“Hey Mohan! Where are you? I have big news!” 12-year-old Arbab exclaimed in delight to his friend Mohan.

Arbab was a lean and energetic boy. As his parents were out of the country, performing the Hajj pilgrimage, he was staying with his paternal uncle, Uncle Mirza, who lived next door.

“What is it?” replied his best buddy Mohan, who was idly playing with a football. It was their summer holidays and they had a lot of leisure time.

“Mirza Uncle told me we are going to the sacrificial market to buy an animal for Eidul Azha,” Arbab happily broke the news.

“Oh that, I completely forgot about it!” Mohan replied. Though he was a non-Muslim, but he did join his friends in some of the festivities of the two Eids. He continued, “When are you going? I want to come with you, too. I always wondered what does bakramandi look like. I’ll ask my parents for permission, I am sure they will not have any problem with it.”

“Sure, we are going to leave by 10 tomorrow morning, do come before that,” Arbab answered.

The next morning, Mohan arrived at Mirza Uncle’s house on time and the boys, together with Uncle Mirza, set off to the biggest cattle marketin town. Upon reaching there, both the kids were impressed by the huge tent structures and the number of animals of all sizes, such as cows, goats, sheep, bulls and even camels. It was difficult to make a selection from the huge number of options but, after many arguments and bargaining, they settled on a beautiful white goat. Arbab named it ‘Noor’ immediately and they returned satisfied with their purchase.

Since Uncle Mirza was busy at his work every day, it was the duo of Arbab and Mohan who took up the responsibility of looking after the goat. Mohan too was excited to do this.

As the days passed, both the kids were inseparable from the goat. All day, they would stick around Noor, for feeding, walking it out and playing with it and soon they developed a loving bond with the sacrificial animal.

As the days passed, more people bought their own animals, ranging from cows to even sheep. However, Noor’s beauty was extraordinary and everyone just fell in love it.

Unfortunately, Mohan became ill as the Eid approached, leaving Arbab alone to take care of Noor. During this time, Arbab spent more time with Noor and his bonding with the goat increased.

Just two days were left in Eidul Azha when Arbab decided to take Noor for a long walk in the neighbourhood. After some time, when Arbab heard the call for the Asr prayer, he tied Noor by a tree and rushed to the mosque just beside it. This would turn out to be a great mistake, as when he came out, there was no sign of Noor!

Arbab regretted leaving the goat alone and cursed himself for being so careless. He rushed home and told Uncle Mirza everything, so they both returned to where Arbab had lost the goat and started to search for it.

After hours of frantic searching around the neighbourhood, they finally found Noor, cowering behind a tree in fear. At the sight of the rescuers, Noor rushed towards to them. Apparently, someone had opened its rope for fun and the poor goat roamed around the neighbourhood, bleating hard for its owners.

The next day, Mohan felt better and came to see his beloved goat Noor and Arbab told him everything. They both were heavy-hearted as the time to big farewell to their beloved goat was near. The boys were really emotional, but all the while determined to give Noor a memorable farewell.

That evening they took Noor for one last walk, and stroked their beautiful goat affectionately. As they retuned, both the kids were teary-eyed. Uncle Mirza saw them and sat down to talk to them.

“I know you both are very much attached to Noor and you are sad that it’s time to say goodbye to it, right?”

They both nodded.

“There’s no need to feel sad. Noor was brought here for a purpose — to be sacrificed on Eid. This is a testament of offering your most beloved possession to Allah. Eidul-Azha is a time of deep faith, sacrifice and remembrance of Prophet Ibrahim’s devotion — a reminder that true love for Allah lies in obedience and surrender. So, instead of sadness, show respect and gratitude,” he explained.

Both the kids nodded.

Next day, Arbab woke just in time for the Eid prayer, and hurried to the mosque with his uncle. After the Eid prayer, they hurried to where Noor was tied. Mohan woke up early that day too and came there to spent some wonderful last moments with the goat, making sure Noor didn’t feel alone. After that, he returned home as Noor was being taken for sacrifice.

Later that night, Arbab reflected on the day and realised that the true test of Eidul Azha is letting go of what you love, in devotion to a higher purpose.

Published in Dawn, Young World, June 6th, 2025