Id-ul-Zuha or Bakrid - one of the holy festivals of Muslims which commemorates the sacrifice of Prophet Ibrahim, who willingly agreed to offer his son as a sacrifice at the behest of Allah was celebrated with great vigour and zest in the city.

Hundreds of Muslims gathered at the Idgah Maidan and offered mass prayers. Later they offered sacrifices of goats, sheeps and lambs, which is called Qurbani. 

A special prayer meet was held which was led by Nazeer Ahmad. Speaking on the occasion, he said that sacrifice is one of the ways of worshipping God. He called the mass to sacrifice something in the name of God.

The festival represents sacrifice or Qurbani. Hazarat Ismail Alai Husalam is born to Hazrat Ibrahim, to his old parents. He was adored by his parents very much, until a divine message from God asked Ibrahim to leave his son and wife in a remote forest which was devoid of basic facilities such as water also.

This is the place which is now famous as Mecca, goes the legend. When the baby bangs his leg in dire need of water, a water sprinkler emerges, which is now called Abe-Jum-Jum holy water. This holy water is brought to home by the devotees who visit Mecca.

The same divine message asks Ibrahim to sacrifice his son. When Ibrahim starts to cut his sons’ throat, to his surprise, he sees a slaughtered lamb, instead of the son’s dead body.The Muslim devotees even to this day, symbolically sacrifice sheep, goat and other animals on this day.

The sacrificial offering is divided into three portions; for household consumption, for friends and relatives and for the poor and the needy.

Help

They also help the students who study in Madrasas, from the money which the get after selling the skin of these animals used as sacrificial offerings. The offerings can also be given on Fridays, else on Saturdays and Sundays too.

The Moulvi who spoke at the special prayer meeting which was held in Idgah Maidan, feared the youth becoming slaves to bad habits and stressed on building up a healthier society, for which the youth have to come out of the evils and help in developing the country. The Muslims greeted each other after the prayer meeting.