5 very hot hours at the Hounslow Mosque, tidying and planting to prepare the grounds for the Eid ul Adha celebrations.

Ruby explained the Eid Festival to me. Here's an outline compiled with the help of BBC Bitesize:

Eid ul-Adha ('Festival of Sacrifice') remembers the prophet Ibrahim's obedience through his willingness to sacrifice his son when God ordered him to. Itis one of the most important festivals in the Muslim calendar.

In 2021, Eid ul-Adha begins on the evening of Monday 19 July and ends on the evening of Friday 23 July. The Hounslow Jamia Masjid will be celebrating the festival on 20 July 2021 with thousands of attendees.

Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Adha during or on the last day of the Hajj . The Hajj is pilgrimage to Makkah in Saudi Arabia. It occurs every year and is the Fifth Pillar of Islam. All Muslims who are fit and able to travel should make the visit to Makkah at least once in their lives. During the Hajj, pilgrims perform the proscribed acts of worship and renew their faith and sense of purpose in the world. They stand before the Ka'bah, a shrine believed to have been built by Ibrahim, and praise Allah together.

In the 2019 2.5 million muslims completed the Hajj. However in 2021, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, participation is restricted to just 60, 000 worshippers, all from the Saudi Kingdom.