In the commentary of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥah (1) on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās it is stated: “The nuṣub were idols upon which they used to slaughter and over which they would pronounce their dedications.” (2)

If it be said: Is it not reported that Ismāʿīl ibn Saʿīd (3) said, “I asked Aḥmad about an animal offered to their deities when it is slaughtered by a Muslim,” and he replied, “There is no harm in it”? (4)

The answer is that Aḥmad said this because, when the Muslim slaughters the animal, he invokes the name of Allah over it, does not intend the act for anyone other than Allah, and mentions no other name. Indeed, his intention is the very opposite (5) of what the owner of the animal intended, so the owner’s intention carries no weight; what counts in the ruling is the intention of the one who performs the slaughter. This is proven by the fact that, were a Muslim to appoint a person of the Scripture to slaughter and that person invoked a name other than Allah (6), the meat would not be lawful.

For this reason—since slaughter itself is an act of worship—ʿAlī, may Allah be pleased with him, (7) and a number of other scholars, among them Aḥmad in one of the two reports from him, disliked that a Muslim should delegate another to carry out the slaughter