The
Food (Meat) of Ahlul Kitab
By Dr. Jaafar Al-Quaderi
All praise is to ALLAH, and the
peace and blessings of ALLAH are sent to the Prophet Muhammad, salla
ALLAHu alaihi wa sallam, Sayyid of the Messengers and on his family
and the Sahaba and those who follow their guidance until the Day of
Judgement.
These days, it has
become common for Muslim communities to de-emphasize food to the
point that many are observed eating in restaurants or fast food
establishments, indulging in foods that should be avoided. Even more
bizarre is that if these same Muslims were back in their home
countries, they would accept the decisions of the government
officials or Islamic organizations in those Muslim countries to
decide for them what is Halal and what is not. In non-Muslim
countries, they don't seem to take things as seriously as required.
Don't the Islamic rules apply in the non-Muslim West? Or do the
Islamic rules change from place to place? Or is it simply a written
law, which need not be followed? This is what we see and hear, but
ALLAH, Subhanahu wa ta'ala, ordained for us a specific way of life
and encouraged Muslim believers by saying:
O
you who believe! Eat of the good things that WE have provided for you
and be grateful to ALLAH, if it is HIM you worship. (Al-Baqara:
172)
In
fact, ALLAH, Subhanahu wa ta'ala, did not limit HIS instructions to
the believers alone. HE also instructed all HIS Messengers, alaihim
assalaam, to:
O
you messengers! Enjoy (all) things good and pure, and work
righteousness: for I am well acquainted with (all) that you do.
(Al Mu-minun: 51)
The Arabic word
Tayyibaat here, translated as 'good and pure', is a general and
all-encompassing word about all foods, including meats, grains,
fruits and vegetables, etc. However, when ALLAH, Subhanahu wa ta'ala,
discussed meat, HE was exact in instructing us to pronounce HIS name
on the meat, as follows:
So
eat of (meats) on which ALLAH's name has been pronounced, if you have
faith in HIS Signs. (Al-An'aam: 118)
ALLAH, Subhanahu wa
ta'ala, did not instruct us to pronounce HIS name when HE spoke about
foods in general. He instructed us to "eat of the Tayyibaat
(good and pure)" foods. Then ALLAH, Subhanahu wa ta'ala,
addressed us by asking:
Why should you not eat of (meats)
on which ALLAH's name has been pronounced, when HE has explained to
you in detail what is forbidden to you, except under compulsion of
necessity? But many do mislead (men) by their appetites unchecked by
knowledge. The Lord knows best those who transgress. (Al-An'aam:
119)
Then ALLAH, Subhanahu
wa ta'ala, forbade us from eating meat upon which HIS name has not
been pronounced, by saying:
Eat not of (meats) on which
ALLAH's name has not been pronounced: that would be impiety. But the
evil ones ever inspire their friends to contend with you if you were
to obey them, you would indeed be Pagans. (Al-An'aam: 121)
In interpreting this
aya, Imam Al-Fakhr Al-Razi said, it has been related that 'Ata had
said: all food and drink upon which ALLAH's name has not been
pronounced is haram (forbidden), based on the guidance of this aya.
However, all the other
scholars agreed that this aya was specific to meat only. Imam Al-Razi
used the opinions of 3 schools of thought to explain this aya. The
first is that of Imam Malik, which states that the meat from any
slaughter upon which ALLAH's name is not pronounced is haram,
regardless of whether it is intentional or by error. Ibn Sirin and a
group of theologists agree with this viewpoint.
The second is that of
Imam Abu Hanifa, which states that the meat from any slaughter where
the name of ALLAH is intentionally not pronounced is haram. If the
slaughterman forgets to pronounce the name of ALLAH at slaughter,
then the meat is Halal.
The third is that of
Imam Al-Shafi'i, which states that the animal carcass is Halal, even
if the name of ALLAH is not pronounced at the time of slaughter,
regardless of whether it is intentional or forgotten, as long as the
slaughterman is a qualified person, i.e., a sane Muslim. And after a
long discussion on this final opinion, Imam Al-Razi said (this is
important for us) it is best for a Muslim to avoid eating meat from
animals when ALLAH's name has not been pronounced at slaughter,
because the guidance from this aya is strong. This means Muslims
should avoid meats slaughtered without the pronouncing of the name of
ALLAH at the time of slaughter.
