Qurbani: The Sacrifice That Teaches Nearness

السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ، نَحْمَدُهُ، وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ، وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ، وَنَعُوذُ بِاللهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا، وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا. مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ، وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ.

وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ سَيِّدَنَا مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ.

اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَبَارِكْ عَلَىٰ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ، وَعَلَىٰ آلِهِ وَأَصْحَابِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ.

أَمَّا بَعْدُ:

My dear brothers and sisters,

There are acts of worship that we explain too quickly.

We name them. We classify them. We debate their conditions. We ask whether they are wājib or Sunnah. We ask whether one animal covers one person or one household.

And all of that has its place.

The law matters. Precision matters. The fiqh matters.

But some acts of worship are not only rules. They are schools. Qurbani is one of those schools.

It is a school of nearness. A school of gratitude. A school of restraint. A school of feeding. A school of family. A school of surrender.

It teaches the hand to give. It teaches the tongue to remember. It teaches the body to wait. It teaches the home to be generous. It teaches the ego that it is not the master.

Allah Most High gives the matter in one short command:

فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَانْحَرْ

“So pray to your Lord and sacrifice.”

Look at the order.

Prayer first. Sacrifice after.
And both for your Lord.

Not for culture. Not for pressure. Not for display. Not for family pride. Not for the annual theatre of who bought what. Not for the market of religious self-importance.

For Allah.

My dear brothers and sisters,

Words carry light when we understand them.

The more precise Arabic word for the Eid sacrifice is uḍḥiyah — أُضْحِيَة.

It is connected to ḍuḥā, the bright morning, because the sacrifice belongs to the day of Eid after the prayer, in the light of the morning. That itself is a lesson. This worship is not hidden in darkness. It is done after ṣalāh, with the Name of Allah, with food moving from one hand to another: to family, to neighbours, to the needy, to the forgotten.

Then there is qurbānī.

This is the word many of us grew up with. It is a Persian-Urdu word, but it comes from the Arabic root of qurb — nearness. So qurbani is not merely slaughter.

It is an attempt at nearness.

Nearness to Allah through obedience. Nearness to the poor through feeding. Nearness to the Sunnah through following. Nearness to Ibrahim عليه السلام through surrender. Nearness to Rasoolullah ﷺ through love.

Then there is hady — الهَدْي.

Hady is the sacrificial offering connected especially to Hajj and ‘Umrah. It is not exactly the same as the Eid uḍḥiyah. Hady carries the meaning of an offering sent toward the sacred rites.

So these three words teach us three shades of meaning.

Uḍḥiyah reminds us of the Eid morning. Qurbani reminds us of nearness. Hady reminds us of the sacred offering connected to Hajj.

Words matter. When a community loses the meanings of its words, it may keep the action but lose the light inside the action.

My dear brothers and sisters,

Allah says in Sūrat al-Ḥajj that He appointed for every community a sacrificial rite so that they may mention the Name of Allah over what He has provided them.

So the animal is not the centre.

The Name of Allah is the centre.

The provision is from Allah. The life is from Allah. The permission is from Allah. The gratitude returns to Allah.

Then Allah says:

فَكُلُوا مِنْهَا وَأَطْعِمُوا

“Eat from it and feed.”

This is the balance of Islam.

Eat and feed. Remember and share. Worship and serve. Be grateful and be generous.

Some people turn religion into private feeling only. Some turn religion into public display only.

The Qur’an refuses both.

Eat. Feed. Remember Allah. Be grateful.

Then Allah gives the deepest correction:

لَنْ يَنَالَ اللَّهَ لُحُومُهَا وَلَا دِمَاؤُهَا وَلَٰكِنْ يَنَالُهُ التَّقْوَىٰ مِنْكُمْ

“Their meat will not reach Allah, nor will their blood, but what reaches Him is your taqwa.”

This verse should be written over every Eid market, every butcher’s shop, every family discussion, and every WhatsApp group where qurbani becomes status.

