better to go here http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/27/celebrating-id-al-adha/

http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/27/celebrating-id-al-adha/

— Updated: 11:42 am -->
Celebrating Id al-Adha
By JOAO SILVA AND MOISES SAMAN
Joao Silva for The New York Times Iraqis shop at a market in Baghdad on the eve of Id. Iraqis buy mostly sweets, clothing and toys for the holiday.
This holiday weekend Afghans and Iraqis — like millions of Muslims around the world — will be celebrating Id al-Adha.
The festival marks the end of the hajj, when pilgrims descend on Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Also known as the Feast of the Sacrifice, it is when Muslims celebrate the willingness of the prophet Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ishmael when ordered to do so by God.
Moises Saman for The New York Times A boy selling sheep near Kabul stadium waits for customers in preparation for the Id holiday, which marks the end of the hajj.
In Baghdad ceremonial butchers travel for miles to slaughter sheep, lambs and cows for customers who wait patiently in line at impromptu slaughterhouses set up in fields, parking lots and roadside stalls around the country to watch their chosen animal being killed in ritual Islamic fashion.
Likewise, in Afghanistan families buy the sheep alive and then have it butchered ceremonially. The price of a sheep ranges from $60 to $300, depending on its build.
Here photographers Joao Silva in Iraq and Moises Saman in Afghanistan take a break from the conflicts in both countries to photograph scenes of ordinary life in two capitals that have witnessed so much death, misery and sacrifice in recent years.
Joao Silva for The New York Times
Like Thanksgiving, Id is celebrated around the dinner table (or floor), and food takes center stage. Although turkeys can be found in Afghanistan, the meat of choice for Id is sheep. In Iraq shopping for holidays has become a dangerous pastime in recent years, as bombers have attacked market crowds.
Joao Silva for The New York Times
Nevertheless, every year Iraqis brave the danger to shop for hours in the days leading to the holiday. This year was no different, with parents venturing out with tired children on pre-Id shopping in Baghdad.
Joao Silva for The New York Times
Much of the shopping is also for toys and gifts. Some of these trinkets bring a distinctly Western flavor to the city center souks.
Joao Silva for The New York Times
Joao Silva for The New York Times