As
to the main question, the slaughter of Ahlul Kitab, we find guidance
in the following ayah:
This
day are (all) things Good and pure made lawful unto you. The food of
the People of the Book is lawful unto you and yours is lawful unto
them... (Al-Ma-idah: 5)
And the word Ta'aam
(food) in this aya has been interpreted in 3 ways. First, the animals
which are slaughtered by Ahlul Kitab are Halal for Muslims. Second,
only the bread, fruits, vegetables, fish and all foods not requiring
slaughter are Halal for Muslims. (This is the opinion of some of the
Imams of the Zaidi school of thought.) This opinion holds that the
meat of the Ahlul Kitab is haram. Third, is all foods, those which
are slaughtered and those which are not slaughtered are Halal for
Muslims. The majority of scholars have not accepted the second and
third opinions. They hold that the word Ta'aam (food) in this aya
means the animals which are slaughtered because it does not become
food until after it is slaughtered. They added that all foods not
requiring slaughter are already Halal, whether it is owned by Ahlul
Kitab or not. Meaning there is no reason to favor the food of Ahlul
Kitab in this matter.
So, if we conclude that
the meaning of the word Ta'aam is the animals requiring slaughter,
does it mean all animals eaten by Ahlul Kitab or is it specific to
certain ones? We know that some of the Ahlul Kitab eat animals which
are haram for Muslims regardless of how they were slaughtered, such
as pork. There is no disagreement among Muslim scholars that pork is
haram. Therefore the meaning of the word Ta'aam cannot be any food,
rather it means the Halal animals which are slaughtered by Ahlul
Kitab. The final question is: Can Muslims eat the meat of Halal
animals slaughtered by Ahlul Kitab only on the condition they
pronounce the name of ALLAH, Subhanahu wa ta'ala, at the time of
slaughter, without any conditions?
It is useful to
consider that in the earlier days, it was customary for the people to
slaughter only for their personal needs. If they slaughtered a large
animal and were unable to use all the meat, they would share it with
their friends and neighbors. This is clear from the Ahadith. It was
not customary to slaughter many animals for sale or trade. So when
they slaughtered for their personal needs, they used to pronounce the
name of ALLAH at the time of slaughter. Nowadays our needs are
different and unlike in the past, markets are commonplace. So now,
slaughtering is divided into two categories, slaughtering for sale
and slaughtering for personal use. Most of the available meat is of
the first category, meat that has been slaughtered for sale. With
this backdrop, let us review the opinions of the scholars in answer
to the question: Is it permissible to eat the meat slaughtered by
Ahlul Kitab with or without Tasmiyyah?
Ibn Katheer said, "This
is the matter on which the Ulema agreed upon, that the slaughter of
Ahlul Kitab is Halal for Muslims to consume because they believe in
the prohibition of slaughtering in a name other than ALLAH, and they
pronounce no name on their slaughter except that of ALLAH." In
response to this, we must weigh the current evidence. It is our
observation that neither all Jews nor all Christians pronounce the
name of ALLAH at the time of slaughter. In fact, some pronounce a
name other than ALLAH. Shaikh Al-Aloosi, author of Ruh Al-Ma'ani
said: Al-Hassan, rahimahullah, has said Muslims should not eat the
meat slaughtered by a Jew or Christian who slaughters in a name other
than ALLAH.
Shaikh Al-Qurtubi has
said that a group of Muslim scholars believes that if you hear the
Kitabi (Jew or Christian) pronounce a name other than ALLAH at the
time of slaughter, then do not eat the meat. In agreement with this
from among the Sahaba of the Prophet, salla ALLAHu alaihi wa sallam,
are Syedina Ali, Syedatina 'Aisha, Syedina Ibn Umar, radiya ALLAHu
anhuma, and also Tawoos and Al-Hassan, rahimahumallah. From this, it
is evident that it is haram to eat meat that has been slaughtered
while pronouncing a name other than ALLAH. Furthermore, it is evident
that Jews and Christians have been ordered to pronounce the name of
ALLAH at the time of slaughter; however, some of them have abandoned
this requirement. In fact, some began to slaughter in a name other
than ALLAH.
