Ahmedkaafi
Junior Member
Eating on the Eid day
One is to eat before going to the salah (prayer) for Eidul Fitr, but not do so on the occasion of the Eid ul adhha (commemorating Prophet Ibrahim's sacrifice). For Eidul fitr, it is a sunnah to eat an odd number of dates before going to pray salatul Eid (eid prayer) while for Eidul adha the eating should be delayed until one returns from the Eid prayers and then he may eat of his sacrifice if he has sacrificed an animal.
Subhanallah, Eid seems to be becoming more and more bizarre every year! Rather than a time for reflecting over Ramadan, or strengthening ourselves for facing the shaitan, its become more of a time of competition [who has rented the best car?], zina [checking out the guys and girls at the masjid!], expense [the need to buy designer clothes to outdo the next bro!] , and vanity!
Many of our youth do not even know what the true purpose or Sunnah's of Eid are! There is much more to Eid than hanging out with our friends at the arcades! So insha'Allah I'm going to highlight a few important points for us all to consider so that we don't fall into the traps of Shaitaan as soon as he is set free from Hell!
1.
DO: Wake up early
Just because Ramadaan is over its not an excuse to lie in! Make sure you wake up early on Eid an pray Salatul Fajr! Many of us are only ramadan muslims, so we only pray during Ramadan so that insha'Allah our fasts will be accepted.... But! ... SALAH IS NOT JUST FOR RAMADAAN! So seeing as your already in the habit make sure you carry out all of you 'obligatory' prayers today! [yes they are obligatory and don't u forget that!]
Narrated Abu Qatadah ibn Rab'i:
Allah the Exalted said: I made five times' prayers obligatory on your people, and I took a guarantee that if anyone observes them regularly at their times, I shall admit him to Paradise; if anyone does not offer them regularly, there is no such guarantee of Mine for him. [Abu Dawud]
DON'T: decide to have a lie in till lunch time : Eid salat is VERY important for everyone to attend!
2.
DO: Freshen Up
Even a basic sunnah such as taking a bath [ghusl] is being ignored nowadays! Why? Because many of our sisters have their hair blow dryed the day before and don't wanna ruin the style! Coz they don't want their mehndi [henna] to fade! Taking ghusl and brushing your teeth [with a miswaak preferably] is sunnah and we should all uphold this tradition! It is also sunnah for 'men' to wear perfume/ittar before going to the Eid prayer, perfume was one of rasulAllah's preferred things in this world and we should aim to smell nice on Eid!
DON'T: Women, do not wear perfume to the masjid! Zainab bint Thaqafiyah reported: The Messenger of Allah (saw) said to us: "When any of you comes to the mosque, she should not apply perfume." (Saheeh Muslim).
3.
DO: Dress to impress!
Okay well not literally! Eid isn't about being ostentatious and buying the latest most expensive clothes available!
Ibn Al-Qayyim said:"The Prophet, (saw), used to wear his best clothes for the Eid prayers and he (saw) had clothes that he reserved for the two Eids and Jumu'ah."(Muslim)
Of course Eid 'is' a celebration for us and we should wear our best clothes but Islam is for everyone and does not burden us to but new clothes if we cannot afford it, or if we can it would be better for us to give that money to those who need it. More often we see people dressing up in their shiniest clothes just to go to Eid salaat! What purpose does this serve? Attracting attention from everyone, which is wrong, distracting people from their salaat again wrong! Infact it shows no worthy purpose at all and should be avoided. Eid is an 'islamic' festival so inshallah we should all aim to dress islamically, particularly at the masjid, that includes our brothers, trying giving up the armanis and hilfiggers for a day for a simple thobe!
DON'T: dress up like Christmas trees! Over dressing and Eid are not a good combination! Unless we want the shaitaan to use us as his vicegerents!
4.
DO: have breakfast!
