For meat to be lawful, it is not simply enough that the animal has been slaughtered by "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 his neck, it would be a carcass, or haram. If the same method of killing is adopted by chrisatin or a Jew, then how such a chicken can become halal?
Slaughtering consists of cutting the jugular viens in the neck, so that all blood is drained out. The spinal cord must NOT be cut. Why Not? 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 meat is then called halal or lawful. Like other Islamic teachings dietary restrictions in Islam relate to material well being, even as they are spirtually significant.
The Islamic manner of slaughtering an animal is to slit its throat, saying bismillah, thus recognising that this is taken only by Allah's permission to meet the lawful need of food, and allowing all the blood to drain out. The meat sold commercially in USA and European countries etc., is not lawful for muslims, since when animals are slaughtered there Bismillah is not said over them in most cases and the methods of slaughter are also objectionable. The Holy Quran States:
This day are(all) good things made lawful for you. The food of those who have received the scripture is lawful for you, and your food is lawful for them. And so are the virtuous women of the believers and the virtuous women of those who receieved the scripture before you(lawful for you) when ye give them their marriage portions and live with them in honour, not go in fornification, nor taking tham as secret concubines. Whoso denieth faith, his work is vain and he will be among the losers in the Hereafter. (5:5)
Now what does the Glorious Quran mean by the food of the Ahl-E-Kitab which Allah had made lawful for muslims? Does it mean by it the food which Allah had made lawful for the Ahl-Kitab in their scripture and according to their prophets? Or does it mean everything which the Ahl-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 classes of food and other good things were allowed while certain bad things are forbidden. It is well-known that in every community, some of it's 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 verses intend by "the food of those who have received the Scripture" the food of the Ahl-Kitab which Allah had made lawful for muslims, the food of the Ahl-Kitab which is lawful which is halal to them in their accordance with their book and the teachings of their prophet? Or does it mean every kind of food that theyactually eat, regardless of whether it is lawful for them.
Surely the above passage from the Quran does not give a blanket approval to consume whatever is availiable in the food markerts and confectionaries of the Christain West as is contended by some modern scholars. It should be emphasized, however, that the law of Allah is higher than the simplistic conclusions of such absurd interpretations. The true meaning, then, of these two parts of the Quranic verses referred to above which suits the glory of Allah's Law may be summarized as follows:-
1)All food which Allah has made lawful for Jews and christains in their respective Scripture is lawful for muslims 2)All food which Allah made lawful for Muslims in Quran is lawful for Jews and Christains.
If this is true meaning and interpretation of the Quranic verse, we should then again be justified in posing the question whether the meat of animals, as they are slaughtered commercially taday in Western countries, whether such meat was originally lawful for Jews and Christains so that it might also be regarded as lawful for muslims? This is the point which has raised all this controversy. However, those 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......"(5:5) saying that this verse indicates the lawfulness of the animal slaughtered by the "People of the Book" without any reference to the method of slaughtering or to the characteristics of person who undertakes it, as long as he is a man from among the "People of the Book." They further argue that "We are not required to consider the way in which the animals have been slaughtered, and whether or not Allah's name has been mentioned over them........Foodstuffs imported from countries of the "people of the Book" are lawful unless there is evidence that they are dedicated to other than Allah or are not slaughtered legally according to islamic rites."
This, quote above, is an over simplification of the Quranic verse referred to above. The permission given is conditional and does not confer a blanket approval to eat the animal slaughtered by those who have a Book regardless of the way it was killed, whther its neck was twisted or it died by suffocation. The crux of the matter is whether the animal has been legally(ritually) slaughtered according to the Islamic prescription regardless of whether or not the slaughterer is a Muslim or a man from among the Ahl-Kitab. The legal opinion(fatwa) of Sheikh Abdullah ibn Hamid, President, Shari'ah Law Supreme Council and President, Jurisprudence Assembly in Saudia 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 agree to should be in the Trachea and the uper part of the chest(which is like around the neck). The slaughter must not be done elsewhere. The people of the Book do not adhere to this rule."
The Holy Quran is very explicit on this point when it says:---> "Forbidden to you is that which dies of itself, and blood, and flesh of swine, and that on which any other name than that of Allah has been invoked, and the strangled (animal) and that beaten to death, and that killed by a fall and that killed by being smitten with the horn, and that which wild beasts have eaten......(5:3)
In the light of the above Quranic verse and foregoing account, the slaughtered animals of the People of the Book in Western or other countries are not lawful because when animals r slaughtered here Bismillah is not said over them and the methods of slaughter are also called in question. Besides this, there are other differences. There are instances where EVEN MAITAH(carrion) has been served because the system of slaughter is based on stunning and many of the animals actally die before reaching the blade. The Ulama are agreed that the food of "People of the Book" which Allah made lawful for Muslims is their food which Allah had made lawful for them in their Scripture and through their Prophets and modern scholars need not say more about it because the matter is plain and clear.
