{"id":4590,"date":"2019-02-14T19:44:55","date_gmt":"2019-02-15T00:44:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/?p=4590"},"modified":"2020-06-28T10:45:27","modified_gmt":"2020-06-28T15:45:27","slug":"why-dont-muslims-celebrate-valentines-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/why-dont-muslims-celebrate-valentines-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Don’t Muslims Celebrate Valentine’s Day?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Short Answer:<\/strong> If you look into history and origins \nof Valentine Day, plus the values this celebration promotes today, the \nanswer to your question will be very clear. Muslims don\u2019t blindly follow\n the crowd when it comes to celebrations of any kind. Islam promotes \nlove among people and the exchange of gifts is one way for love and good\n relations to increase in society but does not restrict the expression \nof this brotherly, sisterly, martial, or familial love to just one day a\n year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

_____________________________________<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salam<\/em> (Peace) Taneesha, <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you for sending in your question to our website. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Islam is a way of life<\/a> that encompasses and engulfs a Muslim\u2019s complete life and self. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From\n the faith and belief that reside in their hearts, to their thoughts, to\n their outwards actions that are visible to others \u2014 all are affected by\n and based on the guidelines of Islam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No Contradictions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It is very important in Islam<\/a> for a believer to ensure that there is no contradiction between their outward actions and their innate beliefs and faith. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore,\n whether a Muslim is alone or in the public eye, they strive to \nunequivocally obey their Lord, Allah, by following His messenger, Prophet Muhammad<\/a> (peace be upon him), at all times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Islam is not merely a set of physical worship rituals, though these are important in their own right. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\n is also a set of guidelines, responsibilities towards others, and \nrights, which impacts a Muslim\u2019s social customs, interactions, and \nobligations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\n word \u201cMuslim\u201d means, \u201cthe one who submits (to God)\u201d, hence, he or she \ngives preference to the unquestioning obedience and acquiescence to the \ncommands of Allah sent to His messenger over and above the approval of \nAllah\u2019s creation, and even above his or her own personal desires. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allah has commanded Muslims to remain united<\/a>, keep close community bonds with each other to form a strong, global brotherhood, and to not follow the ways of the disbelievers<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hence, the conscientious Muslim is not a slave to passing trends and customs that have no basis in Islam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t Follow the Crowd<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Keeping\n all of the above in mind, it becomes clear that a Muslim does not \nfollow the crowd when it comes to celebrations of any kind: he or she \nfollows the Quran<\/a> and the sunnah<\/em><\/a> (way) of Prophet Muhammad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of thinking -why not? what\u2019s the harm?-<\/em> before following the crowd and their seasonal whims; a Muslim thinks- should I? Will Allah be pleased with this?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Prophet said: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whoever imitates a people is one of them<\/em>. (<\/em>Abu Dawud)<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Consequently,\n Muslims do not celebrate any days, festivals, or seasonal celebrations \nthat were not celebrated by the Prophet and his companions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valentine in History & Today<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, Valentine\u2019s Day is a celebration that has no basis in anything worthwhile or noble. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its\n origin lies in Roman history, purportedly connected to a \u201csaint\u201d called\n \u201cValentine\u201d, who was sentenced to death on 14th February 270 CE. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It began as a pagan ritual started by Romans in the 4th century BC to honor their false god Lupercus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\n main attraction of this ritual was a lottery held to distribute young \nwomen to young men for \u201centertainment and pleasure\u201d \u2014 until the next \nyear\u2019s lottery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Romans continued to celebrate this until after they became Christians. (Source: Islamweb<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\n this way, Valentine\u2019s Day promotes adultery and promiscuous \nrelationships, which undermine and jeopardize the sanctity of marriage \nand the stability of the family unit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It leads to unnecessary expenditure, and promotes fornication, drinking, and immorality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lastly, this day compounds a sense of deprivation, loneliness, and low self-worth among those people who are single. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Islam prohibits dating and sex outside marriage<\/a>, both of which Valentine\u2019s Day encourages. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is obvious, then, that a Muslim should not celebrate it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Love in Islam<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

On\n the other hand, Islam encourages strong bonds of love, community, and \nbrotherhood and sisterhood among Muslims, and families, and does not \nrestrict the expression of this brotherly, sisterly, martial, or \nfamilial love to just one day a year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giving gifts<\/a> has also been encouraged in Islam, and once again, not restricted to just one day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any\n wise person, even a non-Muslim, who has witnessed life and its trials, \nwill willingly and objectively attest to the absolute absurdity and \nsuperficial, flimsy foundation of Valentine\u2019s Day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Businesses,\n on the other hand, capitalize on this day to earn as much revenue as \npossible by offering customized products and services, hence the hoopla \naround it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If\n we take the commercial aspect of Valentine\u2019s Day out of the picture, \nthis so-called \u201cfestival\u201d does not have a single leg to stand on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I hope this answers your question, Taneesha. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salam and please stay in touch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Source: http:\/\/aboutislam.net\/counseling\/ask-about-islam\/why-dont-muslims-celebrate-valentines-day\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Short Answer: If you look into history and origins of Valentine Day, plus the values this celebration promotes today, the answer to your question will be very clear. Muslims don\u2019t blindly follow the crowd when it comes to celebrations of any kind. Islam promotes love among people and the exchange of gifts is one way … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4591,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[117,48,119,84],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-doctrine-and-sects","category-main-services","category-misconceptions","category-new-article"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg",1080,675,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines-300x188.jpg",300,188,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines-768x480.jpg",768,480,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines-1024x640.jpg",1024,640,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg",1080,675,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg",1080,675,false],"gform-image-choice-sm":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg",300,188,false],"gform-image-choice-md":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg",400,250,false],"gform-image-choice-lg":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Valentines.jpg",600,375,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Site Admin","author_link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/author\/admin2\/"},"uagb_comment_info":19,"uagb_excerpt":"Short Answer: If you look into history and origins of Valentine Day, plus the values this celebration promotes today, the answer to your question will be very clear. Muslims don\u2019t blindly follow the crowd when it comes to celebrations of any kind. Islam promotes love among people and the exchange of gifts is one way…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcT0IL-1c2","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9304,"url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/new-muslims-and-halloween\/","url_meta":{"origin":4590,"position":0},"title":"New Muslims and Halloween","author":"Site Admin","date":"06\/26\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"One of the problems faced by new Muslims is the issue of different celebrations held throughout the year. Halloween or Hallowe\u2019en or All Hallows\u2019 Eve is one example. Halloween is usually celebrated on the evening of October 31. This celebration has its pagan origins. The celebration represents the devil worshipper\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Introducing Islam"","block_context":{"text":"Introducing Islam","link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/category\/introducing-islam\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6981,"url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/karla-ex-christian-usa\/","url_meta":{"origin":4590,"position":1},"title":"Karla, Ex-Christian, USA","author":"Site Admin","date":"06\/07\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"My conversion process to Islam was a long one (it took 20 years!). It started when I was twelve. I went to this overpriced private school, very Anglophile and we were made to wear uniforms. 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