Eid-ul-azha, the second biggest religious festival of the Muslims, will be celebrated on September 2. Prayers will be offered for world peace as well as prosperity of mankind. Divine blessings will be sought and the solemnity of the occasion maintained in a joyous mood. Eid-ul-Azha revives the memory of the Prophet Ibrahim's (Pbuh) faith in Allah and his complete readiness to sacrifice his dearest son as a token of surrendering himself to the divine will. There lies the true message of Eid-ul-Azha. The Almighty, in His infinite kindness and being satisfied with the prophet's resolve, withdrew the decree and permitted him to sacrifice an animal.

The Eid is being observed in our country at a time when hundreds of thousands of people are struggling with devastating floods. Obviously they are not in a position to celebrate Eid the way they would have liked to. It is, hence, our moral and religious obligation to share their grief and possibly refrain from doing anything that would show a lack of sensitivity to these people. If sacrifice is what this festival is all about, then the people in distress should be the prime beneficiaries of what we do on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha. This Eid, let us resolve to break away from the temptation to show off our worldly riches, and focus on extending a helping hand to those less fortunate.

Our prayers are with all Muslims who are not able to celebrate the festival with the usual joviality because they are besieged by natural disaster, war, poverty or other difficult circumstances. We truly hope that the essence of sacrifice, both spiritually and materially, embrace us all.

Eid Mubarak to our readers!