Muslim holidays generally celebrate the events of the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, especially the events surrounding the first hearing of the Qur’an. Islam has two main holidays, Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha. The way that holidays are recognized can vary across cultures, as well as across sects of Islam, Sunni and Shia. Muslim holidays generally follow the lunar calendar, and thus move each year relative to the solar calendar.Sunni and Shia lunar calendars do not always coincide: sometimes a Shia holiday and the same Sunni holiday occur on two different days, typically two successive ones. The Execution of Saddam Hussein was carefully timed to avoid the Shia Eid ul-Adha, but the Sunni holiday began on the day of his death.
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Friday and Jumu’ah
Main article: Friday Prayer
Friday is an important day in the life of a Muslim and it is believed that any devotional acts done on this day gain a higher reward. This day however should not be understood as a Sabbath, for Muslims reject the belief that God rested after Creation. The reason for the selection of Friday is due to the belief that Adam was created on that day. Believers attend congregational prayer at the local mosque, perform prayer and listen to a sermon by the Imam. When the holidays occur, it is according to the lunar Islamic calendar. This calendar does not correct for the fact that the lunar year does not match the solar year. Therefore, the Islamic months precess each year; they shift relative to the Gregorian calendar by about 11 days.
Ramadan
Main article: Ramadan
Ramadan is the month in which Muslims must fast during daylight hours and eat when the sun goes down or can’t be seen.
Eid ul-Fitr
Main article: Eid ul-Fitr
Eid (???) is the Arabic word for feast. Eid ul-Fitr (??? ?????) is the holiday celebrating the end of Ramadan and the month-long fast. During Ramadan, Muslims all over the world fast from dawn (before sun rise) to sun down, having their first daily meal at sun down prayer time. The purpose of fasting is to teach Muslims patience and humility, as well as to remind Muslims that they are fortunate and should help the needy and less fortunate. After sun down of the last day of Ramadan, Eid ul-Fitr starts. In the early morning of the first day of Shawwal (first day of the Eid), Muslims perform a ritual prayer called the Eid prayer. Sweets, food, and non-alcoholic drinks are distributed in masajid and homes. Celebrations extend up to three days.
Eid Al-Adha
Main article: Eid Al-Adha
Eid ul-Adha (??? ??????), also called the big holiday, falls approximately 70 days after Eid ul-Fitr and is celebrated in honor of the prophet Abraham when he intended to sacrifice his son Ismail as a proof of his loyalty to God. Eid ul-Adha is translated into English as “The Feast of Sacrifice”, when Muslims all over the world present an animal (usually a cow or a sheep) sacrifice as a gratitude action for God saving the Prophet Ismail’s life. The slaughtered animal meat is divided into thirds, one for the person who is presenting the beast, one to be distributed to his poor relatives, and the last third for the needy, regardless of their religion, race, or nationality. As with Eid ul-Fitr, there is an early morning prayer for the Eid, and celebrations are extended for Four days.

It falls two months and 10 days after the Little Feast. Those who are economically able to make a pilgrimage to Mecca do so just before this date, on the Hajj.
Ashura
Main article: Ashura
Ashura is celebrated on the ninth and tenth day of Muharram on the Islamic Calendar. Ashura is an Arabic word meaning “ten”, and it is a day of optional fasting. Jews in the city of Madina fasted only one day, (on Yom Kippur the 10th of Tishrei) so the Prophet Muhammad would fast too. This is the day on which God saved Moses and the Israelites from Pharaoh in Egypt as he crossed the Red Sea (the Exodus day). According to Islamic tradition Muhammad fasted along with the neighboring Jewish communities on this occasion, and according to narrations, Muhammad planned on fasting on the 9th and 10th of Muharram. (According to Judaism the Israelites left Egypt on the first day of Passover, and they crossed the Sea of Reeds seven days later on the 21st of Nisan, both of which are celebrated as holidays with meals.) This is also the day on which Muhammad’s grandson, Husayn ibn Ali, was murdered according to tradition in the Battle of Karbala. For Shi’a Muslims this is a day of mourning. Many Sunni Muslims also commemorate this event, albeit in a less dramatic fashion than the Shi’a.
Islamic New Year
Main article: Islamic New Year
The 1st of Muharram is the New Year on the Islamic Calendar. In Arabic, the new year is called, “R’as as-Sana.” It is not generally celebrated as an official Islamic holiday, although many Muslim communities have devised or revived some kind of new year ritual celebration
Mawlid an-Nabi
Main article: Mawlid an-Nabi
Mawlid an-Nabi (Arabic for “The birth of the prophet”) celebrates Prophet Muhammad’s birthday. It is on the twelfth of Rabi Al-Awwal on the Islamic Calendar. This occasion was not celebrated in the early times of Islam and is therefore unevenly celebrated today, with great and festive celebrations in many Muslim countries (e.g. Egypt and Turkey) and none in others (e.g. Saudi Arabia). Poetry in praise of God and the Prophet are recited with love and devotion. Some scholars, notably Salafis, condemn these festivities as Bid‘ah (innovation).
Laylat al-Qadr
Main article: Laylat al-Qadr
Laylat al-Qadr is Arabic for “The night of power”. It falls on one of the last ten days of Ramadan on an odd numbered day. It is considered the holiest night in the entire month of Ramadan, since it is the night in which the Qur’an was first revealed. It is also considered better than a thousand months [Qur’an 97:1-3]. It is said that if a person performs voluntary worship on this night, that worship is equal to a thousand months or approximately 80 years.
Laylat ul Isra and Miraj
Main article: Lailat al Miraj
Laylat ul Isra and Mi’raj is Arabic for “the Night of the Journey and Ascension”. It is on 27 of Rajab. It is the night when Muhammad was, according to Hadiths, taken to “the furthest mosque” (generally understood to be Jerusalem) on a Buraq (a beast resembling horse with wings; some people consider it a cherub) and ascended to the highest level of the heavens. It is said that he negotiated with God about the number of prayers, which started at fifty a day, but on his way down he met Moses who asked him to ask for a reduction in the number because the requirement was difficult for Muhammad’s people. Muhammad returned to God and several times asked for and was granted a reduction of five prayers, until the number was reduced to five in total, with the blessing that if they were properly performed, the performers would be credited with fifty prayers instead of five.
Laylat ul Bara’ah
Main article: Laylat ul Bara’ah
Laylat ul Bara’ah is Arabic for “the Night of Freedom from Fire.” It occurs on the night between the 14th and 15th of Sha’ban. It is considered a night when Muslims are graced with Divine Mercy and blessings. The night is spent in the recitation of the Qur’an and special prayers.
Jumu’ah-tul-Wida
Main article: Jumu’ah-tul-Wida
Jumu’ah-tul-Wida (Arabic: ???? ????? ) is the last Friday if the holy month of Ramadan, that is the last fasting Friday before Eid-ul-Fitr.

PORTLAND, Ore. — Eid Passport, Inc., a leading provider of vendor access management programs, has deployed its RAPIDGate(TM) program to enhance security at the United States Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C. The RAPIDGate Program provides a new secure credential and entry protocol for all vendors, suppliers, and contractors who work at the Headquarters. Initially installed at the Headquarters’ Transpoint building, the Program is scheduled to deploy at the Coast Guard’s Jemal Riverside building in the near future.

Eid Passport’s RAPIDGate Program improves security and efficiency by registering and screening vendors, contractors, and suppliers, and then providing credentials and access management systems that quickly prove their identities and authorize their privileges to enter a secure facility. The Program integrates a number of best-of-breed products and services: the self-service Registration Stations for program applicants; identity proofing; background screening for outstanding wants, warrants (including the “terrorist watch list”), sexual offender/predator lists, and felony convictions; fraud-resistant, personalized RAPIDGate badges for qualified applicants; access management and biometric systems to identify credential-holders at secure access points; and reports of ingress and egress activity.

Using the RAPIDGate Program, organizations gain confidence that all badgeholders have had a thorough background screening, and that they access secure facilities only when authorized to do so. Access control personnel can more quickly authorize RAPIDGate badgeholders for entry, allowing them to focus their efforts on those visitors who are not part of the Program. During periods of heightened security, access control personnel can also verify badgeholder fingerprints on the spot. The badgeholders, in turn, save time every time they need to access the secure facility, which can result in hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars of savings per employee per year.

“We are thrilled to partner with an organization as prestigious and symbolic of security as the United States Coast Guard,” said Steve Larson, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Eid Passport. “The success of this installation validates the role of the RAPIDGate Program as a critical layer of security for government, military, and commercial facilities. In turn, their vendors, suppliers, and contractors will enjoy fast, secure access for fulfilling their missions.”

