What have we sacrificed?

Allah is the greatest

Glory be to Allah in the morning and evening

There is no God but Allah

None do we worship save Him

We are sincere in our worship though the kuffar hate it

There is no god but Allah, the One

Who fullfils His promises

Who helps His servants

Who honored His armies by defeating the Ahzab (kuffar) all by Himself

There is no god but Allah

Allah is the greatest

All praises are for Him alone

Bismillah.

The imam at Masjid as-Syakirin KLCC in his Eidul Adha khutbah asked the jemaah: 'What have we sacrificed?' He said: Prophet Muhammad s.a.w sacrificed plenty when he made the hijrah from Makkah to Madinah. Prophet Ibrahim a.s had left his wife Hajar and son Ismail in Makkah. What sacrifices have we made? Have we sacrificed our intelligence, energy, time and property for the sake of Islam?

He said, there are numerous lessons to be learned from Eidul Adha which is synonymous with the act of sacrificing and hajj. We learn that hajj demands Muslims to be loving towards one another, to show respect and to be cooperative. We are a close-knit society as narrated in a hadith s.a.w that should one part of the body is afflicted with illness, the rest of the body feels the pain too. We learn from history how the Muhajirin and Ansar were so kind and helpful. Taqwa bound them together. But our societies today are bickering. Even if we don't quarrel, we do not live as harmoniously as we should be. We don't even know who our neighbors are. 

We should put our differences aside. The hajj teaches equality. None is superior than the other. We all wear the same white robe no matter how rich we are. We are equals in the eyes of Allah. The only thing that differentiates us is taqwa. Prophet Muhammad taught us about the virtues of being impartial and not have any favoritism even towards one's own family. He said that he would not hesitate to cut his daughter's hand (Saidatina Fatimah) if she was caught stealing. In his last sermon during hajj, he reminded the ummah that we come from the same root and that we worship the same God. Therefore, we should follow the Qur'an and sunnah.

To summarize, remember three things.
1. Hajj symbolizes the ummah's unity.
2. The ummah must be willing to make personal sacrifices.
3. Hajj is a journey of tarbiyah (lesson) in accordance to sirah Rasul (history).

Why do you think people are willing to spend lots of money to go for hajj and perform sacrifices? Because people have iman and taqwa. They sacrificed so much because of their iman and taqwa. Just make sure you make the right sacrifices and for the right reasons.

Know that sacrifice is a source of strength for the ummah. The Palestinians have sacrificed a great deal in defending their faith and dignity. What about us? Have we or are we willing to sacrifice for the sake of Islam, Allah and Rasul?