It is sunnah to eat breakfast on Eid ul Fitr before leaving your home for the prayer. Anas (radiyallaahu `anhu) narrated:
"Allah's Messenger [saw] would not leave (his house) on the day of Fitr until he ate some dates."(al-Bukhari) Many of us wake up to the smell of our mums making something sweet for breakfast on eid! So don't waste her efforts of waking up soo early by saying that I'll have some when I come back! Follow the sunnah, eat something sweet, and then leave the house!
DON'T: Fast! This Eid is signifying the end of Ramadaan! The month of fasting! You might not be hungry but atleast have a date! [ the halal kind!]
5.
DO: Pay the Zakat ul Fitr!
You must pay the zakat ul fitr before the Salatul-Eid. Note this zakat [tax] is compulsory on everyone so make sure youre prepared!
Yahya related from Malik from Nafi from Abdullah Ibn Umar that the Messenger of Allah, made the Zakat of breaking the fast at the end of Ramadhan obligatory on every Muslim, whether freeman or slave, male or female, and stipulated it as a sa' of dates or a sa' (approximately the volume of two handfuls) of barley. [Al-Muwatta]
DON'T: Rely on your parents to pay it for you! The zakat is to help YOU! So you should pay it Ibn Abbas said: "The Messenger of Allah, saw, enjoined Zakat al-Fitr on the one who fasts to shield him from any indecent act or speech and for the purpose of providing food for the needy." (Related by Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah.)
6.
DO: Try to walk to the masjid/ or prayer ground
Ok, so this might not be particularly manageable for everyone, but atleast try not to park your car to close to the mosque, so that you can get reward for every step you take to the masjid. Rasulullah(Sallallahu alaiyhi wasallam) said: for every step is a reward, there is a reward equal to one years fast' . Also this will lesson the headache of the car-park wars on Eid! We have all probably experienced or seen two people arguing over parking spaces on Eid, take the easy solution, park far away! Or better still try car pooling!
Also recite the following takbeer both on the way and on the way back from the prayer:
Allaho-Akber, Allaho-Akber. (Allah is great, Allah is great.)
La ilaha ill-lallah. Allaho-Akber, (There is no god but Allah. Allah is great,)
Allaho-Akber. Wa-lilahill hamd. (Allah is great. And all praises are for Allah).
DON'T: take the same route home! It was narrated by Jaber: "On the days of Eid, the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), would go to the prayer area by one route and come back by another route."(al-Bukhari)
7.
DO: Pray in the open!
It is sunnah to offer Eid salat in the open i.e on a ground, park etc however in many countries this is not possible due to council laws/ rainy weather etc. But do some research beforehand to see if anyone is organising an Eid Musallah congregation. The prophet [saw] said: It is preferable to pray the 'Eid prayer on open ground and not in the masjid if possible. [Bukhaaree and Muslim]
Note that it is compulsory for everyone to attend, The Prophet (saw and his companions never ceased doing it and he (saw) commanded everyone including women, children and elderly to attend. Even menstruating women should go to the place of congregation so that they may partake in the blessings. [Bukhaari and Muslim] so don't leave the wife and kids/sisters at home! And if they are attending make sure that they are dressed appropriately and respectfully, Remember Eid salat is not a fashion show!
DON'T: think that you can pray Eid salat at home! If anyone missed the `Eid prayer then he cannot offer it individually!
8.
DO: know what you're doing!
Eid prayers are quite different from ordinary salaats, i.e there is no adhaan or iqaamah, It consists of two Rakaat (units) with six or thirteen additional Takbirs. and the khutbah takes place after the prayer so if you haven't been before try and find out more about it beforehand! The Khutbah is part of the worship and listening to it is Sunnah
'It is Sunnah to say the extra takbeers [i.e., say 'Allahu Akbar.'] seven times in the first rak'ah and five times in the second.' [Aboo Dawood, Ahmed].
This can be quite confusing if you don't know what your doing! So take the initiative and find out more from other muslims, or the masjid before the day!
DON'T: Run out of the mosque after the salaam! It is sunnah to greet each other, even if you don't know the person next to you, after all we are all brothers and sisters in islam! [that does not mean you can physically greet members of the opposite sex who are ghair to you!]
