Festival of Sacrifice

Every year at the time of Eidal-Adhaa and Hajj, we recount the story
of Ibraheem and Isma'el . Their lives were permeated with the Love of
Allah and with dedication to His service and obedience. They lovedand
obeyed Allah to such a level of perfection that Allah presented them
as model Muslims, the way every Muslim should be. Their lifestyle is
not only a perfect model of Submission to Allah but also a beautiful
example of an ideal parent-child understanding without any generation
gap.
There are many lessons we should learn from their story, butfor the
sake of brevity, we will concentrate only on the episode of sacrifice.
As you know, Ibraheem was bornin a society where many false gods such
as idols, stars, planets and moons were being worshipped and offerings
were made to them. Animals and even humans were sacrificed to keep
those false gods happy.
Ibraheem had dedicated his life to call people to abandon false gods
and only believe in Allah , the One and Only Creator. The sole mission
of his life was to bring the message of Islam (complete obedience to
Allah in every aspect of one's life) to all people around him. His
objective, like every other prophet and messenger, was to call people
to submit in obedience to Allah and to establish an Islamic society -
a political entity where majority of people were dedicated Muslims and
that society of Muslims was amodel of peace, love, caring, sharing,
fairness, justice, generosity, human equality, dignity, balance and
moderation.
His people rejected his call completely and decided to kill him by
throwing him into the burning fire from which Allah saved him. Now it
was evident that he could not live among those people and carry out
his mission. He did not know where to go, but he departed with faith
and trust in Allah He had grown old working tirelessly for that
purpose and felt a need for someone to carry on this missionof love -
inviting people to true Islam and establishing a Muslim-majority
Islamic state consisting of those who accept the invitation. This goal
gave him a strong desire for a son who couldcontinue his mission.
After a lot of Du`aa (supplications), Allah granted him a son when he
was extremely old (86 years accordingto the Bible).(1) He was named
Isma'el (which meant: Allah has heard) because Allah had listened to
the Du`aa of Ibraheem . This son, Isma'el, was Ibraheem's dearest and
most beloved asset in this world.
When Isma'el was about thirteen (Ibraheem being 99), Allah decided to
test their faithin and submission to Allah in public (2). Both father
and son were put through the most difficult test of their love for
Allah. Ibraheem saw in a dream that he was sacrificing Isma'el - an
unimaginable act - sacrificing the son he begot after so much Du`aa,
the only one he had and the one who had been the centre of his
affection and love for all these years. Ibraheem knew that the dreams
of the prophets were inspired by Allah. They were one of the ways
Allah communicated with his prophets. This must be what Allah wanted
him to do. When the intent of the dream became clear to him, Ibraheem
decided to offer his beloved son in sacrifice. Although it would be
easier for him to give his own liferather than take his son's, he
willingly surrendered to the perceived commandment. To him, as to any
Muslim, the love for Allah must always be supreme and strongest. Every
other love must be subservient tothe love of Allah , hence
sacrificeable for His sake.
Although Ibraheem was ready to sacrifice his dearest for Allah's sake,
he could not just go and drag his son to the place of sacrifice
without his consent. Isma'el had to be consulted as to whether he was
willing to die forAllah . This consultation would be a test of
Isma'el's maturity in faith, love for Allah, Islamic commitment,
willingness to sacrifice his life for the sake of Allah and parent's
obedience. It would also be a test of how well Ibraheem had been able
to train his son in Islam and how close orapart were the two Muslims
of different generations in their thinking, approach and attitude.
Ibraheem presented the matter to his son and asked for his opinion
about the dreams of slaughtering him. Isma'el's reaction was
absolutely astounding. He did not show any hesitation or reservation
even fora moment. He said, "Father, proceed ahead for what you
havebeen commanded. You will find me, Inshaa Allah, very patient." His
mature response, his insight into the nature of dad's dreams, his
willingness to sacrifice his life for the sake of Allah and commitment
to Allah's submission were all unparalleled.The most amazing and
noteworthy, however, was the perfect coherence and unity of thought,
attitude and outlook between the father and the son. We do not see any
generation gap between the two because both of them were looking at
life through an Islamic paradigm - that a Muslim must submit to Allah
in any circumstances and that love for Allah is over and above any
other love in the life of a Muslim.
When both father and son had shown their perfect obedience toAllah and
they had practically demonstrated their willingness to sacrifice their
most precious possessions for His sake - Ibraheem by laying down his
son for sacrifice and Isma'el by lying patiently under the knife -
Allah saved Isma'el and replaced him with a ram. Allah also told them
that they had passed the test with flying colors and that they had
fulfilled what Ibraheem was shown in the dream.
