Question:
The reader (Bramkar) asks that pig ingredients are used in chicken feed; can Muslims consume its meat? Similarly, if an animal is deliberately fed food containing haram ingredients, or if it is fed halal food but when it goes out of the owner’s reach it eats filth and insects, or puts its mouth in a drain, what is the ruling on this?
Answer:
Regarding halal and haram, it should be remembered that only that which is declared halal in the Quran and Sunnah is halal, and only that which is proven haram by evidence in the Book and Sunnah is haram. Human temperament and taste have no role in determining halal and haram. Allah, the Owner of the Kingdom, has stated in the Holy Quran:
﴿وَلَا تَقُولُوا لِمَا تَصِفُ أَلْسِنَتُكُمُ الْكَذِبَ هَٰذَا حَلَالٌ وَهَٰذَا حَرَامٌ لِّتَفْتَرُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ الْكَذِبَ ۚ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَفْتَرُونَ عَلَى اللَّهِ الْكَذِبَ لَا يُفْلِحُونَ﴾
“And do not say about what your tongues assert falsely, ‘This is lawful and this is unlawful,’ to invent falsehood about Allah. Indeed, those who invent falsehood about Allah will not succeed.”
It is clear that halal and haram are not subject to human discretion; rather, whatever Allah declares halal is halal, and whatever Allah declares haram is haram. People’s tastes and inclinations do not decide this. Furthermore, halal and haram are not subject to human intellect, opinions, reasoning, or material means. Those who decide halal and haram based on intellect and reasoning themselves go astray and mislead others. To understand this, consider an example: The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) declared the domestic donkey haram and the wild donkey halal.
Now, the permissibility of the wild donkey and the prohibition of the domestic donkey cannot be decided by intellect, nor can scholars or animal experts determine the reason for the difference. Both resemble each other in appearance and size; their halal and haram status is established by Shariah. Therefore, to determine the halal or haram status of anything, one must look at the Shariah evidence. The permissibility of chicken is established by Shariah evidence. Zahdam al-Jurri (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
دعت على أبى موسى وهو يأكل دجاجة فقال ادن فكل فإني رأيت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يأكله
“I came to Abu Musa Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him) and he was eating chicken. He said, ‘Come closer and eat.’ Indeed, I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) eating chicken.”
This hadith is present in many books of hadith, both brief and detailed, and the words quoted are from Tirmidhi Sharif. Bukhari and Muslim also mention that when chicken meat was brought to Abu Musa Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him), a man moved aside and did not eat the chicken meat. Abu Musa Ash’ari called him and he said, “I have seen it eating filth, and I consider its food repulsive.” Abu Musa Ash’ari said to him, “I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) eating its meat.”
Allama Abdul Rahman Mubarakpuri (may Allah have mercy on him), in his commentary on this hadith, writes:
فيه جواز أكل الدجاج إنسية ووحشية وهو بالإجماع إلا عن بعض المتعمقين على سبيل الورع إلا أن بعضهم استثنى الجلالة وهى ما تأكل الأقذار وظاهر صنيع أبى موسى أنه لم يبال بذلك
“This hadith permits eating chicken, whether domestic or wild, and this is a matter of consensus. Only those who delve deeply, out of piety, have differed. Similarly, some have excluded Jalalah (a type of bird), but from Abu Musa Ash’ari’s action, it is clear he did not care.”
The scholars of hadith have dedicated a chapter on the permissibility of chicken based on this hadith, as found in Bukhari, Tirmidhi, etc.
