Image by Brennan Mercado
It’s a very important holiday to millions around the world, including an estimated 3.5 million Pilipinos living in the Philippines, but it doesn’t appear on most calendars. Although the holiday has been celebrated for hundreds of years, it was added to the official state calendar of the Philippines as recently as November 2002. This year, December 8, marks the celebration of Eid al-Adha (Festival of the Sacrifice), (spelled Id-ul Adha, or Idul Adha in some places). For Muslims all over the world, Eid al-Adha is the commemoration of Ibrahim’s (Abraham in the Christian tradition) willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael (the Christian Bible says it is Isaac) at God’s command. God realized the depth of Ibrahim’s obedience at the last moment, and Ishamel was replaced with a goat. The holiday also celebrates the end of the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. In Indonesia, for example, they also call the holiday Hari Raya Hajj, or The Holiday of the Hajj, as it takes place one day after the pilgrims in Mecca come down from Mount Arafat.
The way people celebrate varies from country to country, locale to locale, but there are some characteristics which all share. Muslims who have the means must sacrifice a goat or lamb, cook and share the meat with loved ones (Muslim and non-Muslim alike) and the poor. People put on their best clothes and go to the mosque for a prayer and sermon, then visit friends and family, and of course, eat. The celebration can last several days.
Unfortunately, due to my lack of Pilipino Muslim acquaintances, I was unable to get any first-hand accounts of Eid al-Adha family traditions. I did, however, dig up an article from Inquirer.net, which mentioned the above practices (prayer, friends and family, and good food). The article also said that a common food that Pilipino Muslims share at the mosque is dodol, a sweet made from coconut milk and glutinous rice that resembles kalamay.
Should you happen to read this post on December 8 or thereabouts, don’t forget to greet your Muslim buddies, Pilipino or otherwise. In this crazy climate of political and economic uncertainty, everyone could use a little more Christmas, Hanukkah, Eid al-Adha, and Kwanzaa love.
