Local Islamic community celebrates Eid
Mosques able to welcome larger groups for Islamic religious holiday
Celebrations for Eid ul-Adha, an Islamic religious holiday, took place last week amid eased restrictions under Step 3 of Ontario's reopening.
Eid ul-Adha marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage and falls on the 10th day of the last month of the Islamic calendar, the month of Dhul Hijjah. There is another Eid celebration called Eid ul-Fitr, which falls after a month of fasting during Ramadan.
Eid ul-Adha is typically commemorated with morning communal prayers, slaughtering of livestock, giving meat and charity to the needy, and community gatherings.
The three-day celebration of this year's Eid ul-Adha ended Friday.
In Step 3 of reopening, indoor religious services are at 30-percent capacity while adhering to physical distancing.
Jami Omar Mosque is one of the mosques across the city that opened on Tuesday morning for Eid prayer. At 30 per cent capacity, Jami Omar can welcome 400 worshippers, said Ishtiaq Tarar, director of the mosque.
Accommodating up to 1,200 worshippers will be a huge step up, Tarar said.
During Eid ul-Fitr in May, mosques were only open to 10 worshippers at a time.
“It's a really good feeling, but we're still taking precautions,” Tarar said.
Unlike in previous years, he said, Jami Omar has no other events planned, other than accepting meat donations for the needy. Still, he said the community was happy to perform Eid prayers together in-person again.
“This Eid will be a big difference. It's good news and exciting for everyone,” he said.
Maryam Zarrug, 16, was one of the worshippers who attended the Mosque of Mercy on Tuesday morning.
“This is the first time I've been in the masjid for Eid prayer in a really long time, so it felt really good,” she said.
With a maximum of 25 people now allowed at indoor gatherings, Zarrug said she was excited to celebrate with family at her uncle's house.
“We're all going to see each other for the first time in a while,” she said, adding that she would also be taking part in a gift exchange with her cousins.
With the lifting restrictions, Zarrug said this Eid felt much different than the previous one, in May.
“Now that everything's open, everyone's so much more happy, and everyone's dressed up to see each other,” she said.
Fatima Said, 25, said performing Eid prayers again felt “really nice,” especially since the previous time for her was in 2019.
“You don't really realize how long we've been in this pandemic and lockdown and how long things haven't been normal until you actually start doing things you used to do,” she said.
Celebrating Eid during the pandemic has forced her to be creative, she said.
“We had to come up with ways to celebrate over Zoom or come up with ways to still make it feel like Eid,” she added, like dressing up or decorating her family's house.
This year, Said celebrated with prayers, a traditional breakfast and time with her family.
“I'm really, really thankful and happy that things are opening up, and more and more people are open to getting vaccinated,” she said.
“I'm hoping to go back to normal by the next Eid, and spend time with friends and do more things.”
You don't really realize how long we've been in this pandemic and lockdown and how long things haven't been normal until you actually start doing things you used to do.