It is clear that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) ate chicken meat, which is explicit and clear evidence of its permissibility, because the Prophet (peace be upon him) only ate halal and pure things. Then Abu Musa Ash’ari (may Allah be pleased with him) also ate it, and the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) followed his example. He told the one who disliked it to eat it because the Prophet (peace be upon him) ate it, even though the disliker had seen it eating some filth. It is also clear that in halal and haram, the animal’s food is not the criterion but the Shariah is. Some animals eat clean food but are not halal, such as jackals and monkeys, whose diet includes fruits, vegetables, and meat. Similarly, if someone keeps a piglet at home and feeds it clean food, it will not become halal because its prohibition is established by definitive text.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him), the commentator of Bukhari, and Allama Abdul Rahman Mubarakpuri (may Allah have mercy on him), the commentator of Tirmidhi, mention that some people consider chicken as Jalalah and thus not permissible because they say it eats only filth and excrement, and there is a text prohibiting Jalalah. Scholars differ regarding the permissibility of Jalalah. The Imams of hadith have three opinions:
① There is no harm in eating Jalalah, whether it is chicken or another animal. This is the opinion of Imam Malik and Imam Laith bin Saad.
② It is disliked if its meat changes due to eating a lot of impurity. This is the opinion of the Shafi’is.
③ It is haram. This is the opinion of a group of Shafi’is, Hanbalis, Al-Baghawi, Al-Ghazali, Ibn Daqiq al-Eid, Abu Ishaq Marwazi, Qadi Iyad Marwazi, and Imam al-Haramayn Juwayni. They also declared the milk and eggs of Jalalah haram.
Several hadiths prohibit eating Jalalah. Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) said:
وأن النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم نهى عن لبن الجلالة
“Indeed, the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade the milk of Jalalah.”
Imam Tirmidhi graded it as Hasan Sahih, and Ibn Hajar considered its chain the most authentic among hadiths about Jalalah.
A supporting hadith narrated from Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) states:
أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم نهى يوم خيبر عن لحوم الحمر الأهلية وعن الجلالة وعن ركوبها وعن أكل لحمها
“Indeed, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) forbade riding and eating the meat of domestic donkeys, Jalalah, on the day of Khaibar.”
A third supporting hadith from Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) is found in Abu Dawood
, Tirmidhi
, Ibn Majah
, Bayhaqi
, and Sharh al-Sunnah by Al-Baghawi
. Imam Tirmidhi, Imam Baghawi, and Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on them) graded it Hasan. Imam Sufyan Thawri narrated it as a mursal from Ibn Abi Najih from Mujahid, and Ibn Ishaq’s narration is connected, with Sufyan Thawri affirming it from Ibn Ishaq. There is no doubt about this, and Ibn Ishaq’s narration has authentic evidence. Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) also narrated this hadith from Abu Hurairah and Jabir (may Allah be pleased with them).
Sheikh Ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him) expressed his inclination towards those who consider such animals haram, but the writer of these lines says that these hadiths do not establish the prohibition of Jalalah definitively; rather, they prohibit its use until the smell of its filthy food disappears. Among the pious predecessors, Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) used to keep Jalalah chicken for three days (before using it).
أنه كان يحبس الدجاجة الجلالة ثلاثا
Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), who was very strict in piety and following the Sunnah, used to keep Jalalah chicken for three days before using it, so that its stomach would be clean and the smell of filth would be removed. It is also noteworthy that Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) is a narrator of the hadith prohibiting Jalalah, and a narrator understands the meaning of his narrated hadith better than others, as scholars mention this principle. If Jalalah were prohibited due to the impurity of its meat, then meat that grows on haram food would never be pure and halal.
Imam Ibn Qudamah Al-Maqdisi writes: Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) permitted the meat and milk of Jalalah because an animal does not become impure by eating impurities. The evidence is that a person who drinks alcohol is not considered impure in his limbs, and a disbeliever who eats pork and forbidden things is not outwardly impure, and if he were impure, he would not become pure by embracing Islam and performing ghusl. Then he writes: ولو نجست الجلالة لما طهرت بالحبس “If Jalalah were impure, it would not become pure by withholding.”
Ibn Qudamah further writes:
And the dislike for Jalalah is removed by withholding it, and there is a difference regarding the duration of withholding. It is narrated from Imam Ahmad that it should be withheld, whether it is a bird or livestock. Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) used to withhold it for three days when intending to eat it, and this is the opinion of Imam Abu Thawr, because what purifies the animal will purify the other as well. From this, it is also clear that Imam Ahmad did not consider Jalalah inherently haram; rather, withholding it purifies it and removes the dislike, and there is consensus on this.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him), after mentioning the scholars’ differences, states:
“The reliable opinion permitting eating Jalalah is the removal of the bad smell when it is given pure food to eat, and the time for this is also narrated from the Salaf. Ibn Abi Shaybah narrates from Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) that he used to withhold Jalalah chicken for three days.”