In our present day, the
behavior of Ahlul Kitab has changed dramatically and they no longer
abide by the laws revealed to them, especially in the matter of
slaughter. This is clear since Christians do not pronounce any name
upon slaughter, neither that of ALLAH nor that of anyone else. If you
ask the Christian slaughterman, as I have done, what he says at
slaughter, the response is: I do not say anything. They say there is
no connection between slaughtering and religion. They say they are
employees doing a job and they just do it. This is in regard to the
animals slaughtered for sale in the marketplace, which is what
concerns us.
As for the Jews, we
personally attended a slaughter facility where there were 3 rabbis.
They all met before starting the slaughter and recited something.
Then they separated and each went to a different area to perform
their duties. The first was the slaughterman and he performed the
slaughter. The second examined the organs of the carcasses to check
for any indications of disease. If he detected any, he discarded the
organ. If not, he passed the organ on to the third rabbi. The third
rabbi stamped the organs and wrote something in Hebrew on them.
During the slaughter
operation, the first rabbi, the slaughterman, conversed with us and
answered our questions as he was slaughtering. On this day, they were
to slaughter approximately 450 cows. After a time, they announced
they were near the end of the day's slaughter. The three rabbis met
again and recited something in Hebrew and then dispersed again to
slaughter the last animal for the day.
During this visit we
observed that Jews recite something at the beginning and at the end
of the slaughter and they do not recite anything on the animals
during the slaughter. On this day, 450 animals were slaughtered and
the only recitation performed was prior to the start and prior to
slaughtering the last animal. In spite of this, all 450 head
slaughtered were labeled as kosher. Do we consider this to be the
meat of Ahlul Kitab? Ibn Katheer has said: "ALLAH's concession
for eating the meat of Ahlul Kitab does not include that meat upon
which the name of ALLAH has not been pronounced at the time of
slaughter. This is because Ahlul Kitab are required to pronounce the
name of ALLAH during their ritual slaughter. Because of this, ALLAH
has not made it Halal for Muslims to consume the meat of other
peoples", besides Ahlul Kitab, since the other peoples do not
pronounce the name of ALLAH at slaughter. Therefore the condition
which must be met to allow Muslims to eat the meat of Ahlul Kitab, as
opposed to other peoples, is that they should pronounce the name of
ALLAH at the time of slaughter. If this condition is not met, then
the permission to eat their meat is not granted. Let us return to
what Imam Al-Razi has said, "It is best for Muslims to avoid
eating meat which was not slaughtered while pronouncing the name of
ALLAH because the aya (Al-An'aam: 121) is very strong." We
should keep in mind that Imam Al-Razi himself followed the Shafi'i
school but he was not comfortable in this case with the Shafi'i
school's opinion.
Finally, most of the
Muslim nations do not accept the mistaken opinion that allows the
consumption of the beef, lamb, and poultry found in restaurants
operated by Ahlul Kitab.
We ask ALLAH, Subhanahu
wa ta'ala, to guide us to the right path, always and forever, and to
forgive our mistakes, for HE is ALL-Hearing and close. And peace to
all who follow The Guidance.
(Dr. Quaderi is IFANCA's Religious
Advisor. He received his Islamic training at Al-Azhar University in
Cairo.)
Is
the meat of Ahl-al-Kitab Halal?
Research by Shaukat A.
Ameen
Who
are actually the people of the book?
“Unless the Jews and Christians were
to abandon Judaism and Christianity totally they shall continue to be
the People of the Book, no matter how involved in false beliefs of
their religion and dark doings they may be.
Imam al-Jassas reports in Ahkam
al-Quran that during the Khilafah of Sayyidna 'Umar, may Allah be
pleased with him, one of his governors wrote to him for advice. He
said that there were some people in his area who recited the Torah
and observed the Sabbath like the Jews but they did not believe in
Qiyamah (the Last Day). He wanted to know how he was supposed to deal
with such people. Sayyidna 'Umar wrote back telling him that they
will be taken as a sect of The People of the Book after all.
