Man, as His Creator, Allaah has designed him, is a combination of body and soul. Anything that is harmful to the body hurts the soul as well. One major source of harm both to our body as well as our souls iswhat we eat. Food and drink have direct impact on our physical and spiritual well-being. This is why Allaah through His Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) has permitted for our food those that are pure and good and forbade for us those that impure and evil.
"he allows them as lawful At- Tayyibat (i.e. all good and lawful), and prohibits them as unlawful Al-Khaba'ith (i.e. all evil and unlawful)" (Q5[A'raaf]:151)
As blood is virtually our life-stream and whatever we consume ultimately affectsthe blood system, it is therefore necessary to exercise choice in the selection of our food and drinks as part of the requirements of the Shariah.
A special part of our food is the meat of various animals. In the consumption of flesh, Muslims are required to be selective and to distinguish between halaal (lawful) and haraam (unlawful).
There is flesh of certain animals specified as forbidden. The prohibition of these food and drinks is not by any means an arbitrary action or an unwarranted decree of Allaah. It is first and foremost a divine intervention in the best interest of man and for his own benefit. The reasons behind the divine intervention are numerous but the major one is to show man how to develop himself to be upright and healthy both in his individual capacity as well as in his communal relationships.
Prohibition of the flesh of an animal sometimes stem from the nature of the animals, some other times, it stems from the manner the animal was killed and who did the killing. The method of killing animals forms part of the regular knowledge that a Muslim should not be ignorant of because of its impact to his spiritual and physical wellbeing. The normal way lslam has recommended for killing animals is slaughtering. Technically, slaughtering means killing animals whose meat is edible by making a swift, deep incision with a sharp knife or object on the neck cutting the jugular veins and the carotid arteries as well as the trachea and esophagus.
Scholars unanimously agree that animals whose meat is edible (with the exception of fish and locust) will not become permissible for the consumption of Muslims without (the Islamic) slaughtering.
Allaah says:
"Forbidden to you (for food) are: Almaytatah (the dead animals – cattle beast not slaughtered), blood, the flesh of swine, and the meat of that which has been slaughtered as a sacrifice for other than Allaah, or has been slaughtered for idols, etc., or on which Allaah's Name has not been mentioned while slaughtering, and that which has been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall or by the goring of horns - and that which has been partly) eaten by a wild animal – unless you are able to slaughter it (before its death) ... " (Q5[Maidah]:3) (Mughnee)
The wisdom behind this is essentially to cleanse the slaughtered animals. When the blood flows then the animal is cleansed. This is what differentiates such animals from being carrion. Carrion is forbidden because of its wastes and impure blood. Among the suggested reasons of flowing blood being impure are:
a) Flowing blood transfers nutrients to the tissue cells and returns with the waste products of the tissue cells. These waste products are harmful and are removed from the blood through the function of the kidneys.
b) Blood contains organisms which are responsible for various diseases.
c) The presence of flowing blood in flesh causes the flesh to putrefy. It is therefore necessary to purify the flesh of the animal from the impure flowing blood, by extracting maximum blood.
What Is Proper Islamic Slaughtering?
It is agreed upon that the animals upon which the Islamic slaughtering can be performed are the land animals that have blood and that are not haraam. However, for a slaughtering to be Islamic, certain conditions must be fulfilled. These conditions are with regard to the five issues relating to slaughtering:
(1) the slaughterer, (2) the slaughter implement, (3) the manner of the slaughtering, (4) the place of the slaughtering, (5) what is said at the time of slaughtering.
1st Condition: The Slaughterer.
In lslaarn, slaughtering is not done by just anybody. Two criteria must be met by the one who will slaughter for the Muslims: he must have sanity (aql) and must be from the followers of the heavenly revealed religio(deenu samawee).
Aql: It is important to state that from part of slaughtering are those that are meant for worship and the name of Allaah is mentioned over it. Meanwhile, worship cannot be accomplished except with accompanying intention and proper intention cannot be accomplished except that the slaughterer has sanity and consciousness. Thus, an insane, drunk and a child do not fulfil the Islamic standard of a slaughterer.