The meat does not reach Allah. The blood does not reach Allah. The price does not reach Allah. The instagram post does not reach Allah. The family comparison does not reach Allah.

Your taqwa reaches Him.

This does not make the sacrifice small. It saves the sacrifice from being misunderstood. The act matters. But the act must carry servitude to Allah.

My dear brothers and sisters,

Rasoolullah ﷺ sacrificed. Sayyiduna Anas ibn Mālik رضي الله عنه narrated that the Prophet ﷺ sacrificed two rams, horned and light-coloured, and that he mentioned the Name of Allah, said the takbīr, and slaughtered them with his own blessed hand.

In our South Asian language, many say dumba or domba. The Prophetic wording is kabsh — a ram. Two rams are kabshayn.

Why did the Prophet ﷺ sacrifice two?

Not because every household must slaughter two. That would be to misunderstand the Sunnah. One was for his blessed household. One was for his Ummah.

In the beautiful du‘ā narrated in the reports, he said:

بِسْمِ اللهِ، اللَّهُمَّ تَقَبَّلْ مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ، وَآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ، وَمِنْ أُمَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ

“In the Name of Allah. O Allah, accept from Muhammad, the family of Muhammad, and the Ummah of Muhammad.”

This is love.

Rasoolullah ﷺ did not forget to include his Ummah at the moment of sacrifice. This is Shafaat (شفاعة). Joining us in his devotion. His worship was not individualism. His nearness included others. His qurbani carried mercy.

The Prophet ﷺ was teaching us that the head of a home worships with the family in mind, and the leader of an Ummah worships with the people in mind.

But the ordinary household does not need two rams to imitate him. The lesson is not luxury. The lesson is mercy.

Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari رضي الله عنه was asked how qurbani was done in the time of Rasoolullah ﷺ. He said that a man would sacrifice one sheep for himself and the people of his household; they would eat from it and feed others.

That is the balance.

Do not make the Sunnah small. Do not make it burdensome either.

My dear brothers and sisters,

The Sunnah order of Eid is clear.

Pray first. Then slaughter.

The Prophet ﷺ said that whoever slaughtered before the Eid prayer should slaughter another in its place. This teaches us that good intention alone is not enough.

The first act of Eid al-Adha is not meat. The first act is ṣalāh.

Then comes sacrifice. Then comes eating. Then comes feeding.

Even appetite is trained.

On Eid al-Fitr, we eat before prayer to show that Ramadan has ended and fasting that day is not allowed. But on Eid al-Adha, the day begins with worship, and then the table opens.

The body learns: I do not eat first. I worship first.

This is character training.

This is how Islam educates the whole human being: the mind, the heart, the hand, the tongue, the stomach, the family, and the community.

My dear brothers and sisters,

Qurbani is not an isolated event. It is the crown of the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah.

Allah swears by the ten nights:

وَلَيَالٍ عَشْرٍ

“By the ten nights.”

Many of the early scholars understood these to refer to the first ten nights of Dhul Hijjah.

These are not ordinary days. In these days, ordinary deeds become weighty.

Prayer becomes weightier. Charity becomes weightier. Dhikr becomes weightier. Fasting becomes weightier. Service becomes weightier. Repentance becomes weightier. Kindness becomes weightier.

So do not reduce Dhul Hijjah to the animal.

The animal is the public sign at the end. But the ten days are the private training before the sign. Before the qurbani of the animal, there must be the qurbani of the ego. Before the meat is divided, the heart must be softened.

Before the knife is lifted, the tongue must say:

الله أكبر
لا إله إلا الله
الحمد لله

The house should hear takbīr. The children should hear takbīr. The kitchen should hear takbīr. The car should hear takbīr. The road should hear takbīr. The heart should hear takbīr. The ego should hear takbīr until it finally learns that Allah is greater.

Greater than wealth. Greater than appetite. Greater than pride. Greater than family pressure. Greater than the desire to be seen.

