The conflict between truth and falsehood is ongoing and will last as
long as this world remains. The fact that some groups among the
Ummah of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
are following the people of falsehood such as the Jews, Christians,
Zoroastrians, idol-worshippers and others, whilst a group is remaining
steadfast to the truth despite the pressures, is all part of the decreed
system of the universe. But this does not mean that we should give in
and follow the ways of those who are astray, because the one who
told us that this would inevitably happen also warned us against
following this path, and he commanded us to adhere firmly to Islam
no matter how many people deviate from it and no matter how strong
they become. He told us that the blessed one is the one who adheres
steadfastly to the truth no matter what the distractions, at a time when
the one who does righteous deeds will earn the reward of fifty men
whose deeds are like those of the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased

with them) – as was reported in the hadeeth of Abu Tha’labah al-
Khushani (may Allaah be pleased with him).

Among the Ummah of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) there will be people who deviated from the truth and went
towards falsehood, changing and altering things. Their punishment
will be that they will be kept away from the Hawd (Cistern) whilst
those who adhered to the Straight Path will come and drink from it.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
“I will precede you to the Cistern, and men from among you will be
brought to me, and when I stretch forth my hand to them, they will be
pulled away. I will say, ‘O Lord! My followers!’ and it will be said:
‘You do not know what they innovated after you were gone.’”
According to another report: “I will say: ‘May he be doomed, the one
who changed (the religion) after I was gone.’”
One of the most obvious manifestations of this altering of Islam and
disdainfully treating the religion of Muhammad (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) is the way in which people follow the
enemies of Allaah – may He be exalted – in everything, major or
minor, in the name of development, progress and civilization, under
the banners of peaceful coexistence, human brotherhood, new world
order, globalization and other dazzling but deceitful slogans. The
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caring Muslim can spot this dangerous problem among the majority
of Muslims, except for those on whom Allaah has mercy, to such an
extent that they even follow them in their religious rituals and in their
most unique traditions and customs, such as the festivals which are
part of their belief systems. Allaah says (interpretation of the
meanings):
“and follow not their vain desires, diverging away from the truth that
has come to you. To each among you, We have prescribed a law and
a clear way” [al-Maa’idah 5:48]
“For every nation We have ordained religious ceremonies which they
must follow” [al-Hajj 22:67] – which means, a festival which is for
them alone.
Many Muslims have been led astray by the dazzling attractions of the
enemies of Allaah, especially the Christians with their major festivals
such as the celebration of the birth of the Messiah (peace be upon
him) – i.e., Christmas – and the Christian New Year. They attend
Christian parties on these occasions in their (Christians’) countries,
and some of them have brought these things back to Muslim countries
– we seek refuge with Allaah. A great disaster is the huge
preparations which are being made on an international scale and at
the level of the major Christian countries to celebrate the end of the
second millenium and the beginning of the third millenium since the
birth of the Messiah, son of Maryam (peace be upon him). If the
world is teeming with Christian celebrations during a regular New
Year, how will it be at the end of a Christian century (the twentieth
century) and the end of a millenium (the second millenium)? It is a
major event for which the Christians are preparing in a manner
appropriate to its huge significance.
This Christian event will not be like a usual New Year’s Eve
celebration taking only in the Christian countries and in their focal
point, the Vatican. Preparations are afoot to make the focal point of
