Tabaski Festival - Sheep Sacrifice

It is 7 am in Dakar, Senegal on the morning of the Festival of Tabaski. This is considered to be one of the biggest Muslim Festivals of the year - The Feast of the Sacrifice.

According to the Qur'an, Allah asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son. Though Abraham was deeply troubled by Allah's request, he agreed to perform the sacrifice as a sign of his obedience. But just before Abraham began the sacrifice, Allah told him to offer a sheep instead.

To remember Abraham's offering, every family sacrifices a sheep on Tabaski morning. The rest of the day is spent in prayer and celebration. Everyone wears new clothes. Parents give their children presents and money. People feast on roast sheep and share the meat with others. They visit family and friends, and give thanks to Allah.

For the past few days, the streets and markets have been filled with sheep for sale. Even the poorest of families will try to raise the money for a sheep or at least share one in a smaller village.

There is great excitement in the air because of Tabaski. We can feel the importance of the Festival. Interestingly, the actual day of Tabaski , which is based on the lunar calendar, isn't known for certain ahead of time. The imans at the mosque watch the movements of the moon and announce it at the mosques and also on the television and internet just a few days or even hours before the Festival begins.

To read a detailed account of the holiday of Tabaski: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabaski