In what manner is food made into being “halaal”? Must a religious person be present in the preparation? Does any religious practices have to be done, eg. prayers? What type of food need to be “halaal”? What is the difference between halaal" and “kosher”?
Appreciating any informative feedback.
Kosher in General:
The term kosher means "clean, fit or proper". The purpose of these rituals was to assure safe and sanitary meats during Biblical times. These rituals were so effective and highly regarded that they are still followed today, thousands of years later. The exacting attention to preparation and unmatched flavor explains why over two thirds of all kosher products are bought for their superior quality and excellent taste, not just for religious reasons.
Kosher Meat:
For meat to be kosher you must start at the very beginning. That means, only healthy animals can be slaughtered for use in kosher foods. These animals must have split hooves and chew their cud. Cattle and sheep are the primary animals used in the koshering process. In the USA, only the front quarters of the animal are used for koshering.
Hogs and pigs do not chew their cuds and are therefore not Kosher.
A kosher inspection starts while the animals are still alive and continues until the finished product leaves the plant. This system operates under the diligent and watchful supervision of kosher inspectors, who stringently control the process from the time the meat is slaughtered until it is shipped.
Kosher Slaughter (Shechitah):
Kosher slaughter is performed by a "shochet"
(a man of skill, piety and expertise).
Examination (B'dikah):
After the slaughter, the internal organs and especially the lungs are searched inside the animal to assure the animal was healthy and did not have any injuries or diseases. After the lungs are removed from the animal, a second examination is made to make sure the lungs have no adhesions or other defects. If the adhesions can be peeled away without perforating the lung, and everything else has passed, the animal is accepted as kosher killed.
For every animal passed by the USDA (Department of Agriculture) as fit for consumption, only a little more than half are accepted for kosher.
Glatt:
Glatt is a Yiddish term that means perfectly smooth and is used to refer to animals who's lungs are free of any blemish or adhesion. Glatt is viewed by many people as a higher form of kosher. Meat that has passed inspection, whether Glatt or not, is accepted as kosher killed.
Washing:
All kosher killed meat must be either kosher made (soaked and salted, or broiled) or washed within 72 hours of the slaughter.
Kosher Made:
The meat is soaked in water for at least 30 minutes to prepare it for the salting process.
The soaked meat is salted (under rabbinical supervision) by specially trained men. The salt used is kosher salt. After salting, the meat is left for one hour with the salt on it and allowed to drain. At the end of 60 minutes, the meat is washed to remove the salt, and the meat is now considered kosher.
Nikur/Traboring:
These terms mean to dig out and refers to the requirement for the removal of veins, blood clots, arteries, and forbidden fats.
This process is performed by specially trained men called minikurs. The trimmings that are removed during traboring are not used in kosher product, but are sold off to non-kosher meat plants.
I hope this helps about Kosher. Halal is not much different. Will post about Halal after some more research.
[This message has been edited by Mullah_DoPiazza (edited July 12, 2001).]
Halal meat also involves the ritual of slaughtering and removal of blood. Just note that Halal meat does not include all the other activity like salting, washing, removing veins, arteries, certain organs and some types of fat. If you are a meat eating muslim living in Europe or North America, Kosher meat would be better than halal meat.
Thanks Mullah_DoPiazza
I'll wait for the same type of info on the "halaal" food.
We are allowed the meat of the people of the book i.e. Muslims, Christians, and Jews. I don't think Christians slaughter their animals in the same way they used to but the thing that all of them have in common is that they are killed in the name of God (Allah) and the blood is drained from the carcass. Hope that helps.
Halaal means permissable and Haraam means non-permissable.
The Qur'aan has clearly set out the conditions of what food is lawful and unlawful for Muslims.
Allah asks us to only eat that animal, which is slaughtered in the name of Allah. This is it. No big ceremony, religious scholar being present etc etc.
