Eid al-Adha

3id Mubarak s3id (“Happy and blessed festival” in Arabic)!

This is a greeting said to all on the day of Eid al-Adha in Morocco!

Eid al-Adha, also known as the Festival of Sacrifice, occurs around ten weeks after Eid al-Fitr, marking the completion of Hajj — The Holy pilgrimage to Mecca. This festival commemorates and honors the obedience of Ibrahim and his eldest son, Ismail, to the commandment of Allah. In a series of dreams, Ibrahim saw himself sacrificing his son, Ismail. Inferring that it was perhaps the will of Allah that he should sacrifice the life of his son, Ibrahim was about to sacrifice the life of Ismail when God commanded him to stop and gave him the good news that he had indeed fulfilled His command. Allah sent the Angel Jibreel with a ram to sacrifice in the place of Ibrahim’s son. Pleased with Ibrahim for his obedience, Allah multiplied his progeny into billions. Ibrahim was also given the great honor of being the forefather of the Holy Prophet of Islam. On the day of Eid, those Muslims who can afford to sacrifice an animal — Sheep, goat, lamb, cow, or camel — are enjoined to do so after Eid Prayer.

This year, Eid al-Adha fell on my birthday — June 29th. My friend, Maroua, gifted me a Jileba, a dress-like attire worn traditionally by Moroccan women, to wear for the special occasion. Invited by the Abounahr’s, I started my day with them at 8:30 am. After the Eid Prayer, we had breakfast with Moroccan tea, homemade cake, and a wide-range of delicacies. Muhammad and Adnan came home with a sheep, tying it to the door’s wrought iron screen as they headed out again to find a butcher for the slaughter.

When the butcher came with the brothers, we grabbed some items, including the sheep, and headed for the roof. Immediately and too suddenly, the slaughtering begun. Without too much detail, there was a lot of blood and many can say I am traumatized. I had to look away. The streets of the town were empty. Even the cats disappeared from their usual spots. Only the roofs had activity where other families gathered for the slaughtering of their animal.

Once the sheep was beheaded, skinned, and gutted, the siblings’ mother came to clean the guts with Yassmine’s assistance. In the meantime, the brothers went to gather wood for fire. When fire was ablaze, the head and the feet of the sheep were thrown in for the hairs to burn off. When the cleaning process was complete, the area of sacrifice was washed clean and we headed back down with all of our belongings.

Relaxing on the sdari, I noticed the cats back out in their usual places again. The sheep, wrapped in a sheet to protect the meat, was hung on the door. The smell of blood was strong. The sounds coming from the sheep decreased. Barbecue was served and we ate to celebrate the completion of the sacrifice.

Although I found the process a little frightening, I appreciated the experience. In the country, sacrificing the sheep during Eid al-Adha was part of the people’s tradition. Participating in the festival allowed me to celebrate with the people the obedience of Ibrahim and his son, Ismail, to Allah!