Qurbani (Sacrifice) for Non-Pilgrims

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

WHAT IS HADY?

Hady refers to the sacrificial animals that Hajj pilgrims offer for Allah's sake in the Haram (Makkah) between 10th and 13th of Dhul-Hijjah.

WHAT IS UDHIYAH (QURBANI)?

Udhiyah refers to the sacrificial animals that non-pilgrim Muslims may offer, seeking Allah's pleasure during the days of 'Eid ul-Adha.Udhiyah is, in fact, offered in memory of the great sacrifice that Prophet Ibrahim and his son Prophet Isma'il, peace and blessings be upon both of them, were ordered to offer for Allah's sake — when Ibrahim was ordered in a vision to offer his son in sacrifice for Allah's sake, and Isma'il promptly consented. But Allah spared them the sacrifice and ordered them to sacrifice an animal instead. This is referred to in theQur'an:

"And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice." [Al-Qur'an 37:107]

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HADY AND UDHIYAH (QURBANI)?

Hady refers to the sacrifice offered by Hajj pilgrims in Makkah while Udhiyah refers to the sacrifice offered by non-pilgrims.

IS UDHIYAH (QURBANI) OBLIGATORY?

For those not performing Hajj wishing to offer Udhiyah there are two scholarly opinions:

(A) that it is wajib (obligatory). This is the opinion of the Imams Abu Hanifah (d. 150H), al-Awza'i (d. 157H) and al-Layth (d. 175H), and it is one of the two opinions narrated from Imam Ahmad (d. 241H). It was also the opinion of Shaykh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (d. 728H), and is one of the two opinions in the madhhab of Imam Malik (d. 179H), or is what seems to be the madhhab of Imam Malik. Those who favour this opinion take the following as evidence:

1. The verse: "Therefore turn in prayer to your Lord and sacrifice (to Him only)." [Al-Qur'an 108:2]. This is a command, and a command implies that something is obligatory.
2. The Hadith of Jundub, may Allah be pleased with him, who reported that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "Whoever slaughtered his sacrifice before he prays, let him slaughter another one in its place, and whoever did not slaughter a sacrifice, let him do so in the name of Allah." [Reported by Muslim (3621)]
3. The Hadith: "Whoever can afford to offer a sacrifice but does not do so, let him not approach our place of prayer." [Reported by Ahmad and Ibn Majah; classed as sahih by al-Hakim from the Hadith of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him. It says in Al-Fath al-Barithat its men are all sound]

(B) that it is a stressed Sunnah. This is the opinion of the majority, and it is the madhhab of Imam ash-Shafi'i (d. 204H) and the better-known opinion of Imams Malik and Ahmad but most of those who favour this opinion state that it is disliked for the one who is able to offer a sacrifice to neglect to do so. They base their opinion on the following:

1. The Hadith of Jabir, may Allah be pleased with him, in Sunan Abi Dawud, where he said: "I prayed 'Eid ul-Adha with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and when he finished (the prayer), he was brought two rams, and he sacrificed them. He said, 'In the Name of Allah, Allah is Most Great. This is on behalf of myself and any member of my Ummah who did not offer a sacrifice.' " [Sunan Abi Dawud bi Sharh Muhammad Shams al-Haq Abadi (7/486)]
2. The Hadith reported by all the famous scholars of Hadith apart from al-Bukhari: "Whoever among you wants to offer a sacrifice, let him not take (cut) anything from his hair or nails."

Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymin said, following his discussion of those who say it is obligatory and those who say it is Sunnah, "Each point of view has its evidence, but to be on the safe side, the one who is able to offer a sacrifice should not neglect to do so, because of what is involved in this act of reverence towards Allah, remembering Him, and making sure that one has nothing to be blamed for.

Source: http://sunnahonline.com/library/hajj-umrah-and-the-islamic-calendar/326-qurbani-sacrifice-for-non-pilgrims

  Has not the time yet come for those who believe that 

their hearts should be humble for the remembrance of Allah 

and what has come down of the truth? 

