Aid al-kabir also called Eid al-Adha
Picture: courtesy of Animal Equality taken in Melilla (Spain) November 7, 2011
Aid al-kabir (the greater aid) also called Eid al-Adha is one of the two most important Islamic festivals. Eid al-Adha begins on the 10th day of Dhu'l-Hijja, the last month of the Islamic calendar. Lasting for three days, it occurs at the conclusion of the annual Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. Muslims all over the world celebrate Eid al-Adha, not simply those undertaking the hajj, which for most Muslims is a once-a-lifetime occurrence.
Eid Al-Adha commemorates Prophet Abraham's willingness to obey God when he envisioned that he was to sacrifice his son. Muslims observe this day by slaughtering an animal (usually a sheep) and then offering much of its meat in charity to poor people. The sacrifice symbolizes obedience to Allah and its distribution to others is an expression of generosity, one of the five pillars of Islam.
Eid Al Adha will be celebrated this year on 7th November 2011 (+-1 day) depending on the country, the Festival of Sacrifice is a religious festival celebrated by Muslims, Eid ul-Adha annually falls on the 10th day of the month of Dul Hijja of the lunar Islamic calendar.
Taken from the website: The Holy Quran - Official date of Eid Al Adha 2011/1432
Eid Al-Adha commemorates Prophet Abraham's willingness to obey God when he envisioned that he was to sacrifice his son. Muslims observe this day by slaughtering an animal (usually a sheep) and then offering much of its meat in charity to poor people. The sacrifice symbolizes obedience to Allah and its distribution to others is an expression of generosity, one of the five pillars of Islam.
Eid Al Adha will be celebrated this year on 7th November 2011 (+-1 day) depending on the country, the Festival of Sacrifice is a religious festival celebrated by Muslims, Eid ul-Adha annually falls on the 10th day of the month of Dul Hijja of the lunar Islamic calendar.
Taken from the website: The Holy Quran - Official date of Eid Al Adha 2011/1432
Picture: courtesy of Animal Equality taken in Melilla (Spain) November 7, 2011
Holidays are supposed to be joyous times, but for animals, they are often the worst of times no matter what religion is celebrating the holiday. During the Muslim holy days of Eid al-Adha, millions of animals, including camels, lambs, goats, and cows, had their throats cut in memory of Abraham's sacrifice of a sheep.
Camels typically have one of their front legs tied up and their rear legs roped together so they can hardly stand, and their mouths are often tied shut. Surrounded by a throng of onlookers, the terrified camels are held down with ropes while someone plunges a knife into their throat. Braying and thrashing in pain, the camels slowly bleed to death. Thankfully, some Muslims are questioning this practice.
If the way that animals are killed during Eid al-Adha disturbs us, what about the millions of turkeys who are slammed into shackles, dangled upside-down by their fragile legs, and killed when their throats are cut open while the birds are still conscious—just so that they can end up on someone's Thanksgiving table?
Perhaps it's time to reevaluate all holiday "traditions" that cause animals to suffer and die.
Feast of Sacrifice
bloody torture of 6,000 lambs
documented by Animal Equality
On the morning of November 7th, 2011 Animal Equality documented the ritual lamb slaughter on the ‘Feast of Sacrifice’ ('Eid al-Adha') or ‘Fiesta Grande’ ('Eid-al-Kebir') in Melilla, Spain.
This gruesome slaughter of 6,000 animals was carried out in full view of locals, including children, and animals who were tied up waiting helplessly for their turn.
At half past nine on the morning of 7 November, thousands of faithful Muslims gathered at the courtyard of El Pinar de Melilla to pray. Half an hour later, one of the faithful immobilised a lamb tied to a nearby tree, and slit his throat.
A further 7 million animals were killed during similar ‘celebrations’ in Morocco.
All methods of slaughter are equally unjust as the domination and exploitation of animals reflects an irrational prejudice towards members of a different species than our own. This prejudice is known as speciesism.
Animal Equality believes that it is time for respect to be extended beyond our own species and incorporated into our daily lives through the adoption of a vegan lifestyle which excludes all animal products.
This gruesome slaughter of 6,000 animals was carried out in full view of locals, including children, and animals who were tied up waiting helplessly for their turn.
