[cs_content][cs_section bg_color=”rgb(136, 134, 134)” parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_line style=”border-top-width: 1px;”][x_custom_headline level=”h2″ looks_like=”h3″ accent=”false” class=”cs-ta-center”]A Holiday of Sacrifice[/x_custom_headline][cs_text class=”cs-ta-center”]By: Jami Sall
August 31, 2017[/cs_text][cs_text class=”cs-ta-center”]For Muslims around the world and in Turkey, Kurban Bayramı (known as Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of the Sacrifice, in the Arab world) is one of the two major religious holidays they celebrate each year. This year, Islam’s foremost festival begins today, in the evening of Thursday, August 31, and runs through Monday, September 4, 2017. Çetin and his family raise animals all year long that are sold just for this holiday.
Çetin, left, and his family are from the eastern Turkish province of Ağrı. This province is known for the great quality of meat that comes from the animals they raise.
Every year about a month before the holiday, Çetin and his family load up around 250 cattle and 100 rams in very large trucks to be transported to the large city of Izmir.
In the center of the metropolis of Izmir one can find the largest animal market in the city during the holiday season.
Çetin's nephew Orhan is in charge of selling the rams.
Since rams are a smaller animal, they are typically bought and sacrificed by a single family.
Cows are the largest animal that can be purchased, and they are usually bought by three to seven families who put their money together. After they sacrifice the cow the families will divide the meat evenly.
Anywhere from a month before to the day before the holiday begins, families come to the market to pick out an animal. Once they take it home they feed and take care of the animal until the first day of the holiday, known as the day of sacrifice. This is the day they sacrifice their animal. They believe this sacrifice will cover a year of sins that they have committed. After the meat is sliced and divided, as a tradition they give some of it to five different neighbors. They freeze the rest for winter.
Çetin and Orhan bring six shepherds with them from Ağrı to take care of the some 350 animals awaiting sale.
Çetin and Orhan bring six shepherds with them from Ağrı to take care of the some 350 animals awaiting sale.
Çetin and Orhan bring six shepherds with them from Ağrı to take care of the some 350 animals awaiting sale.
At the end of this holy holiday Çetin and his family make the long journey back to the east with enough money in their pockets to last a year.
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