Eid-ul-Adha can be a saddening time for many as well. News channels report horrific incidents and clips, all of which are disrespectful to the practice and the animals.
How Has Islam Asked For A Sacrifice?
Animal sacrifice is prescribed in the Holy text, and the method to do it has been outlined as well. The technique is one that results in the least amount of pain for the animal.
It has been prescribed that a knife not even be brought in front of the animals and their counterparts not be sacrificed in front of the other. A special place on the neck has been pointed towards where the cut should be made so that the animal does not feel any pain.
However, the way sacrifices are made today is humiliating for the animals. Here are three ways you can be more compassionate towards your sacrificial animals:
1. Do Not Film Them
Filming their death is just crass and insensitive. This moment is supposed to be a sensitive and grieving one for the owner of the animals. After all, you’re being asked to sacrifice something you love dearly. The innocent animal also is the vessel for you and your spirituality, so please, do not film its sacrifice and ridicule it.
2. Don’t Mistreat Them
Often you’ll see people walking their goats on the road and pulling them hard by their ears. You can nudge them this way, but yanking them by their ears is bound to cause pain, don’t mistreat them this way. Often the animals, tied outside of houses, are provoked and annoyed. It’s done so because others are assured that they are tied, they can’t react.
If they’re not doing anything to hurt you, please don’t provoke them for no reason that too when they are already tied.
An incident that took place a couple of days ago.
This particular cow was brought up and looked after by the family for almost 2 years on top floor of their house in Pakistan,I fail to understand why they chose to bring it down via crane machine for qurbani on Eid day and why could not they do it on the same floor. #ShareToAware pic.twitter.com/pj9qPD1KTz
— Suleman Raza FRSA (@sulemanrazauk) August 2, 2020
3. Don’t Scare Them Before Their Sacrifice
A practice that many people follow is doing 1 sacrifice per day on the 3 days of Eid. What that inherently does is that it scares those remaining behind. If you notice, goats usually don’t bleet, but they start doing so a night or two before Eid or during those days. They start bleeting throughout the night when they are scared.
As we mentioned above, make sure your animal does not see its counterpart (if any) being sacrificed.
If you have bought animals to follow Sunnah, make sure you treat them with compassion. They are the medium between you and the Higher power, don’t disrespect them and please take care of them.
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