Chapter One
Possessing Animals and Making Them Allowed
(by Slaughter of Hunting) (Tathkiyah)
(A) The means of ownership of an animal
794. A person becomes an owner of an animal by taking hold of it (Wad' al-Yed, lit. laying the hand), which is the same as for the rest of free/allowed things on the surface of, or inside or above the earth; taking hold of it has two levels:
First: Using the hand directly, either by laying the hand itself on it and taking the animal and getting hold of it, whether it is a wild animal tricked into submission or a domestic animal wandering on the land if he has taken hold of it, or using a hand-held tool to take hold of it if it is wild and distant, such as the rope that is thrown onto it and used to pull it with and the like.
Second: Laying the hand on it indirectly, which occurs if the wild animal falls prey to one of the hunting methods, whether prepared for it to fall in by itself, such as pits, nets, traps etc, or prepared to be launched at the animal from a distance to disable it and bring it under control, such as arrows, spears, rifles etc, in which case the mere falling of the animal in the net of by the bullet places it in the ownership of the hunter who installed the net or shot the bullet, even if he did not catch it with his hands.
795. If he was not intending to won the animal when he caught, it such as if it fell into a net that he had spread out to repair, of if he shot when not hunting and he hit it, or if the animal entered his house and became caught there of the like, in this case he does not become the owner of the animal, but he will have priority over others for owing it.
769. To secure ownership of a wild animal by hunting, the means of hunting must be complete and effective, so if an animal falls into a net but escaped due the net's weakness, or if the hunter shoots an animal but the latter manages to withstand the shot and stays outside his reach, here he does not own it and if another person catches if afterwards he (the latter) will have priority of ownership.
797. If taking hold of the animal is secured in the described manner above, the person who takes the animal becomes its owner and all the consequences of ownership come into force – its growth is for his benefit, no one is allowed to dispose of it unless with his permission and its ownership remains with him unless he loses interest and abandons it. If (later) the animal slips away after it falls into his net, for example, it continues to be his; the same applies if the hunter frees the caught animal then it returns to the wild again; it continues to be owned by whoever caught it unless it becomes known that he has lost interest in it and abandoned it. So if he frees it, then abandons his interests in it, so the bird returns to flying free or the wild animal returns to wandering free, his right is forfeited in it and the animal goes back to its original free status.
798. The animal goes into ownership by hunting and the like only if it is not known to be owned by others; such ownership is shown to be present by the existence of sign of a confirmed past ownership, such as a collar around the neck or a rope attached to the leg or the like, in which case it is obligatory on whoever catches it to return it to its owner when possible, unless he knows that he has lost interest in and abandoned it.
799. If two hunters shoot at an animal and hit their target, and it they are equally effective in disabling and stopping it, both of them become owner of it as a partnership, but if the shot of one of them was the one which disabled a partnership, but if the shot of one of them was the one which disabled and stopped it, in this case he becomes the sole owner; but since determining such cases is usually difficult, it becomes essential in the case of dispute to try to reach mutual agreement or to consult the Islamic authority.
(B) Animals allowed to be eaten
Although the honourable Shari’ah allowed using any animal for various needs, it limited what can be eaten to the following types:
First: Land animals
800. The forbidden amongst land animals are:
1- Pigs of all kinds.
2- All insects, crawling or flying, except locusts.
3- Every animal which has a canine tooth, whether small such a mice and other rodents or big such as lions and tigers, and whether carnivores such as lions or herbivores such as elephants (which have tusks), and whether domestic such as cats or wild such as wolves.
4- All reptiles (and mammals) that have no legs as snakes, or that have small legs such as lizards, geckos, etc.
5- Rabbits as an obligatory precaution.
Apart from this, all animals are allowed, including all an'ām which are all types of cows, sheep and camels, domestic or wild, also horses, mules and donkeys, although it is recommended to abstain from their meat; also allowed are a lot of wild animals which do not have canines such as gazelles, zebras, deer etc.
801. Allowed animals become forbidden in the following cases:
First: If the allowed animal feed on man's excrement over a period of time allowing its flesh to grow and it bones to strengthen – this is called jellāl. In this case it becomes forbidden to eat or drink its milk until it is healed. Its healing here means feeding on clean feed for a period of time that it is commonly regarded as sufficient to rid it from being described as jellāl; although it is better to abide by the specified periods even if becoming a non-jellāl takes place before, which is: 40 days for camels, 30 days for cows, 10 days for sheep, 5 days for ducks and 3 days for chickens.
