Eid Mubarak to you all! A day in advance since Eid, or Bakra Eid as this one is also known as, is tomorrow.

Today, most of you must be busy in pampering the sacrificial animal that your parents have bought, planning about what you would do on Eid day, or thinking about the yummy dishes that would be prepared for the Eid lunch or dinner. Of course, Eid is a happy occasion and meant to be enjoyed — be it by meeting friends or eating yummy food. And when both are present, i.e. you get to eat with friends and relatives, it is all the more blessed with happy moments that one can cherish.

But let’s take a minute and see what this Eid is about and what it teaches us. You all know the whole story of Prophet Ibrahim’s dream and what happened later, and that we sacrifice an animal on Eidul Azha in commemoration of Prophet Ibrahim’s great sacrifice. So, we will not go into those details, but will talk about what this event and festival teach us.

Obedience

When Prophet Ibrahim had a dream in which God commands him to sacrifice his son as a sign of obedience to God. Prophet Ibrahim got ready to do so and his son Ismail (later Prophet Ismail) also did not question his father and readily agreed that the dream should be fulfilled.

It was the height of obedience, where neither the father nor the son raised any questions and prepared to fulfil God’s Command. Obedience comes from faith, if you have faith in someone, you would not question his commands, no matter what is asked of you, as you know it would be for your benefit or just a test of your loyalty.

Obedience, not only to God but also to your elders is important as what your parents, teachers or other elders ask of you is for your own benefit. They have your best interest in mind, even if it is not evident at that moment. But in the long run, you would see that it was for your own good.

Sharing

You must have noticed that after the goat or cow has been sacrificed, your parents or someone from your family divides the meat in three equal portions — one is kept for use at home, one is distributed among neighbours and friends, while the third is for the needy, especially those who cannot afford to eat meat frequently.

It is not just the meat that is to be shared once a year. This sharing of meat teaches us to share whatever we have and can with others, not just friends and family, but with whoever needs it. It can be a small thing like sharing your pencil or eraser with a class fellow who needs it, sharing your toys with friends and sharing your school lunch with someone who has forgotten to bring theirs.

You can also share knowledge about something with others, who have not had the opportunity to learn that. As you grow older, you will be sharing many things with different people.

Compassion

When you buy an animal for sacrifice, you look after it for a few days and begin to love it as if it was your pet. This is what is required of us — to sacrifice something which is dear to us, like Prophet Ibrahim was willing to sacrifice his son. Imagine the love he had for his son!

The ritual of sacrifice also asks us to be compassionate towards the animal, to care for it, feed it well and to offer it food and water just before taking it for sacrifice to ensure that it is not hungry or thirsty.

When we share the meat of the sacrificial animal with the needy, we are not just following a ritual, we are supposed to be compassionate towards them by learning about their needs and their difficult lives. If we look around us, we will see many people who are forced to work in difficult situations to fulfil the needs of their families.

Many children are not able to attend school because their parents cannot afford the cost of education. There are sick and elderly around us who have no one to look after them. It is these people who need our attention, love and care.

Devoting a little time to look after their needs with thoughtful gestures would go a long way in helping them. It could be getting groceries for an elderly who lives alone and can’t go to the market, or taking a sick person to the doctor’s clinic.

Community bonding

Since up to seven people can share a cow for sacrifice, it leads to a feeling of participating in the activity as a community. The seven shares can be of siblings, relatives, friends or neighbours. When people sacrifice an animal as a joint venture, they sit together to discuss it first, some even go together to buy the animal and take care of it in turns, instead of leaving it to one person to make all the effort.

At the time of the sacrifice, if they live close by, they gather at the sacrificial place, sit together, sip a cup of tea and chat while the butcher does his work.

Often people fix a place — an open plot or such a place in the neighbourhood — and bring their animals to be sacrificed there, rather than everyone calling the butcher to their respective places. This gives them an opportunity to sit and chat as a community while the animals are being sacrificed.

After the sacrifice, when you go to your neighbour’s or relative’s place to distribute the meat, you meet and greet them and ask about their well-being.

All these things develop a feeling of belonging to a community, and to work and help each other. This comradeship does not, and should not, end with Eid and should continue throughout the year, with people taking care and helping each other.

Social get-together

Like on Eidul Fitr, on this Eid too the day starts with the Eid prayers in the mosque. When people go to the mosque for prayers, they meet and greet many people, often meeting someone they have not met for a long time. This brings people closer.

On this Eid, usually family dinners are arranged and people gather together to eat, chat and have fun. Some families even have one dish parties or barbecue, where a number of relatives gather at a place, and cook together or bring pre-cooked food to eat together.

Since meat is also shared with the less privileged, they also get a chance to invite family and friends to eat together. This gives them an opportunity to spend some carefree time and enjoy a hearty, wholesome meal with people they love and care for.

No showing off

Some children, even elders, have been seen boasting about how many sacrificial animals they have bought and how expensive they are. This is not a good practice or behaviour.

Our religion, as well as social norms, discourage showing off or boasting, as it develops a sense of pride in oneself and might hurt someone’s feeling. You see, while your family may be in a position to buy three goats or an expensive cow, some families, even in your neighbourhood, may just be able to buy a goat or none at all. Your boasting is likely to hurt their sentiments.

You would know that qurbani is obligatory only on those who can afford it. If someone can’t, they have no such obligation. Our religion does not burden anyone or forces anyone to do what is not easily possible. And it is the will (niyat) that God sees, not the number or cost of animals. God doesn’t need the flesh and blood of the animals, He looks at the intention and the deed. So be happy in whatever your parents can easily manage and share what you have with others.

Have a blessed and safe Eid!

Published in Dawn, Young World, July 9th, 2022