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21, No. 1 (Spring 1982), pp. 75-104 Published by: Islamic Research Institute, International Islamic University, Islamabad Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20847191 . Accessed: 15/12/2011 02:50
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For a meat to be lawfulfor Muslims, the followingfive (1) The animal shouldbe aHaM one, according (lawful)
Dog, Cat, monkey or themeat of any suchHaram (unlawful) animal can be lawful for aMuslim only in case of extreme urgency where a
person is threatened with starvation and his life " : Allah has to be saved. We read in the Qur'an and the flesh of swine, and that over which any other name than that of Allah has been invoked. But
(2 : 173). and not (2) The animal shouldbe properlyslaughtered dipped inboilingwater or killed by electricshocks. adopted tokill the Anymethod other than slaughter animalwill not be lawful. Stuningby bolt shotor electric shock before slaughter is not valid and should be avoided as it is tantamountto torturing
an animal which is inhuman and unlawful in Islam.
of make The tendency theShari'ah (IslamicLaw) is to more humaneby reducingthe suffering the slaughter of the animal. The Holy Prophet is reported to
76 MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
animal to be slaughtered. Do not slaughter an animal in the presence of other animals and feed and rest the animal before slaughter. The idea is to stop cruelty a practice still prevalent in theWest to animals? in various forms and guises despite claims to the contrary, as we ing the animal. shall This see later.
while slaughter (3) The name ofAllah shouldbe recited a Muslim or by a Jewor Christian in his own as unlawfulonwhich thename ofAllah has not been
recited : name " And not Lo hath eat not of that whereon Allah's for Lo ! it is been mentioned, !the devils do inspire their minions (6 : 122). language. The Holy Qur'an describes that slaughter recitation may be done by
abomination.
not simplyenough that (4) For meat to be lawful,it is " the animal has been slaughtered by People of the
Book."
his would Muslim kills a chickenby twisting neck, it method of killing is adopted by a Jewor Christian, then how sucha chickencan becomeHalal (lawful) ? consists in cuttingthe jugular veins of Slaughtering theneck, so thatall theblood isdrained out. The
be a carcass, (unlawful).
THE MEAT : LAWFUL AND UNLAWFUL IN ISLAM spinal cord must not be cut, because
77 the
nervefibresto the heart may be damaged during tionof theblood in theblood vessels of the animal.
Since blood is also forbidden in Islam, it is incum bent to see to it that the blood is completely drained from the animal during slaughtering. This meat is then called halal or lawful. Like other Islamic teachings, dietary restrictions in Islam relate to material well being, even as they are spiritually the process, causing cardiac arrest and hence stagna
significant.
meet the lawful need of food, and allowing all the blood to drain and European out. The meat sold commercially in theU.S.A. since when countries etc., is not lawful (halal) for Muslims, " " is not said over animals are slaughtered there, Bismillah them and the methods The Holy of slaughter are also objectionable. states :? Qur'an
during the act of slaughter. The Islamic mannerof slaughtering an animal is to slit " " Bismillah its throat, saying thus (In the name of Allah),
made lawful you. "This day are (all) good things for who have receivedtheScriptureis The food of those
lawful for you, and your food is lawful for them.
78
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH And so are the virtuous women of the believers and the virtuous women of those who received the Scrip
ture before you are (lawful for you) when ye have given them theirmarriage portions and live with th em in honour, not in fornication, nor taking them as secret concubines. Whoso
work isvain and he will be among the losers in the Hereafter. (V : 5).