[Surah Al Hadid 57:16]

1st Dhul Hijjah 1433

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

1st Dhul-Hijjah will be on Wednesday 17 October 2012, 

and the Muslims performing Hajj will be in 'Arafah on Thursday 25 October 2012 (9 Dhul-Hijjah 1433), 

and the Muslim Ummah shall be celebrating 'Eed al-Adhaa on Friday 26 October 2012, (10 Dhul-Hijjah 1433), inshaaAllaah.

  Has not the time yet come for those who believe that 

their hearts should be humble for the remembrance of Allah 

and what has come down of the truth? 

[Surah Al Hadid 57:16]

Short History of Hajj

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

IslamiCity.com - Short History of Hajj

Hajj literally means 'to set out for a place'. Islamically however it refers to the annual pilgrimage that Muslims make to Makkah with the intention of performing certain religious rites in accordance with the method prescribed by the Prophet Muhammad .

Hajj and its rites were first ordained by Allah in the time of the Prophet lbrahim [Abraham] and he was the one who was entrusted by Allah to build the Kaba - the House of Allah - along with his son Ismail [Ishmael] at Makkah. Allah described the Kaba and its building as follows:

"And remember when We showed Ibrahim the site of the [Sacred] House [saying]: Associate not anything [in worship with Me and purify My House for those who circumambulate it [i.e. perform tawaaf] and those who stand up for prayer and those who bow down and make prostration [in prayer etc.]."
[Surah Al-Hajj 22:26]

After building the Kaba, Prophet Ibrahim would come to Makkah to perform Hajj every year, and after his death, this practice was continued by his son. However, gradually with the passage of time, both the form and the goal of the Hajj rites were changed. As idolatry spread throughout Arabia, the Kaba lost its purity and idols were placed inside it. Its walls became covered with poems and paintings, including one of Jesus and his mother Maryam and eventually over 360 idols came to be placed around the Kaba.
During the Hajj period itself, the atmosphere around the sacred precincts of the Kaba was like a circus. Men and women would go round the Kaba naked, arguing that they should present themselves before Allah in the same condition they were born. Their prayer became devoid of all sincere remembrance of Allah and was instead reduced to a series of hand clapping, whistling and the blowing of horns. Even the talbiah [1] was distorted by them with the following additions: 'No one is Your partner except one who is permitted by you. You are his Master and the Master of what he possesses'.
Sacrifices were also made in the name of God. However, the blood of the sacrificed animals was poured onto the walls of the Kaba and the flesh was hung from pillars around the Kaba, in the belief that Allah demanded the flesh and blood of these animals.
Singing, drinking, adultery and other acts of immorality was rife amongst the pilgrims and the poetry competitions, which were held, were a major part of the whole Hajj event. In these competitions, poets would praise the bravery and splendor of their own tribesmen and tell exaggerated tales of the cowardice and miserliness of other tribes. Competitions in generosity were also staged where the chief of each tribe would set up huge cauldrons and feed the pilgrims, only so that they could become well-known for their extreme generosity.
Thus the people had totally abandoned the teachings of their forefather and leader Prophet Ibrahim. The House that he had made pure for the worship of Allah alone, had been totally desecrated by the pagans and the rites which he had established were completely distorted by them. This sad state of affairs continued for nearly two and a half thousand years. But then after this long period, the time came for the supplication of Prophet Ibrahim to be answered:

"Our Lord! Send amongst them a Messenger of their own, who shall recite unto them your aayaat (verses) and instruct them in the book and the Wisdom and sanctify them. Verily you are the 'Azeezul-Hakeem [the All-Mighty, the All-Wise]."
[Surah Al-Baqarah 2:129]

