Conditions of the Udhiyah
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The 'udhiyah is an act of worship by which one draws near to Allah, and for this reason, it must meet certain conditions:The first condition: It must be from the livestock of the herd, namely camels, cattle, and sheep (both sheep and goats). If one offers a sacrifice from anything else, even if its value is greater, it will not be accepted.As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his family said: (Whoever does an action that is not in accordance with our command, it is rejected).
-The second condition: It must have reached the age considered valid by the Shari'ah. For camels, this is five years; for cattle, two years; for goats, one year; and for sheep, six months. Anything younger than this cannot be offered as a sacrifice, and if it is offered, it is not sufficient. Anything below this age cannot be offered, and if it is offered, it will not be accepted.And the evidence for that is: The statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Do not slaughter except a mature animal—Meaning: a two-year-old—unless it is difficult for you, in which case you may slaughter a one-year-old sheep." A one-year-old sheep is one that is six months old.
-The third condition: It must be free from defects that prevent it from being valid. Its basis is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (Four things are not permissible in sacrificial animals: the one whose blindness is obvious, the one whose illness is obvious, the one whose lameness is obvious, and the one that is emaciated to the point of having no marrow) These are the fundamental defects that prevent validity, and the hadith is explicit regarding them: four things are not permissible in sacrificial animals. As for other defects, if they are like these defects or worse, then the sacrifice is not valid with what is affected by them. If they are less than that, the sacrifice is valid, but the more perfect the sacrificial animal is, the better it is.
And therefore: If one offers a sacrifice with a horn that is broken entirely or mostly, the sacrifice is sufficient. Or if the ear is cut off, the sacrifice is sufficient. Or if it is one-eyed but can see with its eye, though its blindness is not obvious,Meaning: such that one who sees it does not assume it is one-eyed. Or if it is lame, but its lameness is not obvious. Or if it is lean with little meat and fat, but it has marrow, it is sufficient. All of these are sufficient because they are not among the defects explicitly mentioned, nor are they equivalent to the defects explicitly mentioned.
-The fourth condition: It must be within the time when the sacrifice is offered. If one sacrifices before the time enters, it is merely a meat animal. If one sacrifices after the time has passed, it is merely a meat animal, unless there is an excuse, such as forgetting or the loss of the animal, where one does not find it until after the days of slaughter have passed. In that case, one should sacrifice after the days have passed, and there is no harm in it.
So what are the days on which the sacrifice is offered? The days on which the sacrifice is offered are the day of 'Id al-Adha, after the prayer, and the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth days. So how many days are there? Four. All of them are days for slaughter, and night and day are equal in this regard. However, the daytime is better because it is more complete for the sacrifice and its distribution. So the conditions are four.
The fact that the Lawgiver has established specific, defined conditions for it indicates that the intention is not the meat. The intention is a worship described by specific attributes and conditions. Therefore, He distinguished it from what is intended for meat. Listen to the hadith of Abu Burdah ibn Niyar (may Allah be pleased with him) when he slaughtered his sacrifice before the prayer:When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered the sermon and said: “Whoever slaughters before the prayer, his sacrifice is not a sacrifice,Abu Burdah said: O Messenger of Allah! I slaughtered my sacrifice before the prayer.He said to him: "Your sheep is a meat animal." Look at the distinction: "Your sheep is a meat animal,"Meaning: it is not a sacrificial animal or an act of worship. "Your sheep is a meat animal,"Meaning: it does not suffice for you. Even though he was ignorant and exerting effort, and he wanted the first thing eaten in the house to be his sacrifice, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did not excuse him; because he performed the worship before its time. This is like if one prays Zuhr before its time, thinking that the sun has passed its zenith, but it turns out it has not. Then his prayer is invalid and does not suffice for Zuhr; rather, it becomes a voluntary prayer, and he must repeat it as the Zuhr prayer after the time has entered.
If one sacrifices on the fourteenth day, is it sufficient or not? It is not sufficient because it is outside the time, and it becomes a meat animal. Unless there is an excuse, such as a person who forgot to sacrifice and then remembered. That is, he had designated the sheep and made it his sacrifice, but he forgot and then remembered after the completion of the days of Tashriq. He should slaughter it, and it will be a sacrifice. Or a person who was ignorant, a person in the desert who did not know about the entry of the month and thought the fourteenth day was the thirteenth, then slaughtered. There is no harm, and it suffices for him because he was ignorant. Or a person who designated the sheep as a sacrifice, but it ran away and he did not find it until the fourteenth day. He should slaughter it, and there is no blame on him. Or it was stolen, and he did not find it until the fourteenth day. He should slaughter it, and there is no blame on him. Why? Because he is excused. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said regarding prayer: "Whoever sleeps through a prayer or forgets it, let him pray it when he remembers it. There is no expiation for it except that."
