Muslims around the world have gathered to celebrate Eid ul Adhia - the Great Eid.
This is when we are reminded of the great sacrifice of the prophet Abraham (Ibrahim) and his family. It is unbelievable, when we think about the immense love of God that Ibrahim, his wife Hagar and son Ishmael had; to leave one’s loved ones alone, in a barren desert. The prophet Abraham, may peace be with him, left his helpless wife, Hagar and their baby, Ishmael, in her arms and left them both, with little food and water and no hope of survival. Either the prophet Abraham, may peace be upon him, had to be a brutal, hard man with no love for his wife and son or a man totally lost in the love of Allah, with no doubts that Allah, the One God, alone is our Helper and Protector.
When asked by his wife, why, why are you doing this barbaric thing? His answer, as his wife already knew, was to please Allah!
It takes a very special person to be able to make that kind of sacrifice. But Hazrat Ibrahim and his wife Hagar both knew that the only life worth living, worth striving after, is the life in the presence of Allah. That was their only goal in life. If they hadn’t Allah’s love and nearness, then they would be surely ruined. They both knew that material things were good for this life only. The things that benefit us, are the things that we take to the next life – Our love and nearness to Allah and our good deeds.
It was for this reason that Hagar accepted her dilemma. She didn’t have to stay! She could have returned with Hazrat Ibrahim, may peace be with him. She could have searched for help. But she instead put her full trust in Allah. She knew that Allah, alone, would be the one to help her, and that’s why she stayed there, in a vast barren desert, with her baby son.
Allah helped her, gave her the material things she needed to survive, gave her companionship and enabled a city – the city of Mecca – to be built around her. But the main help that Allah gave her, was to reward her spiritually for the trust she put in Him. Allah watched over her baby son, Ishmael, and the same love of Allah, the same trust in God was developed in him.
Still as a young child, Ishmael proved his love of Allah, his total faith that Allah alone is to be worshipped and Allah alone is the one to put our full trust in, when he readily agreed to be a human sacrifice for God! Again, what an amazing sacrifice. The Holy Qur’an relates in Chapter 37, verse 103:-
“And when he (Ishmael) was old enough to work with him, he (Ibrahim) said, ‘O my dear son I have seen in a dream that I am slaughtering thee. So consider, what you think of it!’ He (Ishmael) replied, ‘O my father, do as you have been commanded; you will find me, if Allah please, steadfast in my faith.”
How can anyone of us be willing to kill are own son! Surely, we would put ourselves in their place and have ourselves killed rather than see our beloved son killed. This must have entered Hazrat Ibrahim’s head a thousand times – But it was his son who Allah wanted to be the sacrifice!
But to then ask your son, your only son - as it was before Isaac was born – would you be willing to sacrifice your life to win the pleasure of Allah? A young boy! But this young boy had been raised in the love of Allah, a credit to his mother, that she had instilled such a beautiful love of God in one so young. Such an obedient son, totally lost in the love of God. Hazrat Ishmael, may peace be upon him, had no hesitation: -
O my father, do as you are commanded: you will find me, if Allah pleases, steadfast in my faith.
So, both the father and the son were prepared to make this great sacrifice, purely for the sake of winning God’s pleasure, and this so pleased Allah that He stopped them from doing this human sacrifice and rewarded them spiritually to such an extent, that Ishmael became like his father, a true servant and Prophet of God.
No higher reward can be granted a person in this life. That sort of high sacrifice is beyond most of us, but we should always be ready to make sacrifices to win the pleasure of Allah, we are all capable of that.
In fact, it was explained to Hazrat Ibrahim, may peace be with him, that the dream he had related to the sacrifice of life, he had already done previously, when he left his wife and only son for certain death in the desert. He misunderstood and thought he had to literally sacrifice his son; therefore, Allah stopped him and told him to sacrifice an animal instead.
It is these great sacrifices, which we are reminded of with every Eid ul Adhia. Instilling in us to be ready to make any sacrifice for the sake of Allah, the One God.
he Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has said: “There are two blessings which many people lose: (They are) Health and free time for doing good.”
It is important to use the time that we have whilst in good health, to keep striving to win Allah’s blessings and do good works. No one expects you to go to extremes, in fact that can be very dangerous for you as it is very difficult to maintain throughout your life. This is why the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, when asked:
“What deeds are loved most by Allah?”
He replied, “the most regular constant deeds even though they may be few.”
He added, “Don’t take upon yourselves, except the deeds which are within your ability.”
