Question: Is slaughter valid from the time the prayer is finished, or must one wait for the sermon and for the imam to slaughter?

The correct view is that the prayer alone is sufficient. However, it is better for the slaughter to take place after the sermon and after the imam has slaughtered—provided that the imam follows the sunnah in slaughtering: namely, that he takes his sacrificial animal out to the Eid prayer-ground and slaughters it there. This is the established sunnah of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: he would sacrifice and slaughter at the prayer-ground (1), thereby manifesting the rite and extending its benefit. For when the animals are there at the Eid prayer-ground, both the poor and the wealthy are present: the poor are given some of it as charity, while the wealthy are given some of it as a gift.

The meaning of his saying, “he slaughters at the prayer-ground,” is that it is done outside the boundaries of the mosque. Thus, if someone takes his sacrificial animal out and slaughters it in front of the Eid prayer-ground, or to its right or left, it may be said that he slaughtered it at the prayer-ground, due to its proximity to it—not within the prayer-ground itself. For the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said: “These mosques are not suitable for anything involving harm or filth” (2), and this is harmful and filthy.

However, the practice of people today is that neither the imam nor anyone else slaughters at the prayer-ground. Therefore, requiring people to wait for the imam to slaughter would cause considerable hardship, and its desirability may be disputed, since delaying one’s slaughter until the imam has slaughtered applies where the imam has announced it and it is known to the people. But waiting until the sermon has ended is easy. Thus, people should be told: Do not slaughter until the prayer and sermon have concluded, for this is better, as is mentioned in some hadiths.