Second: If the young goat (jadi) is fed a pig mild until its flesh grows and its bones strengthen, it becomes forbidden to eat, the details of which is not explained here since it is not an area of common test (mahal ibtilā’).
Third: If a person has had intercourse with an animal, female or male, then its meat and milk becomes forbidden, but no – as more probable –the meat and mild of its offspring. For the forbidden ruling to be valid, the animal must be allowable to eat, walk on four legs and be alive when the event took place, while there are no conditions in the person involved, making it forbidden even if he has not reached the Islamic legal age as an obligatory precaution.
As for the consequences of slaughtering such an animal (that has had intercourse with a man), if it is one that people seek its meat, it is obligatory to burn it after its death. But if it is used for riding, such as donkeys or horses, the obligation is to expel it to another country and to end the ownership of the owner and the person who committed the act by selling it to a third party, in addition to the person who committed the deed paying compensation for its value to the owner.
If the animal might have been part of a herd, a lottery must be resorted to.
Fourth: If the animal has drunk alcohol, it becomes obligatory to avoid the contents of its interior – the heart, liver, rumen etc, as an obligatory precaution.
Second: Sea animals
802. Allowed are all sea animals and all fish, even those that do not that have 'fils' on their exterior surface, which are small circles made of hard scales that are removed when preparing it for cooking; included in the fish with fils are 'sea locusts', which are also known as prawns. Sea animals of all kinds are allowed, such as whales, lobsters, crabs, octopuses, and the like. However, it is preferable to eat only the sea animals that have fils (scales). As for the amphibians such as frogs, alligators, turtles, seahorses… etc, they are all not allowed. Moreover, eggs of sea fish and animals follow the same rulings as the fish or animals themselves.
803. Not allowed are the fish and sea animals that cause a significant harm to man, unless this harm could be removed through cooking.
804. It is better not to eat fish until establishing that it has fils, something which is ascertained through the witness of people who have experience in it, such as sellers, or by reading what is written on the fish cans or other ways that may secure satisfaction.
Third: Birds
805. It is allowed to eat all birds that have feathers except the following three types:
1- Birds of prey, which are any birds that have claws and hunt birds and other animals; they include eagles, hawks, falcons, peregrines, sparrow hawks etc.
2- Birds for which the gliding and stillness of their wings in flight exceed the flapping movement of them, such as swans, swallows etc.
3- Birds that have equal movements in gliding and flapping; if this criterion is unknown, in this case it is ruled as forbidden if its interior does not have a gizzard or a crop, nor a spur on the feet.
Hence, to know the ruling regarding a bird, one must adhere to the following steps:
a- If it is one of birds of prey, in this case it is forbidden without the need to check the rest of characteristics.
b- If it is not one of the birds of prey, in this case one must check its gliding and flapping, ruling as forbidden if the gliding exceeds the flapping.
c- If the movement of its wings are equal, or if this is unknown, in this case one must check if it has one of these three: a gizzard, a crop or a spur. (The gizzard is where small stones that the bird eats gather; the crop is where food gathers in the back or the moth; the spur is a fourth toe situated behind the bird's foot).
806. A bird that has become a jelāll (fed a long time on man's excrement) is forbidden; it is healed and becomes allowed as described before (see no.801).
807. Bats are forbidden, regardless of the criteria described above.
808. Bird eggs follow the same ruling regarding the bird itself; if it is not known from which bird category it is, it is obligatory to avoid eggs that have similar ends, but it is allowed to eat eggs whose two ends differ and its bottom is distinguished from its top, as is the case with chicken eggs.
Addition: Forbidden animals parts
809. The following parts in allowed animals are forbidden:
1- Blood, even if in small quantities, and even the blood that is left in the slaughtered animal if it is collected and drunk separately from the meat.
2- Excrement left in the slaughtered animal.
3- Sexual organs, including the bladder.
4- The placenta, which is where the embryo is.
5- The two nerves running from the neck on the two sides of the spine, between it and the skin, ending up in the tail.
6- The pituitary gland, which is pea-like bead, of dark brown colour, at the bottom of the brain.
7- The spinal cord, that runs inside the spine from the neck to the pelvis.
8- Glands, which are masses of grey meat.
9- The spleen.
10- The gall bladder.
11- The eye's iris and pupil.
