Sacrificing Animals

All Praises is due to Almighty Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala, Peace and
Blessings be upon the most perfect of creations, His Beloved Habeeb,
Sayyiduna Rasoolullah SallAllaho Alaihi wa Sallam his noble Family and
the illustrious Sahaba Riwanullahi Ta'ala Alaihim Ajma'een and all the
pious servants of Almighty Allah SubHanuhu wa Ta'ala.
LAWFUL AND UNLAWFUL ANIMALS
I. Hadrat Jabir reported that on the day (battle) of Khaybar the
Messenger of Allah declared domestic asses, the flesh of mules, every
beast of prey and every bird which preys with its talon to be
unlawful. [Sunan Tirmidhi, Vol. 1, Page 273]
II. Hadrat Safinah reported, "I ate with the Messenger of Allah the
flesh of a bustard." [Mishkat, Page 361]
(a bird with a long neck, a long beak, grey-coloured, looks like a
goose in its appearance) – [al-Mu'jam al-Wasit – Page 151]
III. Hadrat Abu Musa reported, "I saw the Messenger of Allah
eatingpoultry." [Mishkat, Page 361]
IV. Hadrat Abu Qatadah reported that he saw a wild ass and killed it.
The Holy Prophet asked, "Have you any of its flesh?" They said, "We
have a leg." The Messenger of Allah was offered a piece, which
heaccepted and ate. [Mishkat, Page 359]
V. Hadrat Ibn-e-'Umar reported that the Messenger of Allah has said,
"Two dead creatures and two bloodshave been made lawful for us. The
two dead creatures are fish and locust and the two bloods are liver
and spleen." [Mishkat, Page 361]
VI. Hadrat Abu al-Zubair reported from Hadrat Jabir who reported that
the Messenger of Allah has said, "What the sea throws up and is left
by the tide (i.e. the fish) you may eat. But what dies inthe sea and
floats you must not eat." [Mishkat, Page 361]
VII. Hadrat 'Ikramah reported from Hadrat Ibn-e-'Abbas - saying he was
sure that he transmitted it back to theHoly Prophet - that he used to
order snakes to be killed and he used to say, "Whoever leaves them
fearing that they might come to take revenge does not belong to us."
(is not on our path) [Mishkat, Page 361]
VIII. Hadrat Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah has
said, "Whoever kills a gecko with the first blow one hundred virtues
are recorded for him; and less if he kills it with the second; and
even less if he kills it with the third." [Mishkat, Page 361]
IMPORTANT NOTES:
1. It is Haram to eat Ghurab al-Abqa' - a type of crow that eats the
dead (like a vulture) as stated in al-Durr al-Mukhtar on Page 642 and
also in al-Mu'jam al-Wasit Page 647.
2. Mahuka[1] - a crow-like bird which resembles a cuckoo in its
features is Halal [Radd al-Mohtar]. This is because the latter eats
only grains and seeds whereas the common crow eats dead carcasses.
[al-Bahr al-Ra'iq – Vol. 8, Page 313, Fatawa-e-Razawiyyah – Vol. 20
Pgs. 319-320, Firozul Lughat – Page 1364]
3. All sea creatures exceptfish are all Haram, such asa crab or a
crocodile, an eel and so on. [al-Durr al-Mukhtar – Page 642]
4. There is disagreement amongst the scholars as regards prawn – is it
considered in the group of 'fish' or not? Thus, it is best to avoid
it.
5. If someone placed a substance (a chemical forexample) by which the
fish died, and it is knownthat the fish dided due tothe cuase of
placing that substance in the water, then that fish is still Halal.
[al-Durr al-Mukhtar – Page 642]
6. A rabbit is Halal to eat. [al-Hidayah Page 425, al-Durr al-Mukhtar Page 642]
HUNTING AND SLAUGHTER
I. Hadrat 'Adi ibn Hatim reported: I asked, "O Messenger of Allah!
Whenanyone of us catches a game and has no knife, can he cut its
throat with a flint and a splinter of a stick?" He said, "Let the
blood flow with whatever you like and mention the Name of Allah."
