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[Say
(O Muhammad), "I find not in that which has been
inspired to me anything forbidden to be eaten by one who
wishes to eat it, unless it be Maytah (a dead animal) or
blood poured forth (by slaughtering or the like), or the
flesh of swine (pork, etc.) for that surely is filth, or
impious (unlawful) meat (of an animal) which is
slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allah (or has
been slaughtered for idols, etc., or on which Allah's
Name has not been mentioned while slaughtering). But
whosoever is forced by necessity without willful
disobedience, nor transgressing due limits, (for him)
certainly, your Lord is OftForgiving, Most Merciful.]
(Al-An`am: 145) |
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The Scientific Fact:
It was through modern science that people came to know
the wisdom behind Islam prohibiting certain stuffs. This
prohibition was made before the discovery of the
microscope. The prohibited stuffs are; dead animals
where bacteria find an environment to grow, blood
that contains even more bacteria, and finally swine
whose bodies are magnets of some morbid strains that
cannot be removed by any means of purification. The body
of the swine is a place where many parasites, bacteria,
and viruses grow and can be transfused to human beings
and animals. Some of these parasites are limited to pigs
such as dysentery balantidium, spirals trchinella,
solium taenia, and cysticercosis. Some of these maladies
are common for men and animals like influenza, buski
fasciolopsis, and ascaris. Balantidiasis is known to be
widespread among the swine herders and those people who
mix with them. This malady may become epidemic under
certain circumstances. This happened in one of the
islands of the Pacific after a hurricane which spread
the dung of swine all over the island. Wherever swine
exists, such plagues and maladies erupt even in highly
advanced countries. This is counter to their claims of
the possibility of purging it through modern techniques
which make the prohibition of pork invalid. In certain
countries, the consumption of pork has become widespread
and normalized as in Germany, France, Venezuela, and the
Philippines. The consumption of the infected muscles of
the swine causes trinchinellosis as the female of this
worm lays its eggs in the walls of the swine’s bowels.
The eggs that may reach 10 thousands would be carried
through the blood to the muscles where they stay and
grow up. As for dysentery balantidium it infects man
when he eats the infected muscles of the pig. This worm
can grow up to be seven meters long inside the bowels of
the person. With its head, it can cause damage in the
bowels of man and cause severe shortage of blood plasma.
It grows and multiplies rapidly When man eats any food
that contains the eggs of cysticercosis, he gets
infected because the eggs flow with the blood and stay
in any organ. The taenia saginata that grows in cows
would never cause as much damage as this one. |
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Facets of Scientific Inimitability:
It is known that a swine is a filthy animal both in its
behavior and in how it chooses its food. Bearing this in
mind, idolaters considered it to be the killer of the
symbols of goodness. Myths from ancient Egypt tell us
that it was a swine that killed Horus. The Cananites
even tell us that it was a swine that killed their god,
Adone. The Greeks believe that a swine killed their god
Adonis and Atis. In ancient Egypt, herding swine was
viewed as being one of the most degrading jobs. People
who had such a job were not allowed into the temple and
were not allowed to marry any woman except one from
their own class. Anyone who touched a pig was required
to have a bath. It is prohibited for the People of the
Book to eat it, yet, they violate this prohibition.
Speaking about its prohibition, the Qur'an declares that
it is filth. The word ‘filth’ covers all types of filth
and also explains that consuming it is harmful too.
This prohibition is mentioned in three places in the
Qur'an; Almighty Allah says:
[He
has forbidden you only the Maytah (dead animals), and
blood, and the flesh of swine, and that which is
slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allah (or has
been slaughtered for idols, etc., on which Allah's Name
has not been mentioned while slaughtering). But if one
is forced by necessity without willful disobedience nor
transgressing due limits, then there is no sin on him.
Truly, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.](Al-Baqarah:
173)
And,
[He
has forbidden you only Al-Maytatah (meat of a dead
animal), blood, the flesh of swine, and any animal which
is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allah (or
has been slaughtered for idols etc. or on which Allah's
Name has not been mentioned while slaughtering). But if
one is forced by necessity, without willful
disobedience, and not transgressing, then, Allah is
Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.]
(An-Nahl: 115)
And,
[Forbidden
to you (for food) are: Al-Maytatah (the dead animals -
cattle-beast not slaughtered), blood, the flesh of
swine, and the meat of that which has been slaughtered
as a sacrifice for others than Allah, or has been
slaughtered for idols, etc., or on which Allah's Name
has not been mentioned while slaughtering, and that
which has been killed by strangling, or by a violent
blow, or by a headlong fall, or by the goring of horns -
and that which has been (partly) eaten by a wild animal
- unless you are able to slaughter it (before its death)
and that which is sacrificed (slaughtered) on AnNusub
(stone altars). (Forbidden) also is to use arrows
seeking luck or decision, (all) that is Fisqun
(disobedience of Allah and sin).]
(Al-Ma’idah: 3)
The prohibition covers all its edible parts, including
its fat. The prohibition of fat for Jews only shows that
it is counted as meat, since Almighty Allah says:
[And
unto those who are Jews, We forbade every (animal) with
undivided hoof, and We forbade them the fat of the ox
and the sheep except what adheres to their backs or
their entrails, or is mixed up with a bone. Thus, We
recompensed them for their rebellion [committing crimes
like murdering the Prophets, eating of Riba (usury),
etc.]. And verily, We are Truthful.]
(Al-An`am: 146)
Prohibiting the meat also makes the fat prohibited even
if used as fodder for an animal that will be later
consumed by a person. At the time of the revelation of
the Qur'an, no one ever imagined that such harm existed.
Who could tell such a thing except Allah; the
All-Knowing the All-Wise. Almighty Allah says:
[But
your people (O Muhammad) have denied it (the Qur’an)
though it is the truth. Say: "I am not responsible for
your affairs. For every news there is a fact, i.e. for
everything there is an appointed term (and it is also
said that for every deed there is a recompense) and you
will come to know.]
(Al-An`am: 66-67) |
