ʿᴀQīQᴀʜ ᴏɴ ʙᴇʜᴀʟꜰ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴄᴇᴀꜱᴇᴅ
Written by: Imran Ayyub Lahori
Performing ʿAqīqah for the Deceased
If the deceased is a son (provided the seventh day after his birth had passed) or even a father, then ʿAqīqah can be performed on their behalf. This is because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ declared that every child is in pledge for his ʿAqīqah, and from the example of a pledge it is understood that it may be released even after the death of a person. Wallahu Aʿlam.
According to Shaykh Ibn ʿUthaymeen (رحمه الله):
ʿAqīqah on behalf of the deceased is not legislated. Rather, it should not be performed for the deceased. However, one may pray for the forgiveness and mercy of the deceased, and if someone wishes to dedicate the reward of a righteous deed to the deceased—such as giving charity on their behalf, performing two units of prayer, or reciting a portion of the Qur’an and intending its reward for the deceased—then there is no harm in doing so. Yet, among all these actions, supplication (duʿāʾ) remains the best, as the Messenger of Allah ﷺ himself directed towards it.
[Fatāwā Islāmiyyah: 325/2]