[Mishkat, Page 358]
II. Hadrat 'Adi ibn Hatim reported that the Holy Prophet has said,
"Eat whatever is caught for you by a dog or a hawk (but the prey is
not devoured by themselves) which you have trained and set off after
mentioning the Name of Allah. I asked: "Even though it kills it (i.e.
the animal)?" He said, "When it kills it without eating anything of
it, because it has caught it for you." [Mishkat, Page 358]
III. Hadrat Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah has
said, "Whoever keeps a dog, except a sheepdog or a hunting dog or a
farm dog, a qiraat of his reward is deducted daily." [Mishkat, Page
358]
IV. Hadrat 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As reported that the Messenger
of Allah has said, "Whoever kills a sparrow or any creature larger
than that,Allah will question him about killing it." It was asked: "O
Messenger of Allah, what is the right of (these) birds?" He said, "To
cut its throat and eat it, but not to cut off its head and throw it
away." [Mishkat, Page 359]
V. Hadrat 'Aisha reported that (some) people said, "O Messenger of
Allah! There are people here who have recently reverted from
polytheism. They bring tous meat and we do not know whether or not
they have mentioned the Name of Allah over it." Hesaid, "Mention the
Name of Allah yourselves and eat it." [Mishkat, Page 357]
VI. Hadrat Shaddad ibn Aws reported that the Messenger of Allah has
said, "Allah the Blessed and Exalted has decreed kindness for
everything. So when you kill, use a good method; and when you
slaughter use a goodmethod. You should sharpen the knife and give the
animal as little pain as possible." [Mishkat, Page 357]
IMPORTANT NOTES:
1. There are 4 veins cut when slaughtering an animal; the windpipe
(channel of breath), the gullet (channel of food and drink which lies
beneath the windpipe), and the 2 carotid arterieswhich are two blood
vessels on the sides of theneck encompassing the windpipe, they are
calledwadajain. [Bahar-e-Shari'at and al-Durr al-Mukhtar – Page 640]
2. If 3 from the 4 veins were cut or most part of each vein was cut,
then the slaughtered animal isHalal.
3. It is Haram to eat an animal slaughtered by aninfidel, a Wahhabi,
an apostate, Dehriyah or a neichri, and every other heretic.
4. A Hindu said, "This animal has been slaughtered by a Muslim,"then
to eat the animal is not permissible. If the Hindu said, "I have
bought this from a Muslim," then it is permissible to eat it. [al-Durr
al-Mukhtar – Page 640]
5. If one did not mention the Name of Allah purposely, when
slaughtering the animal, then the slaughtered animal has become Haram
to eat. If one unintentionally forgot to pray it then it is Halal.
[al-Hidayah Vol. 4 Page 419, Bahar-e-Shari'at]
6. Likewise, to slaughter in such a manner that theknife stroke
reaches the cerebellum (the brain) or the head is chopped off then it
is makruh (offensive) to eat the meat, though the meat is lawful (the
offensiveness is in the method of slaughtering not the meat).
[al-Hidayah, Bahar-e-Shari'at]
7. There are 22 things which are not permissible (to eat) from a
sheep, a cow, or any other animal slaughtered:
a) Guts.
b) Intestines.
c) Bladder.
d) Testicles.
e) Penis (the sign of a masculine).
f) Vagina (the sign of a feminine).
g) Anus.
h) Blood in the arteries/veins.
i) The blood that is in the meat, that is left even after the animal
has beensacrificed.
j) The blood of the heart.
k) Blood of the liver.
l) Blood of the spleen.
m) Gall bladder.
n) The bile (yellow substance) that is excreted from the gall bladder.
o) The gland.
p) Spinal Marrow (nukha').
q) The two muscles/tendons of the neck which stretch till theshoulders.
r) The moisture that is in the nose.
s) Semen and sperm, whether the sperm of themale is found in the
female (animal), or whether it is the animals own sperm/semen.
t) That blood which is created in the womb by semen.
u) That flesh which has formed in the womb by seminal fluid, whether
the flesh has developed abody (with its parts) or not.
v) That animal which has been fully developed in the womb, but which
came out (of the womb) dead, or died without slaughter.
8. It is permissible to eat the meat of an animal which has been
sacrificed with the name of Allah 'Azz wa Jall for the reward to be
sent to any Friend (Wali) of Allah.The condition is that the Name of
Allah is mentioned as such: "Bismillahi Allahu Akbar."
9. If a trained hunting animal brought down a game animal, then it is
lawful to eat it (the gameanimal) on the following conditions:
a. The hunting animal belongs to a Muslim and should also be trained
b. The animal did not die due to the pouncing upon it of the hunting
animal, but due to the wound made by the hunting animal
c.The trained hunting aninmal was set free after the hunter mentioned
the Name of Allah the Most Exalted ("Bismillahi Allahu Akbar")
d. The animal reached the hunter before it dies, and thence, he
mentioned the Name of Allah and then properly slaughtered it.
If any of the above conditions are not fulfilled; or if any condition
is not found then the animal shall be unlawful to eat.
[Khaza'inal-'Irfan – Sadr al-Afadhil al-Sayyid Na'im al-Din
al-Muradabadi]
10. The sign if an animal is for hunting or not is that if it is set
free to hunt, then it shall run towards the prey (game),and if it is
stopped then itstops. The trained hunting animal shall also leave the
hunted animal (prey) for its owner, and shall not eat anything from
it. This has been stated in Tafsir al-JalalainPage 93.
