The Shuroi Ulamo (Council of Ulema – Tajikistan’s highest Islamic institution) says that this year, Tajikistan will celebrate Idi Qurbon, or Eid al-Adha in Arabic, on June 6.
The Shuroi Ulamo notes that congregational prayers on the occasion of the Eid al-Adha this year will be at 5:45 am.
The Shuroi Ulamo urges support for orphans and responsible behavior during Eid. It has issued a directive requiring imams and khutbah speakers to emphasize key social issues during their sermons ahead of Eid celebrations. These include supporting orphans and the needy, promoting economic prudence and preventing wastefulness, as well as ensuring proper supervision of children and teenagers during festive gatherings.
The move aims to foster community solidarity and responsible behavior during the holiday period.
Meanwhile, Arab News reports that the Saudi Supreme Court announced on May 27 that the crescent moon for the Islamic month of Dhul Hijjah, during which the annual Hajj pilgrimage takes place, has been sighted.
This means that the pilgrimage will start on June 4 with the pilgrims gathering in the Tent City of Mina. The day of Arafah will fall on June 5.
Muslims who are not performing the pilgrimage this year will celebrate Eid Al-Adha on June 6, Arab News added.
Last year, celebration of Idi Qurbon fell on June 16.
Eid al-Adha, “Festival of Sacrifice” or “Greater Eid,” is an important religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide to commemorate the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ismail as an act of obedience to God, but instead was able to sacrifice a ram (by God's command).
Eid al-Adha is also about spending time with family and friends, sacrifice, and thanksgiving for being able to afford food and housing. In traditional or agrarian settings, each family would sacrifice a domestic animal, such as a sheep, goat, cow, or camel, by slaughter (though some contemporary Muslims do not sacrifice an animal as part of their observance, it is still a very popular tradition, even in Muslim communities in Europe). The meat would then be divided into three equal parts to be distributed to others. The family eats one third, another third is given to other relatives, friends or neighbors, and the other third is given to the poor as a gift.
Eid al-Adha is the latter of two Eid festivals celebrated by Muslims. Like Eid ul-Fitr, Eid al-Adha begins with a short prayer followed by a sermon (khutbah).
While Eid al-Adha is always on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year since the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. The lunar calendar is approximately eleven days shorter than the solar calendar. Each year, Eid al-Adha (like other Islamic holidays) falls on one of about 2–4 different Gregorian dates in different parts of the world, because the boundary of crescent visibility is different from the International Date Line.
