Dhabiĥa
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Dhabiĥa (ذَبِيْحَة, dhabiha, zabiha) is the accepted s method of slaughtering all animals excluding fish and most sea-life as per Islam. Dhabiĥa is often pronounced by non-Arabs as zabiha.
This method of slaughtering animals arises largely from Islamic tradition, rather than direct Quranic mandate. This method of slaughter is used to comply with the conditions stated in the Qur'an:
"Forbidden to you are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah. that which hath been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored to death; that which hath been eaten by a wild animal; unless ye are able to slaughter it; that which is sacrificed on stone [Altar?]; [forbidden] also is the division by raffling with arrows: that is impiety..." – Al-Maidah 5:3
The term Dhabiĥa is often inaccurately used as a synonym for the word halal. But used conjunction, "Dhabiĥa Halal" is the term used to describe any food that is permissible as per Islamic law, as well as any permissible animal slaughtered in a fashion compliant with the Sunnah of Prophet Mohammed.
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[edit] Prerequisited for dhabiĥa halal
According to the laws of dhabiĥa halal, certain prerequisites must be met before an animal is slaughtered[1]:
- The animal must not be a forbidden substance as per the Quran.
- The slaughter itself must be done by a sane (mentally competent) adult Muslim. Some Muslims also consider it acceptable to eat the meat slaughtered by "People of the Book" (ie: Christians and Jews). On the other hand, some Islamic schools of thought state that except in the case of extreme necessity, the meat slaughtered by people of the Ahle-Kitaab should not be eaten."
[edit] Slaughtering process
The slaughtering process, known as dhabiĥa, is as follows.
[edit] Pre-slaughter
Prior to the slaughter, the animal's eyes and ears are checked to ensure that the animal is healthy and suitable for slaughter. If the animal is deemed to be healthy, it is first given water to drink (in order to quench its thirst) and is then pointed towards Mecca to be slaughtered.
[edit] Standard recitation
The act of slaughtering an animal is an act that, according to the Quran, should be preceded by the mention of God (see Islamic Concept of God). Invoking the name of God at the moment of sacrifice is believed by some to serve as acknowledgement of God's right over all things. Furthermore, this invocation gives permission to the one performing the sacrifice to continue and endows the slaughterer with a sense of gratitude for God's creation, even prior to partaking in the meat of the animal.
Thus, the slaugther itself is preceded by the words "In the name of God, God is the Greatest Bismillah, Allahu Akbar بسم الله ، الله أكبر) . The common phrase "Bismillah al Raĥman Al Raĥim" (In the name of God the Beneficent the Merciful) is not used here, because the act is one of subduement, not of mercy. Rather, the words Allahu Akbar (God is the Greatest) are used. This is to reiterate that the animal was only subdued for consumption by God's divine design and command, and is being slaughtered according to the guidelines prescribed.
[edit] Varied recitation
It is also common for the words "Praise be upon Him who has made you suitable for slaughter [for the purpose of consumption] ("Subĥâna man Ĥallalaka li ˈl-dhabĥ") to be spoken immediately before slaughter rather than the traditional phrase. This is more of a cultural practice than one based in Prophetic traditions
[edit] Slaughter
According to Islamic tradition, the conventional method used to slaughter the animal involves cutting the large arteries in the neck along with the esophagus and trachea with one swipe of an unserrated blade. This method of slaughter serves a dual function: it provides for, debatably, a relatively painless death and also helps to effectively drain blood from the animal. The latter is important because the consumption of blood itself is forbidden in Islam. Muslims consider this method of killing the animal to be cleaner and more merciful to the animal. During the blood draining process, the animal is not handled until it has died.
[edit] Controversies
[edit] Animal rights
Advocates for dhabiĥa contend that it causes little or no pain to the animal and drains its blood more effectively than other methods. They also claim that the Islamic method of slaughter is the fastest method to kill the animal among those used in the modern day.[2] Many refer to a study done by Professor Wilhelm Schulze and Dr. Hazim at the School of Veterinary Medicine, Hannover University in Germany.[3]
Detractors however, most notably some animal rights groups, contend that this method of slaughter causes unnecessary pain and suffering to the animal when compared to modern methods, which involve stunning the animal prior to slaughter. In the United Kingdom, the government funded Farm Animals Welfare Council recommended that conventional dhabiĥa without stunning be abolished. [4]
[edit] Inducing unconsciousness
Electrocution is frowned upon by many Muslims, since it causes "small blood vessels (to) rupture" and leaves the "meat tainted with blood which is full of germs, bacteria and waste material." [5]
Debates still rage among Muslim jurists and the general Muslim population about whether or not stunning, anesthetics, or other forms of inducing unconsciousness in the animal prior to slaughter are permissible as per Islam.
[edit] Mechanical slaughtering
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In Islam the slaughter of animals is perefomed directly by the butcher as the result of the physical strength and intention of the person. In mechanical slaughter, the physical strength and intention of the person is not used, rather, the person appointed presses a button or releases a switch on the machine, which in turn causes electricity to pass through the cables of the machine giving motion to the motor, which in turn gives motion to the pulleys, which in turn gives motion to the blade causing the animal to be slaughtered. Neither is the motor, nor the blade brought into motion by the direct strength of the person operating the machine. If there is no electricity, then the motor would not run, therefore, not allowing the blade to operate and slaughter the animal. It is thus evident that the machine operator is not directly linked to the motion of the blade nor the actual slaughtering of the animal.
[edit] Comparison with kashrut
[edit] Dhabiĥa halal and other religions
[edit] Christianity
Some Muslims conclude that the Christian method of slaughtering of the present age are lacking in Islamic methods and contradict Muslim belief, thus making their meat Haraam.
[edit] Judaism
Muslims are further greatly divided as to whether or not Jewish slaughter suffices as a replacement for Islamic dhabiĥa halal. Some claim that Jewish slaughter leaves out the Takbeer (saying: God is Great) and changes the method of slaughter, thus, their meat is Haraam. Others claim that the slaughtering processes are similar enough in practice and in theory to render animals slaughtered by Jewish laws as halal.
It is a widely-held belief in the Jewish community that Dhabiĥa halal is not equivalent to being kosher, because among other things kashrut requires that meat must be slaughtered by a Jew.
[edit] Sikhism
The Rehat Maryada of Sikhism states that in Sikhism, "eating the meat of an animal slaughtered the Muslim way;" is strictly prohibited. The Hukamnama issued by the Akal Takht stated that meat killed in the Jhatka fashion (one blow, or as painlessly as possible) is the only meat that should be consumed by a Sikh.