11. If an animal which has been shot with a gunor with a bow arrow
dies, then it is Haram to eat it. [Radd al-Mohtar, Bahar-e-Shari'at,
Fatawa-e-Qadi Khan]
12. Hunting for mere enjoyment, entertainment, or amusement is Haram;
whether the animal is shot with a gun or an arrow and whether it is
fishing occasionally, or rarely.
13. Some people when fishing, place fish or toads (both of which are
still living) into the rod tocatch large fish. This is prohibited as
one is giving pain to the animal. Likewise, some people catch fish by
placing live earthworms or maggots into the rod; this is also
prohibited. [Bahar-e-Shari'at – Vol. Chapter 17, Page 273]
14. Some people feel thatit is disliked to work as a butcher. This is
wrong, asthere is nothing transmitted from anyone to say that such an
occupation is disliked. [Bahar-e-Shari'at with reference from Radd
al-Mohtar]
SACRIFICING ANIMALS
I. Hadrat Zaid ibn Arqam reported that the companions of the Messenger
of Allah asked:"O Messenger of Allah! What is this sacrifice?" Hesaid,
"It is the practice of your father Abraham." They asked, "What is the
reward for us in it?" He said, "For every hair, you will be rewarded."
They asked, "for the wool, O Messenger of Allah?" He said, "For every
strand of wool you will be rewarded." [Sunan Ibn Majah, Vol. 1, Page
226]
II. Hadrat 'Aisha reported that the Messenger of Allah has said, "On
the day of sacrifice no one does a deed more pleasing to Allah than
theshedding of blood. The sacrifice will come on theDay of
Resurrection with its horns, its hairs and its hooves; and the blood
finds acceptance with Allah before it falls on theground." [Sunan
Tirmidhi, Vol. 1, Page 275]
III. Hadrat Hanash reported: I saw Hadrat 'Ali sacrificing two rams.
Iasked him: "what is this?"He said, "The Messenger of Allah had
enjoined me to sacrifice on his behalf; so I am sacrificing on his
behalf." [Mishkat, Page 128]
IV. Hadrat Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah has said,
"Such a person who had the ability and means to sacrifice an animal,
but (despite this) he did not do so; should never come near our Eidgah
(place where the Eid prayers are performed)." [Sunan Ibn Majah, Vol.
1, Page 226]
V. Hadrat Umm-e-Salmah reported that the Messenger of Allah has said,
"when you see the new moon of Dhul Hijjah and one of you intends to
make sacrifice, he must not shave his hair, trim it, or clip his
nails." [Sahih Muslim, Vol. 2, Page 160]
IMPORTANT NOTES:
1. For the condition of sacrificing, the Malik-e-Nisab is the person
who possesses 52 ½ tolas (620 grammes) of silver or 7 ½ tolas (88
grammes) of gold; or they have the same amount equivalent to either of
the above item in value in business goods or non-business goods, which
are not goods that are the basic necessities of life. The wealth
and/or property should be 'extra'/above one's basic necessities
(hajat-e-asliyyah).
2. Nowadays, the price ofsilver is less. The price of silver in
current-day value is approximately £2per tola. Therefore, anyone who
possess the value of: £2 x 52 ½ tola = £105 - which exceeds his/her
basic necessities and also the debt which is to be paid back – then it
is wajib on such a person to sacrifice an animal.
3. Such a Malik-e-Nisab who has already sacrificed an animal on behalf
of himself, and thefollowing year he is still aMalik-e-Nisab then
again it is wajib upon him to sacrifice an animal on hisbehalf. This
ruling appliesfor each year (that sacrificing is wajib if a person is
a Malik-e-Nisab). It has been stated in a Hadith: "It is wajib upon
every household to sdacrifice an animal each year."
4. If a Malik-e-Nisab sacrifices on behalf of someone else, instead of
sacrificing an animal on behalf of himself (i.e. does not sacrifice an
animal on his behalf), then he has committed a great sin. Thus, if he
wants to sacrifice on someone else's behalf, then he should make
preparations to buy another animal and sacrifice it.
5. Some people who think that, "It is wajib only once in a lifetime to
sacrifice an animal on one's behalf" is farce andwrong, which has no
proof; as it is wajib upon a Malik-e-Nisab to sacrifice an animal on
hisbehalf each year.
6. In villages, it is permissible to sacrifice animals on the 10th of
Dhu'l Hijjah after the break of dawn (Subh-e-Sadiq). However, it is
Mustahab to sacrifice it after sunrise. [Fatawa-e-'Alamgiri Vol. 5
Page 260]
7. It is not permissible to sacrifice animals before the Eid prayer in
cities and towns. [Bahar-e-Shari'at]
8. Such a poor person - who cannot afford to sacrifice an animal -
should also refrain from shaving or trimming hair and clipping nails;
so as to resemble the pilgrims on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah.
