Chapters on Sacrifices
كتاب الأضاحي
Chapter 1: The sacrifices of the Messenger of Allah (saws)
“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)used tosacrifice two horned, black-and-white rams and he would saythe Nameof Allah and pronounce His greatness. I saw him slaughteringthemwith his own hand, putting his foot on their sides.”
“The Messenger ofAllah(ﷺ) sacrificed two rams on the Day of ‘Eid. When he turnedthemto face towards the prayer direction he said: ‘Verily, I haveturned my face towards Him Who has created the heavens and the earth,as a monotheist, and I am not of the polytheists. Verily, my prayer,my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allah, the Lord of allthat exists. He has no partner. And of this I have been commanded,andI am the first of the Muslims. [6:79,162-163] O Allah, from YoutoYou, on behalf of Muhammad and his nation.’”
It wasnarrated from ‘Aishah and Abu Hurairah that when the MessengerofAllah (ﷺ) wanted to offer a sacrifice, he brought two large, fat,horned, black-and-white, castrated rams. He slaughtered one on behalfof his nation, for whoever testified to Allah with monotheism andthathe had conveyed (the Message), and he slaughtered the other onbehalfof Muhammad and the family of Muhammad (ﷺ).
Chapter 2: Are sacrifices obligatory or not?
“Whoever can afford it, but does not offer a sacrifice, let himnotcome near our prayer place.”
Another chain reports exactly the same.
“We were standing with theProphet (ﷺ) at ‘Arafat and he said: ‘O people, each family,each year, must offer Udhiyah and ‘Atirah.’
Chapter 3: The reward for (offering) the sacrifice
“The son ofAdam does not do any deed on the Day of Sacrifice that is dearer toAllah than shedding blood. It will come on the Day of Resurrectionwith its horns and cloven hoofs and hair. Its blood is accepted byAllah before it reaches the ground. So be content when you do it.”
“The Companions of theMessengerof Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, what are thesesacrifices?’ He said: ‘The Sunnah of your father Ibrahim.’ Theysaid:‘What is there for us in them, O Messenger of Allah?’ Hesaid: ‘Forevery hair, one merit.’ They said: ‘What about wool,O Messenger ofAllah?’ He said: ‘For every hair of wool, onemerit.’”
Chapter 4: What sacrifices are recommended
“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)sacrificed a horned, defectless ram with a black stomach, black feetand black around its eyes.”
“I went out with Abu Sa’eedAz-Zuraqi, the Companion of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), to buyanimalsor sacrifice.” Yunus said: “Abu Sa’eed pointed to a ramthat had someblackness around its ears and jaw, and was neither toobig nor toosmall, and said to me: ‘Buy this one for them, as itseems to resemblethe ram of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).’”
“The best of shrouds is a two piece Najrani garment andthebest of sacrifices is a horned ram.”
Chapter 5: Number of persons for whom a camel and a cow is sufficient
“We were with the Messenger ofAllah (ﷺ) on a journey, and the (day of) Al-Adha came. We(sacrificed) one camel on behalf of ten (people) and one cow onbehalfof seven.”
“We offered sacrifices at Al-Hudaibiyahwith the Prophet (ﷺ), a camel on behalf of seven (people)and a cowon behalf of seven.”
“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)slaughtered a cow on behalf of all his wives who had performed‘Umrah,during the Farewell Pilgrimage.”
“Camels became scarce at thetimeof the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), so he commanded them tosacrificecows.”
It wasnarrated from ‘Aishah that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)sacrificedone cow during the Farewell Pilgrimage on behalf of thefamily ofMuhammad (ﷺ).
Chapter 6: How many sheep should be sacrificed in place of one camel?
“I have to offer a sacrifice and I can afford it, but Icannot find (a camel) to buy.” The Prophet (ﷺ) told him to buysevensheep and slaughter them.
“We were with theMessengerof Allah (ﷺ) in Dhul-Hulaifah in (the land of) Tihamah. Weacquiredsheep and camels and the people hastened to put cooking potson thefires before they had been distributed. The Messenger of Allah(ﷺ)came to us and ordered that they be overturned,* then he madeonecamel equivalent to ten sheep.”
Chapter 7: What qualifies as a sacrifice
“You sacrifice ityourself.”