Is it permissible to offer a sacrifice for the dead ? The Muslims are agreed that it is prescribed to offer a sacrifice (udhiyah), and it is permissible to offer a sacrifice on behalf of one who has died, because of the general meaning of the hadeeth of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), “When the son of Adam dies, all his good deeds come to an end except three: ongoing charity, beneficial knowledge, or a righteous son who will pray for him.” Narrated by Muslim. Abu Dawood, al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasaai, and by al-Bukhaari in al-Adab al-Mufrad from Abu Hurayrah. Slaughtering a sacrifice on his behalf is a kind of ongoing charity, because it benefits the person offering the sacrifice, the deceased person, and others. ________________________________
Slaughtering the Sacrifice is Better than Giving its Price in Charity Slaughtering the sacrifice is better than giving its price in charity, because that was what the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and the Muslims with him did. And because the sacrifice is one of the ritual of Islam; if the people turn away from it and give charity instead, that symbol will die out. If giving the price of the sacrifice in charity was better than slaughtering the sacrifice, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would have explained that to his ummah in word and deed, because he did not omit to explain anything that was good for the ummah. Indeed, if giving charity was equal to offering the sacrifice he would have explained that too, because it is easier than going to the trouble of offering the sacrifice. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) never failed to point out the easier option to his ummah when it was equal to the more difficult option. There was a famine during the lifetime of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and he said, “Whoever among you offers a sacrifice should not keep any of it in his house for more than three days.” The following year, they said, “O Messenger of Allaah, should we do what we did last year?” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Eat and feed the poor and store some, for last year the people were having a hard time and I wanted you to help them.” Agreed upon. ________________________________ The sacrifice was injured before it was slaughtered A few days before Eid, I bought a lamb which was sound and healthy, to offer it as a sacrifice on Eid. When it was being brought down the stairs on the way to be sacrificed, it suffered an injury to its leg (one hour before being sacrificed)… is this considered to be a flaw in the sacrifice? The author of Zaad al-Mustaqni said: “If it (the sacrifice) gets injured (develops a flaw), it may still be slaughtered and this will do…” Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen said: an example of that is when a man buys a sheep to sacrifice it, then it breaks its leg and is unable to walk and keep up with the rest of the flock, after he has selected it for sacrifice. In this case it may be slaughtered and this will do, because when it was selected it became a trust, like something that was entrusted to him. Because it is something entrusted and the injury was not the result of his action or his negligence, so he is not obliged to offer any guarantee, and it will do. See al-Sharh al-Mumti, part 7, p. 515 ________________________________ Speaking the intention out loud when slaughtering the sacrifice Is it permissible to speak the intention out loud for example when I want to slaughter a sacrifice on behalf of my deceased father and I say, “O Allaah, it is the udhiyah for my father So and so,” or is it sufficient simply to do the deed without saying anything out loud?. The seat of the intention is the heart, and whatever a person intends in his heart is sufficient. He should not speak the intention out loud, rather he should say Bismillaah and Allaahu akbar when slaughtering it, because it was proven in al-Saheehayn that Anas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) slaughtered two rams with his own hand, and he said Bismillaah and Allaahu akbar.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 7/130, no. 5554; Muslim, 3/1556, no. 1966; Ahmad, 3/115. There is nothing wrong with you saying, “O Allaah, this is a sacrifice on behalf of my father.” This does not mean that you are speaking the intention out loud. ________________________________ Sharing in a sacrifice It is permissible to share in a sacrifice if it is a camel or a cow, but it is not permissible to share in a sheep. It is permissible for seven people to share one camel or cow. It is narrated that the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) shared sacrifices: seven people would share a camel or a cow in Hajj and Umrah. Muslim (1318) narrated that Jaabir ibn Abd-Allaah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “On the day of al-Hudaybiyah we offered the sacrifice with the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), a camel on behalf of seven and a cow on behalf of seven. According to another report, it was narrated that Jaabir (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: We performed Hajj with the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and we sacrificed a camel on behalf of seven and a cow on behalf of seven. Abu Dawood (2808) narrated from Jaabir ibn Abd-Allaah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “A cow on behalf of seven and a camel on behalf of seven.” Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood. Al-Nawawi said in Sharh Muslim: These ahaadeeth indicate that it is permissible to share in the sacrifice, but they are unanimously agreed that it not permissible to share in a sheep. These ahaadeeth indicate that a camel is sufficient on behalf of seven people, and a cow is sufficient on behalf of seven people, and each of them takes the place of seven sheep. So if a muhrim is required to offer seven sacrifices –except in the case of the penalty for hunting – and he slaughters a camel or a cow, that is equivalent to them all. The time for udhiyah (sacrifice) The time for offering the sacrifice begins after the Eid prayer on Eid al-Adha and ends when the sun sets on the thirteenth of Dhul-Hijjah. So there are four days of sacrifice: the day of Eid al-Adha and the three days after it. It is better to hasten to offer the sacrifice after the Eid prayer, as the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to do, then the first thing he would eat on the day of Eid would be meat from his sacrifice. Ahmad (22475) narrated that Buraydah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not go out on the day of (Eid) al-Fitr until he had eaten, and he did not eat on the day of (Eid) al-Adha until he came back, then he would eat from his sacrifice. Al-Zaylai narrated in Nasb al-Raayah (2/221) that Ibn al-Qattaan classed it as saheeh. Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Zaad al-Ma’aad (2/319): The three days are specified because they are the days of Mina, the days of stoning (the Jamaraat) and the day of al-Tashreeq. It is forbidden to fast on these days. It was narrated via two isnaads, one of which supports the other, that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “All of Mina is the place of sacrifice, and all the days of al-tashreeq are days of sacrifice.” End quote. The hadeeth was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 2476 Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen said in Ahkaam al-Udhiyah, concerning the time for offering the sacrifice: It is from after the Eid prayer on the Day of Sacrifice until the sun sets on the last of the days of al-tashreeq, which is the thirteenth of Dhul-Hijjah. So there are four days of sacrifice: the day of Eid after the prayer, and three days after that. Whoever slaughters his sacrifice before the Eid prayer is over, or after the sun sets on the thirteenth, his sacrifice is not valid … but if he has an excuse for delaying it until after the days of al-tashreeq, such as if the animal ran away with no negligence on his part, and he did not find it until after the time was over, or if he delegated someone to do it on his behalf and his deputy forgot until the time was over, then there is nothing wrong with offering the sacrifice after the time has ended, because there is an excuse, by analogy with the fact that one who sleeps and misses a prayer or forgets it should offer the prayer as soon as he wakes up or remembers it. It is permissible to offer the sacrifice during that time by night or by day, but it is better during the day, and the day of Eid after the two khutbahs is the best time. Each day is better than the following day, because that is hastening to do good. End quote. It says in Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (11/406): The days of sacrifice for pilgrims performing qiraan or tamattu, and for offering the sacrifice (udhiyah) are four: the day of Eid and the three days after that. The time for sacrifice ends when the sun sets on the fourth day, according to the soundest scholarly opinion. End quote. ________________________________ And Allaah is the Source of strength. compiled from islam-qa.com ________________________________ Permission is granted to circulate among private individuals and groups, to post on Internet sites and to publish in full text and subject title in not-for-profit publications. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveIslam_LiveIslam/ In the name of Allah, the Most-Merciful, the All-Compassionate "May the Peace and Blessings of Allah be Upon You" Praise be to Allaah, we seek His help and His forgiveness. We seek refuge with Allaah from the evil of our own souls and from our bad deeds. Whomsoever Allaah guides will never be led astray, and whomsoever Allaah leaves astray, no one can guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allaah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. Bismillah Walhamdulillah Was Salaatu Was Salaam 'ala Rasulillah As-Salaam Alaikum Wa-Rahmatullahi Wa-Barakatuhu Few Rulings of Udhiyah (Sacrifice) compiled from islam-qa by Adil ibn Manzoor Khan [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
