During the months following Ramad\u0101n, Muslims the world over remember the life of the great Prophet, the Friend of All\u0101h, Most High, Sayyidun\u0101 Ibr\u0101h\u012bm (peace be upon him); a life full of sacrifice and submission to the will of All\u0101h, Most High,.
\nAt a very young age, when in need of the support of his father, Ibr\u0101h\u012bm (peace be upon him) was compelled to leave him. Then, during the final stages of his life, when in his old age and in need of the support of his young son, he was commanded by All\u0101h, Most High, to sacrifice him. Without hesitation, he was ready to submit to the Will of his Creator. All\u0101h, Most High, says:
\n\u201cAnd when (his son) reached an age in which he was able to walk with him, he said: \u2018O my dear son, I have seen in a dream that I am slaughtering you, so see what is your view.\u2019 He said: \u2018O my father! Do what you are commanded. All\u0101h willing, you will find me of the patient ones.\u2019
\nSo when they had both submitted (to All\u0101h\u2019s Will), and he laid him down on his forehead, We called out to him: \u2018O Ibr\u0101h\u012bm! You have indeed fulfilled the vision.\u2019 Surely, thus do we reward the doers of good. This was a clear trial.\u201d (Quran 37:102-106)
\nAll\u0101h, Most High, granted this action of Ibr\u0101h\u012bm so much acceptance that He made the Udhiyah (qurb\u0101n\u012b\/sacrifice) a symbol of this great act. When asked by the Sah\u0101bah (may Allah be pleased with them) what Udhiyah is, Ras\u016blull\u0101h (Allah\u2019s peace be upon him) replied:
\nIt is the sunnah of your father Ibr\u0101h\u012bm (peace be upon him). (Ahmad, Ibn M\u0101jah)
\nThe act of Udhiyah brings enormous rewards and the Pleasure of the Lord. The Prophet (Allah\u2019s peace be upon him) said:
\n\u201cThe son of \u0100dam does no deed on the day of Udhiyah dearer to All\u0101h, Most High, than the sacrificing of animals. It (the sacrificed animal) will come on the Day of Qiy\u0101mah with its horns and its hair and its hooves (to be weighed). The sacrifice is accepted by All\u0101h before the blood reaches the ground. Therefore sacrifice with a happy heart.\u201d (At-Tirmidh\u012b, Ibn M\u0101jah)
\nOnce, the Sah\u0101bah (may Allah be pleased with them) asked Ras\u016blull\u0101h (Allah\u2019s peace be upon him) regarding the benefits of Udhiyah. He answered: \u201cA reward for every hair.\u201d
\nThey asked: \u201cAnd wool, O Prophet of All\u0101h?\u201d
\nHe said: \u201cA reward for every fiber of the wool.\u201d (Ahmad, Ibn M\u0101jah)
\nTherefore, everyone who is able to offer Udhiyah should do so and acquire the rewards promised in the ah\u0101d\u012bth.<\/p>\n
Who is Required to do Udhiyah?<\/strong> Some Misconceptions Regarding Udhiyah<\/strong> The Spirit of Sacrifice in Udhiyah<\/strong> The Custom of our Pious Predecessors<\/strong> During the months following Ramad\u0101n, Muslims the world over remember the life of the great Prophet, the Friend of All\u0101h, Most High, Sayyidun\u0101 Ibr\u0101h\u012bm (peace be upon him); a life full of sacrifice and submission to the will of All\u0101h, Most High,.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9194,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-c71-introduction-to-islam-muslims"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nThe act of Udhiyah is in some cases w\u0101jib (an obligation) and in others nafl (voluntary). A person upon whom it is wajib must perform the w\u0101jib Udhiyah and endeavour to perform as many nafl as possible. In the case of the person who, during the days of Udhiyah (10th, 11th and 12th Dhul-Hijjah), possesses wealth to the amount which would make zak\u0101h obligatory upon him, be it in the form of gold, silver, cash, merchandise or any item which is surplus to his needs, the Udhiyah will be w\u0101jib. Unlike in the case of zak\u0101h, it is not necessary for this amount of wealth to be in one\u2019s possession for an entire year. The compulsion of Udhiyah is established simply if wealth equivalent to the nis\u0101b of zak\u0101h is possessed during the specified days.<\/p>\n
\nHere, we need to clarify certain common misconceptions as regards this \u2018ib\u0101dah.
