By Suraya Usamah
Allahuakbar! Allahuakbar! Allahuakbar!
Family gatherings, Qurban and wearing bright coloured clothes are what Eidil Adha is all about. Even though it is not as joyful as Eidil Fitr, there are unique contemptuous moments which are only experienced during Eidil Adha.
“I’m excited to spend my first Eid in Malaysia, but still a bit sad because I’m not with my family,” said Malik Nkoba, a Tanzanian student.
Seeing people wearing white and helping in the process of Qurban is what I like most during Eid and of course eating the cooked meat,” he added.
“Eid reminds me of how merciful Allah (SWT) and as a Muslim, I should always have faith in Him,” shared Farah Bawazir, an Indonesian student on the story of Prophet Ibrahim (AS)’s famous sacrifice.
The spirit not only lingers among the International students at the International Islamic University Malaysia, but also among locals.
A Kelantanese student, Amalia Othman, described how she usually spends her first day of Eid saying, “In the early morning, my family and I will attend the Eid prayer at the mosque, right after that we do the Qurban. Sometimes we attend the one at the mosque or the whole family will gather and do it together from slaughtering to cleaning and cooking, and then finally makan makan.”
Being away from our home and family members, we tend to miss all the great things that symbolises Eid for us.
“I miss family gatherings the most, meeting my cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents. That’s what makes Eid complete actually, being surrounded with the people you care most about,” Farah added.
Malik said, “I’m definitely missing my family’s lamb, we usually sacrifice our goats not cows because the meat tastes different and much more delicious. My mom usually cooks the meat with Pilau (a kind of rice), I really miss that.”
“In Malaysia, it is a must to eat lemang (glutinous rice cooked in bamboo) with rendang (spicy beef dish). They’re like a ritual for us during Eid,” Amalia added.
No matter which part of the world we come from, all Muslims around the world celebrate Eidil Adha in the same way, waking up early for Eid prayer, watching the Qurban, and eating delicious food.
The celebration of Eidil Adha or the Qurban is for the remembrance of how grateful and merciful our Lord is, and to teach the great values of sacrificing in Islam to the younger generation. T
This is the time when we come to realise and appreciate the existence of our family, especially those who have sacrificed the most in order to provide us with the best. It is also the best time to ask for forgiveness from those we have once hurt and to forgive those who have once hurt us.
Eid Mubarak, everyone.
Photo taken from The Baltimore Sun