Eid-ul-Fitr in Canada

Celebration of Eid-ul-Fitr and other Islamic holidays in Western countries, where Muslims are in a minority acquire greater meaning and significance. Besides participating in festivities the Muslims there also try to project the truly virtuous aspects of the celebrations as are manifest in the teachings of Islam.
The point to emphasise is that excessive indulgence in merry-making is alien to the teachings of Islam. Eid-ul-Fitr at the termination of a month-long fasting period is indeed an occasion for thanksgiving as well as rejoicing. The holy Qura'n says: "O Believers, fasting is decreed for you as it was decreed for those before you, so that you may remain God-fearing. (Fast a certain number of days. But whoever of you is ill, or on a journey (shall fast instead the same (number of days later on.....'(Al-Baqarah, Surah 2; Verses 183-4) Eid is a reward for those who abided by this injunction of the Qura'n.
Adhering to the true spirit of Islam, the Eid day begins there by offering thanksgiving prayers, which is preceded by making payment to the poor of the prescribed amount of charity called Fitrana. (In North America Fitra is collected and sent to a pool, which is set up to help the needy on a collective basis.
In Canada, where this scribe participated in Eid festivities a few years ago arrangements for activities related to celebration of Eid-ul -Fitr were made by local chapters of Canadian Muslim Association. In the capital city of Ottawa , about 8,000 Muslims gathered in the Ottawa Congress Center to offer Eid prayers. As the Muslim population was increasing rapidly in the area, that place was becoming inadequate to accommodate the growing number of worshippers.
So, in Kanata (the west end) and Orleans (the east end), separate arrangements were made for the Muslims to discharge their liturgical obligations to the Creator on Eid day. A few years ago in Orleans , the Islamic Society of Cumberland made arrangements in Kanata , under the auspices of Jamiat-ul Muslemeen. However, a majority of the Muslims in and around the capital area joined their brethren and sisters at Ottawa Congress Center in a mass congregation on Eid day.
Parenthetically, the Ottawa Mosque was the first facility for congregation of the Muslims in the capital area. The Muslims of Ottawa, who settled there some 20 years ago, worked real hard and arranged funds (through bake sales, meena bazars and other activities) to put up this gorgeous Islamic edifice. One of the best structured mosques in North America it could not hold large gatherings of worshippers with the passage of time.
Apart from making arrangements for prayers, stalls were also set up to display Islamic literature and materials connected with the observance of prayers like Jaeenamaz, which attracted the attention of many non-Muslim Canadians.
Separate sections were established for the ladies to offer Eid prayers at the main congregation centres. The Muslims greeting and the tradition of embracing one another on Eid day recreated a scene, which was reminiscent of Pakistani socio-cultural-religious ethos, and depicted the fraternal feelings manifested on this auspicious day.
After the prayers were over, the Canadian Muslims socialised as the ladies extended help in preparing special dishes, which the participants relished with lingering nostalgia for their mother countries.
Another attraction of the day was numerous get-togethers arranged at the residences of Pakistanis to which friends, both compatriots and Canadians, were invited to enjoy special dishes prepared for lunch. From noon to late in the evening, the homes of Pakistani in Ottawa were thronged by guests from the city and small towns, who travelled long distances to join the faithful in large cities to celebrate Eid.
Although Eid was not a national holiday in Canada , Muslim employees of government and private enterprises were allowed to take the day off, and Muslim students were also exempted from taking examinations, if these were scheduled on that day. On the weekend following Eid-ul-Fitr, music and dinner parties were arranged in continuation of the festivities. These were not open to public as such, but selected guests were invited to the occasion, who also contributed to the expenses needed for serving food and inviting musicians from other parts of the country.
During the month of Ramazan, the students were also allowed to gather in a room especially reserved for this purpose to offer Zohar prayers. They were not permitted to discuss religion as such, but one could promote the culture of his/her country. At educational institutions, proper arrangements for Iftar were also made.
In a climate that is not vitiated by the scourge of sectarianism and other social ills, Pakistani-Canadian Muslims celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr, and other religious festivals, in line with the injunctions annunciated by the Qura'n and Sunnah. Thus they provide opportunities to other Canadian citizens to ponder over the basic tenets of Islam as are truly reflected on such occasions as Eid-ul-Fitr.