Torism, rituals and food Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Torism, rituals and food - Essay Example Tourism is mostly positively related to rituals. Wherever there is a ritual, there are likely to be tourists. This is because rituals give tourists exactly what they are looking for – a deep cultural experience.. Nevertheless, not all travel has such profound meaning. If the travel and the on-site experience is largely activity orientated, it could be the case that there is no chance for Arnold van Gennep’s sacred ‘away-ness’ of those who travel from home. The typical package holiday could be an excellent example of a trip with limited, or no overt symbolic meaning (Burns, 1999). Food is life†, says Robert Poor (2001). This adage came to life when I visited Delhi, a colorful city in the middle of an even colorful country, India. In this essay, I will talk about the ritual of Eid-ul-Adha, a ritual celebrated by Muslims for its religious values. The central, most remarkable attraction of Bari Eid (or the Big Eid) is food. The central, most remarkable pu rpose of it is to give away, share and sacrifice. Therefore, to see how Muslims sacrifice animals and give them away is what attracts tourism in Islamic countries at that time of the year. Ritual. What is a ritual? David Floyd defines it as a patterned, repetitive, and symbolic enactment of a cultural belief or value; its primary purpose is transformation (Grimes, 2002). Why do people perform these repetitive, almost ceremonial acts? People perform them because tradition prescribes it. ... Philosophy without religion becomes meaningless. Religion without rituals becomes insipid. The rituals of a religion, like the husk of a seed, preserve its life and make it germinate. It is only when the rituals are separated from the faith and assumes an independent existence that they become mechanical and lifeless. (Understanding Hinduism) Eid-ul-Adha Muslims celebrate two Eids annually; Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha. The first one follows the month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast. The second one marks the end of the Pilgrimage to Mecca and is celebrated in the month of Zilhajj, an Islamic month that follows the lunar calendar. On this Eid, an animal in sacrificed in the honor of Abraham's sacrifice of his son. The essential significance of this festival is the spirit of sacrifice (qurbani) in memory of Abraham's great act of faith many centuries ago. (Gilchrist, 2001) The day starts off with a prayer that is scheduled for early morning. The men go to mosques while the women stay home and thank their Lord for all he has given along with the ability to sacrifice. After the prayer, the process of Qurbani or sacrifice starts. People buy domestic animals such as sheep, goats, cows and even camels a few days before the big day. They feed them and take care of them. On Eid, they sacrifice them. This process continues throughout the day and night for some people but for me, the goat was set to be halaaled just before 10:00 am.After the sacrifice, the meat is distributed amongst friends and the needy. People cook this meat in a variety of ways and invite friends and family over to share the occasion. By afternoon, I tasted the first bite of my sacrificed meat. The menu had a variety of scrumptious delicacies. I noticed that the meat was