Abu Bakr bin Abi Shayba أبو بكر بن أبي شيبة · Chapters on Sacrifices

“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sacrificed two rams on the Day of ‘Eid. When he turned them to face towards the prayer direction he said: ‘Verily, I have turned my face towards Him Who has created the heavens and the earth, as a monotheist, and I am not of the polytheists. Verily, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allah, the Lord of all that exists. He has no partner. And of this I have been…

It was narrated from ‘Aishah and Abu Hurairah that when the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) wanted to offer a sacrifice, he brought two large, fat, horned, black-and-white, castrated rams. He slaughtered one on behalf of his nation, for whoever testified to Allah with monotheism and that he had conveyed (the Message), and he slaughtered the other on behalf of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad (ﷺ).

“Whoever can afford it, but does not offer a sacrifice, let him not come near our prayer place.”

“I asked Ibn ‘Umar about sacrifices and whether they are obligatory. He said: ‘The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and the Muslims after him offered sacrifices, and this is the Sunnah.’” Another chain reports exactly the same.

“The Companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, what are these sacrifices?’ He said: ‘The Sunnah of your father Ibrahim.’ They said: ‘What is there for us in them, O Messenger of Allah?’ He said: ‘For every hair, one merit.’ They said: ‘What about wool, O Messenger of Allah?’ He said: ‘For every hair of wool, one merit.’”

“We were with a man from among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) who was called Mujashi’, from Banu Sulaim, and sheep became scarce. He ordered a caller to call out that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to say: ‘A Jadha’a suffices for whatever a two-year-old sheep suffices.’”

“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) passed by one of the houses of the Ansar and noticed the smell of a cooking pot. He said: ‘Who is this who has slaughtered?’ A man from among us came out and said: ‘It is me, O Messenger of Allah, I slaughtered before the prayer so that I could feed my family and neighbors.’ He commanded him to repeat it. He said: ‘No, by the One besides Whom there is none worthy of worship,…

“My father told me, from my grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) slaughtered his sacrifice at the side of an alley, on the road of Banu Zuraiq, with his own hand, using a blade.”

“I used to forbid you to store the meat of the sacrifices for more than three days, but (now) eat some and store some.”