One is to eat before going to the salah (prayer) for Eidul Fitr, but not do so on the occasion of the Eid ul adhha (commemorating Prophet Ibrahim's sacrifice). For Eidul fitr, it is a sunnah to eat an odd number of dates before going to pray salatul Eid (eid prayer) while for Eidul adha the eating should be delayed until one returns from the Eid prayers and then he may eat of his sacrifice if he has sacrificed an animal.
Subhanallah, Eid seems to be becoming more and more bizarre every year! Rather than a time for reflecting over Ramadan, or strengthening ourselves for facing the shaitan, its become more of a time of competition [who has rented the best car?], zina [checking out the guys and girls at the masjid!], expense [the need to buy designer clothes to outdo the next bro!] , and vanity!
Many of our youth do not even know what the true purpose or Sunnah's of Eid are! There is much more to Eid than hanging out with our friends at the arcades! So insha'Allah I'm going to highlight a few important points for us all to consider so that we don't fall into the traps of Shaitaan as soon as he is set free from Hell!
1.
DO: Wake up early
Just because Ramadaan is over its not an excuse to lie in! Make sure you wake up early on Eid an pray Salatul Fajr! Many of us are only ramadan muslims, so we only pray during Ramadan so that insha'Allah our fasts will be accepted.... But! ... SALAH IS NOT JUST FOR RAMADAAN! So seeing as your already in the habit make sure you carry out all of you 'obligatory' prayers today! [yes they are obligatory and don't u forget that!]
Narrated Abu Qatadah ibn Rab'i:
Allah the Exalted said: I made five times' prayers obligatory on your people, and I took a guarantee that if anyone observes them regularly at their times, I shall admit him to Paradise; if anyone does not offer them regularly, there is no such guarantee of Mine for him. [Abu Dawud]
DON'T: decide to have a lie in till lunch time : Eid salat is VERY important for everyone to attend!
2.
DO: Freshen Up
Even a basic sunnah such as taking a bath [ghusl] is being ignored nowadays! Why? Because many of our sisters have their hair blow dryed the day before and don't wanna ruin the style! Coz they don't want their mehndi [henna] to fade! Taking ghusl and brushing your teeth [with a miswaak preferably] is sunnah and we should all uphold this tradition! It is also sunnah for 'men' to wear perfume/ittar before going to the Eid prayer, perfume was one of rasulAllah's preferred things in this world and we should aim to smell nice on Eid!
DON'T: Women, do not wear perfume to the masjid! Zainab bint Thaqafiyah reported: The Messenger of Allah (saw) said to us: "When any of you comes to the mosque, she should not apply perfume." (Saheeh Muslim).
3.
DO: Dress to impress!
Okay well not literally! Eid isn't about being ostentatious and buying the latest most expensive clothes available!
Ibn Al-Qayyim said:"The Prophet, (saw), used to wear his best clothes for the Eid prayers and he (saw) had clothes that he reserved for the two Eids and Jumu'ah."(Muslim)
Of course Eid 'is' a celebration for us and we should wear our best clothes but Islam is for everyone and does not burden us to but new clothes if we cannot afford it, or if we can it would be better for us to give that money to those who need it. More often we see people dressing up in their shiniest clothes just to go to Eid salaat! What purpose does this serve? Attracting attention from everyone, which is wrong, distracting people from their salaat again wrong! Infact it shows no worthy purpose at all and should be avoided. Eid is an 'islamic' festival so inshallah we should all aim to dress islamically, particularly at the masjid, that includes our brothers, trying giving up the armanis and hilfiggers for a day for a simple thobe!
DON'T: dress up like Christmas trees! Over dressing and Eid are not a good combination! Unless we want the shaitaan to use us as his vicegerents!
4.
DO: have breakfast!
It is sunnah to eat breakfast on Eid ul Fitr before leaving your home for the prayer. Anas (radiyallaahu `anhu) narrated:
"Allah's Messenger [saw] would not leave (his house) on the day of Fitr until he ate some dates."(al-Bukhari) Many of us wake up to the smell of our mums making something sweet for breakfast on eid! So don't waste her efforts of waking up soo early by saying that I'll have some when I come back! Follow the sunnah, eat something sweet, and then leave the house!
