One of the obligatory acts of Hajj is\nthe act of slaughtering (an animal, mainly sheep) in the area of Mina on the\nEid of Sacrifice. The slaughtering of an\nanimal by a Muslim pilgrim rejuvenates the memory of the actions of two\nmonotheist and humble servants of Allah (SWT), Prophet Ibrahim and Ismaeel\n(PBUT). The scene in which an old father\nstands in this same location, he has a sharp knife in his hand, and prepares to\ncut the throat of his son. But Allah\ndescends a sheep to be slaughtered in place of Ibrahim\u2019s son. Question remains however, what is the essence\nof this holy act? What message does it entail? One must see what the scholars\nof religion have said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It has been narrated that a man\nvisited Imam Sajjad (PBUH) after performing the Hajj ritual. The Imam asked him a few questions regarding\nthe goals and secrets of Hajj, some of which are presented below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhile\nslaughtering the animal, did you make the intention to cut the throat of greed\nby adherence to the truth of piety and fear of Allah (SWT). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Did you pay attention to the fact that\nwith this act you are following the tradition of Ibrahim (PBUH) who took his\nbeloved son to the slaughterhouse (to gain proximity to the Lord)?\u201d1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imam Sadiq (PBUH) has said in this\nregard, \u201cDuring the slaughter of an animal, cut the throat of desire and\ngreed.\u201d2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Narrations as such portray that the\nessence of the act of slaughtering an animal is the cleansing of the soul and\nthe purifying of the heart from moral vices; such that, men of Allah after a\nlifetime of fighting and resistance to the temptations of Satan and seditious\ndesires of the self, are successful to overcome the extreme desires of the\nself; otherwise the killing of an innocent sheep while keeping the vicious wolf\nof one\u2019s desire alive, only completes a required act, and such a person has not\nbenefited completely from the spiritual aspect of this act. A person who sacrifices his desire, has freed\nhimself both from the evils of the self and saves others from the dangers of\nhis lustfulness. Imam Ali (PBUH) has a\nsaying describing those who were educated in the school of religion: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c(A God-fearing\nand generous man, as a result of resisting and enduring hardship on self, has\nbecome a person whose) desire (to sin) has died and whose anger has diminished;\nas people continuously have their hopes in his good, and are safe from his\nagony and evil.\u201d3 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In spirit, the Eid of Sacrifice is the\nday of human integrity; for it is in this day that the human can achieve the\nutmost understanding of his position in the world of being and in the ray of\nthe light of knowledge, where he\/she is able to sacrifice the world for the\nLord, and exchange the small goods the world with the everlasting blessing of\nthe hereafter.4 It is therefore suitable\nfor people to celebrate this day, which resembles the ultimate level of the\nspirit and mind, as conducted by Prophet Ibrahim and Ismaeel (PBUT). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Selection taken\nfrom the book of Hajj, the Program of Completion by Ayatollah Zia-Abadi, with\nminor changes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Roshd Website\ncongratulates all Muslims and Monotheists,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
especially you dear friend,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
upon Eid al-Ad’ha,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the day of hoisting the flag of\nobedience on the base of humanity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Mustadrak\nWasael. Vol. 10, p. 171, book 17, hadith 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2.\nIbid. Vol. 10, p. 173, book 17, hadith 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3.\nNahjul Balaghah. Sermon 184.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4.\nA reference to two verses from the Holy Quran; 4:77; 9:21.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
One of the obligatory acts of Hajj is the act of slaughtering (an animal, mainly sheep) in the area of Mina on the Eid of Sacrifice. The slaughtering of an animal by a Muslim pilgrim rejuvenates the memory of the actions of two monotheist and humble servants of Allah (SWT), Prophet Ibrahim and Ismaeel (PBUT). […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28431,28248],"tags":[25075,22506,19724,25000,24920,24922,22802,25076,18204,18418,22148,25074],"class_list":["post-4903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-eid-al-adha","category-occasional-letters","tag-2014-10-05","tag-act","tag-action","tag-animal","tag-eid-qurban","tag-hajj","tag-humble","tag-memory","tag-muslim","tag-occasion-letters","tag-sheep","tag-the-essence-of-the-slaughtered-sacrifice"],"yoast_head":"\n