These days a very large number of
people in Europe (and elsewhere) who are listed in the Census records
as Jews and Christians do not really believe in the existence of God
and, for that matter, do not subscribe to any institutionalized
religion. They do not accept the Torah and Evangile as Scriptures,
nor do they have faith in Sayyidna Musa and 'Isa (Moses and Jesus),
may peace be upon them, as prophets or messengers of Allah. It is
obvious that such people cannot be counted as included under the
injunction governing the People of the Book simply because their
names are listed as Jews and Christians in the Census records.
When Sayyidna
said
that the slaughter of some Christians of Arabia is not Halal, he gave
a reason. He said that those people believe in nothing but drinking.
His words as reported by Ibn al-Jauzi are being cited below:
'Do not eat from the animals
slaughtered by the Christians belonging to Bani Taghlib for they have
taken nothing from the Christian faith except the drinking of wine
(narrated by Al-Shafi'i with sound authority - al-Tafsir al-Mazhari,
p. 34, v. 3, al-Maidah)”
(Extract from
Ma'ariful Qur'an)
People in west
don't know if the meat has been slaugthered by an ahl-al-kitab or an
atheist or someone who believes in any other faith.
Ahl-al-Kitab =
People of the book
What
is Halal Meat?
The fundamental principle of
understanding the Quran is one Aayat of the Quran explains the other.
For example:
{Forbidden
for you are dead meat, blood, . . .} [Soorah 5, Aayah 4].
Now,
if someone asks whether we can eat fish or not? Because the above
ayah says that dead meat is haram. But were he to look into the
ahaadees, he would know that the Prophet (S.A.W) excepted two types
of animals, fish and locusts, from this prohibition, so he could rule
accordingly.
Now the question is whether the Zabiha
of people of the books (Christians or Jews) is lawful or halal for us
or not? Let’s see the verse first:
"This day, good
things have been made lawful for you. And the food
of the people of the Book is lawful for you, and your food
is lawful for them, and good women from among believers, and good
women from among those given the Book before you, provided you give
them their dowers, binding yourself in marriage, not going for lust,
nor having paramours. And whoever rejects Faith, his effort will go
waste and, in the Hereafter, he is among the losers." (Surah
Maida verse 5).
Even those who justify the eating of
haram beef and chicken by saying that the food of the "People of
the Book" is lawful insist on excluding pork and alcohol. If
this verse means that whatever is the food of the
"People of the Book" today you can eat, then how can they
exclude pork and alcohol?
Second, a thing (not Islamically
slaughtered meat) which is haram at your own house, how can it become
halal at their homes?
Further, if the Qur’anic ayah does
not specify "chicken and beef" or even "meat".
Then how can the word "food" be translated as meat,
specifically chicken and beef only, and not pork?
Allah
says in the Quran:
6:119.
Eat of that over which the name of Allah
has been mentioned, if you are believers in His
revelations.
We would now like to pose the
following questions:
What does the Glorious Qur’an mean
by the food of the Ahl-al-Kitab (People of the Book) which Allah has
made lawful for Muslims?
Does it mean by this the food, which
Allah has made lawful for the Ahl-al-Kitab in their Scriptures (i.e.
revelations from Allah) and according to their Prophets?
OR
Does it mean everything, which the
Ahl-al-Kitab eat, even though Allah has forbidden it for them?
It is well known that in every one of
the revealed religions, Allah has forbidden certain items of food
while allowing other good things. It is also well known that in every
community, some of its people opposed their Prophets and infringed
the limits which the prophets had prescribed for them, so they would
eat some of the food forbidden to them. Therefore, does the Qur’anic
verse intend by "the food of those who have received the
Scripture" the food of the Ahl-al-Kitab which Allah had made
lawful for Muslims, or the food of the Ahl-al-Kitab which is halal to
them in accordance with their Books and the teachings of their
Prophets?
Or does it mean every kind of food
that they actually eat, regardless of whether it is lawful or
unlawful for them?
