Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

assalam-o-alaikum

I live in a small town where there is a small muslim community,I recently did the aqeeqa for my baby including the sacrifice of goats.My question is in regard to the distribution of meat.I have already done dinner in which I cooked 2/3 rd of meat and invited the muslim community,and for the remaining 1/3 rd ,i don`t find any needy/poor person to give as charity in this town.Can I make sadaqa in the form of money instead of giving that 1/3 rd meat,Secondly can I consume that meat or not after making the sadaqa?

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Answer:

What to do with Aqiqa meat?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

The ‘aqiqah’ is a sacrifice and an act of ‘shukr’ or gratefulness to the All-Mighty Lord for his Grace and Bounty at the birth of one’s child, and not considered a ‘sadaqah’. One may, if he so wishes, consume all the meat; and one may, if he so wishes, give a part of it as ‘sadaqah’ to the poor and needy; both ways, there is absolutely no harm.

If one cannot find any poor and needy to give the meat to, there is absolutely no harm if one consumes it for himself, his family, or his friends. There is absolutely no obligation to give the 1/3^rd of the meat as ‘sadaqah’ or charity, nor is there any obligation to give it in the form of money to the poor and needy; but if one wishes to give ‘sadaqah’ at any time, one would receive a huge reward from Allah Subhanah for the act of charity towards the needy and indigent of the society.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 261: The parable of those who spend their substance in the way of Allah is that of a grain of corn: it groweth seven ears, and each ear hath a hundred grains! Allah giveth manifold increase to whom He pleaseth; and Allah careth for all, and He knoweth all things.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan