MUSLIM SERMON - THE OBLIGATION OF ANIMAL SACRIFICE
1)
The obligation of
fearing Allaah and thanking Him for legislating the ritual of sacrificing an
animal.
2)
Slaughtering
Udhiyah (sacrificial
animal) is better than donating its monetary value.
3)
Some rules of
offering Udhiyah and its Sunnahs.
4)
What suffices as Udhiyah and defects that make it
unacceptable.
5)
Issues related to Udhiyah.
O people! Fear Allaah, your Lord,
and thank Him on account of the favor He endowed upon you by ordaining you to
offer sacrificial animals as a means of seeking His pleasure. This act of
sacrifice is the tradition of your father Ibraaheem, peace be upon him,
and your Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. You are promised
by your Lord, reward for each part of the body of your offering, even its hair
or wool. The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, “On the day of sacrifice, no one does a deed more pleasing
to Allaah than the shedding of blood. The sacrificial animal will come on the
Day of Resurrection with its horns, hair and hooves (and its owner will be
rewarded on that basis); and (its) blood finds acceptance with Allaah (for its
owner) before it falls on the ground, so be glad about it."
(Tirmidhi)
O Muslims! Purchasing a sacrifice
and slaughtering it is better than giving its monetary value in charity. The
deed of sacrificing an animal is a stressed Sunnah (Sunnah
Mu'akkadah) to be emulated by the financially able persons. So, slaughter on
behalf of yourselves and your households, including your wives, children and
parents, so that all of them will gain its reward and you will thus follow the
practice of the Prophet sallallaahu
'alayhi wa sallam,
who slayed for himself and his family. Some people offer sacrifice only on
behalf of their parents, depriving themselves and their households of the
reward; it is preferable to do so in the name of all. This is regarding offering
sacrifice by an individual for himself.
As for slaughtering as an
appointed person, one should satisfy the items of the will accurately, unless it
contains (instructions to offer) more than one sacrifice and there is such a
shortage of funds that the cost for the sacrificial animals cannot be met. In
such a case, if the one entrusted to slay is an individual, one sacrificial
animal may be sacrificed with the intention (and hope) of earning the reward for
the rest as well.
A number of people slaughter on
behalf of their deceased relatives during the first year of their death, naming
it ‘Dahiyyah Al-Hufrah’ (the sacrifice
of the grave) – this practice has no basis in the Islaamic law. Similarly, as a
means of specifying the owner of the sacrificial animal, some people wipe or
mark its face until the back of its neck. According to Islaamic principles,
though, one should state its owner merely by mentioning his name during
slaughtering, without wiping – this
is in accordance with the conduct of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam.
Moreover, if one sacrifices the animal even with only the intention, without
mentioning the name of its owner, it will be sufficient.
The sacrifice should be one of the
following kinds of animals: camels, cows, sheep or goats. It cannot be valid
unless it meets two conditions: that it is of the specified age and is free from
certain defects that invalidate it.
As far as age is concerned, it is
specified as follows:
Regarding the defects that
invalidate the sacrifice, they were explained by the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam in
the following Hadeeth: “Four (types of
animals) should be avoided in sacrifice: A lame animal whose lameness is
evident, a one-eyed animal which is clearly one-eyed, an animal which is clearly
ill and an emaciated animal with no fat on it." (Ahmad)
The clear lameness is identified by the animal’s inability to contend and keep
up with sound animals. An animal with a defective eye either popping out or
which is completely concealed, identifies it as being clearly one-eyed; yet, if
the imperfection is not detected, even though it cannot see with it, it will
still be a valid sacrifice but disliked. The way it trots, the type of appetite
it has, as well as other similar factors determine whether or not the animal is
considered well or ill, such as due to obvious sicknesses like mild or severe
scabies. An ailing animal whose poor health has not had an obvious effect can be
accepted as a legitimate sacrifice; in any case, it is preferable to offer a
sacrifice that is free from all such defects. If the sacrificial animal is so
emaciated that its bones contain no marrow, it will not be accepted as a valid
sacrifice. Thus, these are the defects that render the sacrifice invalid. There
are other imperfections which can be overlooked, such as slit ears, broken horns
and missing teeth. However, the better the condition of the sacrificial animal,
the more acceptable it is.
The male animal, whether castrated
or not, is accepted as a sacrifice as the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa
sallam offered both. However, the fleshier the animal, the more satisfactory
it is.
It is better to slaughter a goat
or a sheep than one-seventh of a camel or cow, even though both are basically
equivalent. One may share a cow or camel with six other persons, in the hope of
all of them attaining the reward. Also, the pregnant sacrifice is equally
acceptable as one not carrying a child.
If a person is able, he should
slaughter his sacrifice himself; however, if he cannot, he may hire someone to
do it and should attend the slaughtering. All the same, if he is not present,
the sacrifice is still valid. Furthermore, if a person slaughters an animal
thinking it is his, but later discovers that it belongs to someone else, then
the sacrifice will suffice for its owner, that is he (the owner) receives the
reward for it and takes the meat. For instance, if there is a yard with several
sacrificial animals in it and a person takes one of them, assuming it is his and
slaughters it, but later discovers that it did not belong to him, then although
the sacrifice is valid, the one who mistakenly slaughtered the animal does not
receive the credit or reward for it, rather, his position is like that of
someone appointed to slaughter on behalf of the owner.
Allaah says which means,
“Indeed, We have granted you, (O Muhammad),
Al-Kawthar (a river in