Although Ramadan is perhaps the best known Islamic celebration, it's only a small part of a wider period of festivities that takes place every year in countries as diverse as Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Uzbekistan and Mauritius.

Dubbed the “Islamic Christmas”, Eid al-Adha (the “festival of sacrifice” also known as “Big Eid” to distinguish it from Eid ul-Futur, which marks the end of Ramadan) is celebrated by Muslims worldwide to commemorate the willingness of the prophet Abraham to sacrifice his son Ishmael as an act of submission to God.

Celebrations begin each year on the 10th day of the 12th and last Islamic lunar month, and mark the end of the Hajj, the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca and one of the five pillars of Islam.

Eid al-Adha also signifies the end of the “season of worship”, which arguably begins with Ramadan and lasts roughly for 70 days.

These few days and months are considered the most holy in Islam, apart from the month of Muharram.

While much has been made of the political and social issues surrounding Ramadan, the Hajj and the two Eid celebrations – particularly in the wake of the popular uprisings that have swept across the Islamic world in 2011 – little insight is ever offered into what actually takes place behind the closed doors.

“Islam's biggest holiday, celebrated across the world"

Not on the Wires spoke to Muslims around the world and asked them to tell us, in their own words, what this period means to them.

Click through the slides to read their accounts

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Saudi Arabia

by Ali Madani

This Eid , Eid al-Adha, is the Eid for all people. It is held the day after the pilgrims to do their Hajj, their journey to Mecca - and in the Hajj there is one dress code, one mission.

No matter what your background or ethnicity, you are all bound together in the single purpose of loving God.

"It’s a feeling we should have every day, not just at Eid."

Eid is the day where everyone comes together and everyone loves everyone, the poor are fed (sacrificial meat is traditionally given to the hungry and homeless) and everyone feels like they are equals.

It”s a really spiritual time, a bit like Christmas.

Having known people who have done the Hajj this year, and also having done the Umrah myself earlier this year (the pilgrimage to Mecca not during the days of Hajj), I can affirm that is really is life changing.

The places you are treading are the same places that the holy Prophet used to tread - you feel like you are re-living his life. The first time you set eyes on the Kab’a, the holiest site in Islam, you feel this incredible surge of emotion - a feeling of pure love and togetherness.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re rich or poor, or white or black during Eid - you know that you are all there together to celebrate life, family and God. It’s a feeling we should have every day, not just at Eid.Continue Reading

Uzbekistan

By Dinara Dultaeva

Food, gifts, family and friends, good deeds and spiritual relief – these are the main associations for Uzbek people when it comes to Eid.

Eid is celebrated twice a year in Uzbekistan (Eid al-Adha and Eid ul-Futur) and both are considered very special holidays, encouraging people to think about eternity and kindness.

Being secular, Uzbeks are very selective when it comes to religious traditions.

Islam is our main religion, but there are also 15 others. Even for those who consider themselves Muslim, practices such as visiting the mosque every day, fasting during the month of Ramadan, or covering their head for women are not strictly followed.

Celebrating Eid, however, is something nearly all Uzbeks do, and is a favourite holiday across the country.

We celebrate with three days of holiday that are totally devoted to family traditions: people visit mosques, remember those who have passed away, bless everyone around and make good wishes. Savob, which means “good deeds” is the most important word to know for these three days of Eid.

Kids especially enjoy this holiday as everyone treats them with sweets, gifts and pocket money.

One Uzbek tradition is that young brides wear their most beautiful traditional dresses and host guests from the early morning until the evening. They serve the best food and sweets and keep their doors open for everyone.

It's a widespread tradition to share the best you have during Eid – rich people may give away Plov, Uzbekistan’s national dish, donate to a local school or hospital, or give money to poor people and to children and relatives.

We also sacrifice an animal (usually a sheep) and to give the meat away to the poor and needy.

People do this not only on Eid, but on a regular basis whenever they can afford to.

It's like you are thanking God for giving you wealth, health and all good things by sharing your good fortune with others, in turn bringing you more blessings.

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Mauritius

By Alya Mustafa

Mauritius is a majority Hindu country, with about 20 per cent of the population being Muslim – as well as a large Catholic denomination too.

It’s a country where there is a lot of respect for other people’s beliefs and religions – which is why the call to prayer is always made five times a day, even though Islam is not a majority religion.

"Religious difference is a fact of life here"

During Ramadan, we usually get up around 4 or 5am – since there aren’t really seasonal differences here – to pray and to eat the first meal before sunrise.

Once you hear the alarm telling you the sun has set, then you start eating for about 10 minutes before the evening prayer.

It's the lack of sleep, not the lack of eating, that is the most tiring and difficult part of Ramadan.

Eid is a public holiday here, so sometimes people go out at sea (since we're an island), to look for the moon and find when Eid will be.

By Islamic law, you have to have seen the moon and have at least two witnesses – so if someone has seen the moon, he has to go to the mosque and prove that he has spotted it.

As soon as you know when Eid will be, you start ironing your clothes for the next day – usually a traditional salwar kameez – because you always have new clothes for Eid.

The next day you get up early for prayer, before having the Eid breakfast – traditionally noodles cooked in milk and syrup and served with almonds and sultanas.

Once you’ve had breakfast, you visit all your neighbours, who also serve breakfast. Then you visit the elders of the family for dinner, which is traditionally an Indian-style Biryani (since the majority of the population in Mauritius are of Indian heritage).

Religion-wise this is as big as Christmas is to, say, the Christian community.

A lot of people outside the Muslim community see Ramadan as just the fasting, but actually it’s the spiritual aspect that is more important.

The idea is that your mind and soul are purified, as well as your body. And it’s also a time when everyone is on an equal foot, whether rich or poor, because you’re all fasting together.

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Algeria

By Alex Lamine

In Algeria, Ramadan is synonymous with the holy month; the month of God, of patience, self-control, and above all of the Qur’an.

During the day everyone goes to work, but the working day is much shorter than usual to allow time for people to participate in the five daily prayers at the mosque.

It's also synonymous with family and relationships.

It's the time to reinforce your family ties by visiting brothers, cousins, uncles, aunts and grandparents.

During the last ten days of Ramadan people usually try to redouble their efforts by praying more often and reading the Qur’an. Women begin preparing cakes for Eid.

On the 29th day of Ramadan – the “day of doubt” – everyone starts searching on the internet and asking around the find out if the new moon has appeared yet – the Eid celebrations cannot start until the moon appears, since Islam follows a lunar calendar.

When the moon does appear, everyone is joyous because the next day will see the beginning of the Eid celebrations. The are joyous, too, for having successfully followed the will of God and fasted for a whole month.

In Algeria, Eid ul-Futur marks a day of happiness and celebration.

On Eid al-Adha, nearly two months later, everyone has to wear their newest clothes, and it is seen as an insult to God not to do so.

Then everyone partakes of the Eid feast and children are given sweets and money by adults to buy cakes and other goodies – then the whole family goes off to the cemetery to visit their ancestors.

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