exposition of the above Qur'anic
This issue with their slaughtered meat (Zabihah). is based on the consensus ofMuslims, as the meat of lawful animals slaughtered by them is permissible consider as unlawful any flesh of an animal which has been slaughtered in the name of any other being than God. They recite the name of God while
animals, although they are guilty of slaughtering attributingto God certain thingsof which He is
free, elevated and glorified as He is". Vol. Ill
79
and a group of the Companions of the Holy Prophet. The same is also the view of Imam Abu Hanifa,
Imam and zufar. yusuf, Imam Muhammad Imam Nakh'l and Iman Nawawi are of the view that the meat of such slaughtered animals is Abu
hateful in the eyes of Allah." (Abu Hayyan Andulsi inBAHRE-MUHEET Vol. IV, p. 131.) (iii) "In our opinion, the slaughteredanimals of the
" are unlawful for Muslims People of the Book which have been slaughtered in such a way that the name of God has not been intentionally recited at "
eating
or the timeof slaughter which have been slaughtered in thename of a dietyother than God on the condi tion thatit isknownwith certainty thatthename of God has not been recitedor the name of a diety
other than God of God's declared of the Book." has been recited, or if this omission " name becomes a habit with the People Those
of the slaughtered animals of the "People of theBook" isunlawful forMuslims, same their verdict with have the given intent and purpose. said that the meat because Similarly, when Hazrat Ali of the slaughtered animals of
80
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
This also applies to non-Arab Christians if it habit to recitethename of some diety becomes their
other than God i.e. the meat unlawful. day Christians And slaughtering their animals, of their slaughtered animals becomes while
kill themby stunning." (Qazi Sanaullah Panipati in TAFSIR-E-MAZHARI Vol. Ill p. 37).
what does theGlorious
there is no doubt that the present do not slaughter their animals but
we of In the light theabove elucidation, would now like mean by the food of theAhl-al-Kitab (People of the Book) mean by Muslims ? Does it whichAllah has made lawfulfor thisthefoodwhichAllah had made lawfulfor theAhl-al-Kitab
in their Scripture (i.e. revelations from Allah) and according to the their Prophets ? Or does it mean everything which Ahl-al-Kitab has good eat even though Allah had forbidden it for them ? It iswell known that in every one of the revealed religions, Allah forbidden things certain items of food while allowing other It is also well-known that in every community, to pose the following question: Qur'an
some of its people opposed theirprophetsand infringed the which theprophetshad prescribed for them, so they limits
eat some of the food forbidden to them. Therefore, does theQur'anic verse intend by "the food of the food of the Ahl
would
mean
al-Kitabwhich Allah had made lawfulfor Muslims, the food which is halal to them in accordance with of theAhl-al-Kitab theirBook and the teachingsof theirprophets ? Or does it
every kind of food that they actually eat, regardless of
81
Surely the above passage from the Qur'an does not give a blanket approval to consume whatever is available in the food markets and confectionaries of the Christian West as is conten scholars1 . It should be emphasized ded by some modern conclusions
If this is the truemeaning and interpretation the of we in Qur'anic verse, whould thenagain be justified posing the
question whether themeat of animals, as they are slaughtered Western countries, was originally lawful commercially today in so that itmight also be regarded as for Jews and Christians controversy. However, those2 who regard it lawful do so on " the basis of Allah's decree : The food of those who have received the Scripture is lawful for you."(Al-Qur'an, 5 :5) saying that this verse indicates the lawfulness of the animal
to themethod of slaughtering or to the characteristics of the per son who undertakes it, as long as he is a man from among the " " People of Book." They further argue that We are not re required to consider the way in which the animals have been name has been slaughtered, and whether or not Allah's
82
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
mentioned
of the People of theBook" are lawful unless thereis evidence are we blood or swine flesh. All otherfoodstuffs lawfuleven if
are sure that they are dedicated to some other being than Allah or are not slaughtered legally according to the Islamic rites."3 This is an over verse simplification of the Qur'anic " " The Zabihah of the People of the Book that they are unlawful for themselves, such as carrion,
"
over them.Foodstuffs
New
or intentionally which has been dedicated to any other diety thanGod. The modern versions of theBible (bothOld and
Testaments) have almost similar regulations for Zabihah
have discarded However, now when the People of the Book the regulations of their own Scripture, their Zabihah cannot be considered lawful. The Surah Al-Maidah
blanket approval to eat the animal slaughtered by those who have a Book regardless of theway itwas killed, whether itsneck was
according to the religious perscription, regardless of whether or or a man from among the not the slaughterer is a Muslim "People Hamid, of the Book."*
The
President,
83
slaughtered, and these people do not mention Allah's name upon their slaughtered beasts. The legal slaughter the trachea and
"The Slaughtered animals of the People of the Book are not to be eaten at present because they are not legally
in the upper part of the chest. The slaughter must not be done elsewhere. The People of the Book do not adhere to this rule."5 it says :? 'Forbidden unto you (for food) are carrion and blood and swine-flesh, and that which hath been dedicated unto any other than Allah, and the strangled, and the dead
throughbeating, and the dead throughfalling froma height, and which has been killed by (the goring of)
horns, and the devoured of wild beasts-."(5
: 3)
The Qur'an describes thewhole process by two " and Zakdh ? technical terms Zabah cutting and draining are associated some misconceptions the blood." Generally, as
shot etc., are far shattering the brain through bullet more painful, as we shall see later. Islam prescribes a humane
84
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH and Muslims need not be shy on this account before they cannot make
method
it lawful
In the light of Qur'anic verses? 6 : 122, 22 : 36, 22 : 34, 6 : 139, 16 : 115, 6 : 119, 2 : 173, 5 : 3, 5 : 5,
5:4 ?
