Eid ul-Adha 2027

Also called and spelled: Eid al-Adha, Bakra Eid, Bakrid, Badi Eid, the festival of sacrifice, Eid ul Azha, Eid al Adha, Eid-ul-Adha, Bakra Eid, Bakrid, Badi Eid, Qurbani Eid.

Eid ul-Adha, the festival of sacrifice, falls on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, the day after the pilgrims stand at Arafat. Muslims pray the Eid prayer and then sacrifice an animal in memory of the Prophet Ibrahim's readiness to give up his son for Allah. In Pakistan, India and Bangladesh it is Bakra Eid or Bakrid, and the weeks before it are the season of the cattle markets.

The story behind the sacrifice

The Quran tells how Ibrahim saw in a dream that he was sacrificing his son and told him of it. His son answered, "O my father, do as you are commanded; you will find me, if Allah wills, among the patient." When both had submitted, Allah called out to Ibrahim that he had fulfilled the vision and ransomed the son with "a great sacrifice" (Surah as-Saffat 37:102-107). The qurbani of Eid ul-Adha keeps that moment alive: what reaches Allah, the Quran says, is not the meat or the blood but the taqwa behind it (22:37).

The first ten days of Dhul Hijjah

The Prophet (ﷺ) said no good deeds are better than those done in these ten days (Sahih al-Bukhari 969). They are a chance to fast, give charity, read Quran and say plenty of Allahu akbar, la ilaha illallah and alhamdulillah.

If you intend to offer a sacrifice, the Prophet (ﷺ) said not to cut your hair or nails from the start of Dhul Hijjah until you have sacrificed (Sahih Muslim 1977). Most scholars treat this as recommended, not obligatory.

The Day of Arafah fast

The 9th of Dhul Hijjah is the Day of Arafah, when the pilgrims stand on the plain of Arafat. For everyone not on Hajj, fasting this day is one of the most rewarded voluntary fasts of the year: the Prophet (ﷺ) said he hoped it would wipe out the sins of the year before and the year after (Sahih Muslim 1162).

In Pakistan and India, people fast on 9 Dhul Hijjah by the local date, which is usually the day after the pilgrims stand at Arafat in Saudi Arabia. Scholars accept fasting by your own local calendar.

Takbir al-Tashriq

From Fajr on the Day of Arafah until Asr on the 13th of Dhul Hijjah, the takbir is said once aloud after every obligatory prayer. Hanafi scholars hold it to be wajib; the wording commonly used in South Asia is:

اللهُ أَكْبَرُ، اللهُ أَكْبَرُ، لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، وَاللهُ أَكْبَرُ، اللهُ أَكْبَرُ، وَلِلَّهِ الْحَمْدُ

Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar, la ilaha illallah, wallahu akbar, Allahu akbar wa lillahil hamd. "Allah is the greatest, Allah is the greatest, there is no god but Allah, Allah is the greatest, Allah is the greatest, and all praise is for Allah."

Qurbani: who, what and when

• Who must offer it: in the Hanafi school, qurbani is wajib on every adult, sane, resident Muslim who owns wealth above the nisab on the days of Eid. The other schools hold it to be a stressed Sunnah for those who can afford it.
• The animal: healthy, without clear defects such as blindness in one eye, obvious lameness, sickness or severe thinness.
• When: after the Eid prayer, never before it. Hanafis allow it until sunset on 12 Dhul Hijjah; the Shafi'i school until sunset on the 13th.
• The meat: it is recommended to keep a third, give a third to relatives and friends, and give a third to the poor. The skin can be given to a charity or a madrasa, but it cannot be sold for your own benefit or given to the butcher as payment.

The Eid prayer and the day

The Eid ul-Adha prayer is the same as the Eid ul-Fitr prayer: two rak'ahs after sunrise with extra takbirs and a khutbah afterwards. It is Sunnah to delay eating until after the prayer: the Prophet (ﷺ) did not eat on the day of Adha until he returned, then ate from his sacrifice (Tirmidhi 542). Many people pray early so that the qurbani can begin.

In Pakistan and India the days before Eid are dominated by the cattle mandis, children walking the family goat through the lanes, and the search for a butcher. On Eid day the sacrifice, the sharing of meat and the visits to family fill the three days.

Eid ul-Adha 2027 date by country

The Gregorian date of Eid ul-Adha depends on whether a country follows its own moon sighting or the Umm al-Qura calendar of Saudi Arabia.

Hajj 1448 in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia follows the Umm al-Qura calendar, so the Hajj days fall one day before the South Asian dates. These are the expected days of the pilgrimage:

Eid ul-Adha dates for the next five years

Like every Islamic date, Eid ul-Adha comes about 11 days earlier each Gregorian year. Dates are expected by the calendar and confirmed by moon sighting.