By Eid-al-Fitr is such an amazing time of year. We all look forward to it after a month of fasting, and we usually celebrate in such joyous ways: surrounded by family and friends, feasts for days, and new clothes. There’s always an air of excitement in the days leading up to this wonderful holiday. This year though, COVID-19 changed all of our plans. Since the pandemic has made its way across the globe, Muslims prepared themselves to spend this Eid at home, just as they spent Ramadan at home and not in mosques. Families have had to put their travel plans on hold, and others prepared to spend the day alone. But it was also a way for Muslims to get creative. Here are some of the ways that Muslims around the world celebrated this years “Qurant-EID.”
A mosque in Southern California hosted a sort of Eid parade. People not only dressed up themselves, but also their vehicles for a drive-thru Eid party! There was an abundance of fancy car selfies!
Socially distant prayers were held in the streets of Bangladesh, as prayer rugs were placed on the streets in local towns — all six feet apart, of course — to take part in Eid namaaz.
And an Ikea in Germany gave local Muslims permission and access to their parking lot to also take part in socially distanced Eid prayers.
It’s absolutely amazing to see how creative Muslims around the world can get. Quarantine life is hard enough, but the time to celebrate religious holidays can really test our patience when we are not allowed to socialize with family and friends as we usually do. As this time of a global pandemic continues with no end in sight, we must abide by the rules that health experts have set in place. Even though some governors and the current White House administration have no qualms about not wearing masks, or going out and about, we must think not just about ourselves, but about all of humanity, and how our actions can impact others. Because that is what Islam, and being a Muslim is about.