Local Muslim Americans share significance of Eid-ul-Adha holiday
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— The local Muslim community came together for a picnic potluck to celebrate a major holiday known as “the Feast of Sacrifice,” or Eid-Ul-Adha.
Sunday was a celebration of gratitude, love, tradition, and sacrifice.
We spoke to Muslim Americans at Tucker’s Grove Park in Santa Barbara about the significance of this religious holiday.
“There's a lot of food, a lot of people from the community. Everyone comes,” said Nashat Zaman, who lives in Goleta.
The celebration here was a colorful mosaic of culture all united by the love of God.
“I’m Mexican. I've been a Muslim for 38 years. We do have a Muslim Mexican population and we're growing,” said Leila Miramontes, who’s lived in Santa Barbara her whole life.
“It's like a mini United Nations. That's right. That's what I tell my husband. My husband teaches at the university. Right. And when he comes in, well, this is Islam. It's really cosmopolitan,” said Fara Shauli, who immigrated to Santa Barbara from Malaysia.
The holiday commemorates prophet Abraham’s devotion to God, and his willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael.
“Imagine waiting and finally getting something that you were waiting for so long and then being told that now you have to give it up. Right. And this is his child, his first son, no less,” said Zaman.
Nashat Zaman explained the lesson she takes away from this story saying, “Abraham and his son, they sacrificed for the sake of God, but they also trusted him that everything will be okay in the end. And I think that's also a very beautiful lesson to learn. That's not all doom and gloom for sacrifices, right? That there's always hope in the end, you know, something good will come.”
Many here shared how love and sacrifice are inextricably linked.
Just like Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son, many immigrant parents sacrificed everything they knew and loved for hopes of a better future.
“My mom came from Syria. She was a hall professor and an architect working for a big name company there. And she sacrificed that to come to the United States and raise me and my brother. And thanks to that sacrifice her leaving her home, her family. I can proudly say that I have been accepted to medical school this year and I will be working on my American dream. And I wouldn't have been able to do that if my mom had left behind her whole life in Syria,” said Aiyah Wahab, who was born and raised in Santa Barbara.
Celebrators here really want to emphasize the message of gratitude on this day and the importance of cherishing our connections with our fellow humans.
