the prayer, let him slaughter another in its place” (1). Abu Burdah then said, “I have a young she-goat that is dearer to me than two sheep”—a young she-goat is one approximately four months old—meaning: should I slaughter it, and will it suffice for me? He said, “Yes, but it will not suffice for anyone after you” (2).

Although such a young she-goat is not valid as an Eid sacrifice, since it has not reached the age stipulated by the Shariah, the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, gave him permission and said, “It will not suffice for anyone after you.” Does his saying, “It will not suffice for anyone after you,” refer to the individual himself or to the particular circumstance? Most scholars hold the former view, but the correct view is the latter: whoever finds himself in a situation like that of Abu Burdah may slaughter a young she-goat, and there is no harm in this. This is because the legal principle is that religious rulings are not attached to an individual because of his person, for Allah does not show favoritism to anyone. Rather, rulings are attached to their underlying meanings and effective causes. Even the special allowances granted to the Messenger, blessings and peace be upon him, were not personal distinctions granted to him merely as an individual; rather, they were due to his being a Messenger, a quality that no one else possesses. This is the view we consider correct; it was also the view preferred by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, and it is the truth.

If it is asked: Would a young she-goat suffice even if it were not especially valuable to its owner and he did not love it, given that Abu Burdah said, “I have a young she-goat that is dearer to me than two sheep”? The answer is that this is an incidental description, because a person’s love for something does not elevate it so that it becomes sufficient when, in itself, it is of a type that is insufficient. Thus, if a person had a young she-goat and this circumstance did not arise for him, and he said, “This