“Don’t do this!” we’ve all heard this being said to us at one time or the other. And we either completely ignore this or give a half-hearted nod.

It is a fact that we do not like when people tell us that what we were doing was not right or proper. In other words, we need to rethink our behaviour. There are some special circumstances in which we are expected to show more responsibility and diligence, marking our commitment as a civilised member of society. We, on the other hand, being so engrossed in fun and excitement, completely forget the dos/don’ts and here is where we need to rethink our practices.

Take Eid-ul-Azha for instance. It is celebrated by us with great religious fervour. Children enjoy themselves with the sacrificial animals day and night. In almost every lane, huge tents occupying almost half of the road, house the ‘guests’ — the celebrated animals! Children hover around the tents as if in a party and many adults turn into kids too.

“This is enjoyment!” an amazed father exclaimed referring to his kid who was taking a huge brown animal on a walk at night. As he pointed, I saw a six-year-old, lean boy proudly holding the rope of the gigantic bull and the other boys, almost of the same age group, were making a peculiar sound ‘Oye hue!’ to make the animal run! And it began to run!

Imagine a narrow lane, tents occupying most of the side of the road, and young boys running behind a confused huge animal!

Was it right for such young boys to be given the task to control a powerful animal? Had it hit a car or a person, who would have been responsible? Who was to be blamed — the six-year-old boy whose own life was at risk or the innocent animal?

The commutation of the sacrificial animals from the main market to households is another issue that needs to be addressed. Mostly vans are hired for this purpose, though usually not in a very proper condition, nevertheless a more decent manner of transportation than others.

The alarming sight is goats tied and transported on bikes, rickshaws or cars. Videos of this trend become viral on social media and this encourages others to do so too. I have even seen a video showing a camel in a rickshaw! It’s scary more than exciting! The animal could have been hurt, it could have received injury or the rickshaw could have met an accident!

Dear friends, we need to be very concerned regarding the safety of the animals, ourselves and the people around, when we bring/shift our sacrificial animals from one place to another.

A person is often hired to look after the sacrificial animals. He sits there day and night, eats there, cleans the animals’ waste, feeds them, etc. The provision of such a responsible-guard-cum helper seems to be the only basic responsibility of the owners of the animals. They are least concerned with other important details, like where the waste gets disposed? Who are the other men that sit in the tent to accompany their friend (the hired guard)? And since kids spend hours outside their homes, is it safe for kids to mingle with strangers and other adults?

Most of the time the parents/elders discuss the rates of the animals and other important things in front of children. I have heard kids sharing their animals’ price with guards and strangers. They also share information like where the animals were bought from, when they would be sacrificed, who at home takes most of the interest and how many more animals are kept and would be sacrificed by the whole family, etc. I strongly object to this trend of showing off!

As Muslims, as a community, we need to understand the essence of this sacrifice! It’s not about animals and their worth, but the feeling of sacrificing in the name of Allah and then sharing what we have with others.

Dear young friends, I do not want to nag you with a sermon-based article, I don’t like it myself! But here we need to take some time out to assess ourselves. We should run a self-check on ourselves, our attitudes and duties so that we do not become improper in certain situations. We should not ignore the real spirit of a healthy, activity-based religious event.

After the animals are gone, we all have barbeque parties at our homes, a part and parcel of the festivity and fun! Again friends, it is not at all necessary that when we are enjoying, the whole neighbourhood is also having a good time! Come on, there may be someone ill or depressed next door, or someone sad aching for a shoulder to shed some tears on.

We need to learn to respect the feelings of others too, so reflect on your actions and behave responsibly. Enjoy, but keep everyone around in your mind too! Share the goodness!

Published in Dawn, Young World August 26th, 2017