By Imam Sanusi Lafiagi
1. Belief: Both Prophets Ibrāhīm (Abraham) and Ismā’īl were strong and devoted believers in Allāh. Their unwavering belief was what Allāh tested, the outcome of which are both the Hajj rites and Eidul Ad’hā.
2. Patience: Prophet Ibrāhīm was tested with years of barreness. He neared a 100 years before Allāh accepted his supplications and gave him glad tidings of both Ismā’īl and Is’hāq. Throughout his years of trial, he remained strongly committed to the cause of Allāh.
3. Obedience: Prophet Ismā’īl demonstrated the highest level of obedience when he replied his father’s “I saw me slaughtering you in my dream. What are your thoughts?” with, “my father, do as you have been commanded. You will find me completely patient by Allāh’s will.” It was never an easy task for both, but obedience comes before anything else!
4. Submission: The decision to abandon infant Ismā’īl and his mother in a desert with no visible water or enough sustenance was one that women of nowadays would have rejected outright. Yet, Hajara did not dispute with her husband when she said, “this is the will of Allāh.” She knew right away that Allāh does not abandon His servants.
5. Perseverance: The walk between Safa and Marwa which today is part of the legislation for both Hajj and Umrah as well as drinking from Zamzam were all birthed by the perseverance of Hajara in the face of an impending calamity of thirst.
6. Reliance: The family of Ibrāhīm is a blessed one. They exemplified total reliance on Allāh for the attainment of one’s life objectives. From being exiled by his own people on account of his call to Tawhīd to his leaving his infant child and wife in a desert, nothing explains a man’s total reliance on Allāh than that.
7. Hope: Hope can only come from a strong belief, complete obedience, absolute submission, and total reliance, all of which typically defined the family of Ibrāhīm. In the end, everything paid off. There’s no Prophet in the whole of the Qur’ān apart from Muhammad (SAW) who was so praised and honoured by Allāh than Ibrāhīm (pbuh).
Once, I did a comparison between Allah’s address to Prophet Nūh when he made a case for his son, and Prophet Ibrāhīm when he made a case for the Qawmu’l-Lūt. While the response to Nūh was like a master’s reprimand of his subordinate, the response to Ibrāhīm was more of an appeal from a friend to his bossom friend.
When you put all of these together, they translate to nothing but sacrifice. Today, we are grateful to Allāh who rewarded that sacrifice with a huge ram from heaven and not with Ismā’īl ending up being slaughtered.
No wonder the Prophet prayed to Allāh to bless him as He has blessed the family of Ibrāhīm.
As we celebrate the Eid, let us remember these lessons and emulate the blessed family of Prophet Ibrāhīm. Eid is not about the amount expended but the lessons learned and practised.
Eidukum Mubārak
