Thursday, November 18, 2010

Eid al-Adha commencing November 16 is among the largest Muslim holidays

Muslim holidays draw a sharp distinction among the cultures of the west and Islam. One of the biggest Muslim holiday seasons, "Eid al-Adha," is a three day affair that begins November 16. Westerners accustomed to the festivities of Christmas would scratch their heads at Eid al-Adha, an occasion in which a ritual called "the stoning of the Devil" is the primary attraction.

Special occasion for Muslims is Eid al-Adha

Dec 7 is the Islamic Brand new Year while Dec 16 is Ashura. The upcoming Eid al-Adha will just be beginning the special occasion season. On Tues millions of Muslim pilgrims descended on the Mina Valley in Saudi Arabia to throw pebbles at a religious monument called the Jamarat Pillars. The act symbolizes the Prophet Abraham’s resistance to the devil when the devil tried to talk him out of killing his only son Ishmael as a demonstration of his obedience to Allah. Supposedly Abraham threw rocks at Satan so that he would go back to Hell and give up on what he wanted.

Pilgrims wish to have stoning of the devil remade

Killing Ishmael is something Abraham's wife Hagar tried to stop him from doing. There is a good chance Ishmael did not like the idea. Three Jamarat Pillars represent the devil. This is all within the ritual for Eid al-Adha. The devil trying to tempt Abraham into disobeying Allah is what the largest represents. The second represents Hagar. It is as the devil tempted her to try to stop him. The 3rd represents the devil tempting poor Ishmael to plead for his life instead of dutifully submitting to being murdered for the satisfaction of Allah.

Deadly Muslim holidays

Muslim holidays have been known to trigger fatal situations. You are able to only get the Jamarat Pillars by passing the Jamarat Bridge. Every year, the Muslim pilgrims all have to cross it. Hundreds of Muslims have been suffocated and crushed during the stoning the devil practice as it’s nearly extremely hard to control. In recent years, Saudi authorities have expanded the Jamarat Bridge to five amounts in an effort to lower the potential for carnage. Large walls replace the Jamarat Pillars now. This was done in a try to get the devil-stoners through with more at a time.

Articles cited

PressTV

presstv.ir/detail/151266.html

Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoning_of_the_Devil

ThirdAge

thirdage.com/news/muslim-holidays-clouded-controversial-bill-adultery-ruling_11-16-2010



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