\n1) One common misconception regarding Udhiyah is that it is merely a virtuous deed; it brings reward to the one who performs it and there is no blame if it is not done. This is a serious misunderstanding, for in most cases, in the UK for example, it is w\u0101jib as per the considerations mentioned above.
\n2) The second misunderstanding is assuming that the obligation of Udhiyah is shared between the entire household. This results in those members of the household upon whom Udhiyah is incumbent performing just one between them, feeling that the obligation has been fulfilled. This is not so. If a man possesses the nis\u0101b of zak\u0101h, one Udhiyah is w\u0101jib upon him. If his wife also possesses the nis\u0101b, she will have to perform a separate Udhiyah. Similarly, if any of the children (provided they are b\u0101ligh) possess the amount of nis\u0101b, Udhiyah will be compulsory on each one of them as well.
\n3) Another common misconception is that Udhiyah is carried out to allow people to eat meat which is considered blessed. With this in mind they are satisfied with eating Udhiyah meat that has reached them from others. There is no doubt that Udhiyah meat is blessed, as Udhiyah is the re-enactment of the sacrifice made by Ibr\u0101h\u012bm (peace be upon him), the Friend of All\u0101h, but it is even more importantly an obligation which needs fulfilling. Such people should worry about discharging the obligation of Udhiyah and not only be content with partaking of its blessed meat.
\n4) In many households, the father performs Udhiyah on behalf of all his family members without their knowledge or without their having requested him. We should understand that this approach to Udhiyah only amounts to a nafl Udhiyah. In the case of a father arranging the Udhiyah for his dependants, they need to make him their wak\u012bl (agent) in order for these sacrifices to be considered valid.
\nIt is clear from the above that we must become familiar with the mas\u0101\u2019il (legal details) and injunctions of Udhiyah. These mas\u0101\u2019il can be learnt from various books as well as through consulting the \u2018Ulam\u0101 and Muftis.<\/p>\n
\nJust as the name itself suggests, Udhiyah (sacrifice) should be carried out taking its literal meaning into consideration. Generally, we arrange for our Udhiyah to be carried out at a cheap price in a poor country. No doubt this lifts the obligation, but it is not the type of Udhiyah that All\u0101h, Most High, would like to see. We will not experience the spirit of Udhiyah until we spend the amount that it takes to sacrifice e.g. a sheep in the UK (which is often equivalent to the amount required to sacrifice a cow elsewhere). All\u0101h, Most High, has provided for us in abundance so we should express our shukr (gratitude) to All\u0101h, Most High, and not be miserly.
\nWe should offer a Udhiyah in needy countries by all means, but we should also offer one in our own locality. By doing so we too can partake of the blessed meat.<\/p>\n
\nShaykhul Had\u012bth, Mawl\u0101n\u0101 Muhammad Zakariyy\u0101 rahimahull\u0101h used to mention that during the three days of Udhiyah, no other food items should accompany the Udhiyah meat. The Shaykh would stress to the people that during these days, they were the guests of All\u0101h, Most High, and that the meat of Udhiyah was His hospitality. We can gather from this how much our pious predecessors gave importance to Udhiyah. So let us perform Udhiyah in our localities as well as in those places where the destitute live who have no access to meat.
\nWe should also offer Udhiyah on behalf of Ras\u016blull\u0101h (Allah\u2019s peace be upon him), our parents, our teachers, our mash\u0101\u2019ikh, our well-wishers and benefactors, and also one on behalf of the whole Ummah. We may also perform Udhiyah on behalf of the various Sah\u0101bah (may Allah be pleased with them), alternating between them on different occasions. The same applies for the Awliy\u0101 (friends of All\u0101h), the Muhaddith\u012bn (scholars of Hadith) and the A\u2019immah (Imams), all of whom we are indebted to.
\nMy honourable father, H\u0101fiz Ibr\u0101h\u012bm Dhorat rahimahull\u0101h used to keep an annual record of nafl Udhiyahs performed on behalf of all these great personalities. He also used to perform nafl Udhiyah every year on behalf of his parents and shaykh.
\nIn this manner, our intended reward will reach the pious in the hereafter and, insh\u0101\u2019all\u0101h, will be a reason for them to search for us on the Day of Judgement. We should also make this practice a habit whenever we have the opportunity to spend in the path of All\u0101h, Most High. These acts will prove to be spiritually beneficial for us in this world and the hereafter.
\nMay All\u0101h, Most High, give us the ability to offer Udhiyah in its true spirit, not feeling it a burden but with zeal and eagerness. \u0100m\u012bn.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"