My dear brothers and sisters,

For the one who intends to offer the sacrifice, there is also a quieter Sunnah: when Dhul Hijjah begins, such a person holds back from cutting hair and nails until the sacrifice is offered.

This is a small act, but it carries meaning.

The person is not in ihrām. He is not in Makkah. She is not standing on Arafah. They may be at home, at work, in school, in the ordinary routine of life.

But let even your hair and nails be in solidarity with those in the Hajj. Islam teaches through great acts and small acts. Through salah and sacrifice. Through fasting and feeding. Through words and silence. Through giving and waiting.

My dear brothers and sisters,

The fast of Yawm Arafah for the one not performing Hajj is one of the great gifts of these days. The Prophet ﷺ taught that fasting the Day of Arafah expiates the sins of the previous year and the coming year.

One day. Two years of mercy.

But do not make fasting mechanical.

Fasting is not a coin dropped into a machine of reward. Fasting is hunger that teaches need. It is restraint that teaches mastery. It is silence in the body so the soul can hear.

The one who fasts Arafah should come out of it softer.

More repentant. More grateful. More merciful. More aware that Allah’s mercy is wider than our small record of deeds.

My dear brothers and sisters,

Now we come to the question that returns every year. Is qurbani required from every adult, or is one qurbani enough for a household?

This question must be answered with knowledge and adab. There are two defensible fiqh models.

The first is the Hanafi model.

In the Hanafi school, qurbani is wājib upon each eligible person: Muslim, mature, sane, resident, and financially able — the one who owns nisab-level surplus wealth beyond basic needs and debts.

Under this view, the obligation is individual.

So if the husband has nisab and the wife does not, the husband gives one qurbani. If both husband and wife have nisab, both have their own duty. If an adult son living with his parents has nisab, he has his own qurbani duty. If an adult daughter has wealth above nisab, she has her own qurbani duty.

In this view, the kitchen does not decide the obligation. One kitchen, two kitchens, same table, different table — these may describe family life, but they do not decide the legal duty in Hanafi fiqh.

The legal question is: who is individually eligible?

One sheep or goat counts as one person’s qurbani. A cow or camel may be shared in up to seven valid shares. A father, husband, son, or family member may pay for another person, but the intention should be clear: this is the qurbani of that person. So when people say, “Every adult must give qurbani,” the more careful wording is: every eligible adult who meets the conditions. A careless sentence can burden the poor. A precise sentence protects the mercy of the Shari‘ah.

The second model is the majority model.

In the well-known positions of the Maliki, Shafi‘i, and Hanbali schools, udhiyah is a strongly emphasised Sunnah, not an individual wājib upon every eligible adult in the same way.

Under this view, one udhiyah may cover a genuine household when the intention includes them.

This is supported by the report of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari رضي الله عنه, who described that in the time of Rasoolullah ﷺ, a man would sacrifice a sheep for himself and the people of his household; they would eat from it and feed others.

This view is also supported by the Prophet’s own du‘ā over his sacrifice: asking Allah to accept from Muhammad ﷺ, the family of Muhammad ﷺ, and the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ.

So the majority approach is not laziness. It is not neglect. It is not trying to avoid worship. It is a valid fiqh model with its evidences.

But what is a household?

This is where people must be wise.

A household is not only a surname. It is not only one building. It is not only people who gather on Eid. A household has signs: shared maintenance, shared meals, shared responsibility, shared domestic life, shared care, and shared intention.

This is why people often speak about a separate kitchen. A separate kitchen is not a universal classical legal rule.

The stove is not the Shari‘ah. But the stove can be a sign.

A separate kitchen may point to separate expenses, separate family management, separate meals, and separate household responsibility.

So under the Hanafi view, the kitchen test should not decide the matter. Count eligible adults.

Under the majority view, the kitchen may help reveal whether there is one genuine household or two separate households.