instances, when maitah (carrion)6 has been served because the system of slaughter is based on stunning and many of the animals actually die before reaching differences. of the Book' which Allah which Allah made had made lawful forMuslims is that food
theblade. The Ulama are agreed that the food of the "People
lawful for them in their Scriptures and scholars need not say through their Prophets and modern more about it because the matter is plain and clear. Finally, there are some people who say, "it it permissible to eat it (i.e. non-Zabihah meat) after saying Bismallah at the time of eating." We have, however, never heard that saying
" food Bismillah on foodwhich isunlawfulturnsit into lawful What we are sure of is that theProphet (peace be upon him) "
used to say " Bismillah " when he commenced
useful with the grace of "Bismillah." Furthermore, he advised Muslims to do the same but he never told them that what was
85
Narrated byAisha (R.A.) :A group of people said to theProphet (peace be upon him), "Some people bring
us meat and we He do not know mentioned animal". eat." Allah's Name they have or not on slaughtering the name on it and Islam recently. whether
Those
and not the slaughterof Kuffar (Jews and Christians). In anotherHadith theHoly Prophet (peace be upon him) even
advised care inmatter of utensils so that the purity of food is inwhich swine flesh and Abu its derivatives may have been : I came Thalaha Al Khushaui Apostle! We
that this relates to the slaughter of neo (i.e. those people who had embraced Islam recently)
Book"
are in
(peace be upon him) said, "As foryour sayingthatyou are in the land of the People of theBook, you should
not eat in their utensils, unless you find no alternative, inwhich case you must wash the utensils and then eat in them..." (Bukhari) It would be worthwhile and advise-able to consider and reflect on the implications of the following ahddith regarding
86
things keeps his religion and honour blameless. But he who falls intodoubtfulthings, falls into what
is unlawful, just as a shepherd who pastures his animals round a preserve will soon pasture them into it." as saying
do not recognise.
(Bukhari and Muslim). (ii) Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger and He has
to the given the same command believers as He has given to themessengers, saying, " eat of what is good and act O messengers, " : 51) and also, You who righteously," (XXIII believe, eat of the good thingswhich We have provi ded for you." man who makes (II : 172) Then he mentioned a a long journey in a dishevelled and
dusty state, who stretches out his hands to heaven " when his food, Lord," saying, My Lord, my drink and clothing are of an unlawful nature, and he is nourished by what is unlawful, and such a one could be given an answer. asked how (Muslim),
(iii) The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) isalso repor " ted to have said : Flesh which has grownout of
what is unlawful
what is unlawful."
but hell
87
(iv) Al-'Irbad b. Sariya declared that Allah's messenger " got up and said, Does any of you, while reclining
on his couch, imaginethat Allah has prohibited only is to be found in theQur'an ? By Allah, what
exhorted and prohibited various I have commanded, matters as numerous as those is found in theQur'an, or more numerous. Allah has not
permission, or beat theirwomen, or eat their fruits, when they give you what is imposed on them."