Finally there are some people who say "it is permissible to eat it(i.e non-Dhabihah meat)after saying Bismillah at the time of eating". We have however never heard that saying Bismillah on food which is unlawful turns into lawful food. What we are sure of is that the Prophet(pbuh) used to say Bismillah when he commenced eating any food or drinking liquids, thereby, blessing them and making them useful with the grace of Bismillah. Furthermore, he advised muslims to do the same but he never told them that what was unlawful could be lawful by saying Bismillah over it. The advocates of Bismillah formula are in fact not aware of the background, intent and purpose of a Hadith in Bukhari which is reproduced below:----->
Narrated Aisha(ra): A group of people said to the Prophet(pbuh), 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 pg.002 English Translation)
It is obvious that this relates to the slaughter of neo-Muslims(i.e. those who have embraced Islam recently) and not the slaughter of non-muslims(Jews and Christains). In another hadith the Holy Prophet(pbuh) 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 derivatives have been served:
Narrated Abu Thalaba 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 utencils, and there is game in that land I hunt with my bow and with my trained hound and with my untrained hound. The Prophet(pbuh) said, As for your saying that you are in the land of the people of the scripture you should not eat their utensils unless u find no ther 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 Ahadith regarding lawful and unlawful in Islam:
(i) An-Nu’man bin Bashir reported that the Messenger of Allah(pbuh) said: What is lawful is clear and what is unlawful is clear, but between them are certain doubtful things which 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 round a preserve will soon pasture them into it.(Bukhari and Muslim)
(ii)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 good and act righteously(XXIII:51) and also , You who beleive, 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 dishevelled 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)(iii)
(iii)The Holy Prophet(pbuh) is also reported to have said: Flesh which has grown out of what is unlawful will not enter paradise,but Hell is more fitting for all flesh which has grown out of what is unlawful.(Ahmad and Baihaqi)
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 specila diet for patients, so that indiscriminate diet may not injure the body. The Almighty Allah knows our constitution perfectly well and He knows how to keep to keep it best in health. As soundness of mind depends on soundness of body, therefore, food and drink may be said to be one of the principal causes which lead a man to vice and virtues. The Almighty Allah and His Messenger, therefore, prescribed such food for men as are conductive to 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 Argentina and Brazil etc., are exporting a lot of frozen meat to Arab countries including Saudi Arabia. This meat is not quite lawful for the Muslims as the animals are not slaughtered according to the way prescribed-by the Shariah. The exporting firms very cunningly the HALAL mark on their products which in reality is not the case. There are no Muslim batchers or supervisors attached to these firms and as such their statement cannot be relied upon. It is very important that the Islamic organizations should probe into the matter urgently ensure that the Muslim masses in Arab 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 unlawful food are not heard or accepted. This is a grave issue and should be taken in right earnestness by the Muslim governments.
The summary of this somewhat heated discussion and probing is as follows:
(a) No food of the "People of the Book" is lawful for a Muslim except that which is lawful for the "People of the Book" themselves, according to the directions of their Scripture and their prophets.
[b]Halal meat is available in many western countries through the efforts dedicated Islamic workers and it is easy for anyone keen on getting it to be able to procure it. And, now, that the correct Islamic decision on the matter is made known, there would be no excuse for any Muslim to eat unlawful meat. And it should be known that the body which is nourished on unlawful food will be consigned to Hell as mentioned in the Hadith.
[c]Although on the surface of it the Halal Dhabihah meat may appear a little expensive in U.S.A. and other European countries as compared to the of animals slaughtered automatically by a machine, it is worth purchasing because it is far more hygienic as the blood of the animal is cornpletely drained out by slitting its throat. Furthermore, the eating of meat which is sold in the market is not lawful for a Muslim.
Since the Islamic method of slaughter is a form of worship, the muslims are not allowed to eat the flesh of an animal not legally (ritually) slaughtered. Thus in the light of principles of Islamic jurisprudence it is conclusively, decisively and convincingly proved that chickens and animals slaughtered by machines with a built-in rotating saw or blade and motivated by electric current or any other motive power are forbidden and unlawful for Muslims. While Allah may forgive our past lapses for not taking halal meat due to ignorance or its non avaiIability at certain places, but now we will be great sinners in the sight of Allah if we do not switchover to halal meat. This is all we can say. If in our effort to find the truth bring it out, we have said something which is correct then it is from Allah and to Him is due all praise and gratitude. And if we have made any mistake we ask Him for pardon and forgiveness. Finally, may peace and blessings be showered on Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets, the best of Allah and on his family, his companions and those who follow his teachings.
