The ruling on what is called al-Safadah, which neighbors and relatives gather for
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The first question of Fatwa No. ( 18388 )
Q1: In my village in the southern region, knowledge is scarce. When a baby is born, the father slaughters a sheep and they call it (Safadah). The relatives and neighbors gather, and it serves as a dinner. There is no obligation for a specific person to attend. Is this practice correct or not? Then, seven days after the child’s birth, they slaughter the ‘Aqiqah: two sheep for a boy and one sheep for a girl. This is, as Allah knows best, the Sunnah. However, they add to it by slaughtering more than the two sheep, making it three for the boy, and two or three for the girl. The relatives and neighbors gather until the meat is barely enough. Is this practice of the (Safadah), as they call it, correct or not? And is their action of adding to the ‘Aqiqah correct? Please inform us, and may Allah reward you with good.
A1: What is prescribed for the ‘Aqiqah is slaughtering two sheep for a male child and one sheep for a female child on the seventh day of birth, if that is feasible. Anything in excess of this amount is not considered ‘Aqiqah, but rather a sheep for meat. One should not exaggerate in this matter, but rather limit it to the amount necessitated by need. There is no
prescribed slaughter at the time of birth other than the aforementioned ‘Aqiqah; rather, it is a religious innovation, whether it is called Safadah or otherwise. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q1: In my village in the southern region, knowledge is scarce. When a baby is born, the father slaughters a sheep and they call it (Safadah). The relatives and neighbors gather, and it serves as a dinner. There is no obligation for a specific person to attend. Is this practice correct or not? Then, seven days after the child’s birth, they slaughter the ‘Aqiqah: two sheep for a boy and one sheep for a girl. This is, as Allah knows best, the Sunnah. However, they add to it by slaughtering more than the two sheep, making it three for the boy, and two or three for the girl. The relatives and neighbors gather until the meat is barely enough. Is this practice of the (Safadah), as they call it, correct or not? And is their action of adding to the ‘Aqiqah correct? Please inform us, and may Allah reward you with good.
A1: What is prescribed for the ‘Aqiqah is slaughtering two sheep for a male child and one sheep for a female child on the seventh day of birth, if that is feasible. Anything in excess of this amount is not considered ‘Aqiqah, but rather a sheep for meat. One should not exaggerate in this matter, but rather limit it to the amount necessitated by need. There is no
prescribed slaughter at the time of birth other than the aforementioned ‘Aqiqah; rather, it is a religious innovation, whether it is called Safadah or otherwise. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.