Third: if he shaves his head, or most of it, then an expiation is due from him. It is known that this is forbidden to him; but when he shaves most of the head, the greater part is treated like the whole in many rulings. Were it not for the fact that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, shaved part of his head for cupping and did not offer an expiation, we would have said that expiation becomes obligatory when part of the head is shaved, since what is prohibited includes both a little and a great deal.

Now know that when the scholars, regarding the prohibitions of consecration, speak of “a sacrifice” in cases such as this, they do not mean that sacrificing an animal is specifically required. Rather, it is one of three options:

First: a sacrifice.

Second: feeding six poor persons, giving each poor person half a sāʿ.

Third: fasting for three days—except for sexual intercourse during Hajj before the first stage of release from consecration, for which a camel is required; and except for compensation for game, for which an equivalent is required, as will come, Allah willing, in the discussion of expiation.

Many brothers who give legal verdicts, whenever someone comes to ask them about a case such as this in which there is a choice, say: “You must offer a sacrifice.” The layman then leaves without understanding and goes to the trouble of purchasing an animal for sacrifice, perhaps even borrowing money for it. But if he were told, “You have a choice: either offer a sacrifice, feed six poor persons—giving each of them half a sāʿ—or fast for three days,” the matter would be easier for him. What is obligatory is to make the religious ruling clear to people.

The evidence that expiation is obligatory for shaving the head is the saying of Allah, Exalted is He: “Then an expiation: fasting, charity, or sacrifice.” [al-Baqarah 2:196]

Thus, the prohibited acts of consecration fall into categories:

First: those for which no expiation is due.