Sure enough, a man by the name of Muhammad ibn 'Abdullaah  was born in the very city that Prophet Ibrahim had made this supplication centuries earlier. For twenty-three years, Prophet Muhammad  spread the message of Tawheed [true monotheism] - the same message that Prophet Ibrahim and all the other Prophets came with - and established the law of Allah upon the land. He expended every effort into making the word of Allah supreme and his victory over falsehood culminated in the smashing of the idols inside the Kaba which once again became the universal center for the worshippers of the one True God.
Not only did the Prophet rid the Kaba of all its impurities, but he also reinstated all the rites of Hajj which were established by Allah's Permission, in the time of Prophet Ibrahim. Specific injunctions in the Quran were revealed in order to eliminate all the false rites which had become rampant in the pre-Islamic period. All indecent and shameful acts were strictly banned in Allah's statement:

"There is to be no lewdness nor wrangles during Hajj."
[Surah al-Baqarah 2:197]

Competitions among poets in the exaltations of their forefathers and their tribesmen's achievements were all stopped. Instead, Allah told them:

"And when you have completed your rites [of Hajj] then remember Allah as you remember your forefathers; nay with a more vigorous remembrance."
[Surah al-Baqarah 2:200]

Competitions in generosity were also prohibited. Of course, the feeding of the poor pilgrims was still encouraged as this was done during the time of Prophet Ibrahim but Allah commanded that the slaughtering of the animals which was done for this purpose should be done seeking the pleasure of Allah rather than fame and the praise of the people. He said:

"So mention the name of Allah over these animals when they are drawn up in lines. Then, when they are drawn on their sides [after the slaughter], eat thereof and feed the beggar who does not ask, and the beggar who asks."
[Surah al-Hajj 22:36]

As for the deplorable practice of spattering blood of the sacrificed animals on the walls of the Kaba and hanging their flesh on alters, then Allah clearly informed them that:

"It is neither their meat nor their blood that reaches Allah, but it is Taqwaa (piety) from you that reaches Him."
[Surah al-Hajj 22:37]

The Prophet  also put a stop to the practice of circling the Kaba in a state of nudity and the argument that the pagans put forward to justify this ritual was sharply rebutted in Allah's question:

"Say: Who has forbidden the adornment [i.e. clothes] given by Allah which He has produced for His Slaves?"
[Surah al-A'raaf 7:32]

Another custom which was prohibited through the Quran was that of setting off for Hajj without taking any provisions for the journey. In the pre-Islamic period, some people who claimed to be mutawakkiloon (those having complete trust in Allah) would travel to perform Hajj begging for food through the whole journey. They considered this form of behavior a sign of piety and an indication of how much faith they had in Allah. However Allah told mankind that to have sufficient provisions for the journey was one of the preconditions for making Hajj. He said:

"And take a provision [with you] for the journey, but the best provision is at-Taqwaa (piety)."
[Surah al-Baqarah 2:197]

In this way, all the pre-Islamic practices, which were based on ignorance, were abolished and Hajj was once more made a model of piety, fear of Allah, purity, simplicity and austerity. Now, when the pilgrims reach the Kaba, they no longer find the carnivals and the frolic and frivolity that had once occupied the minds of the pilgrims there before. Now, there is the remembrance of Allah at every step and every action and every sacrifice was devoted to Him alone. It was this kind of Hajj that was worthy of the reward of paradise, as the Prophet said: "The reward for an accepted Hajj is nothing less than paradise."
May Allah grant us all the ability to visit His House and perform the Hajj in the manner of the Prophet Muhammad . Aameen.

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Footnotes
1 Labbaik Allahumma labbaik... (Here I am present, O' God, I am present...) This is the chant which the pilgrims say when they are traveling for pilgrimage.

Source: Invitation to Islam, Issue 1, May 1997

  Has not the time yet come for those who believe that 

their hearts should be humble for the remembrance of Allah 

and what has come down of the truth? 

[Surah Al Hadid 57:16]