Eid-ul-Fitr amid pandemic
Mushtaq Bhat
The month of Ramadhan begins and ends with the appearance of the new moon and when the Holy month of Ramadhan draws to a close, the festival of Eid-ul-Fitr is observed. It is the day of feasting when Muslims dress up, gather together at the place called ‘Eid Gah’ for a particular prayer.
On this day people invite one another, share food and generally celebrate.
However, currently the situation is worrying as the country is battling with the raging Second wave of the Covid 19 Pandemic and the authorities have already imposed restrictions and urged people to stay indoors.
Consequently, the prayer of Eid ul- fitr will be performed at home to ensure safety and precautionary measures to contain speed of this virus. There’s no denying that the festivities of this year will be a little dull in comparison to usual. But it doesn’t mean we can’t usher in the festival spirit because for some it will be challenging and for others, it allows more time with family than ever before.
We are familiar with the fact that the entire health care system of our country is under severe stress due to the emerging and alarming situation. We should be more careful in adhering to precautionary measures including staying at home, maintaining personal hygiene, using sanitizers and refrain ourselves from any kind of assembly.
In fact the holy festival will be certainly different but it can still be a time of giving thanks for all the blessings in our lives, focussing on the sunnahs we can fulfill and reaching out to those facing greater challenges than us.
Doing alms and charity is one of the biggest pillars of our religion and this time the pandemic crisis has in fact mandated the helping out poor. It can be a good idea to help those in need.
Many struck by the unprecedented crises are finding it hard to manage food, clothes and basic. We can distribute money, food, clothes etc to those in need. What could be the better way to close this holy month, if not by putting out a smile of gratification on someone’s face who couldn’t smile in months due to this crisis? This Eid make the needy smile. Hence charity, volunteering, practicing gratitude are some of the ways to enjoy the festival.
(The author could be at [email protected])
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