Between
The Deen and Halloween
Imam
Zaid Shakir
One
of the tragedies of our times is found in the easy willingness with which some Muslims
accept practices, rituals or cultural symbols that have their roots in demonic
or occult practices. Halloween is a perfect example. Most scholars trace the
origins of Halloween to the then pagan Celtic people who believed that on a
certain night, the dead would come alive and could walk among the living. On
this night some of these people would dress up in ghoulish costumes believing
that the spirits of the dead would mistake them for one of their own and not
harass them. Others would offer these "spirits" sweets in order to
earn their good favor. This is the origin of the Halloween costumes and the
gifts of candy.
As for the hollowed-out pumpkin with
the candle inside -the Jack-O-Lantern- the candle symbolizes a soul trapped in
Purgatory, a state between Heaven and Hell. Some say the lantern is to ward off
evil spirits. The darkness surrounding these practices is compounded by the
representations and symbols rooted in the world of the occult and demons, such
as witches, werewolves, vampires, etc.
Like many aspects of
demonology and the occult, Halloween has been sanitized and made to appear as
something "cute." Along these lines, some Muslims actually have
"Halaloween" parties. It's just "fun." This is one of the
ways children in our society--- increasingly Muslim children are no
exception--- are introduced to occult and demonic symbols and rituals. Make it
appear cute and fun and no one will notice the dark underside. Consider the
Smurfs, little sorcerers performing actual witchcraft rituals during the
cartoon show, or Micky Mouse, the sorcerer's apprentice, and the countless
other "cute" and "fun" aspects of our popular culture.
As Muslims, we have been
enjoined to protect ourselves and our family members from the torment of Hell.
Keeping ourselves far removed from such practices, practices that not only have
no basis in the teachings of our religion, but are in fact antithetical to
those teachings, is a great way to start. May Allah bless us to see the truth
as truth and to follow it, and to see falsehood as falsehood and to avoid it.
Halloween as well as
Halaloween are Haram!
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