Upbringing of Children

emove the pubic hair, to remove the hair under the armpits, to trim or
shorten the moustache and to clip the nails."
al-Bukh\r|
`Aq|qah
It is reported that Ras[lull\h r said: "If anyone has a child born to him
and wishes to offer a sacrifice on its behalf, he should offer two sheep
for a boy and one sheep for a girl."
Ab[ D\w[d
`Aq|qah means to sacrifice an animal in a display of appreciation of
the birth of a child. One animal is sacrificed at the birth of a girl and two
at the birth of a boy. This is a Sunnah.
The `Aq|qah may be included in the shares of a large Qurb\n| animal
(animal slaughtered at the time of `Eid al-A}#\), if the birth happens to
fall during the Qurb\n| period or if the `Aq|qah is delayed till the
Qurb\n| days. Two parts should be included for a son and one part for
a daughter. For those who cannot afford two animals for the baby son,
even one animal will be recognised as `Aq|qah. If one has no means to
sacrifice even this much, then there is no harm.
To make `Aq|qah and name the child on the seventh day of birth is
Musta#abb (desirable). If `Aq|qah is delayed for whatever reason from
the seventh day then one should still perform it, if possible on any
subsequent seventh day thereafter (14th, 21st etc). If it can only be
performed on a day besides these, then there is no harm in performing
it on that day.
The conditions regarding the quality and suitability of the `Aq|qah
animal are the same as those of Qurb\n| animals.
The `Aq|qah meat should be distributed amongst the poor but also
may be distributed either cooked or uncooked to relatives or friends,
who could also be invited to the home to partake from the meat.
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