9. It is permissible for a resident of a city or a town to send his
animal to a person living in a village; and have it sacrificed before
the Eid prayer; and then have the meat sent back to him in the city or
town. [al-Durr al-Mukhtar]
10. It is not permissible togive the skin or the meat of the
sacrificed animal as the wage to the butcher or the one who has
sacrificed the animal. [al-Durr al-Mukhtar]
11. It is not permissible togive the meat of a sacrificed animal to any infidel.
12. The method of sacrificing an animal is tolay it on its left, such
that its face is towards the Qiblah and then place theright foot on
its side and holding a sharp knife (concealed obviously from the
animal or if it is blind-folded then there isno harm).
13. if the Qurban has been performed on behalf of someone who has
passed away, then the meat cannot be eatenby the person himself norcan
it be given to a rich person. It is wajib to giveall the meat to the
poor as sadaqah. [Bahar-e-Shari'at]
14. The animal's skin, reins, saddle etc should all be given in
sadaqah, one can use the skin for their own usage, such as to make the
skin into a leather bag or a prayer mat. However, one cannot sell the
skin to someone else, and then use the money for their own benefit. If
this has been done, then the money received should be given as
sadaqah.
15. Nowadays, people give the animal skin to Madrissahs and other
Islamic institutions. This is perfectly permissible. Ifone sells the
skin with the intention of giving the money received to the Madrissa,
then this is also permissible. ['Alamgiri, Bahar-e-Shari'at]
16. The skin of the sacrificed animal cannot be given to the Imam as
his wage. Yes, however, it can be given to him as a gift or for his
benefit. [Bahar-e-Shari'at]
17. A camel must be at least five years old; a buffalo should be at
leasttwo years old; and a sheep, lamb or a goat should be at least one
year old. [al-Durr al-Mukhtar]
18. The animal intended to be slaughtered should be big and health,
and should be free from any faults or defects. If there is a minor
defect in the animal, then the Qurbani will count, but it is Makruh.
If there is a major defect, then the Qurbani will not count. [al-Durr
al-Mukhtar, Raddal-Muhtar, Fatawa-e-'Alamgiri]
Some think that sacrificing one animal will suffice for one
wholehousehold; all of whom are Malik-e-Nisab. This is wrong. Each and
every person from such a household should sacrifice an animal on their
behalf. Yes, however, a household can share seven parts from a 'large'
animal such as a camel, cow, buffalo etc.
Footnote [1]:
The great Imam Ahmed Raza Khan has stated thatthe Ghurab al-Zar' eats
only grains, and is small and has a red/orange coloured beak.
[Fatawa-e-Razawiyyah – Vol. 20, Page 320].
The common crow is classed as khabith in a Hadith, because "of all
birds the carrion crow is the most detested by gamekeepers and country
people who rear flocks of poultry, becauseit is the craftiest of egg
thieves. Wild birds also suffer acutely from its depredations."
[ www.birdsofbritain.co.uk ] It has also been mentioned on this
website that, "outside the breeding season, crows often patrol the
waterside, picking up carrion and attacking wounded birds in the
shooting season. Some ofthem haunt beaches and estuaries where they
eat shore-crabs and mussels, whose shells they crack by dropping them
from aheight."
There is another species of the "crow" family called: the American
Crowor Corvus Brachyvrhyncos. "American Crows eat a wide variety of
foods, including: fruits, grains, nuts, acorns, snails, mussels, small
birds, eggs,rabbits, mice, toads, crayfish, snakes, lizards,
salamanders, rats, grasshoppers, cutworms, Junebugs, grubs,
weevils,and other insects."
It is quite surpirising to see that there were and still are some who
call themselves as "scholars", yet they declare things tobe Halal
which the Messenger of Allah declared Haram! Take for example, the
common crow, which is classed as fasiq in the Hadith narrated by ibn
Majah in his Sunan on the authority of Hadrat 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar
[Sunan ibn Majah – Vol. 2 Page 294 – Hadith: 1036] and also in the
same book there is also the Hadith narrated on the authority of Hadrat
'Aishain which the crow is named as fasiq, and cannot be eaten. [Sunan
ibn Majah – Vol. 2, Page 293, Hadith: 1037]. Despite all this, these
"scholars for dollars" have issued fatawa that to eat the crow is
Halal! [see Fatawa-e-Rashidiyah– Page 296 and the Nawa-e-Waqt
newspaper– 6th and the 7th of August 1976]

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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