the celebrations in Bethlehem, the place where the Messiah – peace
be upon him – was born. The political and religious leaders of the
Christians will go there – evangelicals and moderates alike, and even
the secularists, to celebrate this millenium of which the world press is
talking more and more as it approaches day by day. It is expected that
more than three million people will be present in Bethlehem, led by
the Pope John Paul II. Some of the neighbouring Muslim countries
are also taking part in this global event, on the grounds that some of
the symbols or major events of the Christian festival took place in
their land – namely the baptism of the Messiah (peace be upon him),
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when he was baptized by John the Baptist (Yahyaa, peace be upon
him) in the River Jordan. Indeed, many Muslims will also take part in
these celebrations on the basis that they are an international event
which concerns all the inhabitants of the earth. These people do not
know that celebrating this millenium is a celebration of a Christian
religious festival (the birth of the Messiah, i.e. Christmas, and the
Christian New Year), and that taking part in it involves taking part in
the rituals of their religion, and that rejoicing in it means rejoicing in
the symbols of Kufr when they are made manifest and they prevail.
This poses a great danger to the ‘aqeedah (belief) of the Muslim,
because “Whoever imitates a people is one of them” as was reported
in a saheeh hadeeth from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him). So how about one who actually
joins in with them in the rituals of their religion?! This obliges us to
discuss the rulings on the festivals of the kuffaar, how the Muslim
should deal with them and how they should differ from them – which
is one of the basic principles of this pure religion of ours. Moreover,
we need to know some details about their festivals and rituals so that
we can avoid them and warn others about them.
Why do we need to know about the festivals of the kuffaar?
One of the things that the scholars agreed on is that the Muslim does
not need to concern himself with the ways of the kuffaar, or their
rituals and customs (unless he wants to call them to Islam), except
when their customs and rituals are becoming widespread ignorant
Muslims, whether deliberately or unintentionally. In such cases
Muslims need to know about them so that they can avoid them. In
recent times this has become more of an issue for the following
reasons:
1. More mixing with the kuffaar, because Muslims go to their
countries to study, take vacations, do business or for other
reasons. Those who go there witness some of their rituals and
they may like them, so they follow them. This is especially the
case with those who are suffering from an inferiority complex
and who look at the kuffaar with strong admiration which robs
them of the power to resist, corrupts their hearts and weakens
their commitment to religion. In addition to this, many
westernized, educated people regard the kuffaar as advanced,
progressive and civilized even in their most mundane customs
and habits. Or else this comes about through the open
celebration of these festivals in Muslim countries by some
groups and non-Muslim minorities, so some ignorant Muslims
are influenced by this.
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2. The matter is made more serious by the media which can
transmit everything with sound and living pictures from the
farthest corners of the earth. No doubt the media of the kuffar is
stronger and more capable of transmitting their rituals to the
Muslims than the other way round. Many satellite channels
broadcast the rituals of other religions’ festivals – especially
Christian festivals. The matter becomes more serious when the
secular systems in some Muslim countries have adopted the
celebrations of the kaafirs and some of the people of bid’ah and
the Arabic satellite channels broadcast this to the world, so
some Muslims are deceived by the fact that this is coming from
a Muslim country.
3. Throughout their history, the Muslims have suffered from the
problem of being influenced by the rituals of others through
mixing with them. This prompted the imaams (scholars) of
Islam to warn the Muslim masses against imitating others in

