The Halal Debate: From Neutral To Kosher In 3 Seconds

Can a Muslim entertain meat in the Christian world ?. I have read the fatwas of the renowned muftis on this topic and frankly, they are not very convincing. Their desperate efforts to raise doubts, conjuring-up vague associations and rigging together unsubstantiated suppositions, leads me to believe that good intentions, over time, have ballooned into needlessly burdensome rituals.

I will present my case for it. It certainly isn't the last word on the subject. Let us lay out the facts first. Most scholars cite these two verses from the Quran. I will cite the relevant ayats.

In the chronological order of their revelation:

Surah Al An'am[6:121]:
"And do not eat of that upon which the name of Allah has not been mentioned, for indeed, it is grave disobedience".

Surah Al Ma'idah [5:5]:

"This day [all] good foods have been made lawful, and the food of those who were given the Scripture is lawful for you and your food is lawful for them. And [lawful in marriage are] chaste women from among the believers and chaste women from among those who were given the Scripture before you".

Then we have the oft-quoted hadith narrated by Hazrat Ayesha(RZT):

Some people said, "O Allah's Apostle! meat is brought to us by some people and we are not sure whether the name of Allah has been mentioned on it or not (at the time of slaughtering the animals)." Allah's Apostle said (to them), "Mention the name of Allah [Bismillah] and eat it."
[Sahi Bukhari #1935.]

There are three basic variables in the halal argument. (1) What meat is it ? (2) Who prepared it ? (3) How was it prepared ? (4) If you are unsure, what to do ?.

The sort and condition of permissable meats are clearly enunciated in Surah Al Ma'idah [5:3]. Any meat which falls into the permissable category, prepared by draining the blood by Ahl-e-Kitaab (People of the Books) is lawful for Muslims and vice versa. Unless, during preparations the Ahl-e-Kitab (or Muslim) was sitting in the back, going "Satan! Satan!" on each chicken, goat or cattle he was carving. That would of course, make it non-kosher. But what if this guy was listening to his iPod and thinking of his date that night, while slaughtering these animals ?.

That, would make it neutral meat, or fill-in-the-blanks meat.

What do you do with that meat on your table ?. It is the right meat, handled the right way, by the right guy, only it has yet to be labeled. This is probably the most common predicament, when sitting down to eat meat in the west. That's where we apply the lesson from the hadith above. You say "Bismillah" and that neutral meat becomes kosher meat. Ready to eat.

Of course, this does not absolve you of taking all precautions and avoiding eating in places where you are sure that they are cooking porky-the-pig, right besides the hamburger you ordered. Just like you don't go back to the KFC where the big black chick was digging boogers out of her nose at the fryer. It's just common sense and hygiene. Minimize risk as much you can. To your body and your soul.

And if you are one of the faithfuls who just cannot bring him/herself to enjoy meats outside of their zabeeha-ordained homes, then more power to you. I am just too weak for that kind of monastic discipline and self-denial, when clear and simple instructions (OK, rationalizations) are available.

And let's not forget the other ayats from Surah Al An'am [6:118-6:119]:

"So eat of that [meat] upon which the name of Allah has been mentioned, if you are believers in His verses. And why should you not eat of that upon which the name of Allah has been mentioned while He has explained in detail to you what He has forbidden you, excepting that to which you are compelled. And indeed do many lead [others] astray through their [own] inclinations without knowledge. Indeed, your Lord - He is most knowing of the transgressors".

You are not making me one of the transgressors.