We will use the same principle as used
above to understand the verse by looking at other ayats of the Quran:
Allah (s.w.t.) says in Holy Quran
5:3. Forbidden
to you (for food) are carrion and blood and swine flesh, and that
which has been dedicated to any other
than Allah, and the strangled, and the
dead through beating, and the dead through falling from a height, and
that which has been killed by (the goring of) horns, and the devoured
of wild beasts, except that which you make lawful (by the death
stroke), and that which has been immolated to idols. And (forbidden
is it) that you swear by the divining arrows. This is an abomination.
This day are those who disbelieve in despair of (ever harming) your
religion; so fear them not, fear Me! This day have I perfected your
religion for you and completed My favor to you, and have chosen for
you as religion AL- ISLAM. Who so is forced by hunger, not by will,
to sin: (for him) surely! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
2:173. He has
forbidden you only carrion, and blood, and swine flesh, and that
which has been immolated to (the name of) any other
than Allah. But he who is driven by
necessity, neither craving nor transgressing, it is no sin for him.
Surely! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
16:115. He has
forbidden for you only carrion and blood and swine flesh and that
which has been immolated in the name of any
other than Allah;but he who is driven
thereto, neither craving nor transgressing, surely!then Allah is
Forgiving, Merciful.
6:146. Say: I
find not in that which is revealed to me aught prohibited to an eater
that he eat thereof, except it be carrion, or blood poured forth, or
swine flesh for that verily is foul or the abomination which was
immolated to the name of other than
Allah. But who so is compelled
(thereto), neither craving nor transgressing, (for him) Lo! Your Lord
is Forgiving, Merciful.
6:119. Eat
of that over which the name of Allah Has been mentioned, if you are
believers in His revelations.
6:120. How
should you not eat of that over which the name of Allah Has
been mentioned, when He has explained to you
that which is forbidden to you, unless you are compelled thereto. But
surely! Many are led astray by their own lusts through ignorance.
Surely! Your Lord, He is best aware of the transgressors.
2:168. O mankind! Eat of that which is
lawful and wholesome in the earth, and follow not the footsteps of
the Satan. Surely! He is an open enemy for you.
2:169. He enjoineth upon you only the
evil and the foul, and that you should tell concerning Allah that
which you know not.
2:172. O you who believe! Eat of the
good things which We have provided you, and render thanks to Allah if
it is (indeed) He whom you worship.
5:4. They ask
you (O Muhammad) what is made lawful for them. Say: ( all ) good
things are made lawful for you. And those beasts and birds of prey
which you have trained as hounds are trained, you teach them that
which Allah taught you; so eat of that which they catch for you and
mention Allah's name upon it, and observe your
duty to Allah. Surely! Allah is swift to take account.
6:143. And of the cattle (He
produceth) some for burdens, some for food. Eat of that which Allah
Has grant to you, and follow not the footsteps of the Satan, for
surely! he is an open enemy to you.
5:88. Eat of that which Allah Has
bestowed on you as food lawful and good, and keep your duty to Allah
in Whom you are believers.
16:114. So eat of the lawful and good
food which Allah Has provided for you, and thank the bounty of your
Lord if it is Him you serve.
Is
the meat permissible without the name of Allah?
Overtly the above Aayat (5:5) reads
that the Zabeeha of the Ahlul-Kitaab is permissible, but the
fundamental principle must be understood in order to understand the
Qurãn i.e. 'One part of the Qurãn explains the other'.
Therefore, this verse should be understood in the light of another
verse relating to the same matter:
"Do not eat unless Allah's
name has been taken and this (not taking Allah's name) practice is
transgression...'(Quran 6:121)
While the former
verse explicitly states that the Zabeeha of the Ahlul-Kitaab is
permissible and the latter says, 'Do not eat unless Allah's name has
been taken', in the light of both these verses, it is understood that
the Zabeeha of the Ahlul-kitaab is permissible only if the
name of Allah is taken at the time of slaughtering.
