How do you treat Allah’s creation?
IMAGINE this scenario; you’re in the bustling bazaar waiting in line for a samosa, when you turn your head and see a person hurling a brick at a goat.
Do you speak up and stop this barbaric behaviour or do you remain silent? Unfortunately, many of us have become desensitised to animal abuse.
You drink the milk of these animals and eat their flesh, yet you can’t even provide them with clean water to drink.
Have you ever wondered why that chicken tikka you ordered doesn’t taste as flavourful as you’d hoped? Maybe, it’s down to the treatment that animal received, before being slaughtered.
Surely, you must not expect the meat to taste good, after you have beaten the animal and fed it expired scraps.
Animal abuse is a huge problem in Pakistan and it is only until recently that laws have been put in place to fine those who mistreat the creatures of Allah Almighty. However, these laws are not enough.
Fining someone a small amount of money will not change his mindset, nor will it help the animals who are being abused secretly.
We need to raise awareness of the seriousness of this problem by enacting stricter laws, which punish animal abusers befittingly.
We need to have lessons in schools, teaching children from young age to care for animals.
Research has shown that a significant percentage of serial killers, including well-known names such as Ted Bundy, Jeffery Dahmer, Albert De Salvo (The Boston Strangler), and Ian Brady (The Moors Murderer), all have one thing in common, before they began murdering humans, they tortured and killed animals.
This information should be eye opening enough for us all, to encourage each other to treat animals with care and to stop any abuse against them. As Muslims, we must treat all that Allah Almighty has created, with love and tenderness.
Treat others how you want to be treated. What if the roles were reversed and that goat was throwing a brick at you? I’m sure you wouldn’t like it, just as the poor goat does not like it.
We cannot ignore the severity of this issue. By turning your head and ignoring the rights of animals, you’re potentially allowing a generation of children to grow up thinking that this is acceptable.
It is not! Sharid RA reported: The Messenger of Allah Almighty said “Whoever kills so much as a sparrow unjustly, it will plead to Allah SWT on the Day of Resurrection, saying: O Lord, he killed me unjustly, and he did not kill me for any beneficial purpose”.
A beautiful reminder for us all to remember, that we will surely be questioned about everything we did in this world.
Surah An-Nahl 16: Verse 93 – Allah Almighty says in the Holy Quran ‘And you will certainly be called to account for what you used to do’
The world we live in today is in crisis.
There is so much going on around us, that we seem to have lost empathy. It is what makes us human. Animals cannot communicate to us and let us know their feelings, they are vulnerable creatures that look to us, to feed and shelter them.
Unlike us, animals are not able to file a police report (FIR), so it’s nearly impossible to know what they are dealing with on a daily basis.
The next time you see someone harming an animal, speak up, it is upon us all to stop any evil we see.
Abu Sa’eed al-Khudree RA who said : I heard the Messenger of Allah say, “Whosoever of you sees an evil, let him change it with force and if he is not able to do so, then [let him change it] with his tongue; and if he is not able to do so, then with his heart — and that is the weakest of faith.”
(Muslim)
To make an impact, we must not stay silent. We are the voices for these poor creatures. That poor kitten that you show mercy and kindness to, may just testify for you on the Day of Judgement.
—The writer is contributing columnist, based in Rawalpindi.
