Eid Mubarak !

Eid Mubarak to everyone ! Once again it's time for sacrifice and joy. This is the first I am having a lamb Qurbani. Feels great. The feeling is not so great as back in bangladesh but it's as good as it gets. We will get the meat the day after Qurbani's first day. All chopped off and ready to be distributed.

Eid-ul Azha ('Id-ul Adha) also known as Eid al-Kurban or Eid al-Nahr is one of the two main Muslim religious festivals. In Bangladesh it is popularly known as Kurbanir Eid or Bakra Eid. Eid and Azha are arabic words meaning festival and sacrifice respectively.

Eid-ul Azha commemorates the sacrifice of Hazrat Ibrahim (A), who had been asked by Almighty Allah to sacrifice his dearest son Hazrat Ismail (A) and with the consent of his son Hazrat Ibrahim (A) arranged everything to implement Allah's order at a place called Mina near Mokka in solar year 3800. Allah was satisfied by Hazrat Ibraim's sincere intent and ordered him to sacrifice an animal in place of his son.

Following this event that symbolises highest loyalty and submission to Allah Muslims at Mina and all parts of the world sacrifice animals on the day of Eid-ul Azha as a symbol of sacrifice for Him. Animal sacrifice in the name of Allah is a major feature of Eid-ul Azha. From the sacrifice and through the distribution of sacrificial meat to the poor and distressed, one gets a spiritual satisfaction and pleasure, which obtains a socially festive character.

Eid-ul Azha is observed on the 10th of Jhu-l-Hijjah and on this day, Muslims who perform the Hajj sacrifice animals on the field of Mina. Sacrifice can also be offered on the following day and according to some, on the third day, too (Ainial Tashriq). Animals offered for sacrifice must be of specific age and are required to be free from certain defects. They should not be blind, have broken legs or horns or ears separated either partially or in full. The time of sacrifice begins following the namaz of Eid-ul Azha and continues up to the sunset of the next two/three days. A camel, cow or buffalo can be sacrificed in the names of seven persons, while a lamb or a goat in the name of one person only. Usually cows, goats and buffaloes are sacrificed in Bangladesh. Some people are also seen to import camels for the purpose of sacrifice.

One-third of the meat of the sacrificed animal is kept for the owner, one third is given to his relatives and the rest is distributed among the poor. This gives an opportunity to the rich to discharge a responsibility to the poor and also helps in development of cordiality between the rich and the poor.

Like all other Muslims of the world, Muslims of Bangladesh celebrate Eid-ul Azha in an appropriate manner of religious fervour and enthusiasm. New clothes and accessories are bought on the occasion. People, dressed in new clothes, visit houses of neighbours and relatives to exchange greetings and partake of the special foods prepared on the occasion. Sometimes, people of other religions also take part in the celebrations as invited guests. A few days are declared government holidays on the occasion. Many go to their country homes and celebrate the Eid together with relatives. The Eid congregational prayer is held in large mosques and open fields.

The unique sacrifice of Hazrat Ibrahim Khalilullah (A) and Hazrat Ismail Jabiullah (A) and their firm loyalty to Allah's instructions had a tremendous impact on the world literature. This influence is observed on the literature of the Muslim countries such as those of the Middle-East or Spain and Turkey and also on the non-Muslim literature of Europe. This event of sacrifice had also an impact on the Great Poet Homer of the far away Greece, too. The epic Illiad describes that Agamemnon, who was confined in Aulis took the decision to sacrifice her daughter Iphigenia to please goddess Diana and later, Diana replaced Iphigenia by lamb and Diana was pleased to see the lamb sacrificed etc. only prove that Homer was greatly influenced by the event of qurbani on the field of Mina. The Bengali literature is also significantly influenced by Eid-ul Azha and the most prominent evidence is Qurbani, the classic poem of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.