Sacrifice is among the signs of\nAllah`s religion, His worship, and among the rituals of Hajj. The definition of sacrifice is that one\noffers an animal for and in the name of God the Almighty. This animal may be slaughtered either in the\ndesert of Mina or in the city of Mecca, and offered to the poor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Kind Lord has said, \u201cAnd (as for)\nthe camels, We have made them of the signs of the religion of Allah for you;\nfor you therein is much good; therefore mention the name of Allah on them as\nthey stand in a row, then when they fall down eat of them and feed the poor man\nwho is contented and the beggar; thus have We made them subservient to you,\nthat you may be grateful.\u201d1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The issue of proximity to the Lord\nthrough the act of sacrifice, as noted in the Holy Quran and the narrations of\nthe Ahlul Bayt (PBUT) has been in practice since the existence of human\nsocieties. The Holy Quran reminds us\nthat the killing of sheep and camels have been among ancient traditions of\nservanthood, one which Allah (SWT) has guided the previous servants towards\nthis act of worship.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Holy Quran has said, \u201cAnd for\nevery nation have We appointed a ritual, that they may mention the name of\nAllah over the beast of cattle that He has given them for food; and your god is\nOne Allah, therefor surrender unto Him. And give good tidings (O Muhammad) to\nthe humble\u201d2<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also in regards to the ancient nature\nof this ritual the Quran adds, \u201cAnd relate to them the story of the two sons of\nAdam with truth when they both offered an offering, but it was accepted from\none of them and was not accepted from the other. He said: I will most certainly\nslay you. (The other) said: Allah only accepts from those who guard (against\nevil).\u201d3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The act of worship has taken place\nwith great importance among various nations in the presence of idols and idol\nhouses including India, Rome, and Greece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All prophets of the Bani Israel, as\nwritten in Torah, considered the act of sacrifice a worship, and they would\nseek proximity to the Lord through this, all until Prophet Isa (PBUH) was\nappointed as a prophet. The act of\nsacrifice was also norm in the Sharia of Prophet Isa (PBUH). And he would implement the Torah\u2019s\njurisprudence, as it was evident in the Gospels. In addition to the Gospels, Prophet Isa\n(PBUH) gave clear instructions regarding sacrifice. As an example, the Prophet would tell the ill\nand pain-stricken, and those who had wishes to sacrifice (an animal) and offer\nit to the temple and church. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nBut after Jesus Christ (PBUH) those who made a\nmockery of religion became his disciples and said that Christ gave himself up\nto killing, and retracted the act of sacrifice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to this, gaining proximity\nto Allah through the act of sacrifice was an accepted and normal act. This, until the Arabs changed the act of\nsacrifice, just as they had changed parts of the rituals of Hajj, and performed\nsacrifice for gaining proximity to idols. \nBut Islam cleansed this act from becoming intertwined with the act of\nShirk, and placed it solely for the name of the One God, inviting Muslims to\nthe pure soul and righteous act of sacrifice, which is highly influential in\ntheir acts being accepted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Along these lines the Holy Quran says,\n\u201cThere does not reach Allah their flesh nor their blood, but to Him is\nacceptable the guarding (against evil) on your part; thus has He made them\nsubservient to you, that you may magnify Allah because He has guided you\naright; and give good news to those who do good (to others).\u201d4<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the religion of Islam, the act of\nsacrifice is enlivening the tradition of Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) and the\nremembrance of the blessings of Allah to that prophet and the people in placing\nthe sacrifice (of an animal) instead of his son, Ismaeel (PBUH). It is also a\nreference to this issue that Ibrahim and Ismail (PBUT) were for the pious in\nthe utmost faith and submission to Divine Order. Sacrifice is also a code and a symbol for\nkilling the Nafs e Ammara5, cutting off the roots of lowness and darkness of\ncharacter, and freeing oneself from the prison of this world into a life full\nof virtue, and destructing one\u2019s desires in the way and will of the Lord. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the above, the\nsacrificial tradition is among the Lord\u2019s ancient traditions of divine\nreligions, of which is based on gaining proximity to the Lord. Therefore, even though the sacrifice itself\nwill be used by the people, and specifically by the poor, the condition of its\nacceptance however, depends on the righteousness and pureness of intention of\nthe doer of the act. In essence this act\nis a symbol, a key to fighting evil and killing the Nafs e Ammara and controlling\none\u2019s desires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Selection taken\nfrom the book The Philosophy and the Secrets of Hajj by the Late Ayatullah\nMohammad Emami Najafi Khawansari)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Congratulations to all Muslims and\nespecially you dear friend<\/p>\n\n\n\n
on the auspicious occasion of the Eid\nal-Adha<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A time of freeing oneself from all\nchains, and attaching oneself to the Giver of Life<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Holy Quran\n22:36<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Holy Quran\n22:34<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. Holy Quran\n5:27<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. Holy Quran\n22:37<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5. Mesbah\nal-Sharia, p. 47<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sacrifice is among the signs of Allah`s religion, His worship, and among the rituals of Hajj. The definition of sacrifice is that one offers an animal for and in the name of God the Almighty. This animal may be slaughtered either in the desert of Mina or in the city of Mecca, and offered to […]<\/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":[25091,17778,25090,25000,24920,18894,20345,18418,19806,25092,19695],"class_list":["post-4906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-eid-al-adha","category-occasional-letters","tag-2015-09-24","tag-allah","tag-an-ancient-tradition","tag-animal","tag-eid-qurban","tag-kind","tag-mecca","tag-occasion-letters","tag-poor","tag-sign","tag-worship"],"yoast_head":"\n