ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Understanding Karbala “And We Ransomed him with a Great Sacrifice” His Eminence, Prophet Ibrahim (a.s) was already appointed at the post of Messengership. He already donned the mantle of “divine friendship” (Khalil), and seeking the vastness of his skirt the Beneficent Lord had bestowed him with the pearls of merits and virtues. Today again, providence wants to grant him a significant position but to achieve this status he has to pass a strange test.

He sees a dream for two consecutive nights that he is slaughtering his one and only son in the path of God. The scene of the third day is described in the following words of the Holy Qur’an: And when he attained to working with him, he said: O my son! surely I have seen in a dream that I should sacrifice you; consider then what you see. He said: O my father!

Do what you are commanded; if Allah please, you will find me of the patient ones.[^1] This conversation clearly shows how steadfast these father and sons were and how particular they were in obeying the command of Allah. The Holy Qur’an is informing us that: So when they both submitted and he threw him down upon his forehead, and We called out to him saying: O Ibrahim! You have indeed shown the truth of the vision; surely thus do We reward the doers of good:[^2] Ibrahim (a.s) opened his eyes.

My God! What is this? Ismail is standing away from him and smiling; and in his place a ram is lying slaughtered. Ibrahim (a.s) was perplexed. He though, “If I had seen my son rolling in the dust and blood, and had been patient in obeying the command of Allah, how great my status would have been in the court of Allah. It is a pity that I could not scale those heights.

May be this sacrifice is not worthy of acceptance in the courts of the Almighty Lord and that is why it has been neglected.” At that time the Holy Qur’an only tells us that the statement of Almighty Allah supported him: Most surely this is a manifest trial.

And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice.[^3] In many commentaries of Qur’an the “great sacrifice” is said to denote that same ram which was slaughtered in lieu of His Eminence, Ismail (a.s).[^4] In the Shia commentary, Tafsir Safi a tradition of Tafsir Qummi is also quoted on this topic: When Ibrahim (a.s) decided to slaughter Ismail (a.s), the Almighty Allah made a beautiful ram its ransom.