What To Consider When Buying Eid Gift

Have you ever considered what it could be like for Muslim households to have their own Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations? Of course you didn't; that is against the law. Muslims enjoy a deeply personal festival that is only for us. It is the magnificently big finale of a month-long fast that includes prayer, devotion, worship, remembering, charity, self-reflection, and fasting. The wonderful day of Eid'l-Fitr is something that no other religion enjoys. Now that would be great if we could just have a day off from work or school to enjoy it, but hey, we'll settle for skipping class and reporting sick to work so that we can have a day of revelry, festivity, and busting a move:

Eid'l-Fitr is a day of great joy and unmatched happiness that celebrates the end of Ramadan with unforgettable golden moments of heavenly songs, ecstatic dances, loud fanfare, triple-awkward hugs at the mosque, heartfelt family reunions, gift-giving to all your loved ones, and ugly fighting over moon-sighting while declaring others who do not follow your sighting as deviant for keeping their fast on your day of Eid. This, my friends, is how Eid'l-Fitr is beautiful.

Not eating a lot of food in the middle of the day to celebrate that the word "lunch" has finally returned to our vocabulary (and to your stomach) for the rest of the year, nor is it the idea that the sins you commit now can totally go back to being blamed on Shaitan, are the parts of the Eid celebrations that everyone looks forward to the most. The EID GIFTS are what everyone (kids in particular) look forward to every year.

Giving presents is unquestionably one of the most exciting parts of Eid, and it strengthens our relationships with one another since nothing says love like an envelope of Eid money with your name on it. Yet this is where the stress manifests itself. the endless hours spent frantically searching through malls, toy stores, internet catalogs, Wal-clearance Mart's area, and, if you're really desperate, your own closet for the perfect Eid gifts for everyone on your list. Giving presents is an extremely skilled and sophisticated art. Fortunately for you, we've put up a fast 5-step tutorial to show you the methods and strategies that will make your Eid gifts stand out this year.

1. IDENTIFY THE WISHES OF YOUR RECIPIENT

This is arguably the most significant element of Eid purchasing. The best Eid gift givers are those that make each gift specifically to the recipient's preferences. Giving cash or gift cards for Eid is a lazy but simple cop out because it's human nature to want money, but giving actual things that people genuinely want is perhaps the most joyful thing you can do for them.

So now is your time to pretend to be a super secret FBI agent and spy on someone else to learn more about their preferences (it feels sort of nice when you're not the target of obvious FBI espionage, huh?). You have a perfect opportunity when they reveal information about items they've been keeping an eye on or things they've always desired but weren't able to acquire.

Sisters, are you looking for a present for your father, husband, or brother that isn't cliche and worn out like ties, wallets, and cologne? Men are simple people who appreciate the more basic things in life, such as privacy and solitude in our toilet time or a leg rest for relaxing when we spend hours getting worked up over a sporting event.

And whatever you do, never, ever ask your recipient directly what they want for Eid because doing so ruins the surprise, makes them feel ungrateful and uncomfortable, makes you appear desperate, ruins the entire mood of Eid, compromises the sanctity of the family, and erodes the moral standing of our ummah.

2. HAVE MERCY ON YOUR PURSE OR WALLET

Yes, we are aware of the feeling of dread that develops as you look at your long list of relatives. If you want to buy an Eid gift for just one niece or nephew, you pretty much have to buy one for everyone else as well, or you run the risk of igniting enough social unrest and political unrest to start the Egyptian Revolution in your own living room. Some families have found a low-cost answer for it, and that is to just not give gifts on special occasions.

Delivering Eid gifts isn't about being a multibillionaire philanthropist or trying to be a mythical Muslim Santa Clause who discreetly breaks into your family members' homes the night before Eid and hides presents beneath their prayer rugs in order to grant their most sincere wishes. It is the niyyah that counts, and in the end, what matters most is sincere goodwill and love. Certainly, little children don't see it that way and will undoubtedly think less of you for buying them cheap gifts, but that can be fixed with a few slaps and irate Islamic sermons about honoring authority figures. Don't overspend on gifts; instead, offer what you can afford to, and if you want to spend more, do so.

But remember that today's youngsters have quite good memories, and they typically have yearly expectations for gifts during Eid that get better and better. Masha'Allah, such adorable tiny angels, the light of our eyes and the joy of our hearts—I mean, snot-nosed unappreciative little whiners.

3. MAKE SURE THAT YOUR EID GIFTS WILL NOT OFFEND.

The thought that comes to your mind is, "This is Eid'l-Fitr, for crying out loud! How could presenting a gift for Eid ever be undesirable? First of all, stop crying so loudly—Eid is approaching. In any case, why are you crying over Eid? Man up. Second, Muslims are pioneers in the art of biting critique, so even something as universally laudable as Eid gifts can be used as a vehicle for oblique allusion.
Sometimes the decisions you make when buying gifts for Eid might backfire and get you into problems, or worse, put your health and wellbeing in danger.

4. DO NOT ASSUME ANYTHING.

Hey, how about an extremely entertaining Islamic game?

Finished yet? No? then proceed slowly. No need to haste. It doesn't really require a Grand Mufti to solve this mystery... But be careful to finish the Eid Gift Matchup Game before continuing; it would be regrettable if you had to use cheats on a game intended for children. Okay, then! Do you already know the answers in your head? We're about to explode your head, so hold on to your wu du'.

Hence, here we are! Did you just assist Little Fatima with her Eid gifts? You're such a sweetheart, insha'Allah! But you are entirely mistaken. Shame on you, brothers, for giving the frying pan to the mother, the beard trimmer to the father, Super Street Fighter 4 to Billal, and then for getting extremely mixed up between the gifts left for Baby Aaliyah, Little Fatima, and Spiderman. Yet as you can see, you chose your gifts based on preconceptions and presumptions rather than using your Eid gifting savvy.

You know, Daddy casually remarked, "hum, that tastes good," after tasting Mommy's excellent egg omelet for breakfast approximately 4 years ago. For Eid this year, Mommy is giving Daddy a frying pan so that he can experience the frustration of frying meals and not being recognized for it because she has never forgotten the harsh comment since that day.

Mommy offered Fatima a My Little Pony toy for Eid in exchange for her silence over Mommy's sneaky scheme. As Billal approaches that awkward puberty stage and begins to develop a little, scratchy mustache, his father will be giving him a beard-trim kit for Eid to mark his transition into manhood. When looking for a Tickle Me Elmo for baby Aaliyah in the video game department at Toys R Us, Daddy finds Super Street Fighter 4 and chooses to get it for his wife because he knows how much she enjoys fighting games.

5. SHOW GRATITUDE

You receive jeans from your aunt that aren't really a good fit, a joke pack of diapers from your best buddy, and a cute Pokemon t-shirt from your mother despite the fact that you're 25 years old. The presents you receive during Eid may not always be exactly what you wanted or expected. Yet the key is to always keep in mind that these gifts, no matter how big or small, are always given to you out of love, and that everything you get (or don't get) comes from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala's kindness and blessings (glorified and exalted be He).

Every present, no matter how modest or extravagant, is a blessing deserving of your respect and gratitude. Try to give something back, if you have the means, that either equals or exceeds the gifts you have been given. That right there is true love.

Every present, no matter how modest or extravagant, is a blessing deserving of your respect and gratitude. Try to give something back, if you have the means, that either equals or exceeds the gifts you have been given. That right there is true love.