DON'T: Fast! This Eid is signifying the end of Ramadaan! The month of fasting! You might not be hungry but atleast have a date! [ the halal kind!]
5.
DO: Pay the Zakat ul Fitr!
You must pay the zakat ul fitr before the Salatul-Eid. Note this zakat [tax] is compulsory on everyone so make sure youre prepared!
Yahya related from Malik from Nafi from Abdullah Ibn Umar that the Messenger of Allah, made the Zakat of breaking the fast at the end of Ramadhan obligatory on every Muslim, whether freeman or slave, male or female, and stipulated it as a sa' of dates or a sa' (approximately the volume of two handfuls) of barley. [Al-Muwatta]
DON'T: Rely on your parents to pay it for you! The zakat is to help YOU! So you should pay it Ibn Abbas said: "The Messenger of Allah, saw, enjoined Zakat al-Fitr on the one who fasts to shield him from any indecent act or speech and for the purpose of providing food for the needy." (Related by Abu Dawud and Ibn Majah.)
6.
DO: Try to walk to the masjid/ or prayer ground
Ok, so this might not be particularly manageable for everyone, but atleast try not to park your car to close to the mosque, so that you can get reward for every step you take to the masjid. Rasulullah(Sallallahu alaiyhi wasallam) said: for every step is a reward, there is a reward equal to one years fast' . Also this will lesson the headache of the car-park wars on Eid! We have all probably experienced or seen two people arguing over parking spaces on Eid, take the easy solution, park far away! Or better still try car pooling!
Also recite the following takbeer both on the way and on the way back from the prayer:
Allaho-Akber, Allaho-Akber. (Allah is great, Allah is great.)
La ilaha ill-lallah. Allaho-Akber, (There is no god but Allah. Allah is great,)
Allaho-Akber. Wa-lilahill hamd. (Allah is great. And all praises are for Allah).
DON'T: take the same route home! It was narrated by Jaber: "On the days of Eid, the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), would go to the prayer area by one route and come back by another route."(al-Bukhari)
7.
DO: Pray in the open!
It is sunnah to offer Eid salat in the open i.e on a ground, park etc however in many countries this is not possible due to council laws/ rainy weather etc. But do some research beforehand to see if anyone is organising an Eid Musallah congregation. The prophet [saw] said: It is preferable to pray the 'Eid prayer on open ground and not in the masjid if possible. [Bukhaaree and Muslim]
Note that it is compulsory for everyone to attend, The Prophet (saw and his companions never ceased doing it and he (saw) commanded everyone including women, children and elderly to attend. Even menstruating women should go to the place of congregation so that they may partake in the blessings. [Bukhaari and Muslim] so don't leave the wife and kids/sisters at home! And if they are attending make sure that they are dressed appropriately and respectfully, Remember Eid salat is not a fashion show!
DON'T: think that you can pray Eid salat at home! If anyone missed the `Eid prayer then he cannot offer it individually!
8.
DO: know what you're doing!
Eid prayers are quite different from ordinary salaats, i.e there is no adhaan or iqaamah, It consists of two Rakaat (units) with six or thirteen additional Takbirs. and the khutbah takes place after the prayer so if you haven't been before try and find out more about it beforehand! The Khutbah is part of the worship and listening to it is Sunnah
'It is Sunnah to say the extra takbeers [i.e., say 'Allahu Akbar.'] seven times in the first rak'ah and five times in the second.' [Aboo Dawood, Ahmed].
This can be quite confusing if you don't know what your doing! So take the initiative and find out more from other muslims, or the masjid before the day!
DON'T: Run out of the mosque after the salaam! It is sunnah to greet each other, even if you don't know the person next to you, after all we are all brothers and sisters in islam! [that does not mean you can physically greet members of the opposite sex who are ghair to you!]