Eid-ul-Fitr 2021: Date, significance and celebration

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New Delhi: Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid-al-Fitr is one of the biggest festivals observed by the Muslim community across the globe. The festival is celebrated after the ninth month of the Islamic calendar Ramadan gets over and the tenth month Shawwal begins.

Ramadan is considered to be the holiest month of the year in which Muslims observe fast from dawn to dusk, increase charity and social work and prayers to please Allah.

Date

This year Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated on Thursday (May 13) in the Middle-East and West as the crescent moon was not sighted yesterday. India and other Asian subcontinents will try to sight the crescent moon today and depending upon it the festival would either be celebrated on Thursday or Friday.

Islamic calendar follows a lunar cycle rather than a solar, hence sighting of the moon is important.

Significance

Eid-ul-Fitr is a day of celebration after the spiritual month of Ramadan in which Muslims try to get closer to Allah through fasting and good deeds. It is a day in which Muslims are grateful for being granted the holy month of Ramadan and all its blessings. They pray for a continued increase in their piety level for the rest of the year.

You cannot observe a fast on Eid-ul-Fitr as it is a day of celebration.

Celebration

Muslims across the globe perform an Eid prayer in the morning at a congregational mosque, which this year due to COVID restrictions will be performed at home by many families. New clothes are worn and Eidi or Eid gifts are given to younger members of the family by their elders.

Delicious food items are also prepared to mark the occasion. In the Indian subcontinent, many families make a sweet dish called sewayyin for Eid. The feast prepared for the festival can vary depending upon the cultural and social factors of a particular geography.