Deenu Samawee: The second condition to be fulfilled by the slaughterer is that he must either be a Muslim or ahlul-Kitaab (People of the Book - Jew and Christian). Any other people besides them, their slaughtering will not be permissible.
The evidence for the permissibility of the slaughtering of Ahlul-Kitaab can be traced to the Qur’an, Sunnah and consensus of scholars. As for the Qur'an, Allaah states:
"The food of the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) is lawful to you and yours is lawful to them." (Q5[Maidah]:5).
Ibn Abbas (RA) said that the food referred to in the verse is their slaughtered eatable animals because food (excluding slaughtered meat) of every other group of people is permissible for the Muslims.
The wisdom in permitting the meat of Ahlul-Kitaab stems from the fact that part of their religion (originally) is the belief in the forbiddance of slaughtering for other than Allaah and not mentioning any name on their slaughtering other than that of Allah. This sets them apart from other mushrikoon who do not care what meat they eat for they do not mention Allah’s Name on their slaughtering, rather, they eat carrion. (Tafseer ibn Katheer)
Moreover, the Ahlul-Kitaab attribute themselves to some of the Prophets of Allaah (alayhimu-salaam) and there is a consensus amongst all Prophets and Messengers on the forbiddance of slaughtering for other than Allaah
These are some of the wisdoms some scholars have proffered for the permissibility of the slaughtering of Ahlul-kitab. Nevertheless, clearly, Allah has permitted their slaughtering and as Muslims, we submit to Allaah’s command whether the wisdom behind it is known to us or not. Allah knows best.
If A Christian Did Not Mention Allah’s Name?
If a Christian, for instance, did not mention the name of Allaah on his slaughtering, will it still be permissible for the Muslims?
There are two issues to be considered in this regard:
a) Not mentioning any name at all (whether of A1laah or others) on his slaughter
b) Slaughtering in the name of Jesus, Mary or Holy Spirit
a) With regard to not mentioning any name at all, there are two opinions.
Opinion 1: The first opinion rules that such meat is haraam for consumption. It argues that if mentioning the name of A1laah is a condition for the permissibility of the meat that a Muslim slaughters, so how much more a Christian or Jew? Even if tasmiyyah (saying bismillah) is not a condition for the Muslim, still we cannot equate the Muslim with Ahlul-Kitab for the name of A1laah is in the heart of the Muslim even though his tongue did not express it at the time of slaughtering.
Opinion 2: It is permissible regardless of whether tasmiyya is a condition for the Muslim's slaughter or not; whether he mentioned A1laah's Name or not because of the general meaning of A1laah's words:
"The food of the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) is lawful to you•... "(Q5[Maidah]:5)
The most correct opinion is the first because tasmiyyah is a condition for the permissibility of the slaughter of both Muslims and Ahlul-Kitab. This is based on the verse of the Qur'an:
"Eat not (O believers) of that (meat) on which Allah’s Name has not been pronounced (at the time of the slaughtering of the animal), or sure it is Fisq (a sin and disobedience of Allaah)." (Q6[An'am]:121)
This verse has a general application. With regard to the verse permitting their food (meat), the intended meaning is those meat that were slaughtered fulfilling the conditions of halaal meat in Islaam since it will not be correct to say (by extension) that pork becomes permissible for the Muslim if a Christian (for instance) slaughters it for consumption.
b) Slaughtering In The Name of Jesus, Mary Or Holy Spirit
There are three scholarly opinions on this issue:
Opinion 1: at-Tahreem i.e. an animal that is killed as such becomes haraam for the Muslim. This is due to the clear forbiddance in the Qur'an of slaughtering for and in the name of other than A1laah: ForbIdden to you (for food) are: Al-Maytatah (the dead animals) cattle-beast not slaughtered), blood. the flesh of swine, and the meat of that which has been slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allaah." (Q5[Maidah]:3)
This verse applies to everybody – Muslims and others.
Opinion 2: al-Ibaahah i.e. such meat is permissible for the Muslim because it is part of their food which Allaah has permitted for us. When Allaah permitted it, He did it without any exception and He knew best what they would do with their slaughtering.
Opinion 3: If the Christian or Jew intended by their slaughtering an ibaadah (worship) or as an offering to their god neither eating out of it nor deriving any benefit from it, then it is not permissible for us because that is not part of their food. However, if they slaughter just for consumption, even during their festivals, then it is permissible. This is based on the verse permitting their food.
