Dear Brothers and Sisters!

Alhamdulillah, with the grace of Allah (swt) we have once again reached another Eid-al-Adha. InshAllah many of us will travel and visit our families and relatives during these days. On the occasion of Eid-al-Adha, we will talk about the virtues and wisdoms of sacrificing in Today’s lecture. Allah (swt) states the following regarding the sacrifices in Surah Al-Hajj: “Their meat will not reach Allah, nor will their blood, but what reaches Him is piety from you.”[1]

When we take this verse as a basis, we see that intention is the determining factor in sacrificing and having someone sacrifice on your behalf, as it is in every worship and action. A sincere intention to gain Allah’s approval undoubtedly depends on having strong faith, Taqwa. We need knowledge to improve the quality of our worship. In this context, we need to refresh our knowledge about the worship of sacrificing.

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

As the worship of sacrifice is a result of our faith and Taqwa, our faith is affected by the worship of sacrifice. As a matter of fact, sacrificing and having someone sacrifice on your behalf is an indication of our gratitude for the blessings that Allah (swt) has bestowed upon us. It is the physical actualisation of the praise that is in our hearts. And we will see through this Allah (swt) will show us greater mercy, increase the blessings, accept our prayers and get rid of our troubles. In this context, verse 152 of Surah Al-Baqarah is a reminder:
“So remember Me; I will remember you. And be grateful to Me and do not deny Me!”[2] Rasulullah (saw) has often highlighted the benefits of Qurban. In a hadith narrated from Aisha (r), the Prophet ﷺ states the following: “Among the acts that sons of Adam do on the first day of Eid al-Adha, Allah likes best to shed the blood of the sacrificed animal (there is no better act on that day at the sight of Allah). On the Day of Judgment that sacrificed animal comes with its horns, nails, and fur. Before the blood of the animal drops to the ground, the sacrifice gets accepted by Allah and His content is gained. Therefore, sacrifice your animal with ease of heart!”[3]

Dear Jama’ah!

Allah (swt), the owner of absolute wisdom and knowledge, has hidden countless wisdoms in each of our acts of worship. As we have just mentioned, gratitude is one of the wisdoms of sacrificial worship. In addition, one of the most obvious wisdoms of sacrificing is undoubtedly the spread of brotherhood and solidarity, and the awareness of the individual and society in this regard. Sacrificing and distributing the slaughtered meat is preferring others to oneself, thus bringing the morality of Isar to life. This issue is also one of the important elements that will strengthen our Ummah in consciousness.

May Allah (swt) accept the sacrifices we have made. May Allah (swt) make the distribution of slaughtered meat a means of spreading sharing and solidarity in the world. May Allah (swt) grant us to spend fruitful days with our families and friends. Ameen.

[1] Surah Al-Hajj, 22:37
[2] Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:152
[3] Tirmizi, Adâhî, 1, H.No: 1493

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