The ruling on the 'Id sacrifice with the ability to afford it

Question:
Among the letters or questions he sent, which were mostly numerous letters or questions, he asks: What is the ruling on one who leaves off the 'Id sacrifice while he is able to perform it?

Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions. As for the slaughter of the 'Id sacrifice, it is a confirmed sunnah (recommended practice) according to the majority of the scholars, and some scholars held that it is obligatory. The correct view is that it is a confirmed sunnah based on the action of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his encouragement of it, because it is one of the rituals of Islam and it involves following in the footsteps of our father Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). He (peace and blessings be upon him) sacrificed on behalf of himself and his household, and he also sacrificed on behalf of those of the Ummah of Muhammad who did not sacrifice. So the 'Id sacrifice is an established and confirmed sunnah, and there is no sin on one who leaves it off; because a sunnah is something whose doer is rewarded and whose leaver is not punished. This is the position of the majority of the scholars. So if the Muslim is well-off, he should not leave off the 'Id sacrifice; rather, the better and more preferable thing for him, and the more emphasized thing for him, is to slaughter it. And if he is in straitened circumstances, he is excused, and praise be to Allah. Yes.