Eid Celebration

Last week I saw ten years old Najma asking her mother, “Why don’t this Eid come earlier, I have completed all my preparations, I have purchased clothes, sandals and bangles etc”. It was the middle of Ramzan, the holy month, which is famous for the fast, prayers and charity. At the end of this month Muslims all over the world celebrate the festival of Eid -ul-fitr, which is considered a joyful reward for their fasts and prayers they have performed during the month.

Every festival is an occasion of merry making and happiness. The same sense is in the word ‘Eid’. Eid-ul-Fitr, the most important festival of Muslims has many common features of celebrations like other festivals, but there are a few peculiarities for having Sheer Khurma and Sewaiyan (vermicelli), special sweet dishes prepared for the occasion, wearing new scented clothes, performing Namaz-e-Eid which most of the people particilarly in villages prefer to go to the out side open ground called Eid Gah, but in cities due to unavailibility of such places muslims perform Namaz in nearest mosques. After namaz they congratulate each other by hugging and shaking hands.

A few newspapers publish suppliments consisting many pages of pictures of kids who had performed Roza (fast) during the month of Ramzan. It is strange that most of the poems published in Urdu on Eid have a common notion that depicts the woe of poor people unable to celebrate Eid hole heartedly due to their poverty. The same situation has been described in a couplet of poet Iqbal.
He says,
Hilal-e-Eid Hamari Hansi Udata Hai (The crecent of Eid seems to laugh at us)

In our society we have also seen middle class people facing hard time to cope with the expences of shopping they have to do for the festival. Last week I saw a heap of applications forms for emergent loan before the secretary of Teacher’s co-operative society.
A couple of days before, I saw a beggar lady with her children asking my neighbour for some money,” Amma, hamare chhote chhote bachche hain, kuch zakat, fitra dila do.” This is a common scene, particularly in Muslim vicinities during this holy month. Many groups of beggars and charity collectors seem wondering from door to door. Most of them are not really in need but they have adopted this as an occupetion. It is also a fact that there are a number of people who are unable to meet both the ends, their poverty and dire need never Known to public. The people who are enjoying three-figured salary also found disturbed at the occasion of a festival then what about a person who is lying below poverty line .The charity in the month of Ramazan is for these needy people. This charity called Fitra is compulsery to every Muslim, and it should be handed over to the needy people before going to the namaz of Eid. Some one had asked Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) “What about the person who is unable to give any thing in charity?”

She was told that such person should refrain himself from hurting others and perform good deed with his hands, this is charity on his behalf, and if he has no hands, he should advise people for good deeds and in case he is unable to do this too, he should keep silence. It would also be treated charity from him.

It may be Eid or any festival, these occasions being enjoyed mostly by the children. We have ample sweet memories of such moments in our childhood. Most of us have fade up with these celebrations. New clothes, bright new shoes, sweet dishes and other things have been failed to provide us joy. Still a new form of delight is remaining for us and that is, smiling faces of our children and relatives and certainly this is our Eid.