For centuries, the people of Azerbaijan have welcomed the holy Eid al-Adha with great joy and enthusiasm, and have turned the sacrifice ceremony into their national tradition and spiritual value. The sacred Eid al-Adha serves as a means of fostering community, fostering spiritual purification, and enhancing faith. Eid al-Adha and Ramadan are the only holidays that are legalized in Islam. The Arabic ‘Eid al-Adha’ refers to approaching Allah's mercy. This holiday is a part of the Muslim Hajj pilgrimage. Eid al-Adha is celebrated on the 10th day of Zulhijjah, the 12th month of the Hijri calendar, in the form of slaughtering sacrificial animals during the pilgrimage to Mecca.

The ritual of sacrifice existed before Islam. It was performed in different ways in different countries before Islam. Although Eid al-Adha is one of the oldest holidays, it acquired its true essence in the Islamic religion. Eid al-Adha encouraging people for halal and purity has a compelling history and conditions. In all three heavenly religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, sacrifice has existed in various forms. But in Islam, this worship has a special essence and significance. It is based on infinite love for Allah and deep faith in His might. Religious sacrifice has amassed signs of boundless enthusiasm, devotion, charity, and helpfulness in the Islamic world. Eid al-Adha is associated with Hazrat Ibrahim (Alaihi Salaam) and his son Ismail.

The main purpose of this holiday is to share the sacrificial animal in the path of Allah with his poor servants,  make them happy, promote the growth of belief, love, and faith in Allah by showing kindness, and guide people on the right path.

Different religious beliefs have existed in Azerbaijan at the stages of history. Since the 4th century BC, a population of fire worshipers, Judaism, and Christianity lived here.  In the 7th and 8th centuries AD, Islam became the dominant religion throughout Azerbaijan. Since the second half of the 9th century, Islam has occupied a special place in the Azerbaijani people's culture, literature, and politics. Even the tragedies the Azerbaijani people went through in the 19th and 20th centuries, the division of territories, the resettlement of the Christian population to occupied territories, the ban on Islam in Soviet times, and the destruction of religious monuments could not alienate our people from Islam.

Historically, there has been religious and national tolerance in Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani people and the Islamic religion have played an unprecedented role in maintaining this tolerance until now. Representatives of all nations and religions live as one family in Azerbaijan. According to the Law on Holidays of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated October 27, 1992, adopted by the Milli Majlis after Azerbaijan gained independence, Eid al-Adha began to be celebrated at the state level in our country. The National Leader Heydar Aliyev united the representatives of different peoples and religions living in the Republic of Azerbaijan based on a single ideology - the ideology of Azerbaijanism, tolerance, and active socio-political cooperation. He created a system of state-religious relations that can be an example worldwide today. The religious policy of the Azerbaijani state, founded by Heydar Aliyev, has successfully overcome the hardships of time and has become an influential factor in political stability, public understanding, and civic solidarity in society.  Under his leadership, our people became more united and firmly attached to their traditions and values.  They gained the right to celebrate their sacred holidays freely along with many democratic principles.

Today, the Azerbaijani people, thanks to the Victorious Commander-in-Chief, President Ilham Aliyev, our heroes, immortal martyrs, and brave veterans, celebrate Eid al-Adha in the climate of Victory as a triumphant nation that won the Patriotic War.

Not only Islamic values are given preference in our country. In our young independent state, founded by National Leader Heydar Aliyev, representatives of all heavenly religions freely perform their religious rites. Even the church of the Armenians who kept 20 percent of the territory of Azerbaijan under occupation for thirty years and destroyed dozens of our mosques, has been preserved in its original form. A sensitive attitude to religious and moral values, respect for various religions and civilizations, and tolerance constitute the spiritual foundations of the democratic Azerbaijani society. President Ilham Aliyev takes consistent measures regarding the recovery of religious and spiritual values, and material and cultural monuments. All religious monuments in Azerbaijan have been restored and repaired by his orders and instructions. According to the instructions of the head of state, the villages and settlements around Baku, as well as the mosques and temples, sacred places, and historical religious monuments in our territories liberated from occupation have been restored. Azerbaijan joined many intercultural conventions, became a member of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and hosted the Baku 2017 Islamic Solidarity Games.

Eid al-Adha embodies our spiritual and moral values and inspires people to help each other and unite. In every part of our country, animals are sacrificed in the name of Allah, prayers are offered for the prosperity and progress of our state, and the imperishable memory of our martyrs is honored. A symbol of humanism, goodness, and equality, Eid al-Adha strengthens national-spiritual solidarity and tolerance in our society and demonstrates the triumph of feelings of compassion and mercy among people.

Recommended literature:

1. Folklor və dövlətçilik düşüncəsi /AMEA, Folklor İn-tu [ön söz] ; layihə rəhb. M. Kazımoğlu (İmanov). - Bakı:Elm və təhsil, 2016. - 307 s.
2. Özdirek, Recep. Qurban ibadəti: əsas məlumatlar, aktual suallar /R. Özdirek ; anadolu türkcəsindən Azərb. türkcəsinə uyğ. E. Kərimov ; elmi red., nəşrə haz. A. Qurbanov ; dizayn T. Səlimov. - Bakı: İpəkyolu, 2011. - 93 s.
3. Мусульманские праздники и святыни /сост. М. Ю. Козырева. - Москва: ОЛМА Медиа Групп, 2013. - 301 с.
4. Аляутдинов, Шамиль Рифатович. Всё о мусульманском посте и Курбан-байраме /Ш. Аляутдинов ; отв. ред. С. Гоманова. - Москва: Санкт-Петербург: Диля, 2012. - 311 с.