This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Farooq Rafi Sahib's book Qurbani, Aqiqa, and Ashra Zil-Hijjah.
If a person individually slaughters a camel, then the sacrifice of a camel is superior; next, individually slaughtering a cow is superior; after that, the sacrifice of a sheep, and then a goat is superior. The evidence for this is the following hadith.
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
من اغتسل يوم الجمعة غسل الجنابة ثم راح فكأنما قرب بدنة، ومن راح فى الساعة الثانية فكأنما قرب بقرة ومن راح فى الساعة الثالثة فكأنما قرب كبشا أقرن
"Whoever performs the ritual bath of janabah on Friday and then goes early to the mosque, it is as if he has sacrificed a camel; whoever goes in the second hour to the mosque, it is as if he has slaughtered a cow; and whoever goes in the third hour to the mosque, it is as if he has slaughtered a horned ram."
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of Friday Prayer, Chapter on the Virtue of Friday: 881. Sahih Muslim, Book of Friday Prayer, Chapter on the Use of Toothstick and Perfume on Friday: 850. Sunan Abi Dawood, Book of Purification, Chapter on the Bath for Friday: 351. Jami` at-Tirmidhi, Chapters on Friday, Chapter on What Has Been Related About Takbeer to Friday: 499. Sunan an-Nasa'i, Book of Friday, Chapter on the Time of Friday: 1389
Benefits:
① Qazi Shawkani, may Allah have mercy on him, states:
ذهب الجمهور إلى أن أفضل الأنواع للمنفرد البدنة، ثم البقرة، ثم الضأن، ثم المعز، واحتجوا بأن البدنة تجزي عن سبعة أو عشرة على الخلاف، والبقرة تجزي عن سبعة، وأما الشاة فلا تجزي عن واحد بالاتفاق وما كان يجزي عن الجماعة إذا ضحى به الواحد كان أفضل مما يجزئ عن الواحد فقط
“The consensus of the scholars is that the best type of sacrifice is to individually sacrifice a camel, then a cow, then a sheep, and then a goat. Their evidence is that a camel suffices for seven or ten people according to different opinions, a cow suffices for seven people, and a sheep or goat suffices for one person by consensus. So, the animal whose sacrifice suffices for a group, when sacrificed by an individual alone, is superior to the animal that suffices only for one person.”
Reference: Nail al-Awtar: 121/5
② Imam Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him, writes:
ومذهبنا ومذهب الجمهور، أن أفضل الأنواع البدنة ثم البقرة، ثم الضأن ثم المعز
“Our (Shafi’i) school and the consensus of scholars hold that the best type of sacrifice is camel, then cow, then sheep, then goat.”
Reference: Sharh al-Nawawi: 118/13
③ Ibn Qudamah Hanbali, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
وأفضل الأضاحي البدنة، ثم البقرة، ثم الشاة، ثم شرك فى البقرة وبهذا قال أبو حنيفة والشافعي
“The best sacrifice is the camel, then the cow, then the sheep and goat, then partnership in a cow is preferable. Imam Abu Hanifa, may Allah have mercy on him, and Imam Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, also hold this position.”
Also, among the sacrificial animals, the camel’s sacrifice is superior because the Hadi (sacrifice like that of Hajj) is a means of drawing closer to Allah Almighty through this slaughter, and it is more valuable than the other animals, and its meat is more beneficial than the meat of other animals.
Reference: Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudamah and Al-Sharh al-Kabir: 99/11
Weak Traditions Regarding the Virtue of Sacrificial Animals:
Imam Malik, may Allah have mercy on him, says that the sacrifice of a sheep's ram (kheera) is superior (to that of a camel, cow, and goat), then the cow's sacrifice is superior, and after that, the camel's sacrifice is superior, because the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, sacrificed two rams, and he, peace be upon him, always performed the best deeds. Also, if Allah Almighty knew of any other animal's sacrifice being superior to a ram, He would have granted a different animal instead of a ram as the ransom for Sayyiduna Ismail, peace be upon him.
Reference: Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudamah and Al-Sharh Al-Kabir: 99/11
Imam Malik's argument is invalid for several reasons.
① The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, often refrained from performing many superior acts simply so that they would not cause hardship for the Ummah. Moreover, it is established that during Hajj, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, sacrificed one hundred camels.
② The previous narration is also established from the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, verbally, that the camel's sacrifice is superior to other animals. Furthermore, the narrations used as evidence for the superiority of the ram are weak. A detailed explanation of these narrations has been provided on previous pages under "Even if two-horned animals are easily available, the sheep's kheera is not permissible." Additional evidence is found in the following narrations:
① It is narrated from Sayyiduna Ubada bin Samit, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
خير الكفن الحلة، وخير الأضحية الكبش الأقرن
"The best shroud is a three-piece garment, and the best sacrifice is a horned ram."
Reference: Weak: Sunan Abi Dawood, Book of Funerals, Chapter on Disliking Excess in Shrouds: 3156. Mustadrak Hakim: 328/4, 7625. Sunan Bayhaqi: 403/3. Hatim bin Abi Nasr and Nasi Al-Kindi are unknown narrators.
② It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Imamah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said:
خير الأضحية الكبش، وخير الكفن الحلة
"The best sacrifice is a ram, and the best shroud is a three-piece garment."
Reference: Weak: Jami' Tirmidhi, Book of Sacrifices, Chapter on the Best Sacrifice Being the Ram: 1517. Sunan Ibn Majah, Book of Sacrifices, Chapter on Recommended Sacrifices: 3130. Sunan Bayhaqi: 273/9. Kabir Tabarani: 7581. Abu A'id Afir bin Ma'dan is a weak narrator.
