When a boy was born to one of us in the pre-Islamic period, we sacrificed a sheep and smeared his head with its blood; but when Allah brought Islam, we sacrificed a sheep, shaved his head and smeared his head with saffron.

سَمِعْتُ أَبِي بُرَيْدَةَ يَقُولُ كُنَّا فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ إِذَا وُلِدَ لأَحَدِنَا غُلاَمٌ ذَبَحَ شَاةً وَلَطَخَ رَأْسَهُ بِدَمِهَا فَلَمَّا جَاءَ اللَّهُ بِالإِسْلاَمِ كُنَّا نَذْبَحُ شَاةً وَنَحْلِقُ رَأْسَهُ وَنَلْطَخُهُ بِزَعْفَرَانٍ