A Small Slice of Bakra Eid Day from Sacramento, California
By Ras H. Siddiqui
Eid al-Adha or Bakra Eid as we often refer to in South Asia was celebrated with a great deal of enthusiasm with all its associated festivities in Sacramento, California by the region’s growing Muslim population. Almost all the local Mosques celebrated the occasion on Sunday, June 16, 2024, but there were a few Islamic places of worship including the Downtown Muslim Mosque which observed the occasion on Monday, June 17 th. This writer attended the celebrations on June 16 th with brief stops at two mosques.
But before we get to Eid Day itself, it would not be possible to ignore the Chand Raat or the night before Eid celebrations which went on at the Doubletree Hotel in Sacramento on June 15 th. Organized by Farrukh Hashmi of Catering and Events, this was a very colorful and well-attended event which has been going on for around two decades in the area with a break during the COVID-19 pandemic. Farrukh Sahib is a gracious host and since this was a Saturday night, one had no excuse for not attending.
Chand Raat is a very important occasion for Muslims in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan and their diaspora plus it is great to see its spirit exported to America. There were many stalls selling bright new clothes, shoes, and décor here. And the food, especially the Haleem and Biryani sold was very tasty.
On Eid Day itself, I was able to attend the festivities at the Islamic Society of Placer County (ISPC) in Roseville where Imam Mohi led the prayers and shared his wisdom in the Khutbah (sermon) afterward. ISPC is a smaller congregation that many local friends and acquaintances attend, and the atmosphere there is very much like back in Pakistan. Plus, the Imam is a fellow retired hardware manufacturing engineer so there is plenty in common. The post-Eid prayer brunch at ISPC was also quite enticing but one had to move to the next venue.
The Sacramento Area League of Associated Muslims (SALAM) Eid Festival was the next stop. It has been reported that almost 4,000 people attended Eid prayers at the American River College Stadium across the street from the SALAM Mosque. After prayers, many people came to attend the festivities at SALAM, its mosque and adjoining community center. Here one got a true reflection of Afghanistan, the Middle East, and a bit of southern Asia amongst those in attendance. One must say, the Afghans sure know how to dress up for Eid, especially the kids. Some of the halal food sold at this festival included Afghan, Pakistani, and Mexican courtesy of the Town & Country Event Center (Haveli, El-Maida, etc.). The Middle Eastern dessert stall was also quite busy.
One cannot forget that Sunday, June 16th was also Father’s Day here in America, so we went to a planned Turkish Brunch at Nour’s Café which was very healthy and presented in an excellent way. Here I checked my messages and learnt that a fire had broken out near the Greater Sacramento Muslim Cemetery and not to go there. Many of us usually go to the cemetery on Eid days to pay our respects to the departed loved ones but not this year. Allah (SWT) was with us that day as the cemetery building and the graveyard itself were not damaged. We thank the area fire department for all their hard work in keeping our cemetery safe. I visited the cemetery a few days later and saw that the fire had almost reached the parking lot before it was controlled.
That evening we went to Ehsan and Humaira’s Eid-Milan/Father’s Day/Post-Pakistan Festival meetup in Granite Bay. A nice family affair to top off Bakra Eid. Truly we are blessed in many ways here in the Greater Sacramento area. It is hard to imagine a time when there was just one Mosque in the entire region established in 1947. Times have changed for the better. A late Eid Mubarak to all our readers.
