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Eid means joy, meaning happiness. Even though there are two Eids in a year, Eid-ul-Fitr's joy and happiness are many times higher. From area to area, the pleasure of Eid starts long before Eid. The first subject of interest and excitement is the Eid moon. It starts with shopping for Eid well before the end of Ramadan, and excitement builds as people eagerly await the sighting of the Eid moon. Mothers begin cooking unique dishes like kheer or semai while girls and young women gather to apply henna. Children decorate homes, and on Eid day, men attend prayers in traditional attire, while women wear new clothes after praying at home, a typical Eid for Bangladeshis. But for those who live abroad, how exactly do they spend Eid? Away from home, how do they feel about passing through the transition?
Eid living abroad is very complicated. On one side is the joy of Eid; on the other is the pain of being away from loved ones.
There is a different joy in Eid al-Adha. Muslims from other countries celebrate Eid together. The Eid holidays are usually relatively short in countries where Muslims are not the majority.
If you work in a private field, this leave is no more. Expatriate working expatriates try to enjoy the joy of Eid. Canadian expatriate Hasin Ahnaf Kafi has been living in Toronto for two years away from his family. He said, "Coming here, I felt the absence of my family. At first, I didn't like being alone at all. My mother would have cooked this or that if I was at home now. Now, I am trying to adjust slowly. On the day of Eid, our office does not even have a day off. We wake up in the morning, bathe, wear new clothes, pray and go to the office. At the end of the day at work, we celebrate Eid with known Muslims at night."
Those who live far away from the polybag family will be heartbroken for their house; this is probably natural. And those who have settled with expatriate families and expatriate Muslims in the area. Before Eid, they visit the Eid bazaar to buy new clothes, food, and gifts.
Samiha Ahmed, an expatriate in the UK for about fifteen years, said, "How Eid will be spent depends on the area you live in and whether your family is with you. England has several Muslim areas; we live in one such area. Here, Eid is like the country—a crowded atmosphere. On the eve of Eid, giving henna together, praying Eid prayers, going to each other's house to wear new clothes, and celebrating Eid creates an atmosphere like the country. Along with Bangladeshi Muslims here, as Pakistani, Indian, Turkish, and Indonesian Muslims from different countries, make this event colourful with friendship."
There are differences in this expatriate life according to the country and city, so there are differences in the Eid experience. Zaheer Rahman, who works in a multinational company, has lived abroad in Chennai, India for a year. He said, "I have had to stay in different countries at different times due to my work. I did not get any taste of Eid or fasting in this city. Many people of other religions do not even know that Eid is being celebrated. But in Delhi, Agra, Kashmir or Kolkata, the taste of Eid is quite enjoyable. I get emotional with my childhood and teenage nostalgia."
Celebrating Eid abroad is a mixed feeling of joy and pain. Even as expatriates share in the joy of Eid, they leave a deep longing for country and relatives or a little pleasure somewhere in their absence. The expatriates and the family members in the diaspora also spend Eid with mixed feelings of upset in the absence of their relatives.