Muslims across China ended their fast yesterday and gathered in
mosques to celebrate the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
The Niujie Mosque in Beijing, the largest and oldest of the 68
mosques in the capital, welcomed some 4,500 Muslims from every
corner of the city.
Under renovations since March, it was the first time that the
1,000-year-old mosque was opened to the public.
"From 8 o'clock in the morning, devotees started streaming to
the mosque," said Sun Ying from the subdistrict office of Niujie
Street, the largest Muslim area in Beijing.
"Forty-six Muslims from eight countries such as Iran also joined
in the celebrations," Sun added.
Children walked through the streets with sweets in hand, folk
artists performed, and people tucked into a variety of traditional
snacks. At present, Beijing has 250,000 Muslim residents, more than
10,000 of whom live in the Niujie area.
There were celebrations, too, in northwest China where most of
the country's Muslims live.
"I went to a nearby mosque in the morning and stayed there for
an hour praying to almighty God for happiness and safety for my
family," said Xie Xiaodong, a professor at Lanzhou
University in Gansu, adding that all his family members are
Muslim.
"It's a sacred and happy day for us," he said. "We've cleaned
our home thoroughly and put on new clothes for the festival."
According to State regulations, Muslims in China get one day off
work for the fast-breaking festival, and in some areas such as the
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, they enjoy a three-day
holiday.
"Eid al-Fitr" in Arabic, the "festival of breaking fast" is a
time for family gatherings and meals.
Muslims who observe the fast refrain from food and drink from
sunrise to sunset for one month on the Muslim lunar calendar when
it is believed that the first verses of the Koran Islam's holy book
were revealed to the prophet Muhammad in the 7th century.
(
China Daily November 4, 2005)
