Sacrifice or Qurbani: Philosophy and Rules
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Sacrifice or Qurbani: Philosophy and Rules
Below are the rulings related with Qurbani and Bakraid (Eid ul Azha/ Eid ul zuha)
The Urdu and persian word Qurbani
(Sacrificial slaughter) is derived from the Arabic word Qurban.
Lexically, it means an act performed to seek Allah's pleasure.
Originally, the word Qurban included all acts of charity because the
purpose of charity is nothing but to seek Allah's pleasure. But, in
precise religious terminology, the word was later confined to the
sacrifice of an animal slaughtered for the sake of Allah.
The sacrifice of an animal has always
been treated as a recognized form of worship in all religious orders
originating from a divine book. Even in pagan societies, the sacrifice
of an animal is recognized as a form of worship, but it is done in the
name of some idols and not in the name of Allah, a practice totally
rejected by Islam.
In the Shari'ah of our beloved Prophet,
Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam, the sacrifice of an animal has been
recognized as a form of worship only during three days of Zulhijjah,
namely, the 10th, 1lth and 12th of the month. This is to commemorate the
unparalleled sacrifice offered by the Prophet Sayyidna Ibrahim, Alayhi
Salam, when he, in pursuance to a command of Allah conveyed to him in a
dream, prepared himself to slaughter his beloved son, Sayyidna Isma'il,
Alayhi Salam, and actually did so but, Allah Almighty, after testing his
submission, sent down a sheep and saved his son from the logical fate
of slaughter. It is from that time onwards that the sacrifice of an
animal became an obligatory duty to be performed by every well to do
Muslim.
Qurbani is a demonstration of total
submission to Allah and a proof of complete obedience to Allah's will or
command. When a Muslim offers a Qurbani, this is exactly what he
intends to prove. Thus, the Qurbani offered by a Muslim signifies that
he is a slave of Allah at his best and that he would not hesitate even
for a moment, once he receives an absolute command from his Creator, to
surrender before it, to obey it willingly, even if it be at the price of
his life and possessions. When a true and perfect Muslim receives a
command from Allah, he does not make his obedience dependent upon the
command's reasonability' as perceived through his limited understanding.
He knows that Allah is All-knowing, All-Wise and that his own reason
cannot encompass the knowledge and wisdom underlying the divine command.
He, therefore, submits to the divine command, even if he cannot grasp
the reason or wisdom behind it.
This is exactly what the Prophet
Ibrahim, Alayhi Salam, did. Apparently, there was no reason why a father
should slaughter his innocent son. But, when came the command from
Allah, he never asked about the reason for that command, nor did he
hesitate to follow it. Even his minor son when asked by his father about
the dream he had seen, never questioned the legitimacy of the command,
nor did he pine or whine about it, nor did he ask for one good reason
why he was being slaughtered. The one and only response he made was:
'Father, do what you have been ordered to do. You shall find me, God willing, among the patient".
The present-day Qurbani is offered in
memory of this great model of submission set before us by the great
father and the great son. So Qurbani must be offered in our time
emulating the same ideal and attitude of submission.
This, then, is the true philosophy of
Qurbani. With this in mind, one can easily unveil the fallacy of those
who raise objections against Qurbani on the basis of economic
calculations and depict it to be a wastage of money, resources and
livestock. Unable to see beyond mundane benefits, they cannot understand
the spirit Islam wants to plant and nourish among its followers, the
spirit of total submission to Allah's will which equips man with most
superior qualities so necessary to keep humanity in a state of lasting
peace and welfare.
Qurbani is nothing but a powerful symbol
of the required human conduct vis-a-vis the divine commands, however
"irrational" or "uneconomic" they may seem to be in their appearance.
Thus, the distrustful quest for mundane economic benefits behind Qurbani
is, in fact, the negation of its real philosophy and the very spirit
underlying it.
No doubt, there are in every form of
worship ordained by Allah, certain worldly benefits too, but they are
not the main purpose of these prescribed duties, nor should they be
treated as a pre-condition to submission and obedience. All acts of
worship, including Qurbani, must be carried out with a spirit of total
submission to Allah, irrespective of their economic, social or political
benefits. This is what Ibrahim, Alayhi Salam, did, and this is what
every true Muslim is required to do,
Keeping this in view, we are giving here
some rules governing the worship of Qurbani in our Shari'ah according
to the Hanafi School.
The Time of Qurbani
Qurbani can only be performed during the
three days of Eid, namely the 10th, Ilth and 12th of Zulhijjah. It is
only in these days that slaughtering of an animal is recognized as an
act of worship. No Qurbani can be performed in any other days of the
year.
Although Qurbani is permissible on each
of the three aforesaid days, yet it is preferable to perform it on the
first day i.e. the 10th of Zulhijjah.
No Qurbani is allowed before the Eid
prayer is over. However, in small villages where the Eid prayer is not
to be performed, Qurbani can be offered' any time after the break of
dawn on the 10th of Zulhijjah.
Qurbani can also be performed in the two nights following the Eid day, but it is more advisable to perform it during daytime.
Who is Required to Perform Qurbani?
Every adult Muslim, male or female, who
owns 613.35 grams of silver or its equivalent in money, personal
ornaments, stock-in-trade or any other form of wealth which is surplus
to his basic needs, is under an obligation to offer a Qurbani. Each
adult member of a family who owns the above mentioned amount must
perform his own Qurbani separately. If the husband owns the required
quantity, but the wife does not, the Qurbani obligatory on the husband
only and vice-versa. If both of them have the prescribed amount of
wealth, both should perform Qurbani separately.
