Eating the Slaughtered Meat of the People of the Book
His statement, «The food of those given the book is unbound for you» (Al-Māʿidah 5:5), قَوْلُهُ: وَطَعامُ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتابَ حِلٌّ لَكُمْ الطَّعَامُ: “Food” is the name for what is eaten and from it are the slaughtered animals. Most of the people of knowledge opined narrowing it down to the slaughtered animals. اسْمٌ لِمَا يُؤْكَلُ، وَمِنْهُ الذَّبَائِحُ، وَذَهَبَ أَكْثَرُ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ إِلَى تَخْصِيصِهِ هُنَا بِالذَّبَائِحِ. In this verse is an evidence for all the food of the People of the Book, without a difference between the meat and other than it, [being] lawful for Muslims, even if they did not mention Allāh’s name upon their slaughtered animals and this verse being a restriction to the generality of His statement, «and do not eat from what Allāh’s name was not mentioned upon» (Al-Anʿām 6:121). وَفِي هَذِهِ الْآيَةِ دَلِيلٌ عَلَى أَنَّ جَمِيعَ طَعَامِ أَهْلِ الْكُتُبِ مِنْ غَيْرِ فَرْقٍ بَيْنَ اللَّحْمِ وَغَيْرِهِ حَلَالٌ لِلْمُسْلِمِينَ وَإِنْ كَانُوا لَا يَذْكُرُونَ عَلَى ذَبَائِحِهِمُ اسْمَ اللَّهِ، وَتَكُونُ هَذِهِ الْآيَةُ مُخَصِّصَةً لِعُمُومِ قَوْلِهِ: وَلا تَأْكُلُوا مِمَّا لَمْ يُذْكَرِ اسْمُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ. The obvious [meaning] of this is that the slaughtered animals of the People of the Book is lawful, even if a Jew mentions the name of ‘Uzair (Ezra) upon his slaughtered animal and a Christian mentions the name of the Messiah (Jesus) upon his slaughtered animal; this was opined by Abū al-Dardā’, ‘Ubādah bin as–Sāmit, Ibn ‘Abbās, az-Zuhrī, Rabī’ah, ash-Sha’bī, and Mak·hūl. ‘Alī, ‘A’ishah, وَظَاهِرُ هَذَا أَنَّ ذَبَائِحَ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ حَلَالٌ، وَإِنْ ذَكَرَ الْيَهُودِيُّ عَلَى ذَبِيحَتِهِ اسْمَ عُزَيْرٍ، وَذَكَرَ النَّصْرَانِيُّ عَلَى ذَبِيحَتِهِ اسْمَ الْمَسِيحِ. وَإِلَيْهِ ذَهَبَ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ وَعِبَادَةُ بْنُ الصَّامِتِ وَابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ وَالزُّهْرِيُّ وَرَبِيعَةُ وَالشَّعْبِيُّ وَمَكْحُولٌ. وَقَالَ عَلِيٌّ وَعَائِشَةُ And Ibn ‘Umar said, “If you heard the kitābī (i.e., the Jew or Christian) naming other than Allāh, then do not eat.” وَابْنُ عُمَرَ: إِذَا سَمِعْتَ الْكِتَابِيَّ يُسَمِّي غَيْرَ اللَّهِ فَلَا تَأْكُلْ، And it is [also] the saying of Tāwus and al-Ḥasan, and they held to His statement, exalted is He «and do not eat from what Allāh’s name was not mentioned upon» (Al-Anʿām 6:121). وَهُوَ قَوْلُ طَاوُسٍ وَالْحَسَنُ وَتَمَسَّكُوا بِقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: وَلا تَأْكُلُوا مِمَّا لَمْ يُذْكَرِ اسْمُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ [الأنعام: 121] It is also indicated by His statement, «and what is offered [as sacrifice] to other than Allāh» (Al-Naḥl 16:115). وَيَدُلُّ عَلَيْهِ أَيْضًا قَوْلُهُ: وَما أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ بِهِ Mālik said, “It is surely detested, and not forbidden.” وَقَالَ مَالِكٌ: إِنَّهُ يُكْرَهُ وَلَا يَحْرُمُ. This difference is if we knew that the People of the Book mentioned the name of other than Allāh upon their slaughtered animals. As for with the lack of knowledge, then at–Ṭabarī and Ibn Kathīr had related the concensus on its unbinding due to this verse, and due to what was mentioned in the Sunnah of his (i.e., the Prophet’s) eating the roast lamb that was given to him [as a gift] by the Jewish woman; it is also in the Sahīh, and likewise the bag of suet that some of the Companions took from Khaibar, and the Prophet, may Allāh send salutations and peace upon him, knew of that; it is also in the Sahīh, and other than that. فَهَذَا الْخِلَافُ إِذَا عَلِمْنَا أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ ذَكَرُوا عَلَى ذَبَائِحِهِمُ اسْمَ غَيْرِ اللَّهِ، وَأَمَّا مَعَ عَدَمِ الْعِلْمِ فَقَدْ حَكَى الْكِيَا الطَّبَرِيُّ وَابْنُ كَثِيرٍ الْإِجْمَاعَ عَلَى حِلِّهَا لِهَذِهِ الْآيَةِ، وَلِمَا وَرَدَ فِي السُّنَّةِ مِنْ أَكْلِهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عليه وَسَلَّمَ مِنَ الشَّاةِ الْمَصْلِيَّةِ الَّتِي أَهْدَتْهَا إِلَيْهِ الْيَهُودِيَّةُ، وَهُوَ فِي الصَّحِيحِ، وَكَذَلِكَ الْجِرَابُ الشَّحْمُ الَّذِي أَخَذَهُ بَعْضُ الصَّحَابَةِ مِنْ خَيْبَرَ وَعَلِمَ بذلك النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَهُوَ فِي الصَّحِيحِ أَيْضًا وَغَيْرُ ذَلِكَ. The intent of the People of the Book here is the Jews and the Christians. As for the Magians, then the general collective opined that their slaughtered animals are not eaten, nor are their women married, because they are not the People of the Book according to the reknowned [view] with the people of knowledge. Abū Thawr differed in that and the jurists rebuked him for that, such that Aḥmad bin Ḥanbal said, “Abū Thawr is like his name, ” i.e., in this issue (Abū Thawr means father of the ox). It was as if he clung to what is narrated from the Prophet, may Allāh send salutations and peace upon him, in mursal form, that he said, «Establish the tradition of the People of the Book with them, » and it is not established with this expression. On the assumption that it has an origin, then it has an addition [that] disproves what he (i.e,. Abū Thawr) said, and it is his statement, «not those who eat their slaughtered animals, nor those who marry their women.» A group from those who have no experience in the science of ḥadīth from the exegetes and the jurists; the origin is not established, nor is the addition. Rather, what is established in the Sahīh is that the Prophet, may Allāh send salutations and peace upon him, took the jizyah from the Magians of Hajar. As for the sons of Taġlib, then ‘Alī bin Abī Ṭālib used to prohibit from their slaughtered animals because they were Arab and he used to say, “Surely, they do not hold to anything from Christianity other than the drinking of wine.” And likewise the rest of the Christianized Arabs like Tanūkh, Judhām, Lakhm, ‘Âmilah, and whoever resembled them. Ibn Kathīr said it is the saying of several from the Predecessors