permittedyou
(v) Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger as saying, " came down showing five aspects : The Qur'an
(Abu Daud).
what
So firmly fixed, what is obscure, and parables. treatwhat is permissible as permissible and what is prohibited as prohibited, act upon what is firmly is obscure, and take a lesson This is the wording in Al transmitted in Shu'ab al
diet may not injure the body. The so that indiscriminate well and He Allah knows our constitution perfectly Almighty knows how to keep itbest in health. As soundnessof mind may be said to depends on soundnessof body, food and drink
There can be no gainsaying the fact that the effect of food and drink upon the body and temperament is very powerful. The Physicians, therefore, prescribe special diet for patients,
Imdn, his wording being, "Act according to what is prohibited, and is permissible, avoid what follow what is firmly fixed."
88
to therefore, prescribed such food formen as are conducive them from a temporal and religious point of view. This is also the reason why lawful food, unlawfully acquired, has been made unlawful, as it greatly affects the moral tendency of a man. It may be
pertinent to mention here that at present are exporting a lot of frozen meat to Argentina and Brazil etc., This meat is not quite Arab countries including Saudi Arabia. lawful for theMuslims as the animals are not slaughtered ac The exporting acording to the way prescribed by the Shari'ah. on theirproducts which HaUl mark firms very cunningly put the in reality is not the case. There are no Muslim butchers or
as such their statement supervisors attached to these firms and It is very important that the Islamic cannot be relied upon. should probe into the matter urgently to ensure Organizations that theMuslim masses inArab countries are not fed on this type of meat as, according to a Hadith of the blessed Prophet, the prayers of a person nourished on unlawfu food are not This is a grave issue and should be taken heard or accepted. in right earnestness by Muslim governments. The probing summary of this somewhat heated discussion :? and
" " (a) No food of the People of the Book is awfulfor " aMuslim exceptthat for which is lawful the People
themselves, according to the directions of their Scripture and their prophets. And conse " " prepare quently, when the People of the Book an animal for food, it would not be lawful for a of the Book "
is as follows
89
Muslim, unless they had slaughtered it, according to the directions in their Scripture.7 (b) Halal meat is available in many western countries
able
Islamic workers
is completely drained out by slitting its throat. Furthermore, the eating of meat which is sold in themarket is not lawful for a Muslim on account of the fact that except for as the blood
kosher* meat, the conditions set forth earlier (p. 1) are not fulfilled. The machine slaughter procedure standards and as such the Muslims despite at present cannot
90 MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH animals like camels etc., are to be slaughtered because ever, no justification to routine method because a 'practise stunning as it causes unnecessary
sufferingand toruretothe animal which is detested by Islam. Furthermore, it is affirmed that electric of flesh stunning hastens the initiation of decay and affects its taste (this was one of the reasons for complaints by meat producers inDenmark), produces blood clot in the meat to be in the animal and even causes paralysis slaughtered. As such the
that which causes the least pain and suffering. The Islamic slaughter is in fact painless ? technical ? and arguments in favour of this view abound ismost which
stunning operation is considered harmful to the flesh and causes great suffering to the animal.
came to the Prophet, peace be upon him, and said : " O Messenger of Allah, what of a man who slays and forgets to mention Allah's name ?". The " : Allah's name is upon Prophet replied every
91
It is also permissible (Al-Dar Qutni). to eat the flesh of a slaughtered animal whose head had been cut off in an act of swift slaughter i.e. hen etc. This is lawful as an accidental : Anas view of the following Hadith is mentioned." Ibn Abbas, happening in "Eat from what and Ibn Umar
are of opinion that if in the act of slaughtering an animal fromthe side of his jugularveins,his head
separated from the body, the meat of such an animal is lawful. But this should not be done is intenionally , otherwise itwould become Mukrooh
neck having been cut from the upper side, itwould not be lawful in any case, whether or not its head is separated from its body. In either case, itsmeat will become unlawful.
