Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 85
85 These and other symbols are used constantly in our daily lives and numerous benefits are derived from their use. Sacrifice is also one such symbol. If we ponder a little, it is not a small thing to sacrifice a life, and it is bound to create a profound impression on the mind except in the case of those who are accustomed to the taking of life. Some squeamish people have gone so far as to condemn sacrifice as an act of cruelty. There is no doubt that it powerfully stirs the feelings, and it is for this reason that it has been appointed as a form of worship. A man who offers a sacrifice declares in symbolical language that as the animal which is inferior to him has been sacrificed for him, he will, if called upon to do so, cheerfully give up his own life for that which is more precious than his own existence. How profoundly must the man, who understands the true significance of sacrifice, be affected at the time when he offers a sacrifice and how vividly must he remember the significance of it and the responsibility which it lays upon him. He would ever afterwards be reminded of the principle that inferior things must be sacrificed for superior things, and that he must be ready to sacrifice himself in the service of truth or of mankind. The Holy Quran refers to this significance of sacrifice when it says: