Question:
What are the virtues of a person who performs a sacrifice (qorban)?
Answer:
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his wives, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
Qorban or sacrifice is acclaimed worship done by the prophet Abraham AS on his son the Prophet Ishmael AS fulfilling the commandment of Allah SWT. Following this incident, we are sanctioned to perform the worship of sacrifice. There are several hadiths describing the advantages for those who perform the sacrifice. Among them is:
- From Aisyah RA, the Prophet PBUH said:
مَا عَمِلَ آدَمِيٌّ مِنْ عَمَلٍ يَوْمَ النَّحْرِ أَحَبَّ إِلَى اللَّهِ مِنْ إِهْرَاقِ الدَّمِ، إِنَّهُ لَيَأْتِي يَوْمَ القِيَامَةِ بِقُرُونِهَا وَأَشْعَارِهَا وَأَظْلَافِهَا، وَأَنَّ الدَّمَ لَيَقَعُ مِنَ اللَّهِ بِمَكَانٍ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَقَعَ مِنَ الأَرْضِ، فَطِيبُوا بِهَا نَفْسًا
“The son of Adam does not do any deed on the Day of Sacrifice that is dearer to Allah than shedding blood. It will come on the Day of Resurrection with its horns and cloven hoofs and hair. Its blood is accepted by Allah before it reaches the ground. So, be content when you do it.”
Sunan al-Tirmizi (1493) [Imam al-Tirmizi state that this hadith is hasan gharib]
The Meaning of the Hadith
The hadith clearly states that the most prioritized worship on Eidul Adha is shedding of animal’s blood. The reason is, it will come to us in the hereafter with every part of its body intact and every part of it will be rewarded and it will also act as an animal mount for those who perform a sacrifice to cross the sirat bridge. (See Tuhfah al-Ahwazi, 5/61). On another hand, there is a difference of opinions regarding the status of this hadith where some scholars said that it is dhaif (weak) and others. However, al-Mubarakfuri stated that the status is hasan when he commented on it.
Furthermore, at the end of the hadith, we can find a commandment for us to clean our soul and ourselves by performing worship for the great rewards from Allah SWT.
Closing
Sacrifice is an acclaimed worship with great rewards for those who performed it. The reason is, qorban is sunnah muakkad (highly encouraged sunnah) and it is greatly encouraged for those who fulfil the conditions of those eligible to perform sacrifice according to the statement of Allah SWT:
فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَانْحَرْ
“So, pray to your Lord and sacrifice [to Him alone].”
Surah al-Kauthar (2)
Lastly, may Allah SWT give us the strength and guidance to worship Him and obey all His commandments which will ultimately lead us to Jannatul Firdaus the best of heavens in the hereafter. Amin.
Wallhua’lam.