jurisprudence, it is conclusively, decisively and that chickens and animals covincingly proved slaughtered a built-in rotating saw or blade and motivated by machines with
the general practice inWestern countries. Since the Islamic method of slaughter is a form of wor ship, theMuslims are not allowed to eat the flesh of any animal
by electric current or any other motive power are forbidden and While Allah may forgive our past lapses Muslims. unlawful for for not takingHalal meat due to ignorance or its non-availabili
ty at certain places, but now we will be great sinners in the sight of Allah ifwe do not switch over to Halal meat, fish, Kosher
92
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
meat and green pulses which are within our easy reach. The price of halal zabihah meat in non-Muslim countries will come down, once all Muslims there start consuming it,because of the economics of large scale production.
and bring it out, we have said something which is correct, then And ifwe have made a mistake, we ask Him for pardon and Finally, may peace and blessings be showered on
Muhammad, theSeal of theProphets,thebest ofAllah and on his family, companionsand those his who followhis teachings.
forgiveness.
********************************************* a hath showngrace to thebelieversby sendingunto them Messenger (1) "Allah verily
of their own who reciteth unto them His
andteacheth them theScriptureand wisdom although before (he came to them) theywere in flagrant error." (3 : 164) that ye are overburdened is grievous, full of concern for you, for the believers full of pity and merciful." (9 : 128) of Messenger of (3) "Muhammad is not thefather any man among you, but he is the Aware of all things" Allah and theSeal of theProphets and Allah is (33 : 40) "We sent thee(OMuhammad) not save as amercy forthepeop^s." (21 : 107) (4) (5) "Lo !Allah and His angels showerblessings on theProphet. O yewho believe ! Ask belessingson him and salutehimwith a worthy salutation." (33 : 56) **********************************************************
(2) "There hath come unto you a Messenger, (one) of yourselves, unto whom aught
revelations,
and
causeth
them to grow,
Dar-ul-Ifta and renowned his Abduh from high post in Ulama of theMuslim World rejectedhis verdict. ments and scholarship Mufti Abduh, yetno one is innocent of miraacle of except theProphets ofAllah. It is an outstanding
any scholar, however, great he may be , is found indulging in error in contravention of the provisions of the Qur'an and the Sunnah while giving a verdict, theUmmah, inspite of having due regard for his high scholarship, never Islam that whenever Although no one can deny the high intellectual attain
Not to speak ofMufti Abduh, when Imam Shafi'l (a of from the recognisedreligious luminary Muslims) differing majority ofUmmah said thatalthough it is not lawfulto for sake recitation Bismillah intentionally thetime slaughter of at of meat it makrooh(disapproved), ingan animaland eating of such
yet we cannot declare it Haram, the majority of the Ummah
94
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
the said Imam, declared that it was on his part. Several the Ulama
relying upon a Qur'anic Nass, and disagreeing with him believes Hence such slaughter to be totally Haram. eminent Ulama
is no comparison
in Imrm Shafi,ls
is
was a great scholar and journalist. He wrote many articles in favour of his guide and mentor and gained favour of some Ulama on account of his high position in theGovernment circles. and made However, themischief was curbed by Ulama-e-Haq a world of difference between suppress ineffective. But there is
95
to will be sufficient reproduce the opinion of Mufti Abduh and Rashid Reza in its original formwhich the people have
lost sight of on account of lengthy debates and discussions. If it is presented in a clear and original form before Muslims,
ABDUH
age and sect from the dawn of Islam till today unanimously believe that just as marriage and divorce are particular modes of social behaviour, similarly the act of slaughter cannot be lawful unless it is carried out under the prescribed injunctions set out in theHoly Qur'an and tha Sunnah. Hence it is compulsory under the Qur'anic Nass to also compulsory that slaughtering must be done by a Muslim These conditions are matters of or by the people of the Book. religious obligation.
In one of theHadiths recorded by Bukhari, Islamic had been stated as one of the Signs( J\*? ) slaughtering
96
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
which make a Muslim distinct from the followers other of of of Hadith is religions. The English translation the text the
given under Anas :? reported Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of
by us (according to theShari'ah) is a Muslim, one for of whom there is guarantee (of the safety his lifeand property) fromAllah and the guarantee from His
Messenger.
