Al-Sharḥ al-Mumtiʿ - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (7/479)

Al-Sharḥ al-MumtiʿIbn al-'Uthaymin

and that one who is able to do so sins if he does not offer a sacrifice. Shaykh al-Islam, may Allah have mercy on him, inclined to this view, because it is an outwardly manifest rite which Allah, Most High, coupled with prayer in His saying:

“Therefore pray to your Lord and sacrifice.” [al-Kawthar]

And in His saying:

“Say, ‘Indeed, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds.’” [al-An'am]

The view that it is obligatory for one who is able is strong, due to the abundance of evidence indicating the Lawgiver’s care for it and concern with it. Thus, the view that it is obligatory is very strong. A person who is able should therefore not neglect it.

However, if people live in one household and have one head of household, one sacrifice suffices for all of them; there is no need for every individual to offer a sacrifice. This is contrary to what some people have become accustomed to nowadays: the father offers a sacrifice, the wife says, “I will offer a sacrifice,” the employed daughters say, “We will offer sacrifices,” and the employed sons say, “We will offer sacrifices.” This is contrary to the sunnah. So long as there is a clear sunnah from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, we should not go beyond it. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, offered one sacrifice for himself and the members of his household (1), despite having nine wives, each living in her own house, and he limited himself to that. The one responsible for offering the sacrifice is the head of the household, because it falls under customary maintenance.

But is it prescribed for the living or for the dead?

The answer is that it is a sunnah for the living, not a sunnah for the dead. This is why the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, did not offer a sacrifice on behalf of anyone who died before him: not on behalf of his wife Khadijah, may Allah be pleased with her, though she was among the women most beloved to him; nor on behalf of his uncle Hamzah, may Allah be pleased with him, though he was among the uncles most beloved to him; nor on behalf of any of his children, may Allah be pleased with them, who died during his lifetime—for his children were a part

(1) Its sources have already been cited; see p. 422.

وأن القادر يأثم إذا لم يضح، ومال شيخ الإسلام ﵀ إلى هذا؛ لأنها شعيرة ظاهرة قرنها الله تعالى بالصلاة في قوله: ﴿فَصَلِّ لِرَّبِكَ وَانْحَرْ *﴾ [الكوثر]، وفي قوله: ﴿قُلْ إِنَّ صَلَاتِي وَنُسُكِي وَمَحْيَايَ وَمَمَاتِي لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ *﴾ [الأنعام]. والقول بالوجوب للقادر قوي؛ لكثرة الأدلة الدالة على عناية الشارع بها، واهتمامه بها فالقول بالوجوب قوي جداً، فلا ينبغي للإنسان إذا كان قادراً أن يدعها، ولكن إذا كان الناس في بيت واحد، وقيم البيت واحد فإنه يجزئ عن الجميع ولا حاجة إلى أن يضحي كل واحد، خلافاً لما اعتاده بعض الناس الآن تجد الأب يضحي، والزوجة تقول سأضحي والبنات الموظفات يقلن سنضحي، والبنين الموظفين يقولون: سنضحي، فهذا خلاف السنة، ما دام في المسألة سنة واضحة عن النبي ﷺ فلا ينبغي أن نتجاوز، فالنبي ﷺ ضحى بواحدة عنه وعن أهل بيته (١) وعنده تسع زوجات، كل واحدة في بيت واقتصر على ذلك، والمطالب بالتضحية هو رب البيت لأنه من الإنفاق بالمعروف. ولكن لمن تسن للأحياء أم للأموات؟ الجواب: أنها سنة للأحياء، وليست سنة للأموات، ولذلك لم يضح النبي ﷺ عن أحد ممن مات له، لا عن زوجته خديجة ﵂ وهي من أحب النساء إليه، ولا عن عمه حمزة ﵁ وهو من أحب أعمامه إليه، ولا عن أحد من أولاده ﵃ الذين كانوا في حياته، وأولاده بضعة

(١) سبق تخريجه ص (٤٢٢).