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Friday, November 04, 2005
Muslims end Ramadan, 3-day feast starts
By Al Jacinto
ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Muslims in the southern Philippines celebrated Thursday the Eid ul-Fitr, marking the end of Ramadan, Islam's holiest month.
It is on the first day of Shawwal--the tenth month in the lunar calendar--that Muslims celebrate Eid, which means "festivity" in Arabic, after the sighting of the new moon on the previous evening.
"The feast of the Eid ul-Fitr began with the sighting of the new moon, ending a month-long fasting. We praise Allah for all the blessings that we received and the Eid ul-Fitr is also a celebration of prayers, of sharing and forgiveness, of love," said respected Muslim leader Ustadz Shariff Julabbi.
Muslims traditionally dress up in their best clothes during the Eid ul-Fitr and celebrate the feast with their families and friends. Eid is a day of thanksgiving, he said.
"We celebrate Eid by expressing thanks to Allah by means of distributing alms among the poor and needy and offering special prayers in mosques," Julabbi said.
For many Muslims, the Eid ul-Fitr is a very joyous day. Muslims show their real joy for the health, strength and the opportunities of life, which Allah has given to them to fulfill their obligation of fasting and other good deeds during the blessed month of Ramadan.
Many Muslims wept as they prayed and listened to the sermon Thursday in mosques in Zamboanga City.
"Allah is great, God is my strength. I sinned and I asked for forgiveness. I cried and I felt Allah in me," Abdulmalik Sani, a Muslim, said.
After the prayer, the Muslim faithful embraced and kissed their families and relatives and friends, a long tradition held by many local Muslims to show their respect and love for one another.
Datu Zaldy Ampatuan, governor of the five-province Muslim autonomous region, urged the local Muslims to turn to Allah for guidance in their undertakings in life.
"Patience and perseverance, discipline, refinement of manners, righteousness and sincerity are virtues that the sacrifices we went through have instilled in us during the holy month of Ramadan."
"Let these virtues guide us in all our undertakings in life. Let the rich have love for the poor and less fortunate, and let the poor respect those who are well-off in life," Ampatuan said.
He appealed to Muslims in the south to help the government achieve a common goal--peace and progress--in the troubled region.
"Let us all unite in a common resolve to carry out crucial thrusts and programs designed to bring peace, progress and development in the Muslim autonomous region. Let us all strive and help realize this goal for our children, and the future of the Muslims in Mindanao," Ampatuan said.
An estimated four million Muslims live in the southern Philippines and most of them are in the autonomous region, composed of Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Maguindanao and Lanao, which are among the poorest provinces in the country. (Sun.Star Zamboanga/Sunnex)
(November 4, 2005 issue)
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