Allah with regard to his protection. (Bukhari) In this has Hadith Islamic slaughtering been described
like the prayer and facing the
Therefore,
break
of
Magians
that they should be dealt with like People of the Book, a except in twomatters i.e. it is not lawful for Muslim tomarry with a Magian woman and eat their slaughter. a social
necessity and among the natural needs of human beings, yet Islam has laid down certain restrictions on itwhich are necessary to be fulfilled, otherwise marriage will not be
legal under the Shari'ah. Same is the case with slaughter on whi ch certain restrictions imposed by the Shari'ah are well known toMulslims of every age and sect. It is regarded as one of the
THE MEAT : LAWFUL AND UNLAWFUL IN ISLAM and Nahar. Nahar as well. Zakah
97
which is proved by otherverses of the and saum as authentic of Holy Qur'an and the teachings theProphet. It it a distor
tion to make an
It is unanimously regarded a Qur'anic term just like Salat, and Saum. We regard only that meaning of salat
i.e. optional and non-optional which have been mentioned in the Holy Qur'an. Separate regulations have been prescribed for both. Narrators Tjdkah as Zibah ively.
earlier.
inference merely
of Ahadith
But
and Juristshave called the optional the non-optional as $ayd (game) respect requirements and
conditions as
laiddown in the Qur'an and Sunnahwhich have been explained But Mufti Abduh by overridingthe verdictsof all the
jurists and commentators of theQur'an attributed a new meaning to the said Qur'anic term. The gist of his research is that for Zak
ing,whatever, may be form of killing. He equated non-optional and Zakah against clear elaborations found in the Qur'an own guesswork. the Sunnah with optional Zakah by his He,
therefore, refused to accept the basic condition of cutting veins of throat in intentional slaughtering which is a prescribed condi
of detail is given in his famous commentary theHoly Qur'an of called Tafseer Al-ManUr (vol. 6 P. 144). One sentence the
commentary being :
evenwent further and said thatkillingof an animal by electric schock is also lawful(Halal). It is not onlyHalal but is also
The whole discussion and
of the Ummah.
He
98
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
"And I believe that if theProphet ofAllah (peace be upon him) had knowledge of anymethod of slaughter
ing *S$ which may facilitate and prove painless for the animal, such as killing by electric shock, the Prophet of Allah would certainly have declared it superior to the Islamic method of slaughtering."
a great audacity on the part of Mufti Abduh thatby thatifthe method, ProphetofGod had knowledgeof this
he would adopted have certainly given up the Islamic Way it. (A matter of great sorrow indeed). and and wrong concept, he claimed
an animal by strangulation, it is also Halal. answer this open violation of the Qur'anic support of a wrong discussion over iyjJij which
is against the consensus of the companions Prophet, Tabeen and themajority of theUmmah. vol. VI p. 137).
of Mufti Abduh had alreadydenied thenecessity reciting now he did awaywith the Allah's name at thetimeof slaughter,
killed Animals throat's viens. cutting requirement of According intentionally by strangulation also become Halal. animal is that which dies to his investigation the only Haram a natural death or without the interference of any man dies by
THE MEAT : LAWFUL AND UNLAWFUL IN ISLAM falling from any high place or by automatic strangulation. isHalal
99 Any
whetherhe recites God's name may be themethod of killing, or whetherhe cuts theveinsof throat not, all is lawful according to MuftiAbduh. His research about thepeople of particularly theBook is that the food of thepeople of theBook isHalal withoutany conditionor restriction whetherthey have killed the
animal by method. strangulation or electric shock or by any other vol. VI, p. 200). (Al-Manar in so far as he did or not, the slaughterer may be a Muslim or a non-Muslim,
human beings
not declare the swine flesh Halal forthem which isalso included in thefood of People of Book, thoughthebasic purpose of his " Book is lawful Muslims. Consequently themeat for ple of the of pig as well could have entered the list.
meat with Proceeding ahead he openly said that eating of animals' is one of the natural habits of human beings having no link " commentary was to prove in general that the food of the Peo
restrictions are confined only to acts religion. Religious His words are as under :? of worship. c~*J <s"U!lj JP'ifl obUJI jjJj Ljtj a*U j J\j IjuJ irU! 4>l "
are not fromlaws of ritualsordainedbyAllah for thepeople to follow. The laws relatingto ritualsare establishedby the text Mufti Abduh's Ijtehad is nothing except In a nutshell of that thedistinction Halal and Haram in thearticlesof eating,
(nass) of the law Giver."
