Al-Hajj: (36-37) And the large animals (Budn) We have made for you...

Verse 36

• Al-Budn is the plural of badana (بدنة), similar to khashab (wood) being the plural of khashaba (piece of wood).
• It is so named because it is offered (as a sacrifice) in the Sacred Precincts due to the largeness of its body.
• Originally, this term referred specifically to camels. However, the Prophet (peace be upon him) included cattle when he said: "A badana counts for seven, and a cow counts for seven."
• This inclusion is supported by the subsequent phrase: {When their flanks fall down} (referring to the sacrifice), which specifically applies to camels, as they are slaughtered while standing (nahr), unlike cattle.
• Some scholars hold that Al-Budn includes both camels and cattle offered as a sacrifice in Hajj or Umrah, as the term signifies a large body, thus justifying their inclusion.
• Sheep are not included, even though they suffice for the ritual sacrifice (nusuk), because of their small size, so they are not called budana.

• Al-Hasan and Ibn Abi Ishaq recited it with two ḍammah sounds (like thamar from thamara). Ibn Abi Ishaq also recited it with a doubled nūn in the pause position.
• It has also been recited in the accusative and nominative cases, similar to the recitation of {And the moon, We have ordained for it stations} (Yasin: 39).

• If a person says, "It is incumbent upon me for Allah to have a badana," can he slaughter it outside Mecca?
  • Abu Hanifa and Muhammad (may Allah have mercy on them) permit it.
  • Abu Yusuf (may Allah have mercy on him) permits it only in Mecca.
• They all agree that if someone vows a hady (offering), it must be slaughtered in Mecca.
• If someone vows a jazūr (a large animal, often a camel), he may slaughter it wherever he wishes.
• Abu Hanifa argued that badana is like jazūr, so slaughtering it anywhere should be permissible. This differs from hady, for which Allah says: {a gift reaching the Ka'bah} (Yasin: 39), making reaching the Ka'bah a defining characteristic of hady.
• Abu Yusuf countered by citing: {And the large animals (Budn) We have made for you from the symbols of Allah}. Thus, the name badana itself implies it is an act of drawing near to Allah, making it like the name hady.
• Abu Hanifa responded that not everything slaughtered as an act of drawing near is restricted to the Sacred Precincts; for example, the Uḍḥiyah (sacrificial animal on Eid) is an act of drawing near, yet it is permissible everywhere.

• When Allah created these large animals and ordained their offering during Hajj, it was appropriate for Him to say: {We have made for you from the symbols of Allah}.
• Regarding {And for you therein is good}, the discussion is the same as that previously mentioned concerning {For you therein are benefits} (Al-Hajj: 33).
• Since {for you therein is good} serves as encouragement, it primarily refers to the reward in the Hereafter. A rational person would be keen on something about which Allah testifies that it contains both "good" and "benefits."

• There is an implied object: "So mention the name of Allah over their slaughtering."
• The commentators explain this means saying, "Bismillah, Allahu Akbar, O Allah, from You and to You," at the time of slaughtering or nahr.
• Ṣawāff (صواف): This means they are standing upright, with their forelegs and hind legs aligned.
• It is also recited as Ṣawāfin (صوافن), derived from the alignment of a horse (standing on three legs while the fourth is bent at the knee). This posture is achieved because one foreleg of the badana is tied, causing it to stand on three legs.
• It is also recited as Ṣawāfī (صوافي), meaning they are pure/sincere for the sake of Allah, without associating anyone else with the name mentioned during the slaughter, as the polytheists used to do.
• Al-Hasan recited it as Ṣawāfiyā (صوافيا) with tanwīn as a substitute for the final vowel marker when pausing.
• Some recited it as Ṣawāfī (صوافي), similar to the Arabic usage: "Give the bow to its archer" (A'ṭi al-qaws bi-ārīhā).
• The wisdom behind them standing in rows (iṣfāf) might be to make their large number visible to onlookers, thus strengthening the spirits of the needy. Slaughtering them in this state would yield greater reward and be closer to manifesting the Takbīr (Allahu Akbar) and exalting Allah's name and the symbols of His religion.

• Wujūb al-junūb (the falling of the flanks) means they fall onto the ground, similar to a wall that falls (wajaba) or the sun when it sets (wajabat).
• The meaning is when they fall onto the ground, which occurs upon the exit of the soul.

