Do Muslims Celebrate Thanksgiving?
The basic principle regarding festivals is that
they are part of religious law and ritual, similar to prayer, fasting, and the
direction of prayer (qiblah). Allah has Assigned every nation its own religious
practices and path. Allah the Exalted Says, {For
every community We appointed a code1 of life to follow. So
do not let them dispute with you ˹O Prophet˺ in this matter. And invite ˹all˺ to your Lord, for you are truly on the Right Guidance.} [Al-Hajj
22:67]
And He Says, {To each of you We
have ordained a code of law and a way of life.} [Al-Ma’idah 5:48]
Allah has Distinguished this Ummah with two annual
festivals—Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha—and with Friday as its weekly festival. A
Muslim must adhere to what he has been taught and stop where Allah and His
Messenger have placed limits.
Proofs from Quran and Sunnah on Islamic Celebrations
Among the proofs are:
• Proof from Sahih Muslim: `Aishah
(may Allah be pleased with her) said: Abu Bakr
came to see me and I had two girls with me from among the girls of the Ansar
and they were singing what the Ansar recited to one another at the Battle of
Bu'ath. They were not, however, singing girls. Upon this Abu Bakr said: What I
(the playing of) this wind instrument of Satan in the house of the Messenger of
Allah (peace be upon him) and this too on 'Id day? Upon this the Messenger of
Allah (peace be upon him) said: Abu Bakr, every people have a festival and it
is our festival (so let them play on).
The meaning is clear: the statement “every people have a festival and it is our festival” establishes
that each community is exclusive to its own festivals. Just as the words of
Allah {Everyone turns to their own direction ˹of prayer˺.} [Al-Baqarah
2:148] and {To each of you We have ordained
a code of law and a way of life.} [Al-Ma’idah 5:48] assign exclusivity
in rituals, so too if non-Muslims have a festival, it belongs to them, and we
do not join them in it—just as we do not join them in their qiblah or their
law.
The statement “it is our festival”
also implies that our festivals are restricted to these only, and we
have no others.
• Proof from the Hadith of Anas Ibn Malik: Anas (may
Allah be pleased with him) said: When the
Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) came to
Medina, the people had two days on which they engaged in games. He asked: What
are these two days (what is the significance)? They said: We used to engage
ourselves on them in the pre-Islamic period. The Messenger of Allah (peace be
upon him) said: Allah has substituted for them something better than them, the
day of sacrifice and the day of the breaking of the fast.
This shows that the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not
approve the old pre-Islamic festivals, nor did he allow them to continue.
Instead, he said that Allah had Replaced them with better ones—meaning that one
leaves the replaced festivals entirely, for one cannot combine the replacement
with what was replaced.
• Proof from the Hadith of Thabit Ibn Ad-Dahhak: Thabit
ibn al-Dahhak (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: A man took a vow to slaughter camels at Bawana. So, he
came to Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) and asked him (about that).
Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) asked, “Did the place contain any idol
which was worshiped (during Jahiliyya era)?” He said, “No.” He asked, “Were any
of their (Jahiliyya) festivals observed there?” He said, “No.” He then said (to
the man), “Fulfill your vow, for there is no fulfillment of a vow to do an act
of disobedience to Allah, nor to do something over which a human being has no
control.” (Bawana is a place near
Yanb`, north of Makkah.)
This proves that slaughtering in a place associated with
idolatry or their festivals is a sin. If slaughtering in a place connected to
their festivals is prohibited, then how much more prohibited is it to actually
participate in the festival itself?
• Proof from the Hadith of Abu Hurairah: Abu Hurairah
(may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace be
upon him) said: “We who are the last would be
the first on the Day of Resurrection but they (other Ummahs) were given the
Book before us and we were given after them, and this was the day that was
prescribed for them but they disagreed on it. And Allah guided us to it. and
they came after us with regard to it, the Jews observing the next day and the
Christians the day following that.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari and
Muslim)
The Prophet (peace be upon him) called Friday our festival in
many places and prohibited fasting exclusively on it because it has the meaning
of a festival. In this hadith, he states that Friday is ours, just as Saturday
is for the Jews and Sunday for the Christians. So if we were to participate in
their festival on Saturday or Sunday, we would be opposing this hadith.
If this applies to weekly festivals, then it applies even more
strongly to annual festivals—especially those that follow calendars other than
the Islamic one, such as Coptic, Persian, or Hebrew calendars.
This is a strong prohibition against imitating any pre-Islamic
festival in any form.
Historical Consensus
Jews, Christians, and Magians have long lived in Muslim lands.
Jews lived in Yemen, Christians in Najran, and Persians in Bahrain. Yet during
the time of the early Muslims, none of the Muslims ever joined them in any part
of their festivals. If participation had been permissible, it would have
occurred frequently, and had it occurred, it would have been transmitted. Since
nothing of the sort was transmitted, this indicates unanimous rejection of such
participation.
The Harm of Outward Imitation
External imitation produces
affection, attachment, and loyalty in the heart. Likewise, inner love produces
outward imitation. This is a matter confirmed by experience. If imitation in
worldly matters generates love and closeness, then how much more dangerous is
imitation in religious matters? Such imitation leads to forms of allegiance
that contradict true faith. Many verses warn against this, including: {Believers should not take disbelievers as guardians
instead of the believers—and whoever does so will have nothing to hope for from
Allah—unless it is a precaution against their tyranny. And Allah warns you
about Himself. And to Allah is the final return.} [Ali `Imran 3:28]
The Difficulty of Distinguishing What Is Permissible
What non-Muslims practice during their festivals varies: some
acts are disbelief, some are forbidden, and some are permissible in isolation
but become impermissible due to imitation. Ordinary people often cannot
distinguish between these categories. If they imitate what scholars see as
merely disliked, they may eventually imitate what is clearly forbidden. Thus,
it is safer to avoid participation altogether to prevent confusion.
Based on the above general principles, we now consider the
specific scenarios for thanksgiving:
-
Whoever calls
people to gather on thanksgiving day, serves the same foods, and performs the same
rituals as the non-Muslims is clearly engaging in imitation.
Such a person must repent to Allah and abandon this imitation. The Prophet (peace
be upon him) said: “He who copies any people is
one of them.”
This indicates a general prohibition. Likewise, the Prophet (peace be upon him)
said: “Do the opposite of what the polytheists
do.”
Their festivals fall under the category of their religious practices or symbols
of their false religions.
-
Whoever gathers
on thanksgiving day with different foods and claims it is only because it is a holiday
from work is still engaging in some degree of imitation.
Days off consist of multiple days, and you may choose any other day to meet
without resembling their festival. Allah has not Restricted you. Choose another
day to avoid confusing the general public, who often cannot distinguish one
intention from another and may gradually move from permissible actions to
prohibited ones.
Only in cases where this particular day is
unavoidable—for example, travelers or distant relatives who can only meet that
day—may a gathering be excused, provided there is no intention of imitation.
Thus, people of religion and those who convey knowledge should
avoid these occasions completely and should openly remind others about the
importance of staying away from them. They should not compromise under the
pretext of “building relationships,” because the harm of confusion is greater
than any expected benefit.
The Ruling on Buying Turkey During Thanksgiving
There is no harm in purchasing turkey during this season,
since its low price and availability are widespread, provided it is stored and
eaten at another time, far away from the holiday itself. And Allah the Most
High knows best.
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Taken from:
fatawaalsawy.com