Naturally, there is no harm if one strives to better oneself and provide a good life for one’s family, so long as you balance it out and keep striving to win Allah’s pleasure. For we can’t take the material things with us. That is why the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has told us:
Riches does not mean, having a great amount of property, but riches are self-contentment.
He has also told us that:
The best sacrifice is that which we love.
Therefore, doing things to win Allah’s pleasure brings us the most reward and brings peace and contentment.
Over the past few days, thousands of pilgrims have journeyed thousands of miles to take part in a unique show of brotherhood. All have gone for a common purpose:
- to display their love for God.
- to cast off the world and live in the presence of Allah.
- to be one people – despite colour, creed or nationality.
A perfect way to learn about peace and brotherhood, but many will return to countries where Muslims are fighting Muslims; many will return to countries where one Muslim sect will persecute another Muslim sect – all apparently to win Allah’s pleasure? If we can’t learn from the great pilgrimage to Mecca about how to live in peace with one another, then there seems to be little hope for the world.
We should demonstrate through our own example the way to peace, the way to God. We are all ambassadors of God and must always keep that firmly in our mind.
- We are responsible for changing the world, changing it to a world of peace.
- We are responsible for ensuring that God’s true message is spread amongst the people.
- We are responsible for demonstrating how a true Muslim thinks, acts, and worships.
That is the burden placed on our shoulders and we can’t run away from it. If we fail to deliver God’s message, if we fail to display a good example then we have failed mankind. The world that we want to live in, the world we want our children to live in; is for us to make.
That was the burden placed on the shoulders of the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and his companions. Now it has fallen on us, we can’t hide from it. Everyone is watching you. You shouldn’t say:
“don’t look at me – look at someone better.”
Be aware that God is watching you, judging you and He wants you to display the best example so that people will follow you and find God. Every time you lie, every time you backbite or put down someone, you are not just damaging yourself, but you are damaging God’s community. It is a huge responsibility, which no-one wants, but that has been entrusted upon us and we have to pray hard and keep asking Allah to help us, to cover up our weaknesses and guide us to the right path. There is no other way for the world.
Peace and love for each other can only be attained through believing in Allah, the One God, and following His way. So, we must be the ones to teach the world and that can only be done through demonstrating a good example.
Just as the lesson is taught in the Hajj to put Allah before everything else, so the same is reminded to all Muslims during the Eid day. That although this is a special, joyous occasion, as with everything in our lives, we should spend this day in constant remembrance of Allah.
We begin the day by reciting after Fajr (morning) Prayer:
‘Allaho Akbar’, ‘Allaho Akbar’ La illaha illallaho’ wallaho Akbar’ ‘Allaho Akbar’ `wa lillahil Hamd’
- That ‘Allah is Great‘, Allah is Great‘, `there is none worthy of worship except Allah’, ‘Allah is Great‘, `Allah is Great‘ ‘ and all Praise belongs to Him’.
This should have begun the previous day and is recited whilst we travel to the Eid Gah (place to celebrate the Eid prayer) and whilst we await the prayer. It means that we are constantly remembering Allah on this day and not thinking about worldly things. The remembrance of Allah continues with the Eid prayer before the sermon instead of, after the sermon, like it is for the Friday (Jumma) prayer. This again is giving more importance to the remembrance of Allah.
Then as the prayer begins, we recite ‘Allaho Akbar’ seven extra times in the first Raka’at (prayer movements) and five extra times in the second Raka’at.
This again is to remind us that Allah has provided us with everything, He alone is Great. By repeating it so many times, Allah is ensuring that the message is given to everyone, that we should be remembering Allah throughout this day.
And finally, to ensure that we do not get carried away with the celebrations and that we remember the reason why we are having these celebrations, we repeat the ‘Eid Takbir’ after every prayer for the next three days.
Eid is a very joyous time and a time for helping the poor, and it is pleasing to see so many Muslims doing the Qurbani (animal sacrifice) to help the poor in countries like India, Pakistan & Africa, etc. Eid is a time for sharing and a time to forget our differences and rekindle relationships. A time for visiting friends and spending time with our families. But most importantly, Eid is a time to remember Allah and thank Him for everything that He has done for us and our family.
It is too easy to overlook everything that He has bestowed on you and only when He has taken it away from you, do you regret and seek His help and bounty.
- The time to thank Allah for your good health is whilst you are healthy, not when you are sick.
- The time to thank Allah is when you are doing well in your business, not when you are in a crisis.
- The time to thank Allah is all the time, not just when you need Him.
Therefore, we should always be grateful to Allah and be His true and loyal servants, as He is always providing for us, when we ask Him and more often than not, when we don’t ask Him.