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Udhiyah is one of the great rituals of Islam, in which we remember the Unity of Allaah, His blessings upon us and the obedience of our father Ibraaheem to his Lord, and in this act of udhiyah there is much goodness and blessing. So the Muslim must pay attention to its great importance.

Udhiyah refers to the animal (camel, cattle or sheep) that is sacrificed as an act of worship to Allaah, in the country in which the person offering the sacrifice lives, during the period from after the Eid prayer on the Day of Nahr (Eid al-Adhaa) until the last of the Days of Tashreeq (the 13th day of Dhu'l-Hijjah), with the intention of offering sacrifice. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

"Therefore turn in prayer to your Lord and sacrifice (to Him only)." [Al-Kawthar 108:2]

"Say (O Muhammad): 'Verily, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allaah, the Lord of the 'Aalameen (mankind, jinns and all that exists)." [Al-An'aam 6:162]

Rulings for Udhiya

1. The animal must be of the right age. A sheep must be at least one year old, or close to it; a goat between one and two years; a cow between two and three years, and a camel between four and five years old. Jabir reported Allaah's Messenger as saying: "Sacrifice only a grown-up animal, unless it is difficult for you, in which case sacrifice a ram (of even less than a year, but more than six months' age)."[Muslim]

2. It should be free of any faults, as the Prophet said: "There are four that will not do for sacrifice: a one-eyed animal whose defect is obvious, a sick animal whose sickness is obvious, a lame animal whose limp is obvious and an emaciated animal that has no marrow in its bones."[Saheeh al-Jaami'] Similarly, the sacrificial animal should also not have any other defects such as a broken horn, a cut/punctured ear, etc.

3. The sacrifice should be offered after the Eid prayer. If it is done before the prayer, then the sacrifice is not valid as the Prophet said: "Whoever slaughtered the sacrifice before the prayer, he just slaughtered it for himself, and whoever slaughtered it after the prayer, he slaughtered it at the right time and followed the tradition of the Muslims."[Bukhaari] It is permissible to offer the sacrifice up till the third day, according to the following hadith: "The slaughter is in all the days of Tashreeq (i.e. the 11, 12 and 13)"[Ahmad]

4. It is mustahabb (highly recommended) to turn the animal towards the Qiblah.

5. The Sunnah is for a man to include the members of his household, living and dead, in his udhiyah, and when he slaughters it, he should say,

"In the name of Allaah, Allaah is supreme; O Allaah, this is on behalf of myself and the members of my household."

6. One goat suffices for an entire family, even if the family is large. Abu Ayyub Ansari said: "During the Prophet's time, one man used to offer one goat as a sacrifice for his entire family."[Sunan Tirmidhi]

7. It is mustahabb to for the one offering the sacrifice to slaughter the animal himself. Nonetheless, it is permissible to delegate someone else to do the slaughter, and there is no ikhtalaaf (difference) amongst the scholars on this.

8. The mustahabb way to divide the meat from the sacrifice is to divide it into three portions one portion for those who offered the sacrifice, one portion for charity, and the last as a gift for friends and family. This is because the Prophet said: "Eat, make a provision, and keep it."[Bukhaari & Muslim] It is also permissible to give all the meat in charity, and not to gift any of the meat.

9. It is not permissible to pay the one delegated to slaughter by the meat from the sacrifice. 'Ali said: "The Messenger of Allaah commanded me to take care of the sacrifice and to give its meat, skin and raiment (covering used for protection) in charity, and not to give anything of it to the butcher as a compensation. He said, 'We will give him something from what we have.'"[Bukhaari & Muslim]