their festivals and rituals. Among these scholars are Shaykh al-
Islam ibn Taymiyah, his student al-‘Allaamah Ibn al-Qayyim,

al-Haafiz al-Dhahabi and al-Haafiz ibn Katheer. They lived at
the same time, when there was a lot of mixing between Muslims
and others, especially Christians, and ignorant Muslims were
influenced by their (Christians’) religious rituals, especially
their festivals. So these scholars spoke a great deal about these
things throughout their books, and some of them devoted books
to the particular topic, such as Ibn Taymiyah (Iqtidaa’ al-Siraat

al-Mustaqeem li Mukhaalafat Ashaab al-Jaheem) and al-
Dhahabi (Tashbeeh al-Khasees bi Ahl al-Khamees), and others.

Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) spoke at length about
their festivals and what they do on those occasions, and he described
the extent to which the ignorant Muslims were influenced by this. He
described their various festivals and the rituals and customs that were
involved - which Muslims do not ordinarily need to know about, but
now it is necessary because many Muslims are following the People
of the Book in those rituals.
Shaykh al-Islam described their festivals and discussed them in the
context of warning against them. After speaking in detail about them,
he said: “Our aims are not limited just to knowing the details of their
falsehood, but it is sufficient for us to know what is munkar (evil) in
such a way that we can distinguish between it and that which is
mubaah (permissible), ma’roof (good), mustahabb (encouraged) and
waajib (obligatory), so that by means of this knowledge we will be
able to protect ourselves and avoid it, just as we know (and avoid)
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other things that are haraam, as we are obliged to do. Whoever does
not know about what is munkar, either in general terms or in details,
will not be able to avoid it. A general knowledge is sufficient, unlike
with waajibaat (duties) [where it is essential to know details –
translator].”
He also said:
“I have counted so many things that are munkar in their religion when
I noted that some groups of Muslims are influenced by some of them,
and many of them do not know that this comes from the Christian
religion which is cursed, it and its followers. I do not know all the
things that they do, but I have mentioned what I have seen Muslims
doing, which is taken from them.”
4. Some of their festivals nowadays revolve around large gatherings,
and still bear some of the features of their ancient festivals. Many
Muslims take part in these events without realizing that. This is the
case with the Olympic Games, whose roots lie in a festival that was
celebrated by the Greeks, then the Romans, then the Christians; and
with the “Mahrajaans” (“festivals”) which are organized to promote
trade, culture etc., even though the Mahrajaan was originally a
Persian festival. Most of those who organize these gatherings and call
them “Mahrajaan” are unaware of this.
5. Knowing evil is a means of avoiding it and keeping away from
it. Hudhayfah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The
people used to ask the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) about good things, but I used to ask him
about bad things, fearing that I may fall into them.” It is a great
problem that Muslims fall into observing some of the rituals of
the disbelievers without realizing that this is part of their rituals
and unique customs, which we have been commanded to avoid
because it is an abomination and misguidance.
6. There are so many calls made by the strong voices of hypocrisy
who want to cut the Ummah off from its roots, destroy its
identity and assimilate it into the methodology of the kuffaar,
and want people to follow them step by step, under the banners
of humanity, globalization, universalism, openness towards
others and receptiveness towards other cultures. This makes it
essential for us to know about the others’ (the kaafirs’)
misguidance and deviation so that we can expose it and point
out the faults that lie beneath the attractive exterior that covers
these abhorrent ideas,
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“so that those who were to be destroyed (for their
rejecting the Faith) might be destroyed after a clear
evidence, and those who were to live (i.e. believers) might
live after a clear evidence” [al-An’aam 8:42 –
interpretation of the meaning] – and so that proof may be
demonstrated to the followers of Muhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), so that they will not be
cheated or deceived.
Festivals of the Pharaohs

Among the Pharaonic festivals is the festival of Shimm al-
Naseem (lit. “smelling the breeze”), which involves

venerating some days as a good omen or drawing nigh to
the gods who were worshipped instead of Allaah – may He
be exalted. Shaykh Mahfooz – during his own time –
mentioned some of the shameful and immoral practices
that would make one's hair stand on end, whereby farms
and open spaces were filled with groups of immoral people
of bad conduct, and groups of young and old, men and
women, went to the orchards and rivers to commit zinaa
(fornication, adultery) and to drink intoxicating
substances, thinking that on that day all evil actions were
permissible for them.
Among the superstitions connected to this festival was the
placing of onions beneath the head of a sleeping person, or
hanging them in doorways, claiming that this would take
away laziness and sloth. This event is counted as one of
the Pharaonic festivals, and it was said that it was invented
by the Copts; there is nothing to suggest that it did not
belong to both of them, and that it was not passed down
from the Pharaohs to the Copts. Many Egyptians –
especially the Copts – still celebrate this festival, and
many Muslims join in with them. In recent years a number
of secular writers have called for it to be made an official
holiday, in order to revive the Pharaonic legacy, at the
time when they describe the rituals of Islam as being
backward, reactionary and uncivilized!
The festivals of the Greeks
The months of the Greek year were many, and were named
after the festivals. The costs of these festivals were
financed by the rich among them. Most of their festivals
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were connected to the rituals of their pagan religion which
was based on polytheism. They had so many festivals
which were aimed at reducing the tedium of daily life, and
it reached the extent that no month was free of one or more
festivals, except for one month which was called
Mamkitrion.
Their festivals were characterized by obscenity,
promiscuity, drunkenness and giving free rein to their
animalistic desires, so that they did whatever they wanted,
as is reflected in many of their misguided myths, such as
their claim that they summoned the souls of the dead, then
they sent them back or expelled them again after the
festival was over. The most important of their festivals
included the following:
The festival of the Olympiad, or the Olympic feast. This
was held in Elis every four years. It was first officially
recognized in 776 BCE. The Olympiad was one of their
most important festivals and seasonal gatherings. From
that far-off date, these games were historically called the
Olympiad. It has nationalistic features and aims, so much
so that it was said that the Greeks used to boast about their
Olympic victories more than their conquests on the
battlefield. This was the greatest festival of the Greeks at
that time.