At half past nine on the morning of 7 November, thousands of faithful Muslims gathered at the courtyard of El Pinar de Melilla to pray. Half an hour later, one of the faithful immobilised a lamb tied to a nearby tree, and slit his throat.
A further 7 million animals were killed during similar ‘celebrations’ in Morocco.
All methods of slaughter are equally unjust as the domination and exploitation of animals reflects an irrational prejudice towards members of a different species than our own. This prejudice is known as speciesism.
Animal Equality believes that it is time for respect to be extended beyond our own species and incorporated into our daily lives through the adoption of a vegan lifestyle which excludes all animal products.
Pictures: courtesy of Animal Equality. © Jonás Amadeo Lucas for Animal Equality
Thankfully, Muslims are questioning this practice
The following text is taken from an article published in 'New Age Islam' after the 2010 Aid al-kabir:
Once again, Muslims around the world have “sacrificed” millions of animals in a three day period during the month of Eid-ul-Adha to please God.
Sacrifice inherently means that you part with something that is very close to your heart and experience a certain degree of pain during the process.
Abraham proceeded to sacrifice his son who was very close to his heart and with whom had great attachment.
This act of Abraham can be seen as a spirit of true sacrifice.
Today, if I say that I sacrificed an old sofa for a greater cause, I will be laughed at, since the sofa doesn’t mean much to me. However, this hypothetical act of mine is not much different from someone slitting the throat of a goat to please God and call it a sacrifice, since the person has had no attachment to the goat except a few bucks that he would soon forget.
I am just wondering if that is what God had in his mind when he asked us to follow a path in remembrance of Abraham’s devotion to God. Today what we do on the streets of Karachi during the Eid-ul Adha is a mockery of Abraham's devotion to God.
It is beyond my comprehension that our God, whom we regard as compassionate and merciful finds pleasure watching a helpless camel with one of his front legs tied off the ground and two of his hind legs so closely tied together that he becomes incapable of using those legs independently. And apart from that, his jaws are tied with a rope that he cannot even brawl. And then, a pious looking person sticks a knife into the camel's throat. he camel bleeds for tens of minutes and suffers excruciating pain until he dies.
Here are some examples:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oIbT6Plio8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3R6qhjplHM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ws8ub3wo_hM&feature=related
I read somewhere that the Prophet stated “La taqtolu bil-la iza’a” if you must kill, kill without torture.
I don’t see any concerns among Muslims honoring Prophet’s words. We Muslims are very good in cherry picking things; we choose what suits us and disregard those that hinder our ways of doing things.
I often wonder what if God had asked us to sacrifice our children to make him happy. I doubt any commandment like that would have seen the light of the day.
The issue of animal sacrifice is often debated among Islamic scholars, and opinions are divided. Ironically it turned out to be a Buddhist Scholar Norm Phelps who had recently posted two of his well researched work on www.newageislam.com , and I would invite the readers to re-visit those articles.
Islam and Animal Rights by Norm Phelps: http://newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=2230
Sacrifices in Islam by Norm Phelps: http://newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=3631
Other related article also appear on www.islamicconcern.com
The Sacrifice of ‘Eidal –Ahada” by ShahidAl Mutaqqi: http://www.islamicconcern.com/sacrifice01.asp
A Pakistani View of Baqar Eid by Abuzar Rayees: http://www.islamicconcern.com/sacrifice02.asp
And YES, I do maintain that the title of my article is quite appropriate in the light of the following verse.
“It is not their flesh, nor their blood, that reaches Allah; nor yet their blood, but your devotion will reach him (Quran 2:196 ; 2:28 . 35-37)
What happens on the streets of Karachi during these three days of the festival it does not take much to notice that the so called Qurbani has transformed into a blood orgy defied by all standards of human decency.
Syed Rizvi is a physicist by profession and is the Founder and President of Engineers and Scientists for Animal Rights. Syed lives in Silicon Valley, California.
This article was originally published in New Age Islam
In 2012, Aid al-kabir, also called Eid al-Adha, starts on Friday, the 26th of October.
Note that in the Muslim calander, a holiday begins on the sunset of the previous day, so observing Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Adha on the sunset of Thursday, the 25th of October.
Note that in the Muslim calander, a holiday begins on the sunset of the previous day, so observing Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Adha on the sunset of Thursday, the 25th of October.
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