Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 84
84 mal sacrificed is supposed to carry away the sins of the person making the sacrifice. This is an entirely errone- ous conception of the teachings of Islam on the subject. The equivalent in Arabic of the word sacrifice is derived from a root meaning nearness. Sacrifice is a symbol, the failure to understand the significance of which is re- sponsible for the erroneous conception which people entertain concerning it. In ancient days, the language of symbols was in very common use and in spite of the development of spoken and written languages and the advance of literature in modern times symbols are still extensively used and accepted for the communication of thoughts and ideas, especially in social matters. For instance, when two friends meet they shake hands, and nobody questions the propriety of the action, nor does it occur to anybody to analyse the feelings underlying it. It is a symbol inherited from very ancient days and though its origin has been lost sight of, it is regarded as one of the most useful social practices, for it expresses and promotes friendship and brotherly relations. In ancient times when two men entered into an offensive and defensive alliance they used to clasp each other’s hands to signify that thenceforward the hand of the one would be the hand of the other and that thenceforth they would be allies and would fight and defend together. In course of time this symbolical ceremony became the emblem of the expression of affection and friendship, and no- body would now be prepared to relinquish it. Similarly, kissing is a symbol signifying the desire of the animal nature to draw the person kissed into itself and to be- come one with it.