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| Image Credit: Muslim Family Prayers from Shutterstock |
We live in an increasingly multicultural society, so it is great to know and understand the traditions and culture of other religions. One culture that is brought over all the way from the Middle East is the celebrations and traditions followed by Muslims. Just as Christians celebrate Easter and Christmas, Muslims have an Islamic calendar with holidays to celebrate.
Educating yourself and your children about these traditions is a great idea to help you to understand the basic beliefs of Muslims. Whether your child is at school with another Muslim child, your neighbours are a Muslim family or you work with someone of that culture, showing an interest and knowledge of their culture can go a long way.
There are three main holidays in the Islamic Calendar; Ramadan, Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha. Many of the holiday traditions are commonly shared by Muslim families. Here are some of the exciting celebrations and fun traditions Muslims participate in during these holidays.
Moon Sighting
The holiday dates for Muslims vary each year; this is because they are determined by a fully lunar calendar. For this reason, a sighting of the moon is a very important part of the tradition. A new born crescent moon is sighted to mark the beginning and end of a month – such as Ramadan. If the crescent is there then the festivities can begin and if it is not, they will begin a day later.