All parts apart from these are allowed, although it is recommended to abstain from the kidneys and heart's two atria. It is also better to abstain from eating what is not commonly eaten such as skin and bones; being commonly eaten or not depends on which animal is in question.
810. There is no difference in the prohibition regarding these parts of the listed animals, whether (they are from) land, sea animals of birds.
(C) Making animals allowed (by slaughter or hunting) (Tathkiyah)
It is not allowed to eat any part or land animals or birds when alive; it is also not allowed to eat them if they died due to anything other than hunting or slaughter (according to the conditions that will be mentioned); also it is not allowed to eat any fish except after fishing and taking it out of water, but it is allowed to each them alive, while they do not become allowed by slaughter because it is not suitable for them. All forbidden animals other than dogs and pigs are open to Tathkiyah in the described manner, not for eating but to secure the purity of their parts for their various human uses.
First: Making the animal allowed by slaughter (thebh or nahr)
811. We mean by slaughter (thebh): cutting the four jugular veins in a special manner – to come later - in animals suitable for that – land animals, birds etc, except camels and the like that are slaughtered by nahr, which is striking the camel below its neck because it is not suitable for thebh slaughter.
812. Any animal that man catches alive must be made allowed by Tathkiyah, whatever the means through which he obtained it, whether it was domestic, naturally tamed by man, or if it was wild and he caught it alive, using any means.
813. The conditions of tehkiyeh with slaughter are:
First: Islam (i.e. the slaughtering person is a Muslim), so animals slaughtered by atheists who do not believe in God absolutely, or slaughtered by non-Muslims who believe in God but are not among the People of the Book (Jews and Christians), are forbidden; as for the People of the Book, their slaughtered animals are allowed but with (carrying out) tesmiyeh (see below), although avoiding them is better.
Second: Intention, so an animal slaughtered without the intention of the person doing so is not allowed, such as if a knife fell from his hands and cut the animal's vessels.
Third: The animal is facing the qiblah, so it becomes forbidden if slaughtered when not facing it with knowledge and intention, but not due to ignorance, forgetfulness, a mistake, not knowing the direction of the qiblah, because he was forced to slaughter not in the qiblah's direction or a difference in the school of thought.
Fourth: Tesmiyeh by the slaughtering person when commencing the slaughter or in any part that is commonly accepted as part of the process; the slaughtered animal becomes forbidden if he fails to recite it with the knowledge and intention, but not if he fails to do so out of ignorance or forgetfulness.
The Tesmiyeh is secured by reciting the name of Allah of the Most High with any form of praise, such as 'Allāho Abbar', 'Bismi-Llāh' or the like. In fact, the name of God 'Allāh' is sufficient without any other word, although it is better to avoid that.
Fifth: Using sharp metal tools, whether made of iron or other materials. It is also allowed to slaughter using non-metals that could cut the vessels when metals are not available, such as cane, wood or sharp stones; slaughtering using the teeth, however, does not make the slaughtered animal allowed even if for compelling reasons.
Sixth: Cutting the four vessels, which are: the two main blood vessels that lie on the sides of the neck, the wind pipe and the oesophagus (food pipe); it is not sufficient to cut just some of them. Also, the cutting must take place when the animal is still alive, so that if the slaughterer cuts two vessels and the animal dies then he cuts the other two, the slaughter does not become allowed. It is better to cut them from the front not from the back; and they must be cut from below the knot of the throat so the latter remains, after the slaughter, with the head not the body.
814. Cutting the four vessels is a condition in animals suitable for slaughter, which are, with the exception of the came. The domestic and wild animals and birds. As for the camel, it is slaughtered by nahr, which is done by inserting a sharp tool in the place called 'lobbeh' which is the hollow space at the top of the chest attached to the neck, regardless of it being standing, kneeling down of lying on its side, although it is better to slaughter it standing.
This method, nahr, is not sufficient in animals other than the camel or the like.
815. It is recommended to abstain from continuing the slaughter until the head is severed completely, but the slaughtered animal does not become forbidden because of this; the same applies to the spinal cord, which is achieved by slitting open the cord running from the head and the neck and down through the spine.
816. It is not conditional that the blood flows out in normal amounts, nor that a part of the animal is moving, as long as the slaughterer is certain that the animal is alive before slaughtering. However, when its life is in doubt, it does not become allowed unless signs of life appear in it, such as if the eye moves or the leg kicks or blood flows out in normal amounts.