From the three opinions above, the first opinion is most correct based on the verse forbidding
"The meat of that which has been slaughtered as a sacrifice (or others than Allaah)." (Q5[Maidah]:3).
It is true their meat is permissible for us but that permission is conditioned by not being a sacrifice for and in the name of other than Allaah. The forbiddance of animals slaughtered for others than A1laahis in such a strong term that it would not be correct to prefer the permission of the meat of Ahlul-Kitaab over it. A1laah referred to it as fisq (a sin disobedience of Allah). (Q6[An'am]121)
Also, the permission of the food of the Ahlul-Kitab cannot be applied unrestrictedly. Certain part of their food remains forbidden to us such as pork and carrion. Meanwhile the forbiddance of animals killed in the name of other than Allaah is stronger than those of pork and carrion because the former borders on shirk while the later borders on sinfulness.
Thirdly, it is a well known principle in Usool al-Fiqh that the foundation (asl) of all slaughterings is impermissibility except that which is permitted by a text. So, even if there are two conflicting proofs, when the two evidences are knocked off, the return should be to the asl (which is forbiddance in this case).
One of the evidences that the foundation of slaughtering is forbiddance is the statement of the Prophet (sallallahl1alayhi wa sallam) that:
"If the hound catches the game for you, eat of it, for killing the game by the hound, is like its slaughtering. But if you see with your hound or hounds another dog, and you are afraid that it might have shared in hunting the game with your hound and killed it, then you should not eat of it, because you have mentioned Allaah's name on (sending) your hound only, but you have not mentioned it on some other hound." (Bukhari)
The Slaughtering of Idol Worshipper & Apostate
An Idol worshipper is whoever worships idols whether of wood, stone or personalities. An apostate is one who turns to another religion after being a Muslim. The idol worshipper cannot slaughter for the Muslim even if he mentions the name of Allaah. What Allaah permits is the food of the People of the Book.' Idol worshippers are not from the People of the Book
The slaughtering of an apostate is also haraam according to majority of scholars. An apostate is a Kaafir regardless of whatever religion he adopts thereafter. Even if he becomes either Christian or Jew, the ruling of Ahlul-Kitaab (the people of the Book) does not apply to him. Jizya is not accepted from him and the marriage of an apostate woman is not permissible for the Muslim.A1laahknows best!
2nd Condition: The Slaughter Implement
There are two criteria the implement for the slaughtering must meet:
a) It must be sharp, capable of piercing or cutting with its sharpness rather than with its heaviness.
b) It must not be teeth or nail
If these two criteria are met by an implement, then it is permissible to slaughter with it regardless of what the implement is made of; whether it is iron; stone, bamboo or bottle.
This is based on the general meaning of the words of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam):
"Use whatever causes blood to flow, and eat the animals if the name of Allaah has been mentioned on slaughtering them. Do not slaughter with teeth or fingernails and I will tell you why: It is because teeth are bones and fingernails are the tools used by the Ethiopians (whom we should not imitate for they are infidels)." (Bukhari)
In this hadeeth is a clear indication that the impermissibility of carrion is because of the retention of its impure blood. It is also clear from the same hadeeth that it is permissible to slaughter with any sharp object with the exception of teeth and fingernails (both of man and all other animals).
From the same hadeeth is the clear ruling that it is prohibited to slaughter with the teeth (which is a type of bone). No bone (however sharp) can be slaughtered with. This is based on the concluding part of the hadeeth:
"Do not slaughter with teeth or fingernails and I will tell you why: It is because teeth are bones … (Bukhari)
3rd Condition: The Manner of Slaughtering
There are differences of opinions on what must be cut, where to cut and how to cut in slaughtering an animal. However, there is a consensus opinion that the place of slaughtering is the neck. It is not permissible to slaughter an animal at any other part other than the neck.
There are two types of slaughtering with regard to the part of the neck where the cutting is performed:
Nahr, (piercing with arrow or spear) is done in the lower part of the neck (this is where camels are slaughtered) and dhabh (slaughtering) is performed on the upper part of the neck.
What Must Be Cut In Slaughtering?
