 |
 |
 It
has to be said that Eid is what you make it. If you want to go all
out and celebrate in the streets there isn't anything stopping you,
after all this only happens twice a year and why not celebrate your
faith and let others know as well?
It
would also help the image that the media seems to be giving to the
Islamic faith, of a strict and 'no fun' religion.
I
think that making other people aware of Islam, not just on Eid,
is something that is very important for their own understanding
of the fact that Islam is meant to be a peaceful religion.
| "We
went to the mosque with my father. On our way home, my dad would
buy 'Jalebis' and then we would go back to school before lunchtime."
|
| Kamran
on spending Eid in England. |
Celebrating Eid in Southampton follows a pretty similar routine
each year. In the morning, the men and women leave the house, dressed
in their 'Shalwar Kameez', with their heads covered, to recite the
'Eid Namaaz' at one of the many mosques in Southampton.
Normally
after this is a series of meeting and greeting family and friends,
receiving presents from family and friends, going to family and
friends' houses to eat, and then having family and friends coming
back to your house to eat with you!
I
am constantly being approached by friends of my mother. Apparently
they have known me since I was 'this high' and manage to be able
to squeeze my cheeks so hard that they throb, while my mum laughs
and I give a fixed smile simultaneously wondering if my cheeks
are still there.
 |
| Zahra
is also a presenter with Unity24 radio in Southampton. |
However,
living in England brings its restrictions when it comes to most
Eastern celebrations, mainly due to the fact that most of us follow
a westernised lifestyle.
For
instance, within the educational system in England we get holidays
for Christmas and Easter, but even though Southampton and the
rest of England is very much a multicultural place, where are
the holidays for Eid, or Diwali, or any other non-Christian festival?
Don't
get me wrong, I don't have a problem with this, but it does make
you wonder. Britain has changed multiculturally, so why shouldn't
other things change with regards to the minority populations?
"When
I was younger, my mum would always henna my hands and get
my clothes ready for Eid the next day.
I would take the day off school, pray at the mosque with my
mum, and then go to people's houses, visiting and giving sweets
to the families.
People who I didn't even know would give money to my siblings
and me. I think my mum wanted to make our Eid as much like
her Eid back home as possible." |
| Zahra
on spending Eid in England |
Some of us get around this by simply taking the day off school
or college to celebrate Eid with our families and other Muslims,
as I did when I was younger.
But now I am not able to because of work commitments and so am
unable to join the day's festivities.
Some
people in this situation must either feel that they have missed
out, but others simply celebrate around their western lifestyles.
The
same problems happen with breaking the fast, especially when it
happens around 4:30pm when most people are still at work. Islamic
countries do not have these restrictions. Maybe the experience
of celebrating Eid in an Islamic country would give not so much
a better but sometimes a richer experience of Eid.
As
Muslims who may not be able to experience Eid in an Eastern country,
we do the best we can to make it the best experience possible,
and I think we do pretty well. We do have a lot of fun, and the
atmosphere is one of general happiness and festivity…besides,
this year, Eid is on a weekend!
|
