The Festival of Sacrifice BakrId: Significance and Acrostic

Id-ul-Zuha (Bakr-Id), which is also known as Eid al-Adha or Id-ul-Adha, is a festival that Muslims celebrate with special prayers, greetings and gifts. It is a gazetted holiday in India and is also referred to as the festival of sacrifice commemorating Prophet Ibrahim's obedience to God.

This year, the festival falls on May 27 which is also known as the 'Feast of the Sacrifice' or 'Festival of the Sacrifice' to honour the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God's command. But, before Abraham could sacrifice his son, God provided a lamb to sacrifice instead.

ACROSTIC ON BAKRID

Here is an acrostic on BAKRID to convey the message of the festival in phrases which is being reproduced here.

B: Bringing oneself closer to God through prayers and listening to a sermon about spirit of sacrifice

A: Act of obedience to God's command in the form of imbibing the spirit of sacrifice

K: Kinship strengthening requires Qurbani and driving Satan away

R: Reminder to the followers not to become preoccupied by materialistic possessions and evils

I: Ibrahim, the prophet, (Prophet Abraham) decided to sacrifice his son

D: Devotion and love for Allah

In commemoration of this festival, an animal is sacrificed and divided into three parts: one part of the share is given to the poor and needy; second part is for the home, third is given to relatives.