"I said to Al-Bara bin Azib: 'Tell me of the sacrificial animals that the Messenger of Allah dislike or forbade. He said: "The Messenger of Allah gestured like this with his hand, and my hands are shorter than the hand of the Messenger of Allah, (and he said). 'There are four that will not do as sacrifices: The animal that clearly has one bad eye: the sick animals that is obviously sick; the lame animal with an obvious lamp; and the animal that is so emaciated that it is as if there is no marrow in its bones: He said: "And I dislike that the animal should have some fault in its horns or ears." He said: "What you dislike, forget about it, and do not make it forbidden to anyone."
The Book of ad-Dahaya (Sacrifices)
Sunan an-Nasa'i - Hadith 4370
Hadith Text
"I said to Al-Bara bin Azib: 'Tell me of the sacrificial animals that the Messenger of Allah dislike or forbade. He said: "The Messenger of Allah gestured like this with his hand, and my hands are shorter than the hand of the Messenger of Allah, (and he said). 'There are four that will not do as sacrifices: The animal that clearly has one bad eye: the sick animals that is obviously sick; the lame animal with an obvious lamp; and the animal that is so emaciated that it is as if there is no marrow in its bones: He said: "And I dislike that the animal should have some fault in its horns or ears." He said: "What you dislike, forget about it, and do not make it forbidden to anyone."
Scholarly Commentary
This noble hadith establishes clear guidelines for sacrificial animals, distinguishing between defects that invalidate the sacrifice and those that are merely disliked. The Prophet ﷺ specified four categories of animals that cannot be accepted as valid sacrifices due to obvious physical impairments that affect their health and completeness.
The four invalidating defects are: 1) An animal blind in one eye where the blindness is apparent 2) An obviously sick animal 3) An obviously lame animal 4) An extremely emaciated animal lacking marrow in its bones. These defects render the animal unsuitable because the sacrifice must represent the best one can offer to Allah.
Al-Bara' bin Azib then expressed personal dislike for animals with defective horns or ears, to which the companion responded by distinguishing between personal preference and religious prohibition. This teaches us the important principle that we should not impose our personal dislikes as religious obligations upon others.
The wisdom behind these specifications is that the sacrificial animal should be healthy, complete, and valuable, reflecting the spirit of devotion and generosity in worship. The defects mentioned would typically reduce the animal's value and make it unsuitable as an offering to the Almighty.