Holiday

Definition:

A “holiday” is a designated day of celebration or observance, often marked by time off from work or school, special activities, and cultural or religious rituals. Holidays can be national, religious, or cultural in nature.

Etymology:

The word “holiday” is derived from the Middle English term “holidai,” which itself is a combination of “holy” and “day.” The word “holy” comes from the Old English word “hālig,” which means “sacred” or “dedicated to a divine power.” It traces back further to the Proto-Germanic word *hailaga, which shares roots with similar words in other Germanic languages. Hol-, hole and hāl are homonyms, all meaning hollow or “having empty space inside.” The term “day” comes from the Old English word “dæg,” which also has roots in Proto-Germanic *dagaz. It refers to the period of light between sunrise and sunset, typically lasting around 24 hours. So etymologically “holiday” means “an empty day,” or “a day without content.”

Description:

For example, Christianity has Christmas and Easter, Islam has Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, Judaism has Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and Hinduism has Diwali and Holi.

What clearly makes such celebrations examples of herd mentality is the idea that everyone in a group should celebrate at the same time.

Articles:

Religion:

In the Bible, in Exodus, chapter 31, verses 14 to 15 (KJV) it is written: “Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.” This idea of threatening people with death for working on holy days has been a way to give non-believers an advantage over believers, as the non-believers who do not fear being watched by God can use the time to gather information and resources. It is important to note that “death” also means “spiritual death,” making the verses mean: “working on the Sabbath will result in not falling for religion.” Later interpretations of the Bible have been that one should use holy time to worship God, which has resulted in religious people often going to church or staying at home to study religious texts during holy time, yet another means to hold back the religious in thought and ability to build resources. “You snooze, you lose.”

In the Bible, in Exodus, chapter 20, verses 8 to 11 (NKJV) it is written: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.” According to the creation story in the Bible, found in the Book of Genesis, God created the universe in six days and rested on the seventh day. Here is a summary of the seven days of creation:

• Day 1: God created light and separated it from darkness. He called the light day and the darkness night.
• Day 2: God created the sky and separated the waters above from the waters below. He called the sky Heaven.
• Day 3: God gathered the waters under the sky to one place, and dry land appeared. He also made plants and trees grow on the land.
• Day 4: God created the sun, moon, and stars. The sun was to govern the day, the moon was to govern the night, and the stars were to give light in the sky.
• Day 5: God created the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky.
• Day 6: God created the animals on the land, including wild animals and livestock. Finally, He created humans in His own image and gave them dominion over the rest of creation.
• Day 7: God rested from His work of creating the universe and blessed the seventh day and made it holy as a day of rest.

In Sahih Muslim, Book 4, Hadith 1862 it is written: “It was Friday from which Allah diverted those who were before us. For the Jews (the day set aside for prayer) was Sabt (Saturday), and for the Christians it was Sunday. And Allah turned towards us and guided us to Friday (as the day of prayer) for us. In fact, He (Allah) made Friday, Saturday and Sunday (as days of prayer). In this order would they (Jews and Christians) come after us on the Day of Resurrection. We are the last of (the Ummahs) among the people in this world and the first among the created to be judged on the Day of Resurrection.”

In the Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah chapter 2, verse 65 it is written: “And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.'” The story tells that a group of people (Jews) from Bani Israel violated the Sabbath by fishing on this day, despite it being prohibited according to God’s command. As punishment for their sin, they were transformed into apes as a sign of God’s wrath and humiliation.