100
MUHAMMAD SAMl'ULLAH
of Ijtehad is correct, then marriages and divorces are also amongst thematters of habit and custom. Hence discussion of Halal about the same is useless and religious restrict ions imposed on them are wrong. and Haram
There can't be a more suitable Ijtehad in themodern age of absolute freedom and religious indifference than that of
We
are, however, worried about the people who under some pre text and without any solid argument have followed his opinion only for ease and comfort and the statisfaction of their baser
selves.
of andAllama Rashid Reza, yet in the light theirservieesin the fieldof education and with the grace ofGod, it is hoped that by they might be forgiven Allah for giving a wrong verdict.
The commission of an error is possible, howesoever great : It is a well-known saying inArabic a scholar may be. ojifc pJU J?3j tyS" JfcJ " Every good horse may have a fall. And every scholar may commit a mistakog and make " nonsensical Ummah
remarks.
That person
in
igion. Zahbi in his famous book ^U^JU^Ta; has quoted the following saying of Imam Auzal :
101
the stray opinions of the Ulama makes his exit from the fold of Islam." "Whosoever follows or are Arabs who visit Europ settled there, do not take the least care about food and eat the unslaughtered animals' meat, under the pretext of mufti Abduh's It is learnt that many verdict, which is unlawful. The people naturally regard Arabs as their religious leader, so many of them start to follow them Still there are some true Muslims who care for their religion ;we often receive their references about slaugh in thismatter. it suitable and proper, the
Urdu/translationof the samehas been added at theend of this brochure so thatthe Muslims residinginEurope may take guidance from it. SurelyAllah is the greates helper.
-Translated from Urdu from Mufti Muhammad Shaft's (GrandMufti ofPakistan) booklet 4?**i> ^ikJ Maktaba Dar-ul (pp. 37?42)published by Uloom, Karachi-U. (Rajab 1387-#).
3^* **^?*
who lack the ability todistinguishbetween right and wrong are whogather firewood in (haqq and bafil,)hence they like those
an excessively dark night. They know not on what their hands tures of living beings and animals are permissible whereas Rasullah (asllal-lahu alayhi wasallam) said that these are hardm. They
fall.
102
They say that the keepingof a beard is not obligatory, but Rasullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said that it is compulsory.
They say that the recital of Tasmiah, when slaughtering is un necessary but theQur'an declares that it is essential. They say that the intermingling of sexes ispermissible, but theQur'an prohibits (sallal-lahu alayhi wasallam) categ orically asserted its reality. They are the ulama-e-soo who sap the blood of the Been. They are those about whom Nabi-e salam) Kareem (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said : who lead astray." "Leaders are astray and lead (others) astray." "They vol. 5 No. The Majlis, 1, Port Elizabeth, South Africa. is a myth, but Rasullah
REFERENCES
1 For an exposition ofMufti Abduh's fatwa please see Appendix. Mufti of Egypt, Sheikh Rashid 2 Among themare SheikhMuhammad Abduh, former Shaikh of Al Reda, a discipleof ShaikhAbduh and ShaikhMahmoud Shaltout, former Azhaand Dr. Yusuf al-Qardawi of Qatar etc. Amman 3 Dr. Abdel Aziz El Khayat, Dean, Faculty of Islamic Law, Universityof Jordan, " in Report on Food and Slaughtered Animals in Islam99 (pp. 35?44) submittedto the West Berlin. Veterinary Institute, 4 "Corbans in Islamic Law" (Arabic) by Dr. Abdalla El-Abbadi pp. (64?67.) 5 "Rissalat Hokm El Mustawrada andZabaeh Ahlul Kitab bySheikhAbdullah benHamid as a reply to Sheikh Abdullah ben Zaid binMahmoud El-Qatari. BBC has been broadcasting certaineducational programmeson thealleged 6 Recently the animals. Well how do barbaritiesand brutalitiesof theIslamicmethod of slaughtering more modern slaughter houses the theirlivestock? In the "civilised people" slaughter out heads sticking of stocks. A man then passes cattleare penned up ina rowwith their fromone beast's head to thenext touching the forehead of each with an hydraulic on the hammer is pressed the head of the beast is instantly hammer. Once trigger shattered. Chickens are more painfullykilled : theirheads are clamped into a row
