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Eid Al-Adha

 

November 27

 

Today was the first day of Eid Al-Adha, the Islamic festival that commemorates the sacrifice that Abraham was wiling to make of his son to God, but at the last minute was told to sacrifice a lamb. Muslims celebrate this festival and its connection to the end of the Hajj by each family slaughtering a cow, sheep or goat. I asked around to my students and found out that the Al-Azhar area of Cairo would be a great area to witness some animal sacrifices, so I got up at 5am, and after waiting for an unexpected rain to end, I made my way to Al-Azhar. I stopped at the Dar El-Salam Metro stop, but couldn’t find any killings. When got the Azhar, there were animals everywhere; most tied up to lamp posts or car bumpers. I found a side road, and 4 guys had a cow tied up, and were trying to pull him down. This was right next to a butcher shop. One guy was sharpening a knife, and when the cow was down, he cut its throat. Blood everywhere; the cow was jerking; spectators were sitting around watching; cars and motorbikes were driving by. Very unsanitary. One guys helping out with the slaughter was barefoot, another guy was smoking a cigarette and the ashes were falling into the open body cavity, and he would pause every now and then to sip some tea. One guy was getting the guts out, and would stick the knife in his mouth as he would tug on the organs. Meanwhile, people walking through the blood back and forth. I watched all the way through the skinning, the moved on. While I was walking back to the Metro station, I saw one guy walking through the street with a cow’s head in his arms. I saw another guy kill a ram, and then blow into a hole in the leg to separate the hide from the muscle. Male children were helping out, part of a male right of passage. One 12 or 13 year old boy has on a white galibaya with bloody handprints on it—part of the proof of his participation in this religious ritual. By about 8:30am, I had seen enough, had taken enough pictures, and headed back to Maadi.

Eid Al-Adha is the Islamic festival coming after the Hajj or pilgrimage, and commemorates the sacrifice Abraham was willing to make of his son to God. At the last minute, God intervened, and required a sacrifice of a sheep. Thus, Muslims slaughter a cow, sheep, or goat to comemmorate this event. Traditionally, families that sacrifice an animal keep 1/3 of the meat for themselves, give 1/3 of it to family, and distribute 1/3 of it to the poor.

On the morning of Eid Al-Adha, I took the train at 6am to the Al-Azhar section of Cairo to see the sights. Below are some images I captured. I will warn you, however, they are pretty graphic, and if you don’t want to see animal parts and blood everywhere, don’t look.

Cow waiting for the end

Cow waiting for the end

In the area of Al-Hussein Mosque

In the area of Al-Hussein Mosque

The great Al-Azhar Mosque and University (1000 years old)

The great Al-Azhar Mosque and University (1000 years old)

Sacrificing a cow

Sacrificing a cow

Family watching on as "their" cow is sacrificed

Family watching on as "their" cow is sacrificed

Sacrificing a Ram

Sacrificing a Ram

Cutting up the meat

Cutting up the meat

Slaughtering a cow inside a Auto parts store

Slaughtering a cow inside a Auto parts store

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