Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, says: "While He has explained to you in detail what He has made unlawful for you, except what you are compelled to." [Surah al-An'am: 119]
And He said: "He has only forbidden you carrion, blood, the flesh of swine, and that over which a name other than Allah's has been invoked; but whoever is compelled, neither rebelling nor transgressing, there is no sin upon him." [Surah al-Baqarah: 173]
Mujahid (may Allah have mercy on him) said concerning "neither rebelling nor transgressing" [Surah al-Baqarah: 173]: "That is, he is not a highway robber, nor one who separates from (and rebels against) the rulers of the Muslims, nor one who sets out (on a journey) in disobedience to Allah, Majestic is His Majesty."
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / Q19634
Sayyiduna Jabir bin Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) says that a man's mule or she-camel died, and he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to ask for a ruling. Jabir says that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do you have anything that would make you independent of it?" He replied: There is nothing. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Go and eat it."
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19634
Sayyiduna Jabir bin Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) says that a man camped with his wife and children out on the stony ground (al-Harrah), and someone said to him: My she-camel has gone missing; if you find it, keep it with you. He found the she-camel, but the owner did not come, and the she-camel fell ill. His wife told him to slaughter it, but the man refused, and it died. His wife said: Skin it, so that its fat and meat can be cut into strips and eaten. The man said: Let us first ask the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Do you have anything that makes you independent of it?" He said: No. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Eat it." When the owner of the she-camel came, he asked: Why did you not slaughter it? He said: I felt shy of you.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19635
Sayyiduna Abu Waqid al-Laythi (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Companions said: O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! We are in a land where hunger afflicts us; when is carrion lawful for us? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When you find neither morning nor evening food, nor vegetables, then eating carrion is permissible for you."
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19636
Hassan bin Atiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates from Sayyiduna Abu Waqid al-Laythi (may Allah be pleased with him) that we said to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): If hunger afflicts us in some land, when is eating carrion lawful? He said: "When you find neither morning nor evening food, nor vegetables, then eating carrion is permissible for you."
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19637
Sayyiduna Abu Waqid al-Laythi (may Allah be pleased with him) says that a man said: O Messenger of Allah! Hunger afflicts us in a certain land; when is carrion lawful for us? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When you find no food in the morning or evening, nor vegetables, then it is up to you."
Abu Ubayd said that Abu Ubaydah said: (Tahtafi'u) comes from al-hafa', which is the fresh white root of the papyrus plant, and it is eaten; that is, as long as you cannot pull up this very plant and eat it. As for "as long as you have no morning or evening drink", it means: you may take from it (carrion) a morning meal or an evening meal, but do not combine both from carrion.
Ibn Awn said: I saw with al-Hasan (may Allah have mercy on him) the letters of Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) to his sons, (stating) that in a state of compulsion or necessity a morning or an evening drink suffices.
The Shaykh said: Carrion is lawful when lawful food by which one can sustain life is not available in the morning and evening.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19638
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Samurah bin Jundub (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When you have given your family their fill of milk in the evening, then avoid the carrion that Allah has forbidden."
Abu Abdullah al-Halimi (may Allah have mercy on him) writes in his book that there is no harm in eating permissible food. If in the morning one finds something that suffices his needs until the evening, and in the evening eats what he left in the morning, there is no harm; (likewise) if he mixes in vegetables or adds something else. This is not the case with carrion; rather, he may eat of carrion only the amount that saves his life, and should not eat it the way lawful foods are eaten.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19639
Sayyiduna al-Fuja' al-Amiri (may Allah be pleased with him) came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "What of carrion is lawful for us?" He said: "What is your food?" We said: "Drinking one cup in the morning and one cup in the evening." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "That, by my father, is hunger." So he (peace and blessings be upon him) made carrion lawful for them in this state. This shows that he permitted them to eat carrion along with the morning and evening (drink) that only keeps them alive, when these do not nourish the body or fully satisfy hunger.
The authenticity of these hadiths is open to question; the hadith of Jabir bin Samurah is the most authentic of them.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19640
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) says that Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked: Tell us about the time of hardship. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We set out for the expedition of Tabuk on an intensely hot day. We camped at a place, and because of severe thirst our necks were close to breaking. A man would go out in search of water but would fear that his neck would break before he returned, until people would slaughter a camel, squeeze the water out of its stomach contents and drink it. Then Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to supplicate for good. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Would you like that?" Sayyiduna Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) answered yes. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) raised his hands and it rained, and the people filled their vessels with water. Then we went to look, and found that the rain had not gone beyond the army.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19641
Masruq (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Whoever is compelled to (eat) carrion, blood and the flesh of swine, but does not eat or drink and dies in that state, will enter the Fire. Qatadah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: He should save his life, but not eat his fill. Ma'mar (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I have not heard of any concession regarding wine.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الضحايا / 19642