OME IMPORTANT REQUIREMENTS ABOUT ZABAH
The knife for Zabah has to be sharpened to the optimum, and the slaughter should be carried out quickly and effectively to minimise the suffering sustained by the animal.
The throat of the Qurbani animal should be cut in a manner to ensure that the gullet, the wind pipe and the two external jugular veins are severed.It is Makrooh to severe the entire neck including the vertebrae. At least 3 of the four vessels mentioned above ought to be severed to meet Shari'ah requirements of proper Zabah.
Every effort should be made to ensure that animals are not slaughtered in the presence of other live animals.
In the process of slaughtering, the knife should be concealed till the moment of slaughter and the animal should be placed such that it allows the person slaughtering the animal to face Qibla, as this is Mustahab.
The skinning of the slaughtered animal and dismembering of body parts should not commence until the animal's carcase has turned cold.
If after slaughtering an animal it is discovered that the animal was pregnant and a live foetus appears in the belly, then it is necessary to slaughter that foetus.
DISTRIBUTION OF QURBANI MEAT TO NON-MUSLIMS
Distribution of Qurbani meat or any other charity (sadqa) to "Harbi Kafir" is not permissable at all. It is mentioned in Durr-e-Mukhtar: "Even though a Harbi Kafir is peace-wanting, charity is unanimously not permissable." In Behr-ur-Raiq: "According to Shar'ah, giving something to a Harbi Kafir is not permissable, for no Sawaab can be gained through this."
IMPORTANT ADVICE FOR MUSLIMS
Many people make Qurbani on behalf of their parents, grandparents, Prophets and Saints, and not on their behalf. By doing so, they are neglecting their Waajib and thus become sinners through this action. Every Muslim must first make Qurbani on their behalf first so that their Waajib is fulfilled. Only after the Waajib is completed and if one is able to do so, can Qurbani be made on behalf of others.
It is preferable to make Qurbani on behalf of Prophet Muhammad (sallal laahu alaihi wasallam) as it is virtuous and beneficial and has his blessings. Our Prophet Muhammad (sallal laahu alaihi wasallam) made Qurbani on behalf of all the poor people of his Ummah. This shows the love that he possessed for his Ummah. Therefore, every Muslim who is capable of making Qurbani on behalf of others should make Qurbani on behalf of our Holy Prophet Muhammad (sallal laahu alaihi wasallam).
ISLAMIC METHOD OF SLAUGHTERING
Those who are ignorant about the proper Islamic method that is carried out in the slaughtering of animals do not hesitate in criticising Muslims and in regarding this Islamic method of slaughter as primitive, barbaric and a cruelty to animals.
The aim of presenting this article is to inform the public that the Islamic method of slaughtering an animal is most humane, painless and better than the current methods of mechanical and electrial stunning of animals that are normally done in abbatoirs.
In order for large meat industries and commercial establishments to provide a much higher production, they all favour the method of mechanical and electrical stunning. They regard all other methods of slaughter as cruel and even manage to get the support of Animal Rights groups to oppose the Islamic method of slaughter.
In the Islamic method of slaughtering an animal, the animal is slaughtered by a sharp object which is capable of making it bleed by severing blood vessels. The slaughtering is to be done by cutting the throat of the animal or by piercing the hollow of the throat, causing its death. The best way is to cut the windpipe, the gullet, and the two jugular veins.
The wisdom of the Islamic rules of slaughtering is to take the animal's life in the quickest and least painful way; the requirements of using a sharp instrument and of cutting the throat relate to this end. No additional stunner is necessary. This method also allows for the most rapid and effecient bleeding of the animal. When the sharp knife enters the tissues of the neck, its cuts open four big blood vessels in the region. So much blood is lost so quickly that the animal becomes unconsious and feels no pain.
When the animal convulses, one gets the impression that it is undergoing pain and suffering. However, this is not the case. In the Islamic manner of slaughtering, the spinal cord is not severed since the nervous connection between the brain and the body is maintained so that all the blood is squeezed out of the body.
When convulsion takes place, the wringing actions of the muscles of the body on the blood vessels help to get rid of the maximum amount of blood from the meat tissue. In fact, the occurence of convulsions confirm that the animal is unconscious. Thus, the animal also does not experience any pain.
In view of the above considerations, attempts to discredit the Islamic method of slaughter are ill-conceived. Based on scientific evidence, it should not be too difficult for individuals and groups to give up their attempts to interfere with religious beliefs and religious laws in general. The Islamic method of slaughter has stood the test of time and of scientific enquiry and remains by far the best, the most effecient and the safest.