• We have already discussed the scholarly differences regarding what is permissible to eat from them.
• Al-Qāni': The one who asks. It is said: Qana'a, yaqna'u, qunū'an (he begged). Abu Ubayd said it refers to a person among a group who seeks their surplus and asks for their charity.
• Al-Farra' offered a second meaning: Al-Qāni' is the one who does not ask, due to contentment (qanā'ah). It is said: Qani'a, yaqna'u, qanā'atan (he was content with what was allotted to him and stopped asking).
• Al-Mu'tarr: Some say this is the one who presents himself without asking. Others say he presents himself by asking.
• Al-Azhari quoted Ibn al-A'rabi: "It is said 'arawtuhu or a'rartuhu or 'arawtuhu or i'taraytuhu when you approach him seeking his favor or the like."
• Abu Ubayd preferred that Al-Qāni' is the one who is satisfied with what is given without demanding or insisting. Al-Mu'tarr is the one who presents himself, asks, and keeps approaching them repeatedly, indicating he will never be satisfied with what is given.
• Al-Hasan recited Al-Mu'tarī (المعتري). Abu Raja' recited Al-Qani' (القنع) meaning only the content one; it is said qani'un or qāni'un.

• This means that Allah made camels and cattle possess bodies larger, greater, and stronger than beasts of prey and other animals that we cannot easily subdue. Allah fashioned them in a way that allows us to control and direct them as we wish. This is a great blessing in both religion and worldly life.
• After explaining this blessing, Allah followed it with {that you may be grateful}, meaning "so that you may thank Him."
• The Mu'tazila position: They argue this proves that Allah wills gratitude from all people—both the obedient and the disobedient. This implies that Allah wills everything He commands, contrary to the position of the Sunnis, who hold that He only wills what He knows will be obeyed. (This point has been discussed multiple times previously.)

Verse 38

• When the custom of the pre-Islamic era (Jāhiliyyah) was to smear the idols and the walls of the Ka'bah with the blood and flesh of sacrifices, Allah clarified the true purpose of the slaughter: {Never will reach Allah their meat or their blood, but that which reaches Him is the piety from you}.
• He clarified that what reaches Allah from the actions of the sacrificer—his saying, his slaughtering, and similar obligations—is the piety (taqwā) from him, not the actual flesh and blood.
• It is understood that nothing material can reach the Divine Essence. The meaning is that the action reaches the place where it is recorded, as indicated by the verse: {To Him ascends the good word} (Fatir: 10).

• The Mu'tazila derived several points from this verse:
  1. The benefit received by a person is their action, not the physical body being slaughtered. (This is correct.)
  2. Allah is self-sufficient (Ghani) from all of this; the goal is only for the servant to strive in obeying His commands. (This is correct.)
  3. Since Allah benefits from piety and not from the physical bodies (flesh and blood), the piety must be an action; otherwise, His acceptance of piety would be like His acceptance of flesh and blood. (This is debatable, as piety involves intention and knowledge.)
  4. Since acceptance is conditioned upon piety, and the perpetrator of a major sin (kabīra) is not completely pious, his deed must not be accepted, and he receives no reward.
• The Response: The first two points are correct. The third point is countered by the concept of motivation (dā'ī) and knowledge ('ilm). As for the fourth, although the perpetrator of a major sin is not absolutely pious, he is pious in the specific act of obedience he performs with sincerity, so his obedience must be accepted. At this point, the verse turns into an argument against the Mu'tazila.

• All reciters read {Yanālu Allāh} (Allah reaches) and {Yanāluhu} (It reaches Him) with the letter Yā' (masculine).
• Ya'qub read both verbs with Tā' (feminine): {Tanālu Allāh} and {Tanāluhu}. Those who used the feminine (Tā') referred it back to the word piety (taqwā), while those who used the masculine (Yā') separated the noun (Allah) from the verb.

• The meaning is that He subjected them to you so that you may magnify Allah (Takbīr), which is glorification, through what we do before, during, and after the slaughter, according to the guidance He has shown us.

• This is a promise to those who fulfill His command, similar to the previous verse: {And give good tidings to the humble (Al-Mukhbitīn)} (Al-Hajj: 34).
• Al-Muḥsin (the doer of good) is one who performs good deeds and adheres to them, thereby doing good to himself by securing the reward.