The Ahlul-kitaab used to take Allah's name when slaughtering an
animal. Therefore, their Zabeeha was also Halaal for Muslims. It is
for this same reason that an animal slaughtered by the Mushrikeen,
etc. is not permissible. The Ahlul-kitaab of today are recognized by
name, less faith. There is no guarantee that they take the name of
Allah/God when slaughtering an animal. Furthermore, they cannot be
anymore trusted in matters pertaining to Halaal/Haraam. Since there
is uncertainty in the above slaughter manner, the Jurists are
unanimous that it is not permissible to consume meat which is
doubtful. Unless there is certainty that the Ahlul-kitaab read the
'Tasmiyah' i.e. take the name of God when slaughtering an animal then
only will the meat be permissible.
Shari'ah
has emphasized on consumption of
pure and Halaal foods and to abstain from anything doubtful. If one
does not know whether the chicken and meat is Halaal or not, it is
not permissible to eat them.
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Proper
way of Zabiha
From the booklet entitled "The
Meat: Lawful and Unlawful in Islam" by Mohammad
Sami’ullah. The booklet is published by Siddiqi Trust of Karachi,
Pakistan.
1. The animal should be a Halal
(lawful) one according to the Shari’ah (Islamic Law). Dog, cat,
monkey, or the meat of any such Haram (unlawful) animal can be lawful
for a Muslim only in cases of extreme urgency where a person is
threatened with starvation and his life has to be saved. We read in
the Qur’an: "Allah has forbidden for you what dies of itself,
and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that over which any other name
than that of Allah has been invoked. But whoever is driven by
necessity, without neither willful disobedience nor transgressing due
limits, then he is guiltless. Surely Allah is forgiving, merciful."
(2:173)
2. The animal should be properly
slaughtered and should not be dipped in boiling water or killed by
electric shocks. Any method other than slaughter adopted to kill the
animal will not be lawful. Stunning by bolt shot or electric shock
before slaughter is not valid and should be avoided, as it is
tantamount to torturing an animal, which is inhumane and unlawful in
Islam. The tendency of the Shari’ah is to make the slaughter more
humane by reducing the suffering of the animal. The Holy Prophet
(SAW) is reported to have said that if you must slaughter, slaughter
in the best possible manner. Sharpen your knife every time before you
slaughter, but not in front of the 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 to
animals - a practice still prevalent in the West in various forms and
guises despite claims to the contrary, as we shall see later.
3. The name of Allah should be recited
while slaughtering the animal. The recitation may be done by a Muslim
or by a Jew or Christian in his own language. The Holy Qur’an
describes that slaughter as unlawful on which the name of Allah has
not been recited: "And eat not of that whereon Allah’s name
hath not been mentioned, for Lo! It is abomination. Lo! The devils do
inspire their minions to dispute with you. But if you obey them, ye
will be in truth idolators". (6:121)
4. For meat to be lawful, it is not
simply enough that the animal has been slaughtered by the "People
of the Book". It is very essential that the act of slaughter
should be performed according to their prescribed religious rites and
practices. For instance, if a Muslim kills a chicken by twisting its
neck, it would a carcass and Haram. If the same method of killing is
adopted by a Jew or Christian, then how can such a chicken be Halal?
Slaughtering consists of cutting the jugular veins of the neck, so
that all the blood is drained out. The spinal cord must not be cut,
because the nerve fibers to the heart may be damaged during the
process, causing cardiac arrest and hence stagnation of the blood in
the blood vessels of the animal. Since blood is also forbidden in
Islam, it is incumbent to see to it that the blood is completely
drained from the animal during slaughtering. This is 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 significant.
Legal
opinion from Saudi Arabia
The legal
opinion (Fatwa) of Sheikh Abdullah Ibn Hamid, President,
Shariah Law Supreme Council and president, Jurisprudence Assembly in
Saudi Arabia is summarized as follows:
"The slaughtered animals of the
People of the Book are not to be eaten at present because they are
not legally slaughtered, and these people do not mention Allah’s
name upon their slaughtered beasts. The legal slaughter that the
general public rightly agrees to should be in the trachea and 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".