If the adult children live with their
parents, Qurbani is obligatory on each one of them possessing the
prescribed amount. The Qurbani offered by a husband for himself does not
fulfil the obligation of his wife, nor can the Qurbani offered by a
father discharge his son or daughter from their obligation. Each one of
them should care for his own.
However, if a husband or a father, apart
from offering his own Qurbani, gives another Qurbani on behalf of his
wife or his son, he can do so with their permission.
No Alternate for Qurbani
Some people think that instead of
offering a Qurbani they should give its amount to some poor people as
charity. This attitude is totally wrong. Actually, there are different
forms of worship obligatory on Muslims. Each one of them has its own
importance and none of them can stand for the other. It is not
permissible for a Muslim to perform salah instead of fasting in Ramadan,
nor is it permissible for him to give some charity instead of observing
the obligatory Salah. Similarly, Qurbani is an independent form of
worship and this obligation cannot be discharged by spending money in
charity.
However, if somebody, out of his
ignorance or negligence, could not offer Qurbani on the three prescribed
days (10th, 1lth and 12th Zulhijjah) then, in that case only, he can
give the price of a Qurbani as sadaqah to those entitled to receive
Zakah. But during the days of Qurbani no Sadaqah can discharge the
obligation.
The Animals of Qurbani
The following animals can be slaughtered to offer a Qurbani:
1 Goat, either male or female, of at least one year of age.
2 Sheep, either male or female, of at least six months of age.
3 Cow, ox buffalo of at least two years of age.
4 Camel, male or female, of at least five years of age.
One head of goat or sheep is enough only
for one person's Qurbani. But as for all other animals like cow,
buffalo or camel, one head of each is equal to seven offerings thus
allowing seven persons to offer Qurbani jointly in one such animal.
If the seller of animal claims that the
animal is of the recognized age and there is no apparent evidence to the
contrary; one can trust his statement and the sacrifice of such an
animal is lawful.
Rules about Defective Animals
The following defective animals are not acceptable in Qurbani:
1 Blind, one eyed or lame animal.
2 An animal so emaciated that it cannot walk to its slaughtering place.
3 An animal with one-third part of the ear or the nose or the tail missing.
4 An animal that has no teeth at all, or the major number of its teeth are missing.
5 An animal born without ears.
The following animals are acceptable in Qurbani:
1 A castrated he - goat.
2
An animal that has no horns, or its horns are broken. However, if the
horns of an animal are uprooted totally so as to create a defect in the
brain, its Qurbani is not lawful.
3 An animal the missing part of whose ear, nose or tail is less than one third.
4 A sick or injured animal, unless it has some above mentioned defects rendering its Qurbani unlawful.
The Sunnah Method of Qurbani
1.It is more preferable for a Muslim to
slaughter the animal of his Qurbani with his own hands. However, if he
is unable to slaughter the animal himself, or does not want to do so for
some reason, he can request another person to slaughter it on his
behalf. In this case also, it is more preferable that he, at least, be
present at the time of slaughter. However, his absence at the time of
slaughter does not render the Qurbani invalid, if he has authorized the
person who slaughtered the animal on his behalf.
METHOD OF UDDHIYAH AND DUA
2.It is a Sunnah to lay
the animal with its face towards the Qiblah, and to recite
Lay the throat of the animal towards the Qiblah and recite the following verse of the Holy Quran
:
"For me I have set my face firmly and truly towards Him Who created the heavens end the earth. And never shall I give partners to Allah. Verily my worship and my sacrifice. my living and my dying are for Allah. Lord of the worlds. O Allah this sacrifice is from you end is for you."
Then start Slaughtering with sharpened Knife
While slaughtering the animal read
In the name of Allah . Allah is the Greatest."
Du'aa to be read after Zabah (sacrifice)
[If doing Qurbani on behalf of other then after TAQABBALHU instead of Minni READ MINN and take the name of persons]
"O Allah accept from me this sacrifice like you have accepted from your beloved Muhammad and your friend Ibrahim. Peace be upon them"
If these Du'aas are not memorised then make intention of Qurbani and merely recite
BISMILLAH ALLAHU AKBAR . The Qurbani will be correct
But the most essential recitation when
slaughtering an animal is: Bismillah, Allahu Akbar. (In the name of
Allah, Allah is the greatest). If somebody intentionally avoids to
recite it when slaughtering an animal, it does not only make his Qurbani
unlawful, but also renders the animal haram, and it is not permissible
to eat the meat of that animal. However, if a person did not avoid this
recitation intentionally, but he forgot to recite it when slaughtering
the animal, this mistake is forgiven and both the Qurbani and the
slaughter are lawful.
If somebody is unable to recite
"Bismillah Allahu Akbar" in the Arabic language, he can recite the name
of Allah in his own language by saying, "In the name of Allah".
Distribution of the Meat
If an animal is sacrificed by more than
one person, like cow or camel, its meat should be distributed equally
among its owners by weighing the meat strictly and not at random or by
mere guess. Even if all the partners agree on its distribution without
weighing, it is still not permissible according to shari'ah.
However, if the actual weighing is not
practicable due to some reason, and all the partners agree to distribute
the meat without weighing, distribution by guess can be done with the
condition that each share necessarily contains either a leg of the
animal or some quantity of its liver.
Although the person offering a Qurbani
can keep all its meat for his own use, yet, it is preferable to
distribute one-third among the poor, another one-third among his
relatives and then, keep the rest for his personal consumption.
All parts of the sacrificed animal can
be used for personal benefit, but none can be sold, nor can be given to
the butcher as a part of his wages. If somebody has sold the meat of the
Qurbani or its skin, he must give the accrued price as sadaqah to a
poor man who can receive Zakah.
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