These games are still held and supported by the Christian
nations under the same ancient name and with the
inherited rituals such as lighting the Olympic flame in
Athens and bringing it to the country where the Games are
being held, and so on. Unfortunately many Muslim
countries also take part in these games and boast about
doing so. Many of them do not know that their origin lies
in the festivals of the kuffaar and the sacred days of their
pagan religion. We seek refuge with Allaah from
deviation, misguidance and blind following.
The Greeks also had other major festivals such as the
festivals of the Hellenic league, the Ionic league and
others.
The festivals of the Romans
One of the nations which had the most festivals was the
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Romans. They had more than one hundred holy days in the
year, days which they regarded as festivals, including the
first day of each month. Some festivals were devoted to
the sanctification of the dead and the souls of the
underworld, and on many of their festivals celebrations
were held to placate the dead and appease their anger – or
so they claimed.
As it is known, the Roman Empire prevailed after the
Greeks, so they inherited many of the Greek rituals,
customs and festivals.
Among the most famous Roman festivals:
The festival of love, which they celebrated on February 14
each year, as an expression of what they believed, in their
pagan religion, to be divine love. This festival was
invented more than 1700 years ago, at the time when
paganism was still prevalent among the Romans. Whilst
their state was still idolatrous, they executed Saint
Valentine, who had converted to Christianity after having
been a pagan. When the Romans converted to Christianity,
they made the day of his execution an occasion to
celebrate the martyrs of love. This festival is still
celebrated in America and Europe, to declare feelings of
friendship and to renew the covenant of love between
spouses and lovers. This festival now has great social and
economic significance.
It seems that another practice stemmed from the concept of
this feast, which is the anniversary celebrated by spouses
or friends who love one another, where the couple
celebrate the anniversary of their marriage each year, to
confirm the love between them. This custom has passed to

the Muslims because of their mixing (with the non-
Muslims), so that couples celebrate the night of their

marriage in a special way in many Muslim countries,
imitating the kuffaar. Laa hawla wa laa quwwata illaa
Billaa il-‘Aliy il-‘Azeem (there is no strength and no power
except with Allaah, the Exalted and Almighty).
The festivals of the Jews
1. The (Jewish) New Year, which is called the festival of Heesha
[Rosh Hashanah]. This is the first day of Tishreen al-Awwal.
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They claim that it is the day on which the sacrifice Ishaaq
(peace be upon him) was ransomed. This is according to their
mistaken belief – in fact the one who was to be sacrificed was
Ismaa’eel, not Ishaaq. This festival has a similar status to that of
‘Eid al-Adhaa for Muslims.
2. The festival of Sumaria or Yom Kippur, which for them is a day
of forgiveness.
3. The feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) on the fifteenth of Tishreen.
On this day they stay in the shade of the branches of trees. It is
also called the Festival of the Fast of the Virgin Mary.
4. The Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is the Passover, on the
fifteenth of Nisan. This commemorates the flight of the Children
of Israel from slavery in Egypt in the thirteenth century BCE.
This story is told in the twelfth chapter of the Book of Exodus.
The festival lasts for eight days in occupied Palestine, and the
Reform Jews celebrate it in their own countries for seven days.
During this festival they have a celebration called the Seder,
where they read the story of the flight of the Children of Israel
in a book called the Haggadah and they eat unleavened bread, as
a reminder that when the Children of Israel fled, they ate this
kind of bread, because they did not have time to make leavened
bread. The Jews still eat unleavened bread during this festival to
this day.
5. The Feast of Weeks or Pentecost (Shavuot). They claim that this
is the day on which Allaah – may He be exalted – spoke to

Moosa (peace be upon him).