If two married brothers live in the same building but each has his own budget, his own cooking, his own expenses, and his own family management, then under the majority view it is better to treat them as two households. Each household should offer its own udhiyah if able.

Under the Hanafi view, count the eligible adults individually.

If a father supports his wife, children, and dependent parents in one home, and they live as one domestic unit, then under the majority approach, one udhiyah can cover the household Sunnah if intended for them.

Under the Hanafi approach, each adult who independently owns nisab has a separate duty.

If a wife has her own wealth above nisab, then in Hanafi fiqh she has her own qurbani duty. Under the majority view, the household udhiyah can cover the household Sunnah if she is included in the intention, though she may offer her own if she is able and wishes to draw nearer to Allah.

If adult earning children remain genuinely part of the same domestic household, the majority view can allow one udhiyah for the household. But if they run independent expenses and their own household life, separate udhiyah is more fitting. Under the Hanafi view, each adult child with nisab gives separately.

My dear brothers and sisters,

This is not a place for fighting.

This is a place for taqwa.

To follow the Hanafi school is not harshness. To follow the majority position is not laziness.

Both have evidence. Both have scholars. Both have principles. Truth requires knowledge. Beauty requires adab. Goodness requires mercy.

The Shari‘ah was not sent to make worship ugly. The Sunnah was not sent to make families bitter. Qurbani was not given so that Eid becomes an audit of who paid and who did not.

I believe our communities must stop turning Sunnah into pressure, pressure into culture, culture into competition, and competition into silent cruelty toward those who cannot afford to keep up.

Look at the wisdom of the Khulafa Rashidin.

The Eid order remained: prayer first, khutbah after. But it is reported about Sayyiduna Abu Bakr and Sayyiduna Umar رضي الله عنهما that they were careful not to let people confuse Sunnah with fard.

This is leadership.

Sometimes a leader teaches by doing. Sometimes a leader teaches by preventing confusion. They understood people. They knew public religious acts can be misunderstood when done by those in authority.

So they guarded the Ummah.

This is a lesson for parents, teachers, imams, community leaders, and heads of households.

Do not use your religious seriousness to crush people. Do not use your wealth to shame people. Do not use your knowledge to win arguments. Use it to bring people nearer to Allah.

My dear brothers and sisters,

The sacrifice of Eid is tied to Ibrahim عليه السلام.

Why?

Because Ibrahim عليه السلام obeyed when obedience tore through the heart.

Allah did not need the blood. Allah did not need the meat. Allah wanted surrender.

Ibrahim عليه السلام placed Allah above what was most beloved. Isma‘il عليه السلام responded with submission. A family became a sign for the whole Ummah.

Most of us are not being asked to place our dearest human love on an altar. But we are being asked a smaller version of the same question:

Can you give up something? Can you obey before you fully understand? Can you place Allah above appetite?
Above wealth? Above pride? Above display? Above the need to be seen?

Can you let your worship feed someone else? Can you remember that the meat does not reach Allah? Can you remember that the taqwa does?

My dear brothers and sisters,

Let qurbani teach our children. Let them see that Islam is not only rules memorised, but character lived. Let them see adults give without showing off. Let them see food shared with dignity. Let them see scholars respected even when they differ. Let them see family decisions made with calmness. Let them see the poor honoured, not treated as an afterthought. Let them see that Eid is not only clothes and food, but worship, service, and gratitude.

A child who sees qurbani properly learns many things at once.

The child learns that Allah provides. The child learns that wealth must move. The child learns that meat is not wasted. The child learns that animals are not toys. The child learns that sacrifice is not cruelty, but worship under the Name and permission of Allah. The child learns that the poor have a right to joy. The child learns that the family table should have room for others.

This is how Islam builds the whole child: truth in the mind, beauty in the soul, goodness in the hand.

My dear brothers and sisters,

The simple order is this:

Enter the ten days with seriousness. If you intend to offer the sacrifice, hold back from cutting hair and nails until it is done. Increase good deeds. Fast if you can, especially Arafah if you are not in Hajj. Fill the house with takbīr, taḥmīd, and tahlīl.