There are four things at the neck of an animal that must be cut during slaughtering:
1. Hulqum: the windpipe (through which air passes into the lungs)
2. maree'i: esophagus(through which food passes into the stomach)
3. wadjaan: The two jugular veins
There is a scholarly consensus that when all of the forgoing is cut, then proper slaughtering has been done.
However, there are few questions that need to be answered:
Would the meat of the slaughtered animal still be permissible if:
- only some part of these four places is cut
- If it is still permissible to cut some part, which ones should not be missed out?
- If the slaughterer went beyond bound and severed the entire neck?
- If the slaughtering is done from the back of the neck of the animal
Imaam Maalik and Ahmad (RAH) in response to the first question said it is compulsory to cut all the mentioned parts in an Islamic slaughtering. (Majmoo sharhu mahdhib. Bidaayatul Mujtahid). This opinion is based on the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (RA) that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) forbade the 'slaughtering of Shaytan'. Ikrimah (RAH) said it is a description of the manner of slaughtering of the kufaar who would cut the animal slightly and abandon it to bleed to death and they will not cut the jugular vein. (Abu Dawud)
Imaam Abu Haneefah and Imaam Shafiee (RAH) are of the opinion that it is sufficient to cut part of the four places of slaughtering because, it is not possible that life will remain with the animal if any of the four places is cut. They consider the animal killed as such fit for consumption based on the statement of the Rasul (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam):
"Use whatever causes blood to flow and eat the animals if the name of Allaah has been mentioned on slaughtering them." (Bukhari)
The hadeeth, according to them, is a pointer to the fact that it is sufficient to spill the blood of the animal and this can be done with the cutting of just the jugular veins. The second opinion is more correct, missing out part of what should be cut does not render the animal unfit. Allaah knows best.
However, there are differences on what should not be left out while cutting the neck of the animal. The following is a summary of the opinions:
a) It is sufficient to cut three of the four parts without any specification. Cutting most of it is like cutting all.
b) It is compulsory to cut specific three parts - the two jugulars and the windpipe.
c) It is sufficient to cut the windpipe (through which air passes into the lungs), the esophagus (through which food passes into the stomach) and just one of the two jugular veins.
d) It is sufficient to cut only specific two which are: the windpipe and the esophagus.
The most correct opinion is the first one. Since at least one of the jugulars would be cut along with other parts.
If The Entire Neck Of The Animal Is Cut
When the slaughterer goes further to cut the spinal cord of the animal, does it render it haraam? Some scholars, among them Ibn Umar (RA), said the meat is unfit for consumption and some others permit the eating but dislike the act (of cutting the spine) (AI-Majmoo),
ImaamMalik differentiates between the person- who did it unintentionally and the one who intentionally did it. The meat should not be eaten if the slaughterer did it intentionally but it could be eaten if it was out of forgetfulness or ignorance, he said.
The truth of the matter is that the action is disliked but the meat of the animal killed as such is still permissible for consumption because slaughtering has been done but the slaughterer only heightened the pain of the animal which is disliked.
Cutting From The Back Of The Neck
The scholars agree that slaughtering is to be done from the front part of the neck but disagree on the permissibility of the meat of such animal slaughtered from the back of the neck. The first group says if the slaughterer did it deliberately while having the choice to do the proper slaughtering, then the meat becomes impermissible. They equate it to killing the animal by cutting its other parts like disemboweling it or cutting its legs; both of which cannot be described as proper slaughtering.
The second group says if the knife still cuts the parts that should be cut in slaughtering even though from the back, then the meat is still permissible on the additional condition that the knife got to those parts while life still exist in the animal. Nevertheless, such action is disliked because of the pain it will cause the animal. This is the most correct opinion. Allaah knows best.
4th Condition: Where the Slaughter is Done
The place where the slaughtering is done may also render a meat impermissible. If a slaughterer fulfills all the other conditions of slaughtering but performed the slaughtering at altars devoted to idols and other worshipped things other than Allaah, then such meat is not fitting for the Muslims to eat.
Thabit ibn ad-Dahhak (RA) narrated: "In the time of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) a man took a vow to slaughter a camel at Buwanah. So he came to the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) and said: 'I have taken a vow to sacrifice a camel at Buwanah. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) asked:
'Did the place contain any idol worshipped in pre-Islamic times?'
