Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Eid Adha, the Festival of Sacrifice – and how it could be the Start of Dating



Eid Adha, or Eid al-Adha, is the Festival of Sacrifice and is celebrated by Muslim communities around the world after the Hadjj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, during which the Prophet Abraham's trials and triumphs are commemorated. Eid Adha is celebrated in remembrance of Abraham's willingness to slaughter his son Ishmael to God. Because of Abraham's faith and obedience, God spared Ishmael and exchanged him for a sheep. To commemorate this event, Muslims everywhere will slaughter a sheep, goat or camel during the Festival of Sacrifice.

On the very first morning of the Festival of Sacrifice, which usually lasts three or four days,  all  muslim men  and may be also muslim women will meet for morning prayers in their local mosque. This is then followed by visiting family and/ or friends and exchanging greetings and gifts with them.Some time during the day, family members will arrange the slaughter of a sheep or goat, the meat of which will be distributed during this holiday or shortly afterwards. It will typically be divided into thirds, one of which will be eaten with the family, the second is given to friends and the third is given to the poor.This is done to show a willingness not only to give up that which is of benefit or close to the heart, but also the willingness to share what is owned to strengthen friendships and to assist those in need.

The sacrifice is often misunderstand by members of other faiths as an attempt to have sins atoned for by the blood. In reality, the sacrifice is made as an act of faith and obedience. It is a symbol for the willingness to make sacrifices and give up something  men or muslim women in order to remain on the straight path.For muslim men and muslim women , this Festival has a potential to be the start of dating a future partner. While not allowed to meet up on their own, they are able to interact freely - within reason - within the circle of family and friends as they all meet up for the holiday celebrations.

Often children of families who have known each other for years will become attracted to one another as they grow older and reach the age where they are permitted to look for a partner. By meeting at the holiday gatherings, they can make a first, tentative contact and begin to get to know each other a little.They then have two choices. They can either continue to meet only when there is a gathering until their families agree to their marriage and the necessary arrangements are made; or they can agree to continue to get to know each other better by joining zawag.alnaddy.com and dating each other in the safety of this Website for a while before making a firm commitment to one another.
This will, of course, make it possible for them to find out much more about each other's personalities, likes, dislikes and views on life in general before deciding to ask their parents for permission to be married.

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