In the Name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate
Thousands of years ago, an extraordinary act by our forefather and one of the greatest of Messengers, the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), was singled out by Allah as an act to be commemorated by countless generations to come. This one act, the sacrifice of his beloved son[1] to Allah Almighty alone and the story surrounding it, is what constitutes the origin of many rituals that Muslims perform during the Pilgrimage to Makkah and throughout the world during the blessed month of Dhul Hijjah. There are many lessons that we can derive from the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and his great sacrifice that continue to have relevance for us in the modern age, and will continue to do so until the Last Day.
In describing the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), Allah Almighty states:
إِنَّ إِبۡرَٰهِيمَ كَانَ أُمَّةٗ قَانِتٗا لِّلَّهِ حَنِيفٗا وَلَمۡ يَكُ مِنَ ٱلۡمُشۡرِكِينَ ١٢٠ شَاكِرٗا لِّأَنۡعُمِهِۚ ٱجۡتَبَىٰهُ وَهَدَىٰهُ إِلَىٰ صِرَٰطٖ مُّسۡتَقِيمٖ ١٢١
النَّحۡل
Indeed, Ibrahim was a model of excellence: devoted to Allah, a man of pure faith —not a polytheist; showing thankfulness for His blessings; He chose him, and He guided him to a straight path. (Qur’an 16:120-121)
Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud (RA) commented that the word describing the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) as ummah in the first verse above means “the one who teaches others good” and qānit as meaning “the one devoutly obedient to Allah.” Thus, before the test of the sacrifice, as well as during and after it, the basis of Prophet Ibrahim’s (peace be upon him) actions was being in a state of teaching those around him to be good while complying with every commandment of his Lord.
This sets an example for us to follow in our times, where we should become a wellspring of goodness for the people we live among, while at the same time remaining vigilant in obedience to our Lord. He was also considered as a “nation unto himself,” which constitutes another meaning of ummah, since he did not have many followers from his people and remained in a state of isolation for much of his life. Thus, despite not having much support from his own people as he called them towards the truth, he remained firm in his faith—a lesson we can benefit from today, when many treat Islam and Muslims as something to be feared, hated and avoided. Nonetheless, our primary and sole concern must remain being firm in our commitment to Allah through our beliefs and actions, irrespective of what people may think of us. The second verse above then indicates how Ibrahim (peace be upon him) continuously showed gratitude for all of Allah’s blessings upon him, teaching us never to take any blessing for granted and to remain thankful to Allah in all states and circumstances.
As for the act of the sacrifice itself, Allah describes the event through a dialogue between Prophet Ibrahim and his son q as follows:
فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ مَعَهُ ٱلسَّعۡيَ قَالَ يَٰبُنَيَّ إِنِّيٓ أَرَىٰ فِي ٱلۡمَنَامِ أَنِّيٓ أَذۡبَحُكَ فَٱنظُرۡ مَاذَا تَرَىٰۚ قَالَ يَٰٓأَبَتِ ٱفۡعَلۡ مَا تُؤۡمَرُۖ سَتَجِدُنِيٓ إِن شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ مِنَ ٱلصَّٰبِرِينَ ١٠٢ فَلَمَّآ أَسۡلَمَا وَتَلَّهُۥ لِلۡجَبِينِ ١٠٣ وَنَٰدَيۡنَٰهُ أَن يَٰٓإِبۡرَٰهِيمُ ١٠٤ قَدۡ صَدَّقۡتَ ٱلرُّءۡيَآۚ إِنَّا كَذَٰلِكَ نَجۡزِي ٱلۡمُحۡسِنِينَ ١٠٥ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَهُوَ ٱلۡبَلَٰٓؤُاْ ٱلۡمُبِينُ ١٠٦ وَفَدَيۡنَٰهُ بِذِبۡحٍ عَظِيمٖ ١٠٧ وَتَرَكۡنَا عَلَيۡهِ فِي ٱلۡأٓخِرِينَ ١٠٨
الصَّافَّات
Then when the boy reached the age to work with him, Abraham said, “O my dear son! I have seen in a dream that I ˹must˺ sacrifice you. So tell me what you think.” He replied, “O my dear father! Do as you are commanded. Allah willing, you will find me steadfast.” Then when they submitted ˹to Allah’s Will˺, and Abraham laid him on the side of his forehead ˹for sacrifice˺, We called out to him, “O Abraham! You have already fulfilled the vision.” Indeed, this is how We reward the good-doers. That was truly a revealing test. And We ransomed his son with a great sacrifice, and We let him be praised by succeeding generations.
(Qur’an 37:102-108)
As is clearly laid out in the above verses, the story of the sacrifice is one of mutual love of the Divine shared between a father and his child, along with true devotion and obedience to Allah.
For us in the modern age, there are many powerful lessons to derive from this. The verses begin with a dialogue between a loving father and his young son related to their fulfilling the commandment of their Lord, which is something we can apply within our own families as parents converse with their children, with a sense of compassion and concern for their wellbeing on all levels, in developing our relationship with Allah. As they both actively engaged in this immense act of surrender, the test became one of complete faith and trust in Allah Almighty. That is, they both truly believed with absolute conviction that if they do as their Lord commanded, then ultimately, Allah would provide a way out for them and no harm whatsoever would befall them, despite the outward appearance of the act initially indicating otherwise.
Today, when we are asked to make sacrifices for the sake of Allah and for the sake of this magnificent Deen, the message we must impart ourselves and our families with is to have total reliance and trust in Allah while taking the proper means, knowing with certainty that in the end, Allah will provide and reward us for our devotion to Him. Even though Allah granted a sacrificial ram to the Prophet Ibrahim and his son (peace be upon them) as a reward for their obedience to Him in this most difficult test, the story nonetheless remains being about the acts of piety which reach Allah Almighty through our ritual devotions, rather than the actual flesh and blood of the sacrifice itself. As Allah states in the Qur’an:
لَن يَنَالَ ٱللَّهَ لُحُومُهَا وَلَا دِمَآؤُهَا وَلَٰكِن يَنَالُهُ ٱلتَّقۡوَىٰ مِنكُمۡ
الحَج
Their meat will not reach Allah, nor will their blood, but what reaches Him is piety from you. (Qur’an 22:37)
Therein lies a deep meaning and spirit behind the outward act of devotion that counts in the sight of Allah, and this is where we must place our focus when it comes to making sacrifices in our times as a means to seek Allah’s pleasure.[2] Taking the right outward means are essential and important; however, such actions cannot be devoid of sincere intentions while fulfilling the commands of our Lord. May Allah grant us the wisdom and means to draw us nearer to Him through our sacrifices, and may He grant us a most blessed Eid al-Adha. Ameen!
[1] According to the predominant opinion of Qur’anic scholars in the Islamic tradition, the son who was sacrificed was Ishmael, however, there is a minority of scholars, such as Imam al-Tabari and Imam al-Qurtubi as indicated in their respective tafsir texts, who are of the opinion that it was Ishaq.
[2] For more details on the inner meanings behind the ritual acts associated with the Hajj and the story of Ibrahim (peace be upon him), see the article “Living Abraham’s Legacy: Relevance of Rites and Rituals in the Modern Age” by Ibrahim Hindy and Dr. Nazir Khan at https://yaqeeninstitute.org/ibrahim-hindy/living-abrahams-legacy-relevance-of-rites-and-rituals-in-the-modern-age/.