Muslim

Hadith Commentary:
Agency (wakalah) is also established from this, and it is also evident that if the agent (wakil) does not understand something, it is necessary for him to clarify it with his principal (muwakkil).

Hadith Commentary:
On one occasion, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) entrusted goats to Uqbah bin Amir (radi Allahu anhu). From the context, it is understood that he was instructed to distribute them among those who could not afford to purchase sacrificial animals.

Hafiz Ibn Hajar (rahimahullah) writes that the statement, "You may offer the kid goat as sacrifice," indicates that he himself was among those who were entitled to a share in the distribution, and he was also appointed to carry out the distribution. In this way, the issue is established that a partner can be appointed as an agent (wakil).

(Fath al-Bari: 4/604)

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
This hadith shows that the distribution of goats is permissible, and the just method in this regard is that the large and small ones should not be separated from each other. Some goats are large, some are small; likewise, some are fat, healthy, and strong, while others are thin, weak, and frail. They should be distributed without making such distinctions. In this case, the number will be taken into consideration, not the price, provided that the difference is not significant, as ‘Uqbah (radi Allahu anhu) did not consider a slight difference significant. However, a considerable difference will be taken into account, because when only a kid (young goat) was left for them at the time of distribution, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) specifically granted him permission to slaughter this kid as a sacrificial animal. From this, it is understood that if there is a significant difference among the goats, it must be considered at the time of distribution; however, minor differences between large and small goats should be overlooked.

(2)
It should be noted that in obligatory rights and legal distributions, equality must be observed; in such cases, distribution will be according to weight or price, because in such rights, neither deficiency nor excess can be allowed, nor can anyone be wronged or defrauded. And Allah knows best.

Hadith Commentary:
This ruling was specific to Hazrat Uqbah radi Allahu anhu alone.
Now, the ruling is that the sacrificial animal must be one with two permanent teeth.
Hazrat Hisham bin Urwah was among the renowned Tabi‘in (Successors) of Madinah and among those who narrated abundantly. He passed away in the year 146 AH in Baghdad, rahimahullah.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
The fact that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) distributed sacrificial animals among his noble Companions (radi Allahu anhum) is evidence of its emphasized (mu’akkad) status.
(2)
The commentator of Sahih al-Bukhari, Ibn Munir, has stated that the distribution of sacrificial animals proves that it is permissible for the participants to distribute the meat among themselves, and this does not fall under the category of buying and selling, as the Maliki scholars believe. It is possible that Imam al-Bukhari (rahimahullah) intended this very point with this chapter heading and the hadith he presented. (Fath al-Bari: 7/10)
Ibn Battal has said that it is appropriate for a great scholar, when he senses from the general public that they might begin to consider a Sunnah act as obligatory (fard), to abandon that Sunnah so that people’s religious matters do not become confused for them, and so that they can distinguish between obligatory (fard) and supererogatory (nafl) acts. (Umdat al-Qari: 14/549)

Hadith Footnote: However, doing so will not suffice for anyone else.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
‘Atud refers to a one-year-old kid of a goat that, after eating and drinking for a year, has become plump and healthy. From this, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah establishes his chapter heading that the sacrificial animal should be plump and healthy; however, for a goat, it is necessary that it has two permanent teeth.
(2)
The permission regarding the aforementioned one-year-old kid was granted only to Sayyiduna Uqbah ibn Amir radi Allahu anhu, as is mentioned in al-Bayhaqi. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: “After you, this concession is not for anyone else.” (: al-Sunan al-Kubra lil-Bayhaqi: 9/270, no. 19536, and Fath al-Bari: 10/16)
(3)
‘Allamah Qurtubi rahimahullah has said that the Imam (leader) of the time should purchase sacrificial animals from the public treasury (Bayt al-Mal) and give them to those who do not have the means to offer sacrifice. (Umdat al-Qari: 14/557) Nowadays, the charitable people of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have revived this Sunnah. May Allah, the Exalted, grant them a great reward in His presence. Ameen.

Hadith Footnote:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:
‘Atud’ (plural of ‘Ittadah’):
According to Al-Jawhari,
it refers to a one-year-old kid (young goat), which in the following narration is called ‘Jadh‘a’.

Explanation:
1:
The narrator became uncertain whether he said "Atud" or "Jady."

(1) The Imam and the ruler of the time should, when the subjects do not have animals for sacrifice, distribute sacrificial animals among them, just as the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) distributed goats among his noble Companions (radi Allahu anhum).

(2) The noble hadith also establishes the issue of agency (appointing someone as one’s agent), just as the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) appointed ‘Uqbah ibn ‘Amir (radi Allahu anhu) as the agent for distributing goats among the Companions (radi Allahu anhum).

(3) Even a single goat is sufficient for sacrifice. The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) distributed only one goat each among the Companions (radi Allahu anhum) for this purpose.

(4) In the hadith, the word ‘atud’ appears, and by it is meant a young goat that grazes independently of its mother and has reached one year of age. ‘Jadh‘ah’ is also of a similar kind; therefore, the translation has been rendered with the well-known term. Furthermore, in other authentic ahadith, the same word “jadh‘ah” is mentioned, as Imam al-Nasa’i (rahimahullah) himself has narrated those ahadith. Refer to the preceding and forthcoming ahadith.

(5) “Sacrifice it on your behalf”—in some narrations, these words also appear: “It will not suffice for anyone other than you.” It is thus understood that a special permission was granted to him by the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam); therefore, now it is not permissible for any individual, even if he is in straitened circumstances.

Benefits and Issues:
(1)
In the hadith, the word "atud" is used, which has been explained as: a young goat that is able to graze and feed itself and is no longer dependent on its mother.

(2)
Nawab Hyderabadi rahimahullah has given the meaning of "atud" as a one-year-old kid goat. (Translation of the hadith under study)
We have adopted this meaning in our own translation.