They (the people) said: 'No.' He asked:
'Was any pre-Islamic festival observed there?'
They replied: 'No' The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said:
'Fulfil your vow, for a vow to do an act of disobedience to Allaah must not be fulfilled, neither must one do something over which a human being has no control:"( Abu Dawud)
However, if the place of the slaughtering has nothing to do with any religious rites or celebrations strange to Islaam, then the meat is Halaal (granted that other conditions are fulfilled).
5th Condition: Mentioning the Name of Allaah on the Slaughter
The following points will be considered:
- The wisdom of mentioning the name of Allaah
- The wordings of al-tasmiyyah
- If it is not clear whether the names of Allaah was mentioned or not on a slaughter.
Allaah says:
"And why should you not eat of that (meat) on which Allaah's name has been pronounced (at the time of slaughtering the animal),while He has explained to you in detail what is forbidden to you, except under compulsion of necessity?" (Q6[An'am]:II9)
He also says:
"Eat not (0 believers) of that (meat) on which AIlaah's Name has not been pronounced (at the time of the slaughtering of the animal), for sure it is Fisq (a sin and disobedience of A11aah). And certainly, the Shayatin (devils) do inspire their friends (from mankind) to dispute with you, and if you obey them [by making A1- Maytatah (a dead animal) legal by eating it, then you would indeed be Mushrikun polytheists) because they (devils and their friends) made lawful to you to eat that which Allaah has made unlawful to eat and you obeyed them by considering it lawful to eat, and by doing so you worshipped them, and to worship others besides Allaah is polytheism." (Q6[An'am]: 121)
These verses contain a command from Allaah to the believing servants to eat whatever is slaughtered while mentioning His Name. The understanding thereof is that whatever slaughtered without mentioning His Name is impermissible for us. The wisdom behind mentioning Allaah's Name is that it purifies the slaughtered animal and keeps Shaytan away. So if the slaughtering is bereft of tasmiyyah. Shaytan partakes in it.
The Wordings of the Tasmiyyah
There are two opinions on the wordings of the tasmiyyah:
1st Opinion: Mentioning the name of Allaah is not limited to saying 'Bismillah' alone, any other names of Allaah will also suffice. Thus it is permissible to say 'Allaahu Akbar' or 'Allaahu Rahman' or 'Allaahu Raheem' etc. It can even be singular names by just saying 'ar-Rahman' or 'ar-Raheem'. This is the popular opinion in madh'hab of Hanafee and Maalikee. (al-Badai', Sharhul Kabeer bi Hashiyati-Dasuuqee) Their argument is that Allaah commanded mentioning His name without any specification.
2nd Opinion: The command is specific to saying 'Bismillah' and nothing can replace it. This is the madh'hab of the Hambali and Shafiee on this matter. Their argument is that whenever the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) slaughtered, he would say 'Bismillahi Rahman Raheem' (Haashiyatil Muqtani').
This is the strongest opinion. Even if the command is general in the Qur'an, yet, the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) has demonstrated its understanding because he used to say 'Bismillah' on his slaughter. (Sharhu Nawaawee)
When to Say Bismillah
The time, by consensus, is at the point of slaughtering the animal. It is permissible to say it just before the actual slaughtering but never after it.
If It Is Not Clear Whether The Names Of Allaah Was Mentioned Or Not On A Slaughter
The scholars say that such doubt does not affect the permissibility of the meat particularly in a preponderantly Muslim community. According to them, the Companions have cleared the matter on our behalf. Narrated Aisha (RA): Some people said. "O Allaah's Prophet! Meat is brought to us by some people and we are not sure whether the name of Allaah has been mentioned on it or not (at the time of slaughtering the animals)." Allaah's Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said (to them):
"Mention the name of Allaah and eat it." (Bukhari)
Thus, whoever finds a slaughtered meat can go ahead to eat from it by mentioning the name of Allaah. This also conforms to the provision of Islaam of having good opinion of people. It is thus possible to say that once it is clear that the slaughterer did not mention Allaah's name, then it is not permissible to eat such meat. And Allaah knows best!
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited