While millions of Muslim pilgrims in Mecca are gathered on Mount Arafat today praying for forgiveness from the Almighty, the Cape Malay community of Kaapstad is busy preparing for the blessed day of Labarang Gadji (Eid ul-Adha), and of course the religious practice of qurbaan (the slaughtering of sheep and cattle).
This act started in the time of prophet Ebraheem (AS), when the Almighty instructed him to slaughter his eldest son prophet Ismaeel (AS).
Prophet Ebraheem’s faith was so strong in the Almighty that when he received the instruction to kill his eldest son for the sake of God, he did not hesitate and his son was also extremely God-conscious.
When his father informed him about the instruction which was given to him from the Almighty, he did not refuse or hesitate, instead he accepted his fate for the sake of God.
However, as we all know, the Almighty tests our faith in various ways and this for the prophet Ebraheem and his beloved eldest son was a test of their belief, but before he could follow through on the act, it is narrated and believed in Islam that the Almighty sent down a ram from heaven and instructed Ebraheem to slaughter the ram instead.
We believe that if the ram had not been sent down for him to sacrifice instead of his son, that every first born son from that moment on would have had to be killed as a sacrifice and a testimony of faith.
The ram that was sent down is also a clear indication of how much the Almighty loves us and how merciful God is.
So the slaughtering of the cattle is not just because we feel like killing a few hundred or thousand sheep, it is to remember and celebrate the blessings and the mercy which the Almighty has bestowed upon us.
It is also believed that every strand of wool on that sheep or cow which is being slaughtered is one of your sins removed.
SACRIFICE: Religious practice of qurbaan
One advantage that a qurbaan has is that we get to make sadaka (charity) with the meat of the sheep which was slaughtered.
I love attending qurbaans, it’s emotional, sad yet you can feel the beauty of the act within yourself.
Once I attended a qurbaan and these people were slaughtering ’n bees and before we knew it, the bees escaped from the garage and started running down the main road.
We eventually chased it down and it took about 30 men to get it back.
It was as if that bees knew vandag is sy dag en hy hettie gesmaak om te gaan nie.
What was moving after that was, toe die imam begin recite over the bees, the animal immediately became calm and all of us who chased him down started tjanking.
The chase, I guess, was a moment of bonding for us all.
Now just imagine if 30 grown men could get emotional for a bees we never knew and had just chased down, what would the condition have been for mothers around the world who gave birth to a baby and then had to raise the child and then sacrifice them afterwards?
A pain that the Almighty knew would be just too much to bear.
I urge my fellow Muslims, qurbaan julle harte uit , maak sadaka met die vleis and have a blessed Eid ul-Adha.
Slamat vir die labarang and a gadj makbool to all the goedjaajies who are on Arafat may all the du’ahs made for them and by them be accepted .