103
one bird to thenextjamming but insteadof using a hydraulichammeraman passes from mouth of each intobrain. The blood is cleaned out of these an ice-pick throughthe much blood has had poor birds and beasts only after skinningand guttingand thus meat more corruptibleand far lesshygienic than timeto adhere to theflesh making the BBC has neglected to impart fact any kosheror halalmeat v This isa scientific which the * * most civilised But letus not neglect to touchon that in its educational programme. method of slaughterofmost respectableantiquity inBritain :pig-sticking ! A spike is held pointed towards theforeheadof the swineand hammer isused to drive the stake and agony of the animal is reflectedin itsshrilland into theanimal's brain. The terror screams. Hence what has appeared on the BBC in theguise of *educa dying lingering, tion' is nothingmore than a contemptible anti-Islamic demagogy. For an analysis and rebuttalof false and baseless propaganda against Islam and the its institutions, readers are advised to consult and circulate publications such as :
CRESCENT (iii) THE TEACHINGS OF JESUS IN THE LIGHT OFAL-QUR'AN. the grace of Allah, thesebooks (published byMalik Sirajuddin& Sons, Kashmiri By with the examples set by pious Muslims can Bazar, Lahore-8, PAKISTAN) together help eradicatemisconceptions about Islam in theWest and throw itsdoors open for the reception of the glorious Message of Islam. Muslims avoid eating theslaughter non-practising of be 7 Itwould still desireable if "People the Book" as thepermissionto eat even theirlawful slaughter isconfinedonly to the of " commited People of theBook," and we know for certain most of the people in the rather any strongfaithor conviction. by Wes todayareChristian by tradition should be made by the local Islamic do 8 Where such arrangements not exist, efforts
Centres Muslims preserve to procure Halal can band the meat meat for the Muslim slaughter the week. cow, together and for use during a group of Community. Alternatively on week-end's and sheep or chickens can be done successfully at places
This
where Halal meat isnot easily availaable provided one has thezeal and concern for the a Faith by sacrificing littletimeand undergoinga little hardship in thisregard. man hath only that forwhich he maketh effort." "And that "But lo ! with hardshipgoeth ease, lo !with hardship goeth ease so when thou art relieved, still toii and strive to please thyLord." (94 : 5-8). "As for thosewho strivein We surely guide themtoOur paths, and lo !Allah Us, is with the good." (29 : 69) " " 9 Kosher (literally meaning inHebrew "clean and pure ") meat is permssible for from orthodox Jews refrain Swine-flesh and pork products and Mulims. The religious with a verysharpknifeso thatall theblood animals by cuttingthe throat slaughtertheir runs out and they alwaysmention thename ofGod over theanimal to be slaughtered for West who are isolated and cannot get forfood. This is a facility Muslims in the Halal meat slaughteredbyMuslims.
(Al-Qur'an, 53 : 39).
products
in France
and
other European
countres
are
prepared
with
stomach
NOTE
: Dr.
Research
of gratitudeto him forhis pioneering work in this regard. His thesismerits to be published in booklet form. The Islamic
Institute is also arranging the translation and publica
from Egypt)who studiedatAl-Azhar has pro (originally Jersey fuselywrittenin defenceof the Islamicmethod of slaughtering
This writer owes a debt
Suleman Duniyah,
Director,
tionofDr. Abdullah Abdur Rahim al-Abbadi's Arabic book on the subject of Zabiha in Islam inUrdu language for the
guidance of readers.
4?4*4*4*