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By the
grace and mercy of Allah when a flower blooms into a household and a child is
born, it is a Sunnat to give the child a name on the seventh day and to have an
Ahqiqa (a party thrown on the seventh day after a new birth in the family). If one is unable to have an Ahqiqa on the seventh
day then one should
take care to ensure that whenever the Ahqiqa does take place, it must fall on
the seventh day, for example if a child is born on a Thursday then the Ahqiqa
should fall on a Wednesday. The animals that are forbidden for sacrifice are
also forbidden for Ahqiqa, and the animals that are legitimate for sacrifice
are also legitimate for Ahqiqa. The terms and conditions of an animal for
Ahqiqa are same as those for sacrifice.
The
mother, father, grandmother and grandfather can all eat the meat of Ahqiqa. It
is wrong to say that the parents are not allowed to eat it.
The meat
from of Ahqiqa can be distributed either way, in the raw state or after cooking
it.
The
method of Ahqiqa is to sacrifice two goats, two sheep or two lambs if for a
boy, and to cut his hair off. Gold or silver should be weighed to the
equivalent weight of the hair and given to charity.
It is
best to cut the child's hair before the sacrifice. Some people think that a
razor should be placed on the child's head and at the same time the knife should
cut the animal, this is wrong. According to the Hadiths cutting the hair before
or after the sacrifice are both approved.
If it is
beyond the capacity of one's wealth to sacrifice two animals then one animal
will suffice. Hażrat Ali narrated that the Holy Prophet (pbuh) performed the
Ahqiqa of Imam Hassan with one female goat. From this incidence, it can be
deduced that for a boy it is not necessary for the animal to be a male and for
a girl it is not necessary for the animal to be a female.
The same
terms and conditions hold for an animal for the purpose of Ahqiqa as those for
sacrifice, and the method of distribution of the meat is the same; one part for
the poor, one for one's own use and one for friends and dear ones.
It is a
Sunnat to do Ahqiqa. If the parents or guardians of a child do not have enough
wealth and therefore cannot afford to do an Ahqiqa then there is no harm. If
one cannot afford to sacrifice two animals for a boy then one animal will
suffice. When one grows up one can do own Ahqiqa by himself. The Holy Prophet
did his own Ahqiqa after he became a prophet.
KHWAJA SHAMSUDDIN AZEEMI
Mehrāj means to enter the world of the unseen. When a believer attains Mehrāj through prayer, Angels appear in front of him. He travels through the Heavens, and through the blessings of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) he comes to know his Lord.
