❖ Stomach (Tripe) of a Halal Animal – Shariah Ruling and Evidences
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Volume 3 – Miscellaneous Issues, Page 279
Question by: Irshadullah Aman, Sheikhupura City
❖ Question
Is the stomach (tripe) of a halal animal—especially the Qurbani animal—halal or haram? A clear explanation is requested.
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd:
If an animal such as a cow, buffalo, camel, goat, or sheep is slaughtered according to Islamic Sharīʿah, then its stomach (ojhri / tripe) is halal, whether it is a Qurbani animal or a regular one.
❖ Declaring the stomach to be haram is not correct.
❖ Qur’anic Evidence Regarding Qurbani Animal
Allah ﷻ says:
﴿فَإِذا وَجَبَت جُنوبُها فَكُلوا مِنها وَأَطعِمُوا القانِعَ وَالمُعتَرَّ﴾
“Then when they have fallen (after slaughter), eat from them and feed the self-restrained and the beggar.”
(Surah al-Ḥajj: 36)
From the general wording of this verse, it is proven that the meat, tripe, liver, heart, etc., of the slaughtered animal are all halal.
❖ Important Principle
Anything that is explicitly declared haram by the Qur’an, authentic Hadith, scholarly consensus, or the understanding of the Salaf, is excluded from the above verse. For example:
❖ Exceptions Based on Sharʿi Principles
① Items Considered "Khabeeth" (Filthy or Repulsive):
If a particular part of the animal is universally seen as impure or disgusting by Muslims, then it will be makruh (disliked) or possibly haram based on the verse:
﴿وَيُحَرِّمُ عَلَيْهِمُ الْخَبَائِثَ﴾
“He makes unlawful for them the impure things.”
(Surah al-Aʿrāf: 157)
But the stomach (tripe) is not proven to be impure by any verse, hadith, or consensus. Nor do Muslims commonly detest it.
② Stolen or Usurped Animal:
If the animal was stolen or forcibly taken, then eating its meat is impermissible, unless the rightful owner permits.
③ Animals That Consume Filth (Jallālah):
If an animal habitually consumes filth, its meat is not allowed until it is purified by feeding it clean food for a set period.
④ Meat Cut From a Living Animal:
Meat cut from a living animal is considered dead (maytah) and therefore haram.
❖ Clarifying a Commonly Misunderstood Report
A weak narration from Imām Mujāhid states that the Prophet ﷺ disliked seven parts of the sheep:
“The blood, the womb, the two private parts, the gland, the male organ, the bladder, and the gallbladder.”
(Sources: Kitāb al-Marāsīl of Abū Dāwūd: 460; Muṣannaf ʿAbd al-Razzāq 4/535; Sunan al-Kubrā of al-Bayhaqī 10/7)
However, this narration is weak due to:➊ Wāṣil ibn Abī Jamīl – considered weak by the majority of scholars.
➋ The narration is mursal (disconnected) – also a weak category.
➌ Another chain via ʿUmar ibn Mūsā ibn Wajīh is fabricated (kadhdhāb).
➍ A similar narration from al-Ṭabarānī’s al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ involves narrators who were liars or thieves.
Therefore, these reports cannot be used as evidence to prohibit the stomach (tripe).
❖ Unsupported Claim by al-Kāsānī
In Badā’iʿ al-Ṣanā’iʿ, al-Kāsānī (Ḥanafī jurist) attributes a report to Imām Abū Ḥanīfah that six things are disliked besides blood.
But since this report lacks an authentic chain, it is rejected and not reliable.
Final Conclusion (خلاصۃ التحقیق)
✔ The stomach (ojhri / tripe) of a halal animal slaughtered according to Islamic law is halal.
✔ It is permissible to clean, purify, and cook it, provided no impurity remains.
✔ Declaring it haram without valid evidence is incorrect.
(29 December 2010)هٰذَا مَا عِندِي، وَاللّٰهُ أَعْلَمُ بِالصَّوَابِ