and the successors. وَالْمُرَادُ بِأَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ هُنَا الْيَهُودُ وَالنَّصَارَى. وَأَمَّا الْمَجُوسُ، فَذَهَبَ الْجُمْهُورُ إِلَى أَنَّهَا لَا تُؤْكَلْ ذَبَائِحُهُمْ وَلَا تُنْكَحُ نِسَاؤُهُمْ لِأَنَّهُمْ لَيْسُوا بِأَهْلِ كِتَابٍ عَلَى الْمَشْهُورِ عِنْدَ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ، وَخَالَفَ فِي ذَلِكَ أَبُو ثَوْرٍ، وَأَنْكَرَ عَلَيْهِ الْفُقَهَاءُ ذَلِكَ حَتَّى قَالَ أَحْمَدُ بْنُ حَنْبَلٍ: أَبُو ثَوْرٍ كَاسْمِهِ، يَعْنِي فِي هَذِهِ الْمَسْأَلَةِ، وَكَأَنَّهُ تَمَسَّكَ بِمَا يُرْوَى عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مُرْسَلًا أَنَّهُ قَالَ فِي الْمَجُوسِ: «سَنُّوا بِهِمْ سُنَّةَ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ» وَلَمْ يَثْبُتْ بِهَذَا اللَّفْظِ، وَعَلَى فَرْضِ أَنَّ لَهُ أَصْلًا فَفِيهِ زِيَادَةٌ تَدْفَعُ مَا قَالَهُ، وَهِيَ قَوْلُهُ: «غَيْرَ آكِلِي ذَبَائِحِهِمْ وَلَا نَاكِحِي نِسَائِهِمْ». وَقَدْ رَوَاهُ بِهَذِهِ الزِّيَادَةِ جَمَاعَةٌ مِمَّنْ لَا خِبْرَةَ لَهُ بِفَنِّ الْحَدِيثِ مِنَ الْمُفَسِّرِينَ وَالْفُقَهَاءِ، وَلَمْ يَثْبُتِ الْأَصْلُ وَلَا الزِّيَادَةُ، بَلِ الَّذِي ثَبَتَ فِي الصَّحِيحِ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عليه وَسَلَّمَ أَخَذَ الْجِزْيَةَ مِنْ مَجُوسِ هَجَرَ، وَأَمَّا بَنُو تَغْلَبَ فَكَانَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ أَبِي طَالِبٍ يَنْهَى عَنْ ذَبَائِحِهِمْ لِأَنَّهُمْ عَرَبٌ، وَكَانَ يَقُولُ: إِنَّهُمْ لَمْ يَتَمَسَّكُوا بِشَيْءٍ مِنَ النَّصْرَانِيَّةِ إِلَّا بِشُرْبِ الْخَمْرِ، وَهَكَذَا سَائِرُ الْعَرَبِ الْمُتَنَصِّرَةِ كَتَنُوخَ وَجُذَامٍ وَلَخْمٍ وَعَامِلَةَ وَمَنْ أَشْبَهَهُمْ. قَالَ ابْنُ كَثِيرٍ: وَهُوَ قَوْلُ غَيْرِ وَاحِدٍ مِنَ السَّلَفِ وَالْخَلَفِ. It was narrated from Sa’īd b. al-Musayyab and al-Ḥasan al-Basrī that they both did not see any harm in the slaughtered animals of the Christians of the sons of Taġlib. al-Qurṭubī said the general collective of the [Muslim] nation said surely the slaughtered animal of every Christian is lawful, whether he was from the sons of Taġlib or from other than them. Likewise the Jew. He said there is no difference among the scholars that whatever is not in need of slaughtering like food (e.g., fruit), its eating is permissible. وَرُوِيَ عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ الْمُسَيَّبِ وَالْحَسَنِ الْبَصْرِيِّ أَنَّهُمَا كَانَا لَا يَرَيَانِ بَأْسًا بِذَبِيحَةِ نَصَارَى بَنِي تَغْلَبَ. وَقَالَ الْقُرْطُبِيُّ: وَقَالَ جُمْهُورُ الْأُمَّةِ إِنَّ ذَبِيحَةَ كُلِّ نَصْرَانِيٍّ حَلَالٌ سَوَاءٌ كَانَ مِنْ بَنِي تَغْلَبَ أَوْ مِنْ غَيْرِهِمْ، وَكَذَلِكَ الْيَهُودُ. قَالَ: وَلَا خِلَافَ بَيْنِ الْعُلَمَاءِ أَنَّ مَا لَا يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى ذَكَاةٍ كَالطَّعَامِ يَجُوزُ أَكْلُهُ. al-Imām al-Shawkānī, Fatḥ al-Qadīr 2/18 الشوكاني، فتح القدير ٢/١٨ http://shamela.ws/browse.php/book-23623/page-643 Telegram: https://t.me/ilmtest Twitter: https://twitter.com/ilmtest_ Instagram: https://instagram.com/ilmtest Facebook: https://facebook.com/ilmtest Tumblr: https://ilmtest.tumblr.com Website: https://www.ilmtest.net