005.004 Forbidden to you (for food) 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 (partly) eaten by a wild animal; unless ye are able to slaughter it (in due form); that which is sacrificed on stone (altars); (forbidden) also is the division (of meat) by raffling with arrows: that is impiety. This day have those who reject faith given up all hope of your religion: yet fear them not but fear Me. This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion. But if any is forced by hunger, with no inclination to transgression, Allah is indeed Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.
005.005 They ask thee what is lawful to them (as food). Say: lawful unto you are (all) things good and pure: and what ye have taught your trained hunting animals (to catch) in the manner directed to you by Allah: eat what they catch for you, but pronounce the name of Allah over it: and fear Allah; for Allah is swift in taking account.
005.006 This day are (all) things good and pure made lawful unto you. The food of the People of the Book is lawful unto you and yours is lawful unto them. (Lawful unto you in marriage) are (not only) chaste women who are believers, but chaste women among the People of the Book, revealed before your time,- when ye give them their due dowers, and desire chastity, not lewdness, nor secret intrigues if any one rejects faith, fruitless is his work, and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost (all spiritual good).
I hope the above is helpful.
[quote]
Originally posted by The Old Man:
**Thanks Mullah_DoPiazza
I'll wait for the same type of info on the "halaal" food.**
[/quote]
Quran has very clearly prohibited four types of foods and one of them is blood and in order to remove blood, ritual of slaughtering was adopted from the jews but unfortunately, it is incomplete. Animal is simply slaughtered by the butcher without any supervision and therefore, you never know what type of animal was selected, whether the animal was healthy, whether the butcher himself was clean and whether he recited anything.
Whereas, Kosher laws are very strict and the whole process from the selection of the animal onwards is strictly supervised.
As mentioned in Quran, the food of the people of the book is lawful onto you, Kosher meat is absolutely fit for muslim consumption as long as you pronounce the name of God over it, and that is true for any food.
[quote]
Originally posted by The Old Man:
In what manner is food made into being "halaal"? Must a religious person be present in the preparation? Does any religious practices have to be done, eg. prayers?
[/quote]
Thanks everyone in giving info. Please address also the above questions.
[quote]
Originally posted by The Old Man:
** Thanks everyone in giving info. Please address also the above questions.
**
[/quote]
no "religious" person. an ordinary Muslim (beleiving in Allah) can do it, and he has to say "bismillahi Allahu Akbar" while slaughtering the animal.
one thing to mention, very important:
animal has to be a vegetarian to be considered halal (no meat must have been served in any shape to the animal)
[This message has been edited by Changez_like (edited July 13, 2001).]
Old Man:)
For some really thorough explanations/informations you might want to check out this site, http://www.qaradawi.net/english/books/tree-view/library.htm
Just click on ‘The lawful and the prohibited in Islam’
Its an online version of Qaradawi’s book by the same title.
Hope that helps somewhat
Thanks Girl from Quraysh.
http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/smile.gif
It will keep me busy for some time though.
Appreciate the link a lot…
Girl from Quraysh:
I've been reading a lot and has now even more questions than before, but wil spare the people here.
How good is the interpretation of Qaradawi's viewpoint on issues? I've seen quite a vast difference of opinions on this forum relative to certain issues.
You're right, a majority of times for most issues, a wide array of opinions are expressed on this forum. But I guess the important thing to keep in mind is that for the most part they are coming from people like you and I, not from people who have spent years upon years, studying islamic teachings, devoting their lives to the teachings of islam, and so our knowledge is limited in that sense.
From what I know, Qaradawi is an Egyptian scholar, he studied at al azhar i think I know he says Imam Hassan al Banna was a great mentor of his. He's a well known and greatly respected scholar. I like this book of his, especially the first chapter, its well written and thorough, more on the basic ideas/concepts of halal and haraam. The rest of the book is alright, some may criticize it as too liberal, others may say its not liberal enough, I guess the best way is to study whichever issue is of particular importance to you and decide for yourself whether you agree or disagree, within the boundaries of Islam. Hmm kay i'm going to stop myself before i go off on some abstract tangent. Hope that didn't confuse u too much wry smile