ʿAqīqah

Question: If a man is blessed with children but does not perform the ʿaqīqah (the newborn’s sacrificial offering) for them until they are more than four years old, may he still do so after that age? If the answer is yes, may he slaughter the animals outside the town where the children were born, since that town has no poor people in need of meat, whereas a distant village does contain those entitled to charity? In other words, may he slaughter there and give the meat to its needy inhabitants, or is it a condition of the ʿaqīqah that the poor themselves eat the meat?

Answer: There is no objection to that. He may slaughter the ʿaqīqah on their behalf even if they are older than six months, although it is preferable and better to offer it promptly. If it is delayed, however, there is nothing wrong with performing it whenever that becomes feasible.

As for the place of slaughter, the ʿaqīqah is not restricted to any specific location. He may conduct it in the town where the children were born or elsewhere, for it is an act of devotion that is not confined to a particular place.

With regard to eating from it, the ʿaqīqah follows the same rulings as the udḥiyah (the sacrificial offering of ʿEid al-Aḍḥā). It is recommended for him to eat some of it, give some of it in charity, and present some of it as a gift to his neighbors and friends.