of Eid and how a Muslim can greet the maximum people possible. As per His Sunnah, He would take one route towards the mosque for prayer and would come back from another route. This changing of routes ensures that a Muslim meets and greets people living on the side of both the routes. Therefore, the next time you go to offer the Eid-ul-Fitr prayer go from one side and come back the other way around to make sure that you meet maximum people.
Visit Friends And Family:
What good is a celebration if a person does not share the happiness with others. The festival of Eid-ul-Fitr provides an excellent chance to Muslims to forget their previous grudges and anger and leaving all that behind greet each other with happiness and joy. It is one day when all of the Muslims forget all that has passed and try to make amends by going out to visit friends and families to whom they have not spoken or contacted with for long. Moreover, the festival of Eid can also be seen on its peak when Muslims who live in other countries, especially visit their friends and family in their home countries on the day of Eid. From this, the social and cultural importance of Eid can be realized. It is an event where all those who haven’t seen each other in a year or who haven’t been to their home with their family make arrangements to be there on the day of Eid so that they could spend the memories of love with their loved and cherished ones.
Give Sadqah of Fitr:
Being happy does not mean that one limits that happiness to him or herself only, rather the real essence of happiness lies in its sharing. If happiness be wearing good clothes, eating healthy foods and be able to visit places on the occasions of joy, then for such people Islam gives the ideal fit on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr in the form of Sadqah of Fitr. It is the charity or alms giving that a Muslim has to pay before the prayer of Eid-ul-Fitr. Although it can be paid in Ramadan as well, however, the recommended time is to offer it between the Fajr and Eid prayer. Thus, the giving of alms to the poor before the prayer of Eid gives them a chance to celebrate the Eid in a way in which the wealthy and fortunate people of the Ummah do, ergo, no member of the society is left behind in the celebrations and everyone is given a chance to be a part of it regardless of their social standing.
Conclusion:
In a nutshell, Eid-ul-Fitr is a Holy festival and like all other Holy occasions and festivals it needs to be observed with peace and respect. The best way of doing so can be by following the Snnah of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) pertaining to the celebration of Eid and do the same things which He did during that particular day in word as well as in practice.