This is mentioned in the Holy Qurann as follows:
They said, "Build him a furnace, and throw him into the blazing fire!"
They sought a stratagem against him, but We made them the ones most
humiliated! And he said: Lo! I am going unto my Lord Who will guide
me. "O my Lord! Grant me a righteous (son)!" So We gave him the good
news of a boy, possessing forbearance. And when (his son) was old
enough to walk and work with him, (Abraham) said: Omy dear son, I see
in vision that I offer you in sacrifice: Now see what is your view!"
(The son) said: "O my father! Do what you are commanded; if Allah
wills, you will find me one practicing patience and steadfastness!" So
when they both submitted and he threw him down upon his forehead, We
called out to him saying: O Ibraheem! You have indeed fulfilled the
vision; surely thus do We reward those who dogood. Most surely this
was a manifest trial. And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice.
And We perpetuated (praise) to him among the later generations."Peace
and salutation to Abraham!" Thus indeed do We reward those who do
right. Surely he was one of Our believing servants. (As-Saafaat
37:97-111 )
It was as one of the reward for this sacrifice that Allah gave
Ibraheem good news of the second son, Is-haaq (Isaac):
وَبَشَّرْنَاهُ بِإِسْحَقَ نَبِيًّا مِّنَ الصَّالِحِينَ
And We gave him the good news of Is-haaq, a prophet among the good
ones. (As-Saafaat 37:112 )
According to the Bible, the good news about Is-haaq was given when
Ibraheem was 99 years old and Is-haaq (Isaac) was born when Ibraheem
was 100 years old (3). However, the Bible omits the mention of the
sacrifice at that time and only mentions circumcision of Ibraheem and
Isma'el (4). The Holy Qurann clarifies the reality that it was a
tremendous demonstration of submission to Allah in the form of
sacrifice, not a small thing like circumcision that pleased Allah so
much that He miraculously bestowed Ibraheem another son despite the
fact that he and Sarah both had long passed their normal child
bearingage and Sarah was barren all her life (5).
This was the greatest of the testsIbraheem and Isma'el went through.
Its difficulty was compounded by the fact that Ibraheem had invested a
lot of love and affection during 12-13 years of Isma'el's life and
Isma'el had grown up to cherish his own life. The test would have been
easier for both the father and the son, if Isma'el were newborn where
bonding between father and son had not taken place and where the son
could not have grown up to enjoyhis life. But Allah selected the most
difficult time for this test todemonstrate their true level of
commitment to Allah's pleasure. This test demonstrated to the world
the following:
*. Ibraheem and Isma'el are not just theorizing about Allah as the One
and Only Creator, but He is a real entity in whom they truly and
sincerely believe and to whom they happily and willingly submit;
*. Unlike false gods who neither know that they are being worshipped
nor can react to the actions of their worshippers, the true God if
fully aware of what His slaves do and He interacts with them;
*. The One True God does not expect people to offer ritual human
sacrifices. People lose their life to ritual sacrifice only because of
the falsehood created by those who promote false gods.
Allah loved their example of total dedication and devotion to His
commandment so much that He made it incumbent on all Muslims until the
Day of Judgment to commemorate Ibraheem's and Isma'el's spirit of
complete submission to Allah through a yearly celebrationof their
sacrifice. The major purpose is that the Muslims can refresh,
understand and internalize the full implications ofclaiming to be
'Muslims' (i.e. obedience to Allah) by simulatingthe act of sacrifice
devotedly performed by Ibraheem and Isma'el .
Every year Eidal-Adhaa must remind us that:
*. A lifestyle of complete and total submission to Allah is the
essence of being a Muslim;
*. A Muslim willingly sacrifices his/her most cherished belongings
(things, ideas, habits, desires) in obedience toAllah ;
*. A properly practicing Muslim family does not encounter a generation
gap between different generations of Muslims. A gap between two
generations is caused only by the presence of un-Islamic behaviors or
attitudes in either of the generations or both.
Eidal-Adhaa is not merely an occasion of ritual celebrations, but an
annual tune-up of one's lifestyle so that it becomes a lifestyle that
is totally submergedin submission to Allah . It is a celebration of
simulating a Muslim's readiness to sacrifice everything for the sake
of Allah. May Allah grant us the strengthof spirit and will to
perfectly emulate the examples of Ibraheem and Isma'el in every facet
of our daily struggle to become better Muslims, Inshaa Allah.