Second: Making the animal allowed by hunting
We mean inflicting death on the animal by hunting it using certain means and certain methods, so that the hunter cannot get it alive and it becomes mothakkā (purified), allowed to eat and pure.
First: Hunting land animals and birds
817. Securing fundamental things are conditional in animals caught by hunting.
1- The animal must be wild, so hunting domestic animals is not valid, nor the young of a wild animal before it becomes able to run freely.
2- A hunting tool must be used, whether wounding tools such as arrows, rifles or the like, or hunting animals such as dogs, hunting leopards, falcons, hawks or the like.
3- The hunter must arrive at the hunted animal when it is dead, so if he arrives at it when it is still alive, or uses a tool like a tarp or net and arrives at it alive, this is not, then, regarded as hunted animal as far as our discussion here is concerned, and it must be made allowed by slaughtering.
818. Conditions of the hunter are:
1- He must generally be a Muslim as was described in Tathkiyah above.
2- He intended to hunt, so if he shot a bullet at a target for (leisure, sport) shooting, for example, and he shot a gazelle and reached it when it was dead, it does not become allowed.
3- The hunter should carry out tasmiyeh while using the weapon, or when sending the hunting animal, or after using/shooting but before hitting the target.
819. Conditions of the hunting tool are:
1- The hunting animal must be taught and trained to hunt.
2- The wounding tool must be sharp as swords or well pointed such as spears, or circular so that it penetrates with pressure; such tools must be regarded as weapons, or anything that can cause wounds. Thus, animals hunted by rifles using bullets that contain small metal balls, even if they have no sharp heads and the like, are allowed.
820. Conditions of the hunted animal are:
1- Its death was due to the tool or the wound inflicted by the hunting animal, according to the hunting method used.
2- The wound must have been inflicted by the hunting method, so it is not sufficient if the animal dies because of it without wounds.
821. We have mentioned previously that if the hunter at it alive, the animal will not be allowed by hunting if he does not slaughter it, so Tathkiyah (making it allowable) with hunting – with other conditions met – is exclusive to what the hunter arrives at dead, nor alive; the ruling of a dead animal applies to animals where there was not enough time to make it allowed by slaughter, or if it died while the hunter was busy with his preparations for the slaughter, such as preparing the knife and the like.
Second: Fishing
822. Fish becomes allowed by taking it out of water alive using one of two methods:
a- Direct methods, such as catching with the hand, or with something that the hand holds like harpoons, fish hooks etc.
b- Indirect methods, such as making it fall into nets or fish-traps or making it jump onto a floating plank or other fishing means; it also becomes allowed if it jumps by itself from the water and the fisher catches it.
823. It is not conditional to render the fish allowed that it dies outside the water, also its death outside the outer is not sufficient if it was not fished, according to the following rule: 'The fish that falls alive using a fishing tool or the hand is mothakkā (allowable) even if it dies inside the water and the fish that is not taken likewise is not mothakkā even if it dies outside the water.'
824. If the fish returns to water alive then dies there, it is not allowed.
825. If a paralyzing agent is poured into the water and the fish floats to the surface, this is not regarded as fishing if it is not caught, and if it dies in that situation before taking it, it is not allowed.
826. Islam is not conditional in fishers, nor tasmiyeh; but knowledge of or satisfaction with the Tathkiyah is conditional if the fisher was not a Muslim.
827. The death of the fish is not conditional for allowing its eating – it may be eaten alive, in addition to allowing doing anything that causes its death when preparing it for cooking, such as chopping off its head, placing it alive on the grill fire and the like.
Third: Locust hunting
Only locusts that fly are allowable for eating and it is not allowed but by hunting and taken them alive, either by hand or by a suitable hunting tool. Its rulings regarding Islam and tesmiyeh are the same as that of fish.
828. Jurists (may God's satisfaction be upon them) have mentioned that when a sheep is slaughtered, it is recommended that its two front legs and one of the rear legs are tied (by a rope), leaving the other leg free, and that is wool is kept intact until its body cools down; when slaughtering a cow, that its four legs are tied and its tail is left free; when slaughtering a camel, that is front legs are tied between the hooves and the knees or the armpits and its rear legs left free – this is if slaughtered kneeling, but if slaughtered standing, its left front leg should be tied; when slaughtering a bird, that it is set free to flap its wings after slaughtering. They also mentioned that it is recommended that water be given to animals before slaughtering.
It is recommended that the animal, before slaughtering, is treated in a way that saves it from harm and torture, which is by sharpening the blade, moving the knife on the slaughtering spot with strength and to be quick in this. It was narrated that the Prophet (sawa) said: 'Allah, the Most High, has ascribed to you the favor in every thing, so when you kill, make it a good kill, and when you slaughter, make it a good slaughter, and let (the) one of you (who is slaughtering) sharpen his blade and comfort his slaughtered animal.' In another narration, He (sawa) ordered that be blades are sharpened and to not let the animals see them.
829. According to a number of narrations, it is recommended, when slaughtering animals, to abstain from certain things; skinning the slaughtered animal before its spirit leaves; it carry out the slaughter during the night of on Friday before zewāl; to carry out the slaughter in front of the eyes of another animal of the same type; to slaughter animals that the slaughterer himself has reared.
Epilogue
How to ascertain that Tathkiyah has taken place
830. Animal Tathkiyah (making it allowable) is ascertained by the knowledge acquired by sensing, examination or other means, also by the witness of two just persons, one just person or one trustworthy person. If an animal suitable for Tathkiyah is found dead, or if some of its flesh or skin is found, and it is not known if it was made allowed by Tathkiyah or not, in this case it should be regarded that Tathkiyah had not been carried out; therefore it is not allowed to eat its meat nor use its skin Tathkiyah is conditional for its usage; however, it is not ruled as impure even if it has a 'fluid' soul unless it is known that it was caught dead. The exception to this ruling is if one of signs of Tathkiyah is present, which are:
First: The Muslim's 'hand' (i.e. whatever is handled by a Muslim), so whatever he has in terms of meat, fats and skins, if it is not known that they are not mothakkā, are ruled as apparently mothakkā (allowed), provided that his is coupled with his disposing of them in a way suitable for tethkieyh, such as putting the meat and fat on display for eating, preparing the skin for putting the meat and fat on display for eating, preparing the skin for wearing and bedding; but if it was not coupled with things related to Tathkiyah, such as if we see meat in his hand but do not know if he wants to eat it or to leave it for birds of prey to eat, for example, in this case it is not mothakkā (not allowed); the same applies to his making the skin into bags for refuse or rubbish, for example.
Second: In Muslim market, all meats and fats are ruled as apparently mothakkā (allowed), whether they were handle by Muslims or persons not known to be Muslims, but not if they were handled by (people who are definitely) non-Muslims.
Third: Manufacture in Muslim countries, so what is manufactured from meant, such as canned meat, or from skin, such as belts, shoes etc, is ruled as apparently mothakkā (allowed) without the need to check it.
831. There is no difference, in the ruling of the Tathkiyah of that mentioned just above, between the case where it is known that the goods were first handled by a non-Muslim or at a non-Muslim market etc if it was probable that the Muslim 'hand' was involved or the goods were sold in the Muslim market or those manufacturing it in a Muslim country had ascertained its Tathkiyah as Islamically appropriate.
832. Regarding what is found in Muslim lands, if the Tathkiyah is doubtful, although ruled as pure, the Tathkiyah and allowing its eating are something which the jurist cannot give a decisive ruling (mahal ishkāl) on, unless it is similar to what is discussed in the previous tow entries.
833. Regarding the Muslim whose hand is a sign of Tathkiyah, there is not difference between followers of Ahlol Bayt (as) the others, and between those who considers the tethkieyh conditions – such as facing the quibleh, tesmiyeh, cutting the four vessels etc – and others who do not abide by that, if it is probable that the Tathkiyah did take place according to our conditions; and it seems that not facing the qiblah- out of belief that it is not obligatory – does not render the slaughtered animal not mothakkā.
834. The criterion of a country regarded as Muslim is the prevalence of Muslims in the populace so that it is commonly related of Islam even if they are under the rule of non-Muslims. The same criterion applies to non-Muslim countries: when Muslims are not prevalent in number, the country is regarded as non-Muslim.
835. The meat, fat and skin found in the 'hand' of the non-Muslim, if it was probable that they were taken form a mothakkā animal, are ruled as pure and prayer is allowed with it, but it is not ruled as mothakkā itself and its eating as allowed unless its Tathkiyah is ascertained though one of the previously described methods/signs. Ruling it as mothakkā cannot be given through the information provided by the person with non-Muslim 'hand' that is mothakkā; the same goes (i.e. it is not ruled as mothakkā) if it is found in Muslim countries.