Sacrifice and Eid Economy: Bangladesh Perspectives

 

Every year, the holy Eid-ul-Azha comes with the glorious treasure of awakening humanity by sacrificing animal instincts. Halal animal sacrifice is one of the ways to attain nearness to Allah. The entire Muslim world observes this provision of the Shari'ah simultaneously on the 10th of the month of Jilhaj. Through this, Allah verifies the piety of the servant, the love of the heart.The purpose of the sacrifice is to create the love of Allahin the heart by slaughtering human animality. Moreover, sacrifice is not a festival in itself; there must be sacrificesonly with the aim of renewal and revivalof the fear of Allah in him by pleasing Allah and giving up bestiality within oneself.

In Islam, there is no place for ritual in the matter of prayer, so what is done to raise the price, to show people, to get the praise of the people is not worship, the sacrifice of this competition will never be acceptable to Allah.On the other hand, if a sacrifice is made for the sake of eating meat or because people will say it is bad, that sacrifice will never be accepted in the court of Allah. At the behest of Allah, animal sacrifices play an important role in the religious, social and economic life of the Muslim world.Nowhere at all can such a specialty be found except in Islam. Concerning the greatness and virtue of sacrifice, Allah says in the Qur'an: I have made the law of sacrifice for every nation, so that they may remember My name, on all the animals which He has provided as sustenance.

Your Allahis One Allahso submit to Him, and give good news to the faithful. (Surah Hajj: 34).In another verse it has been said: The flesh and blood of the sacrificial animal do not reach Allah, but your piety reaches Allah. Thus has He made them subservient to you, that you may recite the praises of Allah as He has guided you. So give good news to the doers of good. (Surah Hajj: 36).Sacrifice brings the ultimate success of the religious life of the Muslim Ummah and strengthens the unity of the world Muslim community and expands the door to their economic life, an example of which is hard to find.Be that as it may, Bangladesh and its own culture and customs have been celebrating Eid-ul-Azha for centuries.

There are different festivals in our national life. As a festival and joyous nation, we have organized various ceremonies, special days, religious instruction in grand style. So in our Bangladesh The celebration of Eid-ul-Azha, the festival of animal sacrifice, and the fact that it is celebrated with due dignity, is a determinant of social conduct.

For those who will bring sacrificial animals to Dhaka and other parts of the country through the Padma Bridge, unimaginable opportunities have already been created in the field of animal transportation.Farmers are no longer embarrassed by the Padma Bridge. Due to the Padma Bridge, the crossing of sacrificial animals has become easier. It has created opportunities for farmers, marketers and consumers. The Padma Bridge has provided unimaginable opportunities for organizing sacrifices. The farmers said that it has also had a huge impact on the economy of Korbani.

Sacrificial animal markets have started gathering all over the country including the capital Dhaka. As the Eid is approaching, the capital's sacrificial animal market is in full swing. Meanwhile, sacrificial animals are coming from different parts of the country to the cattle markets designated by the City Corporation in different areas of Dhaka. Compared to the last two years, the market has started to gather a few days ago. This time, local animals are being seen at the Korbani cattle market.Many animals have come to the market now. And more will come in a few days. One crore 21 lakh 2 thousand 389 animals including cows, goats, sheep and camels have been prepared for sacrifice this year across the country.

According to the Department of Livestock, there are about 23 lakh more sacrificial cattle in the country than the demand. Until the Eid day of Konbani, buyers will be able to buy animals for sacrifice of their choice.However, even though the big cows attract the visitors, the buyers are not interested due to the price.The farmers give different names to the big cows includingCoxs-king, kalomanik,Sultan, Lalbahadhur, Yubaraj, Singharaj, Tiger, Dhalapahar, LLCBig Boss, Badshah, Shamrat, Tufan, Swapnaraj, King of Kurigram, Chita Pahar, Boss, Rajababu, Tigerbabu and so on and they have already reached the markets of the country. Lately, news is being heard that cows are also named after showbiz stars. Comewhat may, on any Eid, the sale and purchase of goods in the village markets and cities of the country increases manifold.

The main religious festival of the Muslims, Eid-ul-Fitr in Ramadan, involves buying and selling clothes and distributing wealth in cash or in kind through zakar-fitra, according to religious rules. On the other hand, Eid-ul-Adha is associated with the purchase and sale of animals as well as the spices used to make the meat of slaughtered animals more palatable. As a result, the flow of money increases more than any other time.

Eid-ul-Azha is very important not only for religious or social reasons but also for economic reasons. As one would expect, economic activities are increasing in the country along with this. Because every year around Eid-ul-Azha, about one lakh crore TK is transacted in the economy of Bangladesh. Of this, only sacrificial animals are sold for more than Tk 60,000 crore. Thousands of crores of TKs are traded including various types of animalfeed, Medicines required to keep the animal healthy,lethers, native knives,utensils, chapatis, refrigerators and other accessories.The main driver of the sacrificial economy is the sale of cattle.Every year about 120,000,000 cattle are sacrificed on Eid-ul-Adha in Bangladesh. If the value of each cow is estimated at TKs 50,000, then the trade is worth TKs 60,000 crore.On the other hand, after sacrificing those cattle, the meat processing will require at least three workers and one butcher per cow.

And if the average processing wage for each cow isTK. 7,000 and for 120,00,000 cows will cost TKs.8,400 crores.Leather is of great importance in the economy along with animal sacrifice. More than one and a half crore animal skins are found in the country every year. Most of it comes from sacrificial animals. Although the main market of this sector is 5 thousand crore taka, more than 11 thousand crore taka is transacted in this sector including other markets associated with it. Besides,during this Eid, most of the different types of spices are traded with an economic value of around TKs 6,000 crore.Thousands of crores of takas will be spent on transportation, travel and entertainment for homebound people on Eid. In addition to the regular flow in these sectors, activities of a few more sectors are being added to the economy.

This includes a potential multi-thousand crore takas for government officials and employees. In addition, a significant portion of the millions of shop workers, 7 million workers in the garment and textile sector across the country will receive Eid-allowances, which will bring ever-increasing momentum to the Eid economy. Come what may,have we ever calculated how much the people and the economy of the country are benefiting through sacrifice? Have you ever wondered how many people in this high-priced market have two meals a day? How many people can afford to eat meat at 700 kg? It is really a matter of wondering how many people are getting meat through one sacrifice, and how many are being made a source of income, how much profit is being made! Undoubtdly, Allah's plan is very beautiful and He is all-wise and far-sighted.Everyone should learn this lesson of becoming great from the Eid of Sacrifice.Sacrificers must remember that not only should the animal be stabbed in the throat, but that it should be stabbed to eliminate all its evil inclinations. This is the basic teaching of sacrifice.Keeping the environment clean by cleaning up all the waste or garbage of the sacrificed animals, I, you and everyone in the society have a kind of conscious responsibility.The active participation of the people's representatives and the people must stand by to remove the waste of sacrifice as soon as possible.But keep in mind that the world economy is in recession due to the Russia-Ukraine war.

There are many problems in the economy. The government has already taken appropriate steps to overcome them. Every year this festival accelerates the economy. Subtly, it is to be hoped that Bangladesh's economy will continue to move forward at a relentless pace.Finally, I would like to say that we should be purified in the glory of sacrifice and build a corruption-free and unselfish society. Let the message of that prosperity be poured into the Eid economy.


MdAzgar Ali is a Researcher and Columnist.