By: Dr. Ashaq Hussain
The history of sacrificing a halal animal is traced with the sacrifice of two sons of Adam (AS), Habeel and Kabeel, when each of them offered some supplication to Allah, the supplication of one of them was accepted while the offering of the other was not accepted. It is said that Habeel sacrificed a ram (male sheep) and Kabeel sacrificed some of the produce of the field in charity according to the custom of that time. Heavenly fire came down and devoured Habeel’s ram, forsaking Kabeels’s sacrifice. From this it became clear that the worship of sacrifice dates back to the time of Adam (AS) and its reality remained in almost every nation.
In Islam, about half a dozen verses of the Holy Qur’an describe the truth, wisdom and virtue of sacrifice. In Surah Al-Hajj Allah says: “And We have made the camels of sacrifice for you a sign and a memorial to the worship of Allah. The flesh and blood of these sacrifices never reaches Allah. Rather, your piety reaches him. In another place, it has been declared as one of the earnings of Allah and its greatness has been mentioned and the reverence of the sacrifice has been declared as a manifestation of piety in the heart. In the light of hadiths, Hazrat Ayesha (RA) says that the Prophet (PBUH) said: The human did not do anything great on the day of sacrifice which is more pleasing to Allah than sacrificing. On the Day of Judgment that slaughtered animal will come with its horns, hair and hooves, and the blood of the sacrifice will be accepted by Allah before it falls on the ground. So make your hearts happy by sacrificing for it.”
However, its special glory and recognition came from the incident of Hazrat Ibrahim (AS) and Hazrat Ismael (AS), and as a memorial to it, sacrifice was made obligatory. It happened so that Hazrat Ibrahim (AS) had a dream for three consecutive nights that Allah Almighty was saying, “O Ibrahim! So sacrifice your only son in our way. ”Hazrat Ibrahim (AS) became a figure of submission and obedience to God. So the father told his obedient and submissive son Hazrat Ismail (AS) his dream and God’s command. Hazrat Ismail (AS) like his father was a man of determination, steadfastness, determination and perseverance, submission and obedience to God. He immediately bowed his head and said, “If this is the will of God, then you will find me between the obedients of Allah and so you should obey the command of God. The whole life of Hazrat Ibrahim (AS), the Khalil (deep friend), the glorious prophet of God Almighty and the embodiment of submission, consent and obedience was one of great sacrifices for the sake of religion. Allah, liked the spirit of sacrifice and perseverance of the Prophet Hazrat Ibrahim (AS) so much that this spirit of sacrifice has been declared as the standard and test of faith for every age.
Literarily sacrifice is a simple word, but it has extraordinary significance in human life. Man needs it in different places of his life and in different ways. At the same time, there is a purpose behind every sacrifice. Man is entangled in various problems of his life, he has to make sacrifices at different steps and there is one or the other purpose hidden behind it. But here the purpose of human life is obedience to God, which is not possible without nearness to God, and this state of nearness is not possible without piety, so sacrifice is necessary for obedience. Thus, the purpose of Eid-ul-Adha is to instill in Muslims the same spirit of sacrifice, the same state of faith and the same glory of love and loyalty to the Creator of the universe that Abraham (peace be upon him) has demonstrated throughout his life. On the day of Eid-ul-Adha, we revive the Sunnah of Hazrat Ibrahim (as) and confess that what we have is not ours but belongs to Allah, the Lord of Glory. On this day, just as we sacrifice animals, so we sacrifice our body desires, so that we may overcome mutual differences, anarchy, hatred, jealousy, arrogance, stubbornness, deceit, and self-destruction in order to let us embellish the standard of greatness and exaltation that the Holy Qur’an, Furqan Hameed, and the Khatam-un-Nabin, Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) has taught us. It is an occasion to eradicate all distinctions of caste, community, color and race and wealth and poverty and establish an atmosphere of brotherhood and equality, love and devotion and worship of a Creator, of course this is the real message of Eid-ul-Adha.
The purpose of the sacrifice is thus to gain the pleasure and piety of Allah, and before the sacrifice we have to examine our intentions so that before shedding the blood of our animals we become the recipients of the real purpose of this great slaughter. There is a great example in Islam in which Hazrat Ibrahim (AS) did not hesitate to run a knife on the neck of Hazrat Ismail (AS) in obedience to the divine command of Allah. Their hands did not tremble and their determination was not shaken. Allah liked it so much that He made this performance of his Khalil obligatory on the ummahs of all the later prophets, and even made this Sunnah obligatory on the Muslims of the ummah of his beloved. However, the Almighty had made it clear to His believers that “neither the flesh nor the blood of your animals reaches Allah, but He wants to see the piety of your hearts.
Sacrifice is thus obligatory, but before sacrificing an animal, it is necessary to sacrifice one’s desires and purify one’s self. Today, we have adopted the ritual of running knives on the necks of animals, but forgetting the Sunnah of Abraham, we have left our ego unrestrained. Are We must remember that whatever we worship is intended to please God. If this passion is not present while sacrificing, then only the ritual of sacrifice will be completed and there is no benefit. The day of Eid-ul-Adha leads one to think that one has to sacrifice many desires for the sake of Allah Not only do we have to spend money, but we also have to awaken the true spirit of our inner sacrifice which remains a part of our selves for the rest of the year.
So everyone should try to celebrate all religious festivals according to their exact requirements and represent the religion in such a way that the followers of other religions do not consider these festivals as mere means of entertainment. Think about your sacrificial spirit of self-sacrifice, and sincerity, try to correct your deeds and sacrifice your false ego and desires along with the sacrifice of animals. Muslims who are sacrificing today are refreshing the memory of the great deed of Hazrat Ibrahim (AS). The purpose of Eid-ul-Adha is thus to awaken the spirit of sacrifice and to inspire one’s loved ones to sacrifice their loved ones in accordance with the command of God in order to gain God’s pleasure. It teaches them to prioritize the pleasures of the Lord of the Universe over their desires in all areas of their life. It is, in fact, a test of a person’s practical life, which creates his inner beauty.
Dr. Ashaq Hussain is Assistant Professor (selection Grade) in Chemistry at Govt. Degree College Chatroo and can be reached at joinchemistry@gmail.com