About Eid Passport

Eid Passport (http://www.eidpassport.com) provides vendor access management solutions for military bases and governmental agencies (including Coast Guard, Army, Marines, Navy, and Air Force facilities); federal, state, and local government buildings; and other homeland security applications. Eid’s solutions combine self-registration stations, background checks (vetting), RFID, credentialing, biometrics, and other services and technologies within a complete security solution.

Eid Passport’s RAPIDGate program, designed especially for military, government, and commercial facilities, makes granting facility access more secure and faster for vendors, suppliers, service providers, and contractors. It significantly reduces ingress and egress time through the use of secure credentials, ultra-long-range active RFID badges, access management systems and biometric data. And by allowing security personnel to focus on non-screened parties, the RAPIDGate program tightens security even more. As a force protection application, it is typically provided at no cost to the government

Eid Passport also helps commercial clients minimize the risk of terrorism, workplace violence, theft and fraud presented by vendors, suppliers, service providers, contractors, and even employees. Its products work at security programs and checkpoints at commercial facilities, including ports (including airports, and seaports); manufacturing and distribution centers; casinos and gaming; stadiums; employment and staffing companies; and corporate headquarters. Through its self registration, background screening, identity authentication, secure credentialing and enforcement, facility administrators/employers can be sure that only authorized personnel can gain ingress or egress access to their facilities.

For more information, visit http://www.eidpassport.com.

The Supreme Judicial Council has announced that Wednesday, Jan 12, 2005, is the first day of the lunar month of Zil Hijjah. Accordingly, Thursday, Jan 20, 2005, will be Arafat day, while Friday, Jan 21, 2005, will be Eid-al-Ad’ha day

Based on sightability in North America, in 2007 Eid al-Fitr will start in North America a day later - on Saturday, the 13th of October.

Note that in the Muslim calander, a holiday begins on the sunset of the previous day, so observing Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Fitr on the sunset of Thursday, the 11th of October.

The dates provided here are based on the dates adopted by the Fiqh Council of North America. Note that these dates are based on astronomical calculations to affirm each date, and not on the actual sighting of the moon with the naked eyes. This approach is accepted by many, but is still being hotly debated.

Ariston, an international brand that is represented in the Sultanate by Saeed Bin Nasser Al Hashar, is the sponsor of the upcoming Eid Festival, which will be held at the Oman International Exhibition Centre starting on the first day of Eid Al Fitr.

‘We are glad to serve as the sponsor of the Eid Festival because we are sure to get maximum brand exposure with the popularity of the exhibition as the biggest and much-awaited consumer fair in Oman,’ said Syed Salman, Head - Marketing & Business Development of Saeed Bin Nasser Al Hashar, which is a member of the Al Hashar Group of Companies.

With the durability and reliability of Ariston products as well as their modern design, Salman stressed that it is preferred by a growing number of households in the Sultanate. He added that they are also getting very good response for their other brands, which include Sharp, Rinnai, TCL, and Voltas.

Tarek El Habbal, Group Marketing Manager of the Al Hashar Group of Companies, pointed out that Ariston is just one of the major brands which are represented by the Al Hashar Group in the Sultanate. The Ariston brand is known worldwide for its range of high-quality cookers, built-in appliances, washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators and other home appliances.

‘The Eid Festival, which we have organised annually for 22 years now, is visited by thousands of people daily, thus offering an excellent opportunity to effectively raise awareness for popular brands like Ariston,’ said C.J. Paul, general manager of Omanexpo LLC, the leading exhibition management company in the sultanate.

Paul revealed that this year’s Eid Festival will be a virtual shopper’s paradise as it will showcase a wide range of products from all over the world. Apart from the strong participation of local companies, the Eid Festival will also feature a large number of international exhibitors from countries like China, Singapore, Thailand, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. There will also be exhibitors from Palestine, Iraq, Morocco, and African countries such as Kenya, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

The nine-day event will start this week right on the first day of Eid Al Fitr. Except on the first day and on Fridays, when the exhibition will be closed in the morning, the regular exhibition timings are from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and then from 5:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Certain days have also been set aside for ladies and families only. All visitors to the exhibition will get a chance to win a TV set daily, courtesy of Saeed Bin Nasser Al Hashar.

The Eid Festival is also supported by Oman Tribune and Al Shabiba as media partners.

Ladies selecting bangles from one of the stalls in the famous Moon market Gulishan Ravi of the Provincial Capital for the upcoming Eidul Fitr

Pakistani cricket players offer prayers at the Jama Masjid (mosque) on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr in the northern Indian city .

Eid Mubarak to all of Muslim community in every part of the world & a very happy new year to every one in every part of the world.