Dear Brothers and Sisters!

By the grace of Allah (swt), we have reached another blessed Eid-al-Adha. Endless thanks to our creator, who brought us to the morning of Eid. Qurban refers to slaughtering certain kinds of animals at a certain time for the purpose of worship. Allah (swt) mentions, “Indeed, We have granted you, [O Muḥammad], al-Kawthar. So pray to your Lord and offer sacrifice [to Him alone].”[1] Allah (swt) ordered those who had the means to perform the sacrifice. In another verse, Allah (swt) mentions, “…and mention the name of Allāh on known [i.e., specific] days over what He has provided for them of [sacrificial] animals. So eat of them and feed the miserable and poor.”[2]

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

Our Prophet Muhammad (saw), who was sent as a warner and giver of good news to all humanity has said, “The first thing to be done on this day is to pray; and after returning from the prayer we slaughter our sacrifices (in the name of Allah) and whoever does so, he acted according to our Sunnah.”[3] At the root of the sacrificial worship in Islam, one of the great prophets, Ibrahim (as) sacrificed a ram with the sign of Allah instead of his son Ismail (as). This verse reminds us of this sacrifice, “Then We revealed to you, [O Muhammad], to follow the religion of Ibrahim”[4].

 

Dear Jama’ah!

The most important part to be drawn from the story of Ibrahim (as), which is also conveyed in the Qur’an, is the submission that we must show to the orders and prohibitions of Allah (swt). Our identity, which is named as Muslims by Allah (swt), expresses unconditional surrender to Allah. A Muslim means one who surrenders to his Creator. This is shown through the following verse; “Say, “Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allāh, Lord of the worlds.”[5]

In this short-lived worldly life, it is only possible to attain the rank of servitude to Allah (swt) only by believing in Him, trusting and surrendering.

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

One of the most outstanding qualities of Islam is undoubtedly social unity. How beautiful and remarkable is the following dialogue between our beloved Prophet (saw) and Aisha (ra):

– Did you distribute the Qurban to the poor, O Aisha?

– Yes, I distributed them all; We have only this piece of shoulder blade left, O Messenger of Allah!

– So you say, except for the shoulder blade, everything is ours![6]

 

Allah (swt), who has given us countless blessings, has hidden countless wisdoms in each of our worships. One of the most obvious wisdoms of the Qurban worship is the spread of brotherhood and solidarity. Distributing the meat slaughtered in the sacrifice means preferring others to oneself, and the morality of self-sacrifice develops with this practice. This will also contribute to the development of the Ummah awareness. Let’s not forget that we serve to strengthen the Islamic brotherhood through what we cut and distribute, and what we send to the oppressed around the world with our Hasene Humanitarian Aid Organisation.

Through the Hasene Humanitarian Aid Organisation, your Qurban will be slaughtered in many countries and regions of the world as of today. At the same time, we experience the joy of fulfilling this worship together. May Allah (swt) accept our Qurban and make our sacrifices a means for each of us to enter Paradise. We congratulate our community and all Muslims on their Eid al-Adha with our sincere wishes, and we pray to Allah (swt) that you have a fruitful Eid with your family and friends. Ameen.

 

[1] Surah Al-Kawthar, 108:1-2

[2] Surah Al-Hajj, 22:28

[3] Buhârî, Îdeyn, 3

[4] Surah An-Nahl, 16:123

[5] Surah Al-An’am, 6:162

[6] Tirmîzî, Sıfatü’l -Kıyame, 33

Eid Khutba: Submission to Allah