Udhiyah or Qurban or Qurbani is part of the 'Eiduladha celebration. Here is a short note on Udhiyah from Islam-online.net
What is meant by sacrifice and what are its rulings?
Sacrifice is the act of slaughtering. Some of
the rulings concern the persons who are slaughtering and others
concerned when the slaughter should take place.
Who should sacrifice and what are the conditions?
First, one must have the intention (niyyah)
of sacrificing before doing so. The sacrifice has to meet certain
conditions, the first of which is the intention.
Second, it is preferable that a Muslim do the slaughtering
because the sacrifice is an act of worship for the purpose of pleasing
Allah Almighty. If a Muslim delegates a non-Muslim to
slaughter on his behalf, it is acceptable but makruh.
Third, it is preferable for the person who
sacrifices to slaughter the sacrificial animal himself or herself. The Prophet (peace and
blessing be upon him) slaughtered two rams with his own hands.
Fourth, one should say “Bismillah” before slaughtering. It was reported that the Prophet
(pbuh) used to say when slaughtering,
“Bismillah, Allahu Akbar”. If one has forgotten to utter these
words, the sacrifice will be acceptable; and if one adds to it the
following supplication it would be even better according to many
scholars: “O Allah, This is from You and unto You, so please accept it
from me or from the person on whose behalf I am slaughtering.”
The Time of Sacrifice
The earliest time is after the
`Eid Prayer and sermon; the latest time is the end of the second Day of
Tashreeq (the days following `Eid). The slaughtering days, therefore,
are three: the `Eid and the two days following it, i.e., 10, 11, and 12
Dhul-Hijjah.
What to Do with the Sacrificial Meat
The person who is sacrificing should take
one-third of the meat for his or her family, give one-third as a gift,
and give one-third to the poor. If he or she keeps more than one-third
it is all right. The followers of Ibn Hanifah say the more you give to
the poor the better.
Paying the Butcher
The followers of Ibn Hanbal declared that the
butcher should not be paid with the meat of the sacrificed animal
instead of with money. Ash-Shaf`i and the scholars of his school
supported this opinion but said that if the butcher is a poor man, it
is all right to give him part of the meat as a present the same as
others.
Selling the Meat or Skin
The followers of Abu Hanbal declared that it
is forbidden to sell any of the meat or the skin of the sacrificial
animal, whether this animal is slaughtered to fulfill a vow or
slaughtered voluntarily.
Imam Ahmad and Imam Shaf`i forbade selling its
meat or any part of it. Al-Hasan and An-Nukha`i permitted selling the
skin and buying with the money something beneficial to oneself and
others; thus he differentiated between the meat and the skin.
Abu Hanifah said to sell the meat and donate
the money to the poor. It was reported that Ibn `Umar said to sell the
meat and donate the money.
How to Slaughter
Local health or animal rights laws may
restrict where the actual slaughter may take place. Please check. If this is the first time you will
be doing the slaughtering with your own hands, have someone experienced
in this with you to advise and assist.
The conditions for the actual slaughter are this:
1. The animal should be slaughtered by a
sharp object which is capable of making it bleed by severing blood
vessels, even if the sharp object is a stone or a piece of wood.
2. The slaughtering is to be done by cutting
the throat of the animal or by piercing the hollow of the throat,
causing its death. The best way is to cut the windpipe, the gullet, and
the two jugular veins.
3. No name other than Allah’s should be mentioned over the animal at the time of slaughter.
4. The name of Allah should be mentioned while slaughtering the animal. You should say, “Bismillah, Allahu Akbar.”
For more details check it out here.
Nokia Middle
East and North Africa is set to launch special edition N73 phones come
this Ramadhan. The phones will be preloaded with Islamic applications
including du'aas, Islamic organizer with azan for the five daily
prayers, Qibla direction indicator and Hijri calendar. 
