Eid Al Adha is in its fourth and final day today, Friday January 13th. It was a unique event that I personally enjoyed tremendously, although I have seen certain behaviors that are in extreme contrast with the Eid’s spirit and what it stands for.

To start with the sacrifices, large numbers of people seem to find it quite normal to slaughter the sheep in the streets. That is not healthy, let alone Islamic. I wonder they do not reflect on the great emphasis Islam puts on cleanliness and manners. It is hard to believe that anyone who sheds animal blood on the street, where people drive and sometimes walk, has decent manners or any understanding for what effects this would have on the image of Islam in the eyes of others.

I also abhorred the way some people throw the sheep in their car boots, not caring if the animal gets hurt or not. That is very cruel, I think one should treat animals with respect. Some may argue that the sheep are going to be sacrificed eventually, but this does not mean they should be hurt like that. There are certain rules to be followed to give the animal a decent death, and it should not suffer.

It should be noted that, regarding the sacrifice, shares of meat are given to the poor and the needy according to a set ratio. This is a beautiful religious law that is sadly corrupted by the misconduct of some people when they fail to carry it out properly, and certainly when they mistreat the sheep.

One of the most obvious aspects of Eid is visiting one’s kinsfolk and exchanging Eid greetings, as well as offering proper hospitality rites to relatives, friends and neighbours. This has developed, to some people, into a tedious social task that they worry about beforehand. In some cases it even prevents people from fully enjoying and appreciating the Eid, and I think this is due to the social falsehoods we are faced with in our daily lives. What is right does not seem right anymore.

I wish to share two pictures that I shot during the Eid. The first one is of the cinnamon drink cup, this drink is an integral part of any Eid at our place. My mother loves to make cinnamon drink, and it is rather popular with the extended family as well. One can sip this drink right out of the cup or, if one prefers, one may enjoy it bit by bit with a spoon. That’s how I do it, and I can say I never saw anyone else drinking it the way I do. This was my cup, topped with ground nuts.

This is a picture of “Mamoul”, the traditional Eid sweets. Everyone plays a role in making Mamoul, firstly because large quantities are needed, and secondly because it takes considerable work to make those little delights. The round Mamoul with the hole in the middle are stuffed with minced and spiced dates, and the Mamoul without the hole are stuffed with ground and spiced nuts. Obviously, soft sprinkles of ground regular sugar are added to give some color. Bear in mind that each and every Mamoul is decorated by hand using a small clip-like tool designed for this purpose, some people use ready-made moulds but we do it the original way.