The Shar’ee term of Halal slaughtering is Dhakat. Dhakat in Arabic comes from the root idea of making something become good in smell and taste, and making it complete. Dhakat thus means: “to slaughter an animal in such a way as to make to smell and taste good, because slaughtering releases the blood, enabling the meat to dry faster.” (Al Qurtubi V6/P52). As an Islamic technical term, it means releasing the blood of animals by means of a sharp object from a specific place in a specific manner, doing it for the sake of Allah Alone, and mentioning His Name over the animal.
Scholars have agreed that the best and most complete way to slaughter is to cut the windpipe (trachea), the gullet (esophagus) and the two jugular veins in the neck. Slaughtering must be performed on the front of the neck without cutting the spinal cord. Scholars, however, have differed regarding what constitutes the minimum amount of cutting, and the exact point on the neck where it should take place.
Those who understood the Prophet’s Ahadith to mean “kill” the animal think that cutting the throat and the windpipe is good enough to achieve the killing; and those who understood them to mean “release the blood” insisted that in addition to that, the jugular veins, or at least one of them, must also be cut. The important point is that some scholars recommended that slaughtering performed from the back of the neck be avoided, because that results in cutting the spinal cord, and thereby killing the animal, before the actual slaughtering.
The actual slaughtering tool
The basic tool to be used in slaughtering is, of course, a knife. Any sharp edge, however, can be used except teeth, nails, or bone. Examples of materials givinig a sharp edge are: steel, iron, copper, gold, glass, stone, and wood, if it is sharp enough. Kaab ibn Malik, radhiallahu ‘anhu, reported that: “They had sheep that were shepherded by a young woman who noticed at one point that a lamb was dying. When she told me, I broke a stone and slaughtered it, but I told them not to eat of it until I asked the Prophet, who told them to eat it.” (The full version is narrated by al-Bukhari).
And in the Hadith reported by Rafa ibn Khadeej, radhiallahu ‘anhu, the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, told the Companions to use “anything that releases the blood, and mention the Name of Allah over it, but do not use a tooth or a nail, for a tooth is bone, and nails are the knives of the Ethiopians.” (Reported by al-Bukhari, Muslim and others). It is said that Ethiopians at that time used to kill their animals in that fashion to show their courage and strength.
In a lengthy discussion of all possible objects for slaughter, Ibn Rushd said: “It does not make sense to differentiate between teeth and bones for he (the Prophet) explained that a tooth is not a good tool by the fact that it is made of bone. And it is well agreed upon in our Madh-hab that anything other than iron is disliked (that is, when iron objects are available) because the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam has said: ‘If you slaughter, then slaughter in the best way. One should sharpen his edge and comfort gently his animal.’” (Bidaiatul Mujtahid VII/p433)
Who should slaughter
Scholars agree that the person conducting the slaughtering can be a Muslim or one of the People of the Book. If the person has not reached puberty yet, or is drunk or insane, scholars have differing opinions. The Shaafi’ee School says that their Dhabeehah is Halal, while the Hanbali School says it is not. The Hanafi School says that the insane person’s, and the boy’s, Dhabeehah is Halal if they are aware of what they are doing. The Malikites say the boy’s Dhabeehah is Halal, but not the drunks or the insane person’s because (under the circumstances) they cannot reason. The main issue behind these differences is that of Niyyah (intention). Those who consider it to be a requirement, do not accept their Dhabeehah as Halal, and vice versa. All scholars agree that the Dhabeehah of the Murtadd (one who has chosen to give up Islam) is not considered Halal.
Invocation of Allah’s name over the animal
Scholars agree regarding the legitimacy (Mashru’yah) of invoking the Name of Allah over the Dhabeehah, but they differ on whether it is obligatory (Waajib) or recommended (Mustahabb). In other words, is it considered a requirement, in order for the Dhabeehah to be Halal, or not? Three major opinions of scholars have been mentioned by Ibn Katheer in his Tafseer (V2/P169) in explaining Ayah 121 of Surah al-An’aam. The Ayah says: “Eat not of (meats) on which Allah’s name has not been pronounced: That would be impiety. But the evil ones ever inspire their friends to contend with you. If you were to obey them, you would indeed be Pagans.” The following is a brief summary of these opinions:
First: That the invocation is a condition for lawfulness. This opinion is held by the majority of scholars, including Abu Hanifah, Malik, Ahmad, Thawree, Ibn Abbas and many others. They say that in the above ayah:
1. The order not to eat implies an absolute prohibition because nothing in the Ayah or elsewhere negates it or says otherwise.
2. The absence of the invocation is considered to be Fisq (impiety) or disobedience. That classification is given only to actions that are considered to be Haram.
3. The prohibition is a general one and should not be construed to only mean dead animals killed by Mushriks, as some scholars have claimed. The reasoning behind this is that nothing in the Ayah indicates such a restriction or specification, and the fact that prohibition of dead animals and animals killed by Mushriks has been clearly and specifically mentioned elsewhere in the Qur’an more than once.
These scholars also used the following Hadith to support their opinion: Aadee ibn Hatem, radhiallaahu ‘anhu, said: “I said: ‘O Prophet of Allah, I send my [hunting] dog and mention the Name of Allah.’ The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, told me: ‘If you send your dog mentioning the Name of Allah and he killed, you eat; but if he eats from it, do not eat. He has caught it for himself.’ I said: ‘I send my dog, and then I find another dog with him, and I do not know which one caught for me.’ The Prophet said: ‘Do not eat, because you only invoked the Name on your dog, and not on the other’.” (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim, among other similar Ahadith).
If the invocation is dropped deliberately, the Dhabeehah is considered to be “dead,” and it is Haram to eat. But if one forgot to mention it, then his slaughter is lawful and the Dhabeehah is Halal.
Second: That invocation is not a requirement, and that if one has not made it (on purpose or just forgot to do so), the slaughter would be lawful, and the Dhabeehah Halal. This is basically the Shafi’ee School’s opinion, but is also one of the opinions reported on behalf of Malik and Ahmad.
Third: That it is a condition for the lawfulness of the Dhabeehah, and that if the Muslim does not invoke the Name of Allah, his Dhabaeehah is not Halal. This opinion does not differentiate between those who forget to make the invocation from those who deliberately omit it: the Dhabeehah in either case is not Halal. This opinion was adopted by Abdullah ibn Umar, Dawood Ad-dhahiri and Ibn Sereen.
Forgetfulness, however, is a valid excuse for not applying or associating consequences of actions to the doer. Rulings and conditions cannot be applied to the person who did or did not do something because of forgeting. The same concept also applies to cases in which the person is under duress or has done something wrong by mistake.
In conclusion, the correct ruling regarding the requirement of invoking the Name of Allah over slaughtered animals is that the invocation is obligatory (Waajib) for the slaughter to be Halal, and that if one deliberately omits it, his Dhabeehah is Haram to eat. All this relates to cases in which the person performing the slaughtering is a Muslim.
(This article is taken from Al Jumuah Magazine, Vol 9 Issue 2, Safar 1418H)
