What’s the need to slaughter millions of animals on the Eid day?

Questioner: What’s the need to slaughter millions of animals on the Eid day? Wouldn’t it be better to use the money and open up schools and hospitals in the country where people need such services?

Moderator: I just want to add that in the Quran it says that neither the blood nor the flesh of the animal slaughtered reaches God but it’s your Taqwa (God Loving and Fearing attitude) (that reaches God).

JavedAhmad Ghamidi:  Behind this, what’s at work, is the understanding of existence of God. We live in this world with relations. I have a relationship with my mom, my dad etc. It’s quite possible that there are certain expectations and demands from me by my relatives or my country or my nation.

I also have a relationship with God which is the most significant relationship in my life because He is my Creator. It is important that there’s an expression of this relationship.

A human being does not only have an external existence, he/she also has an internal truth. Notice that you held a large parade just recently, you commemorated the war of September, you celebrated Independence Day… Why, what’s the reason? You spend billions on these events too. The reason is that you can observe the nation, you can feel the belonging to your country and freedom has a factual testimony rooted in reality for you.

The relation with God, on the other hand, has not remained a fact of life with you nowadays. So if you want to strengthen your relationship with God, then look at the philosophy behind this (Qurbani).

The philosophy is such that one would say, ‘O my Lord, you have created this world in which there’s a tension/struggle between me and the Satan. (You want me to be good whereas Satan invites me to be arrogant and rebel against you). Therefore, I forward myself (my own life) to you in this war’. This act (of slaughtering an animal for God) becomes a significantly important gesture (and metaphorical substitute to presentation of our own life in the way of God).

Because we are not aware of it’s reality and do not have the knowledge and understanding of our relationship with God, we ask such questions. We have to lead balanced lives, meaning that we should express our relationship with God as well as with parents and nation and country.

The result of putting a stop for doing this act does not mean that that money will go somewhere else. When we talk about a human being, all aspects of a human life gets manifested. When I do things for my mother, for my wife, for my dad, for my country; you will not ask this question there. You will speak of emotions and sentiments to justify.

A similar thing happens here. You are presenting life as a substitute of your own life to God. Before getting into such discussions with people, ask them to have an understanding of God and their relationship with God. Then provide that space for this relationship, which is necessary. Then you will realize that the largest space in your life deserves to be for God. That’s when you will not think this way. We are to feed people, establish schools and other such works. You should be content that people have much higher potential than this. Once the right emotions and understandings are founded and triggered, then they will spend for other humanitarian works too. But the emotion and sentiment that’s kept alive here is not to be taken for granted.

(Translation : by Wais Popalyar)

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