6. The Day of Atonement, in the tenth month of the Jewish year,
when a person goes into seclusion for nine days to worship and
fast, This is called the days of repentance.
7. The new moon. They used to celebrate the birth of each new
moon, when they used to blow trumpets in Jerusalem and light
fires in celebration.
8. The Jubilee, which is described in the Book of Leviticus.
They also have other festivals, among which the most well known
are: the festival of victory, or Purim, and the festival of Hanukkah,
which is also known as the festival of blessing.
The festivals of the Christians
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The festival of the resurrection, which is called Easter. This is the
most important annual Christian festival, which is preceded by the
long fast (Lent) which lasts for forty days before Easter Sunday. This
festival commemorates the return of the Messiah (peace be upon him)
or his resurrection after his crucifixion, two days after his death –
according to their claims. It marks the end of many different kinds of
rituals, which include:
1. The onset of the long fast of Lent, which lasts for forty days
before Easter Sunday. They start fasting on a Wednesday known
as Ash Wednesday, where ash is placed on the foreheads of
those present and they repeat the words, “From dust we came
and to dust we shall return.”
2. Fifty days after Easter Sunday, they end with the Feast of
Pentecost or Whitsuntide.
3. The Week of Sorrows (or Holy Week), which is the last week of
the fasting period of Lent, which refers to the events that led up
to the death and resurrection of Jesus (peace be upon him) – as
they claim.
4. Palm Sunday, which is the Sunday before Easter. This is a
commemoration of the triumphal entry of the Messiah into
Jerusalem.
5. Maundy Thursday, which is a commemoration of the Last
Supper of the Messiah, and his arrest and imprisonment.
6. Good Friday (“the Friday of Grief”), which is the Friday before
Easter, which refers to the death of Jesus on the cross – or so
they claim.
7. Easter Saturday (the “Saturday of Light”), which comes before
Easter and refers to the death of the Messiah. It is a day of
watching and waiting for the resurrection of the Messiah on
Easter Sunday. The Easter festivities conclude with the
Thursday of Ascension, when the story of the Messiah’s
ascension into heaven is recited in all the churches. They have
different kinds of celebrations and festivals, according to the
different denominations in different Christian countries. The
Thursday and Friday before Easter are known as the Great

Thursday and the Great Friday, as was mentioned by Shaykh al-
Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him). This is

the Thursday (al-Khamees) referred to in the book of al-Haafiz
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al-Dhahabi (may Allaah have mercy on him): Tashbeeh al-
Khasees bi Ahl al-Khamees. This Thursday is the last day of

their fast, and is also known as the Thursday of the Table or the
Feast of the Table. It is mentioned in Soorat al-Maa’idah where
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“‘Eesaa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), said: “O Allaah,
our Lord! Send us from the heaven a table spread (with
food) that there may be for us — for the first and the last
of us — a festival and a sign from You...” [al-Maa’idah
5:114]
They also do many strange things during these festivals, as was
mentioned by many historians, such as gathering the leaves of trees,
soaking them, then washing with the water, or putting kohl on their
eyes. The Copts of Egypt used to bathe in the Nile on certain days,
claiming that this was healing. Easter is the day when they break their
long fast. They claim that on this day, the Messiah (peace be upon
him) was resurrected three days after the crucifixion, and Adam was

saved from Hell, and other myths. Shams al-Deen al-Dimashqi al-
Dhahabi mentioned that the people of Hama would stop working for

six days on this occasion, and they would dye eggs and make ka’k [a
kind of biscuit], and other kinds of corrupt deeds and mixing that they
engaged in at that time. He said that the Muslims used to join in that
as well, and that they outnumbered the Christians. We seek refuge
with Allaah.
Ibn al-Haaj mentioned that they openly committed immoral actions
and engaged in gambling, but no one denounced them for doing so.
This is probably what prompted Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may
Allaah have mercy on him) to denounce what he saw of Muslims
imitating Christians in their festivals and rituals, for he mentioned a
great deal of this in his excellent book al-Iqtidaa’ . Al-Dhahabi also
wrote a book on this topic, as mentioned above.
Until the present, all the Christians celebrate Easter on the first
Sunday after the moon become full in spring, in the period between
March 22 and April 25. The Eastern Orthodox Christians observe it
later than the other Christians. Its rituals, fasts and days occupy an
entire season in the Christian year.

 The conflict between truth and falsehood is ongoing and will last as
 long as this world remains. The fact that some groups among the
 Ummah of Muhammad peace and blessings of Allah be upon him
 are following the people of falsehood.