«Taqabbal Allâhu minnâ wa minkum»
May Allah accept from us, and from you

To the Muslim community of Montenegro and the diaspora,
I convey my greetings and best wishes on the occasion of the Kurban-Bairam for Rifat ef. Fejzić, Reis-ul-ulema, high dignitaries and the Faithful to spend this great Islamic day in peace and concord, like the tradition commands.
May the joy of this holy day be shared with all your neighbours — Muslims and non-Muslims — in a spirit of mutual discovery and enrichment, tolerance, friendship and inter-religious harmony between all the communities in Montenegro.

Pierre Olivier LEROY

The Kurban-Bairam (i.e. the Day of Sacrifice or Feast of Sacrifice) [1] is the second of the two major Muslim holy days, with the Uraza-Bairam [2] that marks the end of the fast in the holy month of Ramadan. It is observed after the conclusion of the Hajj — the annual pilgrimage to Makkah [3] in Saudi Arabia, and celebrated over several days starting the 10th of Duhl-Hijja, the last month of the Muslim year. Its date is calculated according to the lunar Islamic calendar, which falls this year on Thursday December 20, 2007 [4].
The Kurban-Bairam symbolizes for the Faithful, the validity of Prophet Muhammad’s [5] doctrine, which he received in revelation, as well as the omnipotence and the mercy of the Most High; it commemorates the command given by Allah to Prophet Ibrahim [6] to sacrifice his first-born son Ishmael [7] to Him, in order to test the Prophet’s faith. Despite Shaitan’s [8] efforts to stop Ibrahim, he decided to obey the divine command. However, a voice from heaven stopped Ibrahim in time, and told him to sacrifice a ram instead.
To remember that, every head of family ritually has to sacrifice a sheep in the name of Allah, after the prayer of Kurban-Bairam, by quoting the family name for which the animal is intended.
During the Kurban-Bairam, Muslims beg their relatives for forgiveness for all bad deeds, give gifts and go to the graves of their ancestors. They glorify Allah and show their kind intentions towards people around them, including those of different religions.