On Eid, pray first. Do not rush the sacrifice before the prayer. Slaughter in the Name of Allah.
Say Allahu Akbar.
Eat from it. Feed others.
Do not turn it into display. Do not turn it into burden. Do not turn it into a meat festival without remembrance. Do not turn it into a legal argument without beauty.

For a Hanafi household, the safer and school-consistent answer is that each nisab-owning eligible adult gives a separate qurbani or a separate valid share.

For those following the majority position, one udhiyah for a genuine household is valid, and separate financially independent family units should each offer their own if able.

For mixed families and mixed communities, speak with gentleness.

Follow your madhhab consistently. Respect those who follow another valid view. And for those who can afford it without harm, giving one share per eligible adult is a cautious route that satisfies all views — but let it be done with humility, not superiority.

Because Allah does not need our meat.

Allah wants our taqwa.

أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا، وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ، فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ، إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ. 

Second Khutbah

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَىٰ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ، وَعَلَىٰ آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ.

My dear brothers and sisters,

The animal is sacrificed once.

But the ego must be sacrificed again and again.

The qurbani of the tongue is to sacrifice harsh speech. The qurbani of the ego is to sacrifice the need to win every argument. The qurbani of wealth is to give for Allah without display. The qurbani of the home is to bring mercy where there was tension. The qurbani of the community is to feed the needy and preserve brotherhood.

Sacrifice arrogance. Sacrifice stinginess. Sacrifice envy. Sacrifice anger that burns the home. Sacrifice the habit of judging others before judging yourself. Sacrifice the need to appear religious while forgetting to be kind.

When we buy the animal, let it be with halal earnings. When we make the intention, let it be for Allah alone. When we divide the meat, let the poor have a share. When we speak to our families, let mercy have a share. When we teach our children, let meaning have a share.

Do not reduce qurbani to meat distribution.

Make it a lesson in life.

Let the home learn gratitude. Let the child learn generosity. Let the wealthy learn humility. Let the poor be honoured. Let the community learn adab. Let the heart learn nearness.

The Qur’an says:

لَنْ يَنَالَ اللَّهَ لُحُومُهَا وَلَا دِمَاؤُهَا وَلَٰكِنْ يَنَالُهُ التَّقْوَىٰ مِنْكُمْ

“Their meat will not reach Allah, nor will their blood, but what reaches Him is your taqwa.”

That is the heart of the matter. Everything else is arrangement.

May Allah make these days days of repentance, generosity, remembrance, and nearness.

May Allah accept our prayer, our sacrifice, our fasting, our feeding, and our restraint.

May Allah reward those who offer qurbani.

May Allah reward those who wish to offer but cannot afford it.

May Allah protect the poor from shame and the wealthy from pride.

May Allah place love between husbands and wives, parents and children, brothers and sisters.

May Allah guide us to follow the scholars with adab and to worship Him with sincerity.

May Allah save us from religious vanity and give us the quiet taqwa that reaches Him.

اللَّهُمَّ تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ.
اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْنَا مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ.
اللَّهُمَّ أَصْلِحْ بُيُوتَنَا، وَأَصْلِحْ قُلُوبَنَا، وَأَصْلِحْ أُمَّتَنَا.
اللَّهُمَّ ارْزُقْنَا صِدْقَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، وَتَسْلِيمَ إِسْمَاعِيلَ، وَرَحْمَةَ مُحَمَّدٍ ﷺ.
اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْ قُرْبَانَنَا قُرْبًا إِلَيْكَ، وَاجْعَلْ أَعْمَالَنَا خَالِصَةً لِوَجْهِكَ الْكَرِيمِ.

رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا، إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ، وَتُبْ عَلَيْنَا، إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ.

وَصَلَّى اللهُ عَلَىٰ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ، وَعَلَىٰ آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ.

آمِين.