Srinagar, June 10 -- Last week, Eid ul Azha drifted through Kashmir, a valley where faith weaves with whispers of ancient winds. Sacrifice, a cry torn from comfort's embrace, arches over the chasm, tying the fleeting to the forever.

Imagine sheep trembling in Srinagar's shadow, ropes taut, knives glinting under a sky soft as a sigh. What sang in this Feast of Sacrifice?

Ibrahim's act lingered, his heart a quivering flame, climbing a mountain, blade in hand, his son a step behind, offered to the unseen.

Kashmir hummed alive. Over 45,000 animals, a butcher from Budgam swore, bowed to the blade, their flesh parted: a share for kin, a share for neighbours, a share for the poor.

The Qur'an murmurs the miracle. Not the ram that spared Ismai...