Bakrid

Animal waste on road

Animal waste on road

I have been watching something everyday which nobody would ever like to see. Its blood and meat everywhere in my city. There is a Muslim festival called Bakrid. Each and every Muslim family is supposed to slaughter on male goat. Sometimes they buy one for each member of the family. They slaughter the animal and throw all the waste on road. It takes at least four-five days for municipality to clean this up. There is a Discovery TV show called dirty jobs. I have watched that show sometimes but honestly the job they show is nothing in comparison with our municipality workers. 

What part of body is this?

What part of body is this?

For these four-five days all the animal waste stays on road. People stop going to Muslim neighborhoods during these four-five days. I had seen it once about ten years ago and could not dare to go again towards Muslim neighborhoods during this festival. But this year I went specially to see it again with Nadia, a researcher from Singapore. First of all we decided to walk but right after crossing one neighborhood we decided to take a rickshaw because it was overwhelming to walk. There was goat skin, meat and other wastes all over the road. I wondered how other people were standing near all these wastes and talking to each other. It was just like daily routine for them.  

It was also on the road

It was also on the road

We took a rickshaw and passed by all the major Muslim neighborhoods in Varanasi. I saw the same thing everywhere- meat, goat skin, and blood. I saw one guy riding a camel as well. They entered in a Muslim neighborhood with this camel. I asked few locals about it and they all said that they were going to slaughter this camel as well. Wealthy people slaughter camels to show their wealth. Number of camels slaughtered is a news every year. I read in newspaper that ten camels were slaughtered only in Varanasi. 

Municipality workers cleaning the waste

Municipality workers cleaning the waste

I don’t know what to say about this festival or whom to claim for this but definitely it is everybody responsibility to keep the sanitation. I think they must not throw animal waste on road. It spreads diseases and it looks so disgusting. I don’t think there could be anything worst than finding yourself in between all kind of meat. Nadia is also a Muslim but she had never seen or expected anything like that. She says that its completely hidden in Singapore. People never see any slaughtering even it is done in their name. 

A begger storing food

A begger storing food

Nadia says that in Singapore they just pay the money to mosques and get a slaughtering done in their name. This idea is thousand time better than what we have. She started feeling sick after watching those tons of meat. I could not eat the day I watched it but it was still an experience for me and Nadia. There is very famous humor that selling meat is prohibited in Varanasi but the reality is something what I have talked about. Meat is everywhere:- in the shops, in the kitchens and sometimes on the road as well.

One thought on “Bakrid

  1. Its really pity to see/hear such event. Human being are advancing in every front but still there is shear lack of Wisdom. How one can appease a GOD by slaughtering animal ? Dont you see that animals resist when they are brought to the slaughter house. If anyone wants to really appease GOD then he/she should slaughter his own daughter/son. God will be happiest then thinking that my devotee has sacrifice something which he/she loves most..

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