or few words about the Sacrifice Day…
The Sacrifice Day begins with the muezzin’s prayer, which is louder and longer than usually. His voice is present in every house and on every street for about 1 hour from around 7.30 a.m. He announces that one of the most important Muslim holidays has just begun.
That’s what woke me up. And after a while I witnessed death of two animals: my sheep and the cow, which I didn’t like, because it kept on bullying the sheep.
Since the early morning many butchers appeared in the districts of Marrakesh, walking, shouting and offering their services. When one of them approached our house, Yassine and his father called him to come up to the roof-terrace, where the whole sacrifice process usually takes place. A fat guy in wellingtons with military pattern and his young assistant (a boy, about 15 years old) in similar wellingtons and with a straw basket full of knives climbed up the stair to the roof, where the sheep tied to a metal column was already waiting for them. The butcher said a short prayer (actually one word: “bismillah” – in the name of God) and cut the sheep’s throat. My plan to save my sheep failed drastically…
First, the head is cut off. Then a piece of the leg is incised and through a little whole some air is blown into the dead victim. That was the assistant’s task and he used his mouth to fill the animal with air. In this way the skin moves away from the bones and it can be removed in one piece. Then the inner organs are sorted out – the heart, lungs, liver, brain, etc. The rest is hung on a special hook, which is mounted on every terrace wall. The muscles of the animal are not eaten on this day, only the inner organs. The body with muscles hangs upside down on the hooks till the next day, when the body is cut into parts and some pieces of it are given to the poor and relatives.
When the head is cut off, the terrace turns into a bloody river, covering all around with the royal red colour. Every terrace has water supply and outflow so the cleaning process is quick and easy.
Scarifying a cow takes much more time and a special butcher is needed. Ours was ordered a day before on a phone. He came 2 hours late, dressed in a ragged black jacket and dirty clothes. His eyes were green, to my surprise, and he made a rather scary impression, although I fund him a bit shy. His arms were covered with long scars and he had one scar on his scalp, as well. His waist was tied with a leather belt with 2 big knives attached to it. He entered the house with his skinny assistant and for about one hour he was demonstrating his professional skills. He killed two cows already before visiting us. It is not so easy to remove the cow’s skin in one piece, but he managed to do it in a perfect way. All the family, except of Yassine’s mother, was gathered around him to watch his butchery art and admire his professionalism.
The cow didn’t want to pass away quickly, so it was suffering for couple of minutes on the terrace floor. The butcher and his assistant were pouring cold water on its body. Again it was the head that was cut off as the first element. Then inner organs were taken out and the body was hung on two hooks. It’s still here and waits for the butcher who is supposed to come here again and cut the meat and sort it according to the body parts. The skin of both animals, sprinkled with salt, lies on the floor in the sun. It will be given to a poor lady. The walls are still covered with blood…
As I already said, on the Sacrifice Day only the inner organs of the animal are consumed. Grilled or smoked, with a lot of spices. Sometimes served with a sauce and eaten with handmade bread. I heard that the brain is the most delicious part, especially when served with garlic. I don’t know how it tastes. And I don’t want to know. I didn’t eat and I won’t eat any brain or any other part of any animals…
In the evening of the Sacrifice Day Moroccans go out to visit their families or friends or meet with them in a café. The same happens in the evening the day after, when the meat is already chopped, sorted and located in a special place…
And so, in the city bathed in the sunlight, all kinds of bleating and mooing suddenly disappear. The sellers of feed, pottery and coil leave the streets. Everything is back to normal.
The Sacrifice Day begins with the muezzin’s prayer, which is louder and longer than usually. His voice is present in every house and on every street for about 1 hour from around 7.30 a.m. He announces that one of the most important Muslim holidays has just begun.
That’s what woke me up. And after a while I witnessed death of two animals: my sheep and the cow, which I didn’t like, because it kept on bullying the sheep.
Since the early morning many butchers appeared in the districts of Marrakesh, walking, shouting and offering their services. When one of them approached our house, Yassine and his father called him to come up to the roof-terrace, where the whole sacrifice process usually takes place. A fat guy in wellingtons with military pattern and his young assistant (a boy, about 15 years old) in similar wellingtons and with a straw basket full of knives climbed up the stair to the roof, where the sheep tied to a metal column was already waiting for them. The butcher said a short prayer (actually one word: “bismillah” – in the name of God) and cut the sheep’s throat. My plan to save my sheep failed drastically…
First, the head is cut off. Then a piece of the leg is incised and through a little whole some air is blown into the dead victim. That was the assistant’s task and he used his mouth to fill the animal with air. In this way the skin moves away from the bones and it can be removed in one piece. Then the inner organs are sorted out – the heart, lungs, liver, brain, etc. The rest is hung on a special hook, which is mounted on every terrace wall. The muscles of the animal are not eaten on this day, only the inner organs. The body with muscles hangs upside down on the hooks till the next day, when the body is cut into parts and some pieces of it are given to the poor and relatives.
When the head is cut off, the terrace turns into a bloody river, covering all around with the royal red colour. Every terrace has water supply and outflow so the cleaning process is quick and easy.
Scarifying a cow takes much more time and a special butcher is needed. Ours was ordered a day before on a phone. He came 2 hours late, dressed in a ragged black jacket and dirty clothes. His eyes were green, to my surprise, and he made a rather scary impression, although I fund him a bit shy. His arms were covered with long scars and he had one scar on his scalp, as well. His waist was tied with a leather belt with 2 big knives attached to it. He entered the house with his skinny assistant and for about one hour he was demonstrating his professional skills. He killed two cows already before visiting us. It is not so easy to remove the cow’s skin in one piece, but he managed to do it in a perfect way. All the family, except of Yassine’s mother, was gathered around him to watch his butchery art and admire his professionalism.
The cow didn’t want to pass away quickly, so it was suffering for couple of minutes on the terrace floor. The butcher and his assistant were pouring cold water on its body. Again it was the head that was cut off as the first element. Then inner organs were taken out and the body was hung on two hooks. It’s still here and waits for the butcher who is supposed to come here again and cut the meat and sort it according to the body parts. The skin of both animals, sprinkled with salt, lies on the floor in the sun. It will be given to a poor lady. The walls are still covered with blood…
As I already said, on the Sacrifice Day only the inner organs of the animal are consumed. Grilled or smoked, with a lot of spices. Sometimes served with a sauce and eaten with handmade bread. I heard that the brain is the most delicious part, especially when served with garlic. I don’t know how it tastes. And I don’t want to know. I didn’t eat and I won’t eat any brain or any other part of any animals…
In the evening of the Sacrifice Day Moroccans go out to visit their families or friends or meet with them in a café. The same happens in the evening the day after, when the meat is already chopped, sorted and located in a special place…
And so, in the city bathed in the sunlight, all kinds of bleating and mooing suddenly disappear. The sellers of feed, pottery and coil leave the streets. Everything is back to normal.
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