The ruling on honoring pilgrims and slaughtering animals upon their return from Makkah to their countries

A phenomenon that spreads in the villages, especially after the return of pilgrims from Makkah.

The Shaykh: Is this the Sunnah?The questioner: Every year, approximately, they hold feasts which they call a sacrifice for the pilgrims, or a celebration for the pilgrims, or a safe return for the pilgrims. These meats may be from the sacrificial animals or from newly slaughtered animals, and they are accompanied by a type of wastefulness. What is your opinion, may Allah preserve you, from the legal and social perspectives?The Shaykh: There is nothing wrong with this. There is nothing wrong with honoring the pilgrims upon their arrival, because this indicates a celebration in their honor and also encourages them to perform Hajj. However, the wastefulness and extravagance you referred to are what is prohibited. Extravagance is prohibited whether on this occasion or any other. Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, said: [Al-An'am: 141] ,And Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Isra: 27] But if the feast is appropriate for the number of attendees or slightly exceeds it, then there is nothing wrong with it from the legal and social perspectives. This is likely to be found in the villages, whereas in the cities it is absent. We see many people returning from Hajj for whom no feasts are held, but in small villages these may exist, and there is nothing wrong with it. The people of the villages have generosity, and none of them likes to be short with another.