But how should the eating of the sacrifice be done?We say as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said: [Al-Hajj: 28] And Allah did not specify anything. You may eat half and feed half to the poor, and there is no harm. You may eat one-third and give one-third as charity, and the other third as a gift, and there is no harm. The important thing is that you give some of it to the poor in any case, and you are free to dispose of the rest as you wish, except that you must not sell any of it. Because you offered it for Allah, and what is offered for Allah cannot be exchanged by a person for anything from this world.
-The second condition: It must have reached the age considered valid by the Shari'ah. For camels, this is five years; for cattle, two years; for goats, one year; and for sheep, six months. Anything younger than this cannot be offered as a sacrifice, and if it is offered, it is not sufficient. Anything below this age cannot be offered, and if it is offered, it will not be accepted.And the evidence for that is: The statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Do not slaughter except a mature animal—Meaning: a two-year-old—unless it is difficult for you, in which case you may slaughter a one-year-old sheep." A one-year-old sheep is one that is six months old.
-The third condition: It must be free from defects that prevent it from being valid. Its basis is the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (Four things are not permissible in sacrificial animals: the one whose blindness is obvious, the one whose illness is obvious, the one whose lameness is obvious, and the one that is emaciated to the point of having no marrow) These are the fundamental defects that prevent validity, and the hadith is explicit regarding them: four things are not permissible in sacrificial animals. As for other defects, if they are like these defects or worse, then the sacrifice is not valid with what is affected by them. If they are less than that, the sacrifice is valid, but the more perfect the sacrificial animal is, the better it is.
And therefore: If one offers a sacrifice with a horn that is broken entirely or mostly, the sacrifice is sufficient. Or if the ear is cut off, the sacrifice is sufficient. Or if it is one-eyed but can see with its eye, though its blindness is not obvious,Meaning: such that one who sees it does not assume it is one-eyed. Or if it is lame, but its lameness is not obvious. Or if it is lean with little meat and fat, but it has marrow, it is sufficient. All of these are sufficient because they are not among the defects explicitly mentioned, nor are they equivalent to the defects explicitly mentioned.
-The fourth condition: It must be within the time when the sacrifice is offered. If one sacrifices before the time enters, it is merely a meat animal. If one sacrifices after the time has passed, it is merely a meat animal, unless there is an excuse, such as forgetting or the loss of the animal, where one does not find it until after the days of slaughter have passed. In that case, one should sacrifice after the days have passed, and there is no harm in it.
So what are the days on which the sacrifice is offered? The days on which the sacrifice is offered are the day of 'Id al-Adha, after the prayer, and the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth days. So how many days are there? Four. All of them are days for slaughter, and night and day are equal in this regard. However, the daytime is better because it is more complete for the sacrifice and its distribution. So the conditions are four.
The fact that the Lawgiver has established specific, defined conditions for it indicates that the intention is not the meat. The intention is a worship described by specific attributes and conditions. Therefore, He distinguished it from what is intended for meat. Listen to the hadith of Abu Burdah ibn Niyar (may Allah be pleased with him) when he slaughtered his sacrifice before the prayer:When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered the sermon and said: “Whoever slaughters before the prayer, his sacrifice is not a sacrifice,Abu Burdah said: O Messenger of Allah! I slaughtered my sacrifice before the prayer.He said to him: "Your sheep is a meat animal." Look at the distinction: "Your sheep is a meat animal,"Meaning: it is not a sacrificial animal or an act of worship. "Your sheep is a meat animal,"Meaning: it does not suffice for you. Even though he was ignorant and exerting effort, and he wanted the first thing eaten in the house to be his sacrifice, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) did not excuse him; because he performed the worship before its time. This is like if one prays Zuhr before its time, thinking that the sun has passed its zenith, but it turns out it has not. Then his prayer is invalid and does not suffice for Zuhr; rather, it becomes a voluntary prayer, and he must repeat it as the Zuhr prayer after the time has entered.
If one sacrifices on the fourteenth day, is it sufficient or not? It is not sufficient because it is outside the time, and it becomes a meat animal. Unless there is an excuse, such as a person who forgot to sacrifice and then remembered. That is, he had designated the sheep and made it his sacrifice, but he forgot and then remembered after the completion of the days of Tashriq. He should slaughter it, and it will be a sacrifice. Or a person who was ignorant, a person in the desert who did not know about the entry of the month and thought the fourteenth day was the thirteenth, then slaughtered. There is no harm, and it suffices for him because he was ignorant. Or a person who designated the sheep as a sacrifice, but it ran away and he did not find it until the fourteenth day. He should slaughter it, and there is no blame on him. Or it was stolen, and he did not find it until the fourteenth day. He should slaughter it, and there is no blame on him. Why? Because he is excused. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said regarding prayer: "Whoever sleeps through a prayer or forgets it, let him pray it when he remembers it. There is no expiation for it except that."
But how should the eating of the sacrifice be done?We say as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said: