Ayaan Ali, who grew up in a traditional Muslim household in Bhopal, is now pursuing a Master’s in Jainism at the Arihanta Institute. His passion? Exploring the deep connections between Ahimsa and Reham—the Islamic concept of mercy—and sharing a message of compassion across cultures.

But Ayaan’s journey didn’t begin in books. It began with heartbreak.

At the age of 9, he was introduced to a new member in the family, a baby goat bought by his uncle. Ayaan was asked to look after it just like a mother looks after her child. This was a year before Eid-al-Adha. Ayaan connected with the goat and gave him a name. They would go for walks, stare at the horizon from their terrace, play together and snuggle in at night in bed like siblings. The goat changed Ayaan’s life. Ayaan loved him. On the day of Eid-Aadhar his nani instructed the uncle to call the kasayi – the ritual butcher. Ayaan was asked to hold the legs of the goat tightly while the kasayi was chanting scriptures and holding a knife covered in cloth. At this stage he still did not realize what was coming. He ran up to the balcony to his mother and looked down at his goat. He saw the eyes of the goat widening, looking for Ayaan, yelping helplessly while the kasayi slowly sliced his neck. Ayaan screamed and cried, begging his mom to save his friend. But, who likes to go against rituals? There was darkness. Ayaan fainted. The shock was unbearable. When he woke up after a few hours Ayaan was offered the holy meat, the flesh of his friend and was forced to eat it. His body resisted and he strongly told his relatives that he would not eat it. One relative joked that a Brahmin was born in a Muslim family. Ayaan became vegetarian and a few years later he became vegan. His denial to not eat his friend was the first step towards activism for animals. Ayaan studied the Kuran and now is going to pursue an MA in Jainism with The Arihanta Institute to draw a parallel between Ahimsa and Rehan (mercy in Islam). He believes his purpose in life is to speak for the voiceless.

Ahimsa is not a theory that has to be studied, Ahimsa is the intrinsic quality of the soul.  No one taught this 9-year old boy about Ahimsa, or that all life forms are equal. Yet, he was capable of making that connection with that soul in the form of a goat. What stands out is that through this he could make connections with other life forms. Once Ahimsa awakens, fear dissipates. Ayaan did not think about what he would eat, even though meat was their staple diet. His mother did not even know how to cook a full vegetarian meal. 

Ayaan was conditioned in the name of religion that meat is permitted. He chose to connect with “Reham” and stand alone against family and tradition. Ahimsa is the basis of Jain Dharma. This begs the question: What is stopping us from stepping back from products that come through violence?