Superceding aayahs on halaal and haraam food
Mu' meneen Brothers
and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa
Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be
upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
Dear Burhan,
Please explain the subtle differences in the following
Aayahs.
Al-Baqara
172. O ye who believe! Eat of the good things that We have
provided for you, and be grateful to Allah, if it is Him ye worship. 173. He
hath only forbidden you dead meat, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that
on which any other name hath been invoked besides that of Allah. But if one is
forced by necessity, without willful disobedience, nor transgressing due
limits,- then is he guiltless. For
Allah is Oft-forgiving Most Merciful.
Al-Anam
118. So eat of (meats) on which Allah.s name hath been
pronounced, if ye have faith in His signs. 119. Why should ye not eat of
(meats) on which Allah.s name hath been pronounced, when He hath 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. Thy Lord
knoweth best those who
transgress. 120. Eschew all sin, open or secret: those who
earn sin will get due recompense for their "earnings."
121. Eat not of (meats) on which Allah.s name hath not been
pronounced: That would be impiety. But the evil ones ever inspire their friends
to contend with you if ye were to obey them, ye would indeed be Pagans.
Al-Maidah
All the good and pure things have today been made ‘halaal’
for you; the food of the people of the Book (Jews and Christians) is ‘halaal’
for you, and your food for them.
In Surah Al-Baqara,
Allah says "He hath only forbidden you dead .... and that on which any
other name hath been invoked besides that of Allah." In Surah Al-Anam,
Allah says "Eat not of (meats) on which Allah.s name hath not been
pronounced". In Al-Maidah, food of people of the book is made halaal, but
christans do eat pork?
In one of your responses regarding burgers from McDonalds and other restaurants,
you mentioned that if we are satisfied with 5
conditions.....Tell me how practical it is to get
satisfied with how the animal was slaughtered and who slaughtered the animal
for these
restaurants?
Please respond ASAP.
Wassalaam.
(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)
Answer:
Superceding aayahs
on halaal and haraam food
In the name of Allah, We praise
Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none
can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright.
We bear witness that there is no one (no idol,
no person, no grave, no
prophet, no imam, no dai,
nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that
Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
Your question: Please explain the subtle differences in
the following Aayahs: Surah Baqarah verses 172-172, Surah Al Anam 118-121,
and Surah Maidah verse 5.
Firstly, to
understand the subtle differences between the above three verses regarding the
haraam/halaal foods, one must realize
the chronology of the Revelations of these verses.
The verses of Surah Al-Anam were revealed in the Makkah
period, then the verses of Surah
Baqarah in the early part of the Medina period which supercede the aayahs of
Surah Anaam, and finally the verses of
Surah Maidah in the later part of the Medina period, which supercede all the other aayahs regarding the matter.
Your question: In Surah Al-Baqara, Allah says "He
hath only forbidden you dead .... and that on which any other name hath been
invoked besides that of Allah."
In Surah Al-Anam, Allah says "Eat not of (meats) on
which Allah.s name hath not been pronounced". In Al-Maidah, food of people
of the book is made halaal, but christans do eat pork?
Beloved brother, even
if a believer (Allah forbid) slaughters swine or any other haraam animal, and says the name of Allah over it, the meat of swine or any other haraam animal
will always be considered haraam as food for the believers; that is because swine is in its essence
haraam! And no matter who slaughters
the swine or any haraam animal, or
how, and no matter whose name he calls
over it; it will always be haraam.
When Allah Subhanah declares the food of the People of the
Book (the Jews and the Christians) halaal for the believers, it is a pre-condition that the food itself
must be a halaal in its essence. Thus
if a Jew, or a Christian, or even a Muslim serves swine or any other
haraam animal, it will not be
considered halaal food for the believers.
The verse of Surah Maidah whereby Allah Subhanah declares the
food of the People of the Book halaal for the believers was the last of the
aayahs revealed regarding the permissibility of foods, and a special consideration and exception
towards the followers of the two monotheistic Abrahamic religions. Even if the People of the Book today do not
invoke the name of Allah Subhanah on their slaughter, their food will be considered halaal for the believers provided:
1.
The
animal itself is halaal in its essence.
2.
The
animal did not die of itself, or from a
headlong fall, or by strangling, or by being gored to death, or by being attacked by a wild animal, etc.
but was duly slaughtered when alive.
3.
The
food is not a offering of their alters.
Even if a muslim does not fulfill the above three
conditions, the food he offers will be
considered haraam for the believers!
Your question: In one of your responses regarding burgers
from McDonalds and other restaurants, you mentioned that if we are satisfied
with 5 conditions.....Tell me how practical it is to get satisfied with how the
animal was slaughtered and who slaughtered the animal for these restaurants?
The allowance or forbiddance of the food served by McDonalds
and other western fast food chains is a new development of our times, and a matter for the Islamic scholars to
decide on in light of the Quran and Sunnah.
The truth is that there is a difference of opinion amongst the scholars
of Islam regarding the permissibility of the food served at these western fast
food chains.
If one eats food from McDonalds or any other western fast
food chain in predominantly muslim countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE,
Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia,
etc.; it would be safe to assume
that the food is halaal.
And if one eats from any of the normal restaurants from a predominantly
pagan or mushrik country like China,
Japan, Korea, Sri Lanka,
Thailand, etc.; it would be safe to assume that the food is
haraam.
The issue arises when one eats from these fast food chains
from countries which are predominantly of the Jews and the Christians, like in Europe or USA! You are absolutely right in asking ‘how practical it is to get satisfied
with how the animal was slaughtered and who slaughtered the animal for these
restaurants?’ Exactly how practical it is to ask the restaurant, is a question each person has to decide for
himself. If one goes and asks the
restaurant manager in these countries,
and he confirms that the animal was slaughtered while alive by either a
Muslim, a Jew, or a Christian; then the food is halaal.
But in our humble opinion,
and I again reiterate that it is only our humble opinion, it would be best and purer for a believer to
stay away if one doubts or suspects the food being served is halaal or
haraam. Our opinion is derived from
the following wise words of the Messenger of Allah (saws):
Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 1.49 Narrated
by An Numan bin Bashir
I heard the Messenger of Allah (saws) saying, “Both the halaal
and the haraam are evident; but in
between them there are doubtful (suspicious) things, and most of the people have no knowledge about them. So whoever saves himself from these
suspicious things, saves his religion
and his honor.”
Whatever written of
Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever
of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows
Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in
Islam,