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:

aslammu alaikkum

Can kosher products be halaal? Is it true that the animal slaugtered by the christains and muslims are halaal for us? Pls let me know what the various rulings are for hanafi and Shaafi maslak?

(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:

Is kosher halaal 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 none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Beloved Sister in Islam, it is nigh impossible to create a listing of the names of all the foods which are considered halaal for the believers, for Allah is our witness, that list would be endless!

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 14 Surah Ibraheem verse 34:

34 And He (Allah) giveth you of all that ye ask for. But if ye count the favors of Allah never will ye be able to number them: verily, man is given up to injustice and ingratitude.

The list of halaal or permissible foods in Islam in endless! Allah and His Messenger (saws) have guided and listed only the foods which are haraam or forbidden for the believers. The law or principle in determining whether a food is halaal or haraam, the believers must look in the list of the haraam foods, and if not found in that list, the food will be considered halaal for the believers.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 5 Surah Maidah verses 3-5:

3 Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah, that which hath been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored to death; that which hath been (partly) eaten by a wild animal; unless ye are able to slaughter it (in due form); that which is sacrificed on stone (altars); (forbidden) also is the division (of meat) by raffling with arrows: that is impiety. This day have those who reject faith given up all hope of your religion: yet fear them not but fear Me. This day have I perfected your religion for you completed my favor upon you and have chosen for you Islam as your religion. But if any forced by hunger with no inclination to transgression Allah is indeed Oft-Forgiving Most Merciful.

4 They ask thee what is lawful to them (as food): say: Lawful unto you are (all) things good and pure: and what ye have taught your trained hunting animals (to catch) in the manner directed to you by Allah; eat what they catch for you but pronounce the name of Allah over it: and fear Allah; for Allah is swift in taking account.

5 This day are (all) things good and pure made lawful unto you. The food of the People of the Book is lawful unto you, and yours is lawful unto them.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraaf verse 157:

157 Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet (Mohamed (saws)) whom they find mentioned in their own (Scriptures); in the law and the Gospel; for he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil: he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure); he releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So it is those who believe in him honor him, help him, and follow the light which is sent down with him, it is they who will prosper."

Al-Muwatta Hadith 25.13

Yahya related from Malik from Ibn Shibab from Abu Idris al-Khawlani from Abu Tha~laba al-Khushani that the Messenger of Allah (saws) said, "It is haram to eat animals with fangs "

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 7.435B Narrated by Az Zuhri

The Prophet (saws) prohibited the eating of beasts having fangs.

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 4089 Narrated by Al-Irbad ibn Sariyyah

On the day of Khaybar Allah's Messenger (saws) forbade every carnivorous beast which had a fang, every bird which had a claw, the flesh of domestic asses, the ‘mujaththamah’, amd the ‘khalisah’.

(‘Mujaththamah’ means an animal set up and shot at. ‘Khalisah’ means an animal taken from a wolf or a beast of prey by a man who had caught with on it, but which had died in his hand before he could slaughter it.)

Thus, in light of the above Aayahs of the Holy Quran and the various authentic narrations of the Messenger of Allah (saws), here is the list of the haraam foods:

1. The meat of any animal that dies of itself or is not slaughtered (including fall, strangling, gored to death, etc.)
2. The flesh of swine
3. The food on which any name other than Allah Subhanah’s has been invoked
4. The food that is slaughtered by any other than the believers, Jews or Christians.
5. The Messenger of Allah (saws) forbade the believers to eat the meat of any animal which hunts with its fangs. (eg. Lions, tigers, cheetahs, etc.)
6. The Messenger of Allah (saws) forbade the believers to eat the meat of any bird which hunts with its claws. (eagles, crows, etc.)
7. All the impure animals and insects. (rats, cockroaches, pests, etc.)
8. The Messenger of Allah (saws) also forbade the believers to eat dogs and domestic donkeys.

If the food does not fall in the above list of the haraam, it will be considered halaal and permissible for the believers as food.

It is practically impossible to name each and every halaal food, as the list would indeed be endless! But we will try to compile a list only as an indication. The following foods are absolutely halaal for the believers.

1. All vegetation is halaal food.
2. All animals and birds that are not listed in the haraam list are halaal as food for the believers, provided they fulfill the requirements of Islamic slaughter.
3. All sea-food is halaal, whether it be fish, crabs, lobster, prawns, etc.

Your Question: Can kosher products be halaal?

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 5 Surah Maidah verse 5:

5 This day are (all) things good and pure made lawful unto you. The food of the People of the Book is lawful unto you, and yours is lawful unto them.

The food which is deemed as ‘kosher’ by our Jewish brethren would be deemed as ‘halaal’ for the believers to consume.

Your Question: Is it true that the animal slaugtered by the christains and muslims are halaal for us?

Provided the animal itself is allowable as food in Shariah, and the animal was alive at the time of slaughter, regardless of whether a Muslim, a Christian, or a Jew slaughters that permissible animal, it would be deemed as halaal food for the believers to consume.

But if that animal was impermissible in its essence, (for eg. Swine, or tigers, or dogs, etc.), then regardless of who slaughters that impermissible animal, that flesh would be absolutely haraam for the believers to consume.

Similarly, if the animal is permissible (eg. Cattle, goat, sheep, chicken, etc.), but it was dead before it was slaughtered…then regardless of who slaughters that animal, its flesh would be absolutely haraam for the believers to consume.

Your Question: Pls let me know what the various rulings are for hanafi and Shaafi maslak?

All the four major schools of thought in Islam, including the schools of Imam Abu Hanafa and Imam Shafei are unanimous in their opinion regarding the above rulings.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan