Subject: ‍ Eating the Meat of a Sacrifice Offered on Behalf of a Deceased Parent

If I offer a sacrifice on behalf of my father, who passed away eight years ago, may my family and I eat its meat?

The Questioner

Mohammad Khalid

Jun 9, 2025

CODE :See59

الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله، وعلى آله وصحبه، أما بعد:

May Allah have mercy on your father and reward your wish to benefit him.

If you mean the Eid sacrifice (uḍḥiyah/qurbānī), the answer depends on whether you are offering your own sacrifice and including your father in its reward, or performing a separate sacrifice on his behalf. There is also a distinction between a voluntary offering and one made under his bequest. The passing of eight years does not itself change the ruling.

Offering your own sacrifice and including your father in its reward

You may offer your own ordinary, non-vowed sacrifice and ask Allah to include your deceased father in its reward. You and your family may eat from it, while giving the required portion to the poor.

ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها reported that the Prophet ﷺ said when offering his sacrifice:

«اللَّهُمَّ تَقَبَّلْ مِنْ مُحَمَّدٍ وَآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَمِنْ أُمَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ»

“O Allah, accept from Muḥammad, the family of Muḥammad, and the Ummah of Muḥammad.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 1967.)

This supports including others in the reward of a sacrifice. Regarding eating sacrificial meat, the Prophet ﷺ said:

«كُلُوا وَأَطْعِمُوا وَادَّخِرُوا»

“Eat, feed others, and store.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 5569.)

Offering a separate sacrifice specifically on behalf of your father

Here, jurists differ:

  • According to the Ḥanafī position, if you voluntarily pay for the sacrifice from your own money on behalf of your deceased father, you and your family may eat from it. Ibn ʿĀbidīn distinguishes this from fulfilling the deceased’s bequest: in the voluntary case, the animal belongs to the person offering it, while the reward is intended for the deceased. (Radd al-Muḥtār, Book of Sacrifices, 6:335.)

  • According to the relied-upon Shāfiʿī position, a separate sacrifice on behalf of the deceased requires his bequest. When performed under that bequest, its meat must be distributed to the poor; the person performing it may not reserve a household portion for personal consumption. This differs from offering one’s own sacrifice and including the deceased in its reward. (Al-Khaṭīb al-Shirbīnī, Mughnī al-Muḥtāj, Book of Sacrifices; Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, Tuḥfat al-Muḥtāj, Book of Sacrifices.)

The general principle that charity benefits a deceased parent is established in authentic hadith: when a man asked whether his deceased mother would receive a reward if he gave charity on her behalf, the Prophet ﷺ answered yes. (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 1388.) The detailed rules about a deceased person’s sacrifice and its distribution are juristic applications of the evidence.

For your situation, a straightforward option is to offer your own non-vowed uḍḥiyah, include your father in its reward, give some meat to the poor, and eat from it with your family. If you are fulfilling a bequest he left, apply the separate rules explained above.

Allah knows best.