The Right of the Sacrificial Animal (14th) Commentary on Imam Al-Sajjad’s (AS) Treaties of Right by Mohammad Sobhanie.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
وَأمَّا حَقُّ الهَدْيِ فَأَنْ تُخلِصَ بهَا الإرَادَةَ إلَى رَبكَ وَالتَّعَرُّضَ لِرَحْمَتِهِ وَقَبُولِهِ ولا تُرِيدَ عُيُونَ النَّاظِرِينَ دُونهُ، فـَإذَا كُنْتَ كَذَلِكَ لَمْ تَكُنْ مُتَكَلِّفًا ولا مُتَصَنِّعًا وَكُنْتَ إنَّمَا تَقْصِدُ إلَى الله. وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ الله يُرَادُ بالْيَسِيرِ وَلا يُرَادُ بالْعَسِيرِ كَمَا أَرَادَ بخَلْقِهِ التَّيْسِيرَ وَلَمْ يُرِدْ بهِمُ التَّعْسِيرَ، وَكَذَلِكَ التَّذَلُّلَ أَوْلَى بكَ مِن التَّدَهْقُنِ لأَنَّ الْكُلْفَةَ وَالْمَئونَةَ فِي الْمُتَدَهْقِنِينَ. فَأمَّا التَّذَلُّلُ وَالتَّمَسْكُنُ فَلا كُلْفَةَ فِيهِمَا وَلا مَئونةَ عَلَيْهِمَا لأَنَّهُمَا الْخِلْقَةَ وهُمَا مَوجُودَانِ فِي الطَّبيعَةِ. وَلا قُوَّةَ إلا باللهِ.
The Right of the Sacrificial Animal
And the right of the sacrificial animal is to offer it sincerely to get close to Allah (SWT) and God’s Mercy, not to impress the people. If you slaughter it with this intention, your sacrifice will neither be lavish nor phony; you intend to seek closeness to Allah (SWT).
And know that people should seek closeness to Allah (SWT) by means that are easy and not by means that are difficult (such as burdening themselves with offering that gain people’s admiration and respect). As Allah (SWT) also wishes God’s servants ease and does not wish them hardship (in any act of worship)[1].
And at the time of sacrifice, it is proper to express humility and servitude, not conceit and self-righteousness. A humble attitude is better than egotism since the latter comes with extravagant costs and hardships. But there are no costs and difficulties in humbleness and servitude. The two traits of humility and unpretentiousness are in harmony with human creation. There is no power but in God.
Commentary:
As part of the Hajj pilgrims sacrifice an animal in Mina on the 10th day of Ḏhūl-Ḥijjah. Offering the sacrificial animal is an act of worship and should be done for the sake of Allah (SWT) to seek His nearness and grace. It is not an act intended to show off one’s wealth and social status.
The Imam stressed that if a pilgrim tries to impress people with the type and number of sacrificial animals, they will have indulged in extravagance and burdened themselves with hardship without the benefit of getting nearness to Allah (SWT) and God’s mercy.
The key criterion of any act of worship is sincerity in intention. For instance, sacrificing a small animal sincerely for the sake of Allah (SWT) would expose one to the mercy of Allah (SWT). In contrast, offering a large and expensive animal to show off to society will create distance from receiving divine grace.
The practice of sacrificing animals goes back to the time of the children of Adam (AS), as stated in verse 5:27 (Al-Ma’idah)[2]:
وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَيْ آدَمَ بِالْحَقِّ إِذْ قَرَّبَا قُرْبَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ الْآخَرِ قَالَ لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ
5:27 And recite to them the story of Adam’s two sons, in truth, when they both offered a sacrifice (to Allah (SWT)), and it was accepted from one of them but was not accepted from the other. Said (the latter), “I will surely kill you.” Said (the former), “Indeed, Allah (SWT) only accepts from the righteous (who fear God).”
The verse tells the story of two brothers that offered sacrifices to God; one sacrificed an animal to get close to Allah (SWT) and the other had a different motive. Allah (SWT) accepted only the sacrifice of the brother who sought nearness to Him, and the sacrifice of the other brother was rejected.
The Imam (AS), regarding reaching closeness to Allah (SWT) said: And know that people should seek closeness to Allah (SWT) by means that are easy and accessible (which is sincerity in intention) and not by means that are arduous (such as burdening themselves with offering a large animal to gain people’s admiration and respect). Allah (SWT) also wishes God’s servants ease and does not wish them hardship (in the act of worship) [3]:
… يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَ
2:185 Allah (SWT) intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship.
The Imam (AS) states that instead of having the attitude of arrogance and self-richness, the sacrificial animal should be offered humbly and unpretentiously in the presence of Allah (SWT). Humility is better than seeking dominance and supremacy since dominance and hegemony come with costs and hardships. However, there are no costs and difficulties in practicing humility and being down to earth. Because these two traits (humility and unpretentiousness) are in harmony with human creation, both are in human nature. There is no power but in God.
What is the purpose of sacrificing animals in Mina? Sacrificing animals reminds Hajj pilgrims that they must submit unconditionally to Allah’s (SWT) command, as Prophet Ibrahim and Ismail showed.
In his dream, Prophet Ibrahim (AS) saw that he was sacrificing his son, Ismail. He shared his vision with the son. Without questioning his father, Ismail said: “Father! Do whatever you have been commanded. If Allah (SWT) wishes, you will find me to be patient [4].”
When the time of the sacrifice came, Allah (SWT) called Ibrahim and said to him [5], “O Ibrahim! You have indeed fulfilled your vision! Thus, indeed, do We reward the virtuous! This was indeed a manifested test.”
The Arabic word “Alhadyi” [Arabic:(الْهَدْيِ)] comes from the word (هَدِیَّه) and means gift. Within this context, a sacrificial animal is a gift from a pilgrim to the House of Allah (SWT). Also, it could come from the word (هدایت) and means guidance since a sacrificial animal is led toward the House of Allah (SWT) for sacrifice [6].
Notes:
[1] 2:185, Al-Baqarah (يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْر)
[2] 5:27, Al-Maidah
[3] 2:185, Al-Baqarah (يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْر)
[4] As-Saffat 37:102
[5] As-Saffat 37:104-106
[6] Tafseer-e–Namoona, Vol.2, P.45
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