By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : Muslims in Kerala Monday offered prayers at mosques and specially erected prayer centres across the state on the occasion of Bakr-Eid.
Monday is a public holiday in the state and Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan offered his Bakr-Eid wishes to the people of the state.
Bakr-Eid commemorates Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his beloved son Ismail on god’s command.
According to a Muslim belief, Allah wanted to test Ibrahim’s faith and commanded him to sacrifice his son. Ibrahim agreed to do it but considering what a difficult task it was, he blindfolded himself before putting Ismail on the altar at the mount of Mina near Makkah.
When he removed his blindfold after performing the act, he saw his son standing in front of him, alive. On the altar lay a slaughtered lamb instead. Sacrificing goats on Bakr-Eid is, therefore, in commemoration of that incident.
The sacrificial meat is distributed after the Eid prayers to the family and friends.
“In the mosque that we go to, we collected money from the members and purchased 11 buffaloes. Immediately after morning prayers, the animals were sacrificed and the meat was distributed among those who came for prayers and to all those who live near the mosque,” said Ramshad, a devout Muslim in Kottayam.
Since Sunday evening, there were huge crowds in front of meat stalls all across the state and prices touched Rs.210 per kg.
Muslims in Kerala are 24 percent of the state’s 32 million population.