Eid Mubarak! Happy Eid!

By Tonya Justice | Posted: Thursday May 13, 2021

Eid el Fitr was this week. We wish Eid Mubarak! (Happy Eid!) to all in our community who celebrated.

Two of our Year 12 students Ahmad Al Hussein and Adel Elyassin reflect on Ramadan and Eid el Fitr:

Ramadan and Eid el Fitr are the most important times of the year for us. We observed our first Ramadan when we were six years old. When we fast, we think of poor people in our world. We remember to be thankful for everything we have and we also learn not to complain about things. We fast from sunrise to sunset. In Lebanon sometimes we fasted for 18 hours. It is easier to fast in Aotearoa NZ because the days are shorter but in about 5 years Ramadan will take place during Summer so the days will be longer. Maybe then we will travel to the Middle East for Ramadan! After sunset we eat our ‘breakfast’. It’s called ‘iftar’. First, we drink some water and eat three ‘tamar’ (dates). Then we eat the breakfast which might be ‘adas’ (soup) or other basic meals.

There are normally 5 prayers a day but during Ramadan there are 6 prayers a day. The sixth is called ‘taraweeh’ which means ‘to rest and relax’. We perform this prayer after the last prayer of the day, at about 7pm. Some families go to the mosque everyday for taraweeh.

We also have to read a whole chapter of the Qur’an until it is finished. There are thirty chapters. When we read the Qur’an we feel relaxed and all the negative feelings in our bodies go out. It’s also really interesting because we learn lots of information about different prophets like Mohammad and Moses.

At the end of Ramadan we have a big celebration called Eid el Fitr. Our parents give us some money and we buy new clothes. We pray at the mosque and families meet together and we cook a special meal and eat together.

In Syria for Eid we killed five lambs and had a BBQ. All of the village came to our place and my aunty made fresh bread and we also had sheep yoghurt. It was marvelous. (Ahmad)

You must be happy on this day. You must fill up your day with happiness. We visit each others’ homes and hang out with our friends.

Eid Mubarak to everyone who is celebrating!