Ahadees
Narrated by Aisha (R.A.): A group of
people said to the Prophet (peace be upon him), "Some people
bring us meat and we do not know whether they have mentioned Allah’s
name or not on slaughtering the animal". He said: "Mention
Allah’s name on it and eat". Those people had embraced Islam
recently. (Bukhari vol. VII page 302 English translation). It is
obvious that this relates to the slaughter of new-Muslims (i.e. those
people who had embraced Islam recently) and not the slaughter of
Kuffar (Jews and Christians).
Utensils
In another Hadith the Holy Prophet
(peace be upon him) even advised care in matter of utensils so that
the purity of food is not disturbed by using such utensils of the
"People of the Book" in which swine flesh and its
derivatives may have been served:
Narrated Abu Thalaha Al Khushaui: I
came to the Prophet and said, "O Allah’s Apostle! We are
living in the land of the People of the Scripture, and we take our
meals in their utensils, and there is a game in that land and I hunt
with my bow and with my trained hound and with my untrained hound".
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "As for you saying that
you are in the land of the People of the book, you should not eat in
their utensils, unless you find no alternative, in which case you
must wash the utensils and then eat in them…" (Bukhari)
It would be worthwhile and advisable
to consider and reflect on the implications of the following Ahadees
regarding lawful and unlawful in Islam:
1. An-Nu’man bin Bashir reported
that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "What is
lawful is clear and what is unlawful is clear, but between them are
certain doubtful things which many people do not recognize. He who
guards against doubtful things, keeps his religion and honour
blameless. But he who falls into doubtful things, falls into what is
unlawful, just as a shepherd who pastures his animals around a
preserve will soon pasture them into it". (Bukhari and Muslim)
2. Abu Huraira reported Allah’s
Messenger as saying that Allah is good and accepts only what is good,
and He has given the same command to the believers as He has given to
the messengers, saying, "O messengers, eat of what is good and
act righteously," (XXIII:51) and also, "You who believe,
eat of the good things which We have provided for you". (II:172)
Then he mentioned a man who makes a long journey in a disheveled and
dusty state, who stretches out his hands to heaven saying, "My
Lord, my Lord", when his food, drink and clothing are of an
unlawful nature, and he is nourished by what is unlawful, and asked
how such a one could be given an answer. (Muslim)
3. The Holy Prophet (peace be upon
him) is also reported to have said: "Flesh which has grown out
of which is unlawful will not enter Paradise, but hell is more
fitting for all flesh which has grown out of what is unlawful".
(Ahmad, Darimi and Baihaqi).
Machine
and Instruments
Halal is on which Allah's Name is
pronounced and is slaughtered the way the Holy Prophet-SAW has
practically done it. Using tape recorders or cutting throats with
machines is by no stretch of imagination Halal. All these ways are
unislamic and hence false. The Islamic way of slaughtering permits
the flowing blood to drain out completely while removing necks
through an instrument or machine results in shock action which
impedes blood drain.
Is
Kosher Halal?
Kosher is from the Hebrew word kasher,
which means "fit" and "proper". The term is
usually used for food that Jews are permitted to eat under dietary
laws that are derived from passages in the biblical books of
Leviticus and Deuteronomy.
Some elements of Jewish
and Islamic dietary laws are common, while some are not. Here are
some major differences:
|
|
Kosher
|
Halal
|
|
Blessing
on animals
|
Blessing
before entering slaughtering area, not on each animal
|
Blessing
on each animal while slaughtering
|
|
Gelatin
from:
Dry Bones
Skin and Bones
Fish
Pork
|
Maybe
From Kosher animals
Kosher fish only
Allowed by some liberal
orthodox rabbis
|
Halal bones only
From Halal animals
Any fish
Not allowed at all
|
|
Alcohol
|
Permitted,
depending on source
|
Not
permitted
|
|
Combining
Dairy & Meat
|
Not
permitted
|
Not
an issue
|
|
Special
Occasion
|
Additional
restrictions during Passover
|
Same
rules apply all the time
|
From
an article by Dr. M. Riaz, Texas A & M University; minor
adjustments by eat-halal.com
It must be noted that if
a product is Kosher certified,
it does not mean that the
product is automatically Halal.
