What is the ruling on the 'aqiqah after the twenty-first day, whether due to ability or inability, and what is the evidence? Does an adult perform the 'aqiqah for himself if his father did not perform it for him?

The questioner : The second question: What is the ruling on the 'aqiqah after the twenty-first day? Whether due to ability or due to inability, and what is the evidence? And does an adult perform the 'aqiqah for himself if his father did not perform it for him, and what is the evidence?

The Shaykh : If the delay of the 'aqiqah to after the twenty-first day is not due to inability but due to ability, then this is a man who has neglected what Allah has made obligatory upon him regarding the slaughter, and he is sinful. There is no way to make up for what he missed, because Allah the Exalted has set a specific time for this 'aqiqah, just as He has set known times for other time-bound acts of worship. If the Muslim who is accountable does not care about this prescribed timing, then Allah the Exalted does not care about him or about anyone who contradicts the ruling in a manner similar to his contradiction. However, if it was due to inability, then when he becomes able, he must hasten to perform what Allah has prescribed for him as an obligatory 'aqiqah, because Allah the Exalted says: As for the evidence, it is well known, because the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And in some hadiths: Then a concession was made that if the slaughter does not become possible on the seventh day, it is done on the fourteenth, and if that does not become possible, it is done on the twenty-first. After that, the prescribed time ends. Therefore, the situation differs between the one who is able but does not act, in which case he is sinful and there is no way to make up for what was missed, and the one who is not able, in which case the 'aqiqah becomes obligatory upon him when he becomes able. As for the adult man whose guardian did not perform the 'aqiqah for him, he performs it for himself, following the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), for when prophethood reached him, he performed the 'aqiqah for himself (peace and blessings be upon him).