Imam Al-Baghawi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
Regarding livestock that eats filth, the established ruling is that if it occasionally eats filth, it is not Jalalah nor is its meat haram, like chicken, etc. But if its diet is mostly filth to the extent that filth dominates its meat and milk, then scholars differ about eating it. Some say it is not halal to eat it until it is withheld for some days and given other food so that its meat becomes clean, then it is halal to eat. This is the opinion of the people of reasoning, Shafi’i, and Ahmad. There is a narration that a cow should be fed fodder for forty days before eating its meat. Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) used to withhold chicken for three days. Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) did not consider eating Jalalah meat problematic. This is also the opinion of Imam Malik. Imam Ishaq bin Rahwayh said that after thoroughly washing its meat, there is no harm in eating it.
Allama Ayni Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him), in his commentary on Sahih Bukhari, Umdat al-Qari
, writes:
The hadith permits eating chicken meat, and it is explained that there is consensus on its permissibility. It is among the pleasant and delicious foods. Among the poor ascetics, some considered it disliked, but their dislike has no weight, especially since Sayyid al-Zahideen ate it, even though there was a possibility it was Jalalah. Tabarani narrated from Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) that he did not eat Jalalah chicken until he withheld it for some days. They also narrated that when he intended to eat a chicken egg, he withheld it for three days. Abu Hanifa said that chicken eats mixed food, and Jalalah eats only filth and excrement. Ibn Hazm said Jalalah is specific to four-legged animals; birds and chickens are not called Jalalah. Ibn Battal said scholars agree on the permissibility of eating Jalalah, and from Maliki texts, when asked about a goat kid fed by a sow, he said there is no harm in its food. Imam Tabari said scholars have consensus that a camel or goat kid fed by a dog or sow’s milk is not haram to eat, although there is no disagreement about the impurity of sow’s milk, which is like filth. (And Allah knows best)
From Allama Ayni Hanafi’s lengthy statement, it is clear that even if chicken is Jalalah, it is not haram. Chicken eats mixed food, and its prepared food is also mixed. The native chicken, whose permissibility is agreed upon even today, eats filth from dirty drains, garbage heaps, etc., but no one calls it haram. Also remember that forbidden substances added to chicken feed, such as blood, carrion, pork meat, are forbidden for humans but not for animals because they are not accountable.
Finally, as advice to brothers who buy chicken feed, attention should be drawn to the fact that what Shariah has forbidden for us is also forbidden to buy and sell, except for a few animals. Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was sitting in the mosque facing the Black Stone, looked up to the sky, smiled, and said:
لعن الله اليهود حرمت عليهم الشحوم فباعوها وأكلوا أثمانها وإن الله عز وجل إذا حرم على قوم أكل شيء حرم عليهم ثمنه
“May Allah’s curse be upon the Jews! Fat was forbidden for them, but they sold it and consumed its price. Indeed, when Allah forbids a people from eating something, He also forbids them from taking its price.”
Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
إن الله حرم الخمر وثمنها وحرم الميتة وثمنها وحرم الخنزير وثمنه
“Indeed, Allah has forbidden wine and its price, carrion and its price, pork and its price.”
From these authentic hadiths, it is understood that what Allah has forbidden for humans to eat, buying, selling, and taking its price is also forbidden. Therefore, do not buy prepared feed for chickens that contains forbidden substances such as wine, carrion, and pork. Those brothers who truly know that pork ingredients, blood, or carrion are included in chicken feed should not buy such feed. Instead of including carrion, blood, or pork ingredients, add fish meal, etc. Try to avoid forbidden things completely, and whoever tries to avoid forbidden things, Allah will suffice him and grant him the ability to avoid them.