While it is true that Kosher certification can be used as a tool for
eating halal, one must be very careful. There are Kosher
certification agencies which certify products and ingredients which
are not considered Kosher by many Jews.
Advice
By Dr. Zahoor
Ul Haque
Kosher is a group of foods that jews
think are allowed to them. They do not combine milk and meat in one
meal thinking that it is cruelty to use two products of an animal for
one's meal. In Kosher restaurants, they are legally bound to keep a
qualified person to ensure that the meals prepared there are in
conformity with the kosher food code. Moreover, the word kosher is
used in addition to food in the meaning of morality as well, for
example, Kosher Gym means a Gym in which there are separate sections
for exercising/acrobats of men and women.
The Haram ingredients are not only
used in meat and meat products, but in various other things such as
soap, toothpaste, potato chips, candies, snacks, etc. Chief haram
ingredients are Mono and Di-glycerides. These are written to be used
as preservatives in the ingredient list printed on every product.
Another very important one is Yellow #5. This includes pork. This is
used in some drinks such as Mountain-Dew, many soaps, deodorants,
toothpastes. Generally anything in which vegetable shortening is used
can be taken as Halal and the one containing animal shortening is
surely Haram.
The restaurants such as McDonald
and Burger King and others sell such food that is thought
as Halal by many Muslim customers, such as french fries, fish burger,
etc; but I have personal experience that these things are fried in
the same pan (karahi) containing corn-oil in which pork and haram
chicken are fried. So, these potato and fish also become Haram.
Similarly, most items of salad bar are apparently Halal, but the
dressings which are added to improve its taste may contain haram
items. So extreme precaution is needed to eat in restaurants.
Lastly, I would draw your
attention to the shops which sell Halal meat/chicken/beef, etc. I
have personally seen that they sell beef imported from Australia
labeling as Halal beef. Goat meat in the areas of Muslim
concentration in USA can be trusted as Halal as this is most often
slaughtered by Muslim butchers. Chicken is doubtful since Jews do not
eat chicken legs they sell it very cheap to meat shops. Therefore, in
USA, chicken legs are much cheaper in cost as compared to whole
chicken.
Word of Caution: According to
Hazrat Jee, eating Haram thinking it is Haram is a sin, but eating
Haram thinking it as Halal is Kufr.
Is
Kosher Meat Halal? Not Really
There are several issues
with Kosher:
1. In Judaism, the rules
and methods of slaughtering are not open and published. Unlike in
Islam, where any adult sane Muslim can slaughter an animal by
following the rules prescribed by Shariah, in Judaism only one kind
of Rabbi, known as the Sachet, may slaughter Kosher animals. The
Sachet is specially trained for this purpose and no other Jew can
slaughter an animal.
Although Jews say that
they slaughter in the name of God, we do not know what else they say
in Hebrew while slaughtering. Their prayers and methods of
slaughtering are in the hands of a few people and are not generally
known.
2. The Sachet does not
say prayers on all animals he slaughters at a time. Instead, he only
says prayers on the first and last animals he slaughters. For
example, if a Sachet has to slaughter ten cows, he will only say the
prayer on the first and tenth cow while slaughtering, saying nothing
on the cows in between.
This method of
slaughtering is not similar to the method prescribed by Sharia for
Hanafi sect, nor is it similar to the practice of Ahle-kitab at the
time of our beloved Prophet Mohammed Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallum. Meat
slaughtered by Ahle-kitab was considered halal because of similarity
in the slaughtering method and in the Niya at that time.
These are the reasons why
most Ulama do not consider Kosher meat halal.
If a Muslim is not in
danger of death, he must avoid eating haram food at any cost. If
halal meat is not available, one can eat fish or vegetables or can
even go to the slaughter house to slaughter an animal himself. There
are many halal food stores online who can ship frozen Zabiha meat or
Zabiha meat food products overnight. There is no excuse to eat
non-zabiha meat or kosher meat in USA.
Zabiha products can
easily be found in a big city like New York City. In addition, there
are many Muslim-owned restaurants that serve zabiha meat and there is
no excuse to eat Kosher.
