{"id":116344,"date":"2021-07-20T16:54:36","date_gmt":"2021-07-20T23:54:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=116344"},"modified":"2021-07-20T16:54:36","modified_gmt":"2021-07-20T23:54:36","slug":"hajj-festival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/07\/20\/hajj-festival\/","title":{"rendered":"Hajj Festival."},"content":{"rendered":"

By A. Abdul Aziz.<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Eid-ul-Azha marks the\ncompletion of the pilgrimage to Mecca by Muslims from multifarious nations of\nthe world on the tenth day of the Islamic month Zul Haj. It is obligatory\nto bring the pilgrimage to a successful termination with the sacrifice of an\nanimal. Like prayer and fasting, the performance of pilgrimage is a mode of\nworship seeking the spiritual, social and economic upliftment of Muslims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Pilgrimage accustoms\na person to leave home and, for the sake of God, to undergo separation\nfrom friends and relatives. It also serves as a symbol of respect for the holy\nplaces of God frequented by the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of\nAllah be upon him). When visiting these sacred places the pilgrim experiences\nspiritual elation. The universal bond of Islamic brotherhood is also\nstrengthened as pilgrims of worldwide nationalities gather together in a spirit\nof unity and harmony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The pilgrim offers\nthe sacrifice of an animal at the end of the pilgrimage which is also done by\nMuslims all over the world. This is done in remembrance of Abraham\u2019s readiness\nto sacrifice his son Ishmael (not Isaac as recorded in the Bible) who, in turn,\nresigned to being sacrificed under the belief that it was the Will of God. We\nread in the Holy Quran:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 And when he\n(Ishmael) was old enough to run along with him (Abraham), he said, `O my dear\nson, I have seen in a dream that I offer thee in sacrifice. So consider what\nthou thinkest of it!\u2019 He replied, `O my father, do as\nthou art commanded; thou wilt find me, if Allah please steadfast in\nmy faith.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And when they both\nsubmitted to the Will of God, and Abraham had thrown him down on his forehead,\nWe called to him `O Abraham thou hast indeed fulfilled the dream.\u2019\nThus indeed do We reward those who do good.\u2019 (37:103-105)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The Holy Quran\nsuccinctly describes the significance of animal sacrifice:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their flesh reaches not\nAllah, nor does their blood, but it is your righteousness that reaches Him.\n(22:38)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The act of sacrifice\nis symbolic reminding the person who offers it that as the animal is inferior\nto him so he, also, is inferior to God and should, therefore, be ready to\nsacrifice himself and all his personal interests and inclinations for\nthe sake of God when he is required to do so. The attainment of righteousness\nshould be the goal of every Muslim. The Holy Quran states:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Verily the most\nhonourable among you in the sight of Allah is the one who is most righteous\namong you.<\/em>(49:40)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Those who do good\nand act righteously shall have a great reward. (4:173)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Verily he truly\nprospers who purifies himself, and remembers the name of his Lord and offers\nprayers.<\/em> (87:15)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The act of sacrifice is in\nno way an atonement for the sins of the person making the sacrifice. Islam\nemphasises that no creature or person can atone for the sins of anyone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Eid-ul-Azha is an\noccasion on which Muslims everywhere are encouraged to make every kind of\nsacrifice for the spiritual, moral, social, and economic uplift of mankind and\nespecially their own. If they make it a common cause and strive to manifest in\nthemselves the attributes of God in accordance with the teachings and guidance\nof the Holy Quran and teachings of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) then, indeed, the\nmessage of Eid-ul-Azha would have borne fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 EID MUBARAK!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By A. Abdul Aziz. Eid-ul-Azha marks the completion of the pilgrimage to Mecca by Muslims from multifarious nations of the world on the tenth day of the Islamic month Zul Haj. It is obligatory to bring the pilgrimage to a successful termination with the sacrifice of an animal. Like prayer and fasting, the performance of pilgrimage […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-116344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-forum"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=116344"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116344\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=116344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=116344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=116344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}