By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: For many, Eid Al-Adha represents a special occasion to get together with family and relatives around feasts and barbecue parties with dishes in which meat is the main ingredient, after the ritual slaughter of sheep, goats or cows. However, vegans, who abstain from consuming animal products, try to approach Eid Al-Adha differently. For Muhammad Rassem, the days of Eid Al-Adha are the toughest among all days of the year, but he chooses to focus on the religious and cultural aspects while abstaining from consuming meat.

“I celebrate Eid and pray while enjoying the religious and traditional parts, but to avoid the slaughter ritual, I sometimes try to spend Eid in a chalet away from the hustle and bustle of the city until the days of Eid are over,” he said. On the other hand, Abdullah Wael told Kuwait Times the rituals associated with Eid Al-Adha do not bother him. “I understand that this is a religious ritual, and I have never had any problems with my family or my surroundings,” he noted. During the days of Eid, he prefers not to attend the rituals of sacrifice and wakes up late.

Later, he visits his family to congratulate them on Eid and spends some time with them, then returns home without sharing any food. Some vegans celebrate Eid by preparing plant-based meals. “Sharing vegan meals can help vegans to be involved in the community rather than being hated by everyone. It makes it easy for me to enjoy the Eid atmosphere while avoiding animal products,” Rima Abu Qaoud said. Qaoud used the occasion of Eid al-Adha to promote compassion towards animals, but still participated in all the rituals, including attending the slaughtering of sheep, pointing out this occasion has religious and historical symbolism for Muslims.

“My being a vegetarian and not eating meat does not contradict in any way with Eid,” she said. Mohamed Chibani said the past two years were among the best due to the strict precautionary measures imposed because of COVID on everyone, which prevented the slaughter of animals. “The number of people eating meat has increased recently in the Middle East, which has environmental repercussions due to greenhouse gas emissions, usually by food industries and livestock farms, resulting in climate changes that we suffer from. It was one of the reasons that drove me to become a vegan,” he explained.