Halal and Haram in Islam

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What is Halal? | What is haram?

Halal and Haram are one of the most important legal concepts that are related to the legal text, the divine revelation, and the relationship of man to his Lord, himself, his family, and the entire universe.

Halal and Haram, is the major question mark that a person lives with throughout his life whenever they are doing something or wanting to leave something.

The Halal and the Haram may be the gateway that leads the Muslim to happiness in this world and the hereafter, or the way that leads man to misery in the world of the unseen.

Although the Halal is clear and the Haram is clear in our Sharia, this concept may raise confusion and suspicion among quite a few of the public and perhaps the private ones as well.

What does Halal mean?

The word ‘halal’ literally means permissible- and in translation, it is usually used as lawful.

Halal means: It is everything or work that Allah Almighty has permitted for His servants to do, eat, or drink, so everything that Allah created for us to benefit from is permitted.

Halal means: It is permissible at which the condition of prohibition was loosened, and the legislator gave permission to do so.

The Qur’an sets out what constitutes halal and is reflected in Sharia law, Sharia law governs every aspect of the lives of Muslims and is sourced from the Qur’an and the Hadith.

What does Haram mean?

the word ‘Haram‘ means It is the matter that the Legislator has absolutely forbidden to do so that whoever violates the prohibition will be subjected to Allah’s punishment in the hereafter, and may be subjected to punishment in this world as well.

Haram means: it is the opposite of the Halal, and it is the things or actions that Allah Almighty or the Messenger of Allah asked us not to do.

And from the mercy of Allah Almighty is that He made what is Halal for people greater and more than what is Haram.

The Haram word is mentioned in the Qur’an in three ways:

Ban, “And we had caused him to refuse all wet-nurses at first” (Al-Qasa. 12).
“O, believers! Do not forbid the good things which Allah has made lawful for you, and do not transgress. (Al-Maida,87)
Honor, “Allah has made the Ka’bah—the Sacred House—a sanctuary of well-being for all people”. (Al-Maida. 97)

What does consider haram?

The basic principle is that all things are Halal except for what came from Allah Almighty or His prophet, it’s Haram.

That is why Allah Almighty said that it is clear to us that all things are permitted:

“Ask, ˹O Prophet, “Who has forbidden the adornments and lawful provisions Allah has brought forth for His servants?” (Al-Araf,32)

These verses and the hadith indicate that everything that Allah created for us is Halal, and what Allah wanted to forbid us, He makes it Haram either by the text of the Qur’an or by the text of the hadith of the Prophet.

Hence, the circle of what is Haram in Islamic law has narrowed very tightly, and the circle of what is Halal has expanded greatly.

That is because the authentic, explicit texts that came with the prohibition are few, and unless a text comes to Halal or Haram, it remains on the principle of permissibility and is within the scope of divine forgiveness.

And when we look at the things that Allah has made it Haram, we find that all of them are harmful to our bodies or our minds, such as Allah’s forbidding us to drink wine, eat a dead animal, or eat pork.

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Consider as Haram:

Major sins:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Keep away from the seven fatalities.” It was asked: “What are they, O Messenger of Allah?” He (ﷺ) replied, “Associating anything with Allah in worship (i.e., committing an act of Shirk), sorcery, the killing of one whom Allah has declared inviolable without a just cause, devouring the property of an orphan, the eating of usury (Riba), fleeing from the battlefield and accusing chaste believing women, who never even think of anything touching their chastity.”

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

What is Halal and Haram in marriage?

(halal or haram nikah)

The talk here is about what Allah made Haram for men and prevented their marriage to women, and this prohibition is either because of lineage, because of affinity, or because of breastfeeding, which results in the consequences of lineage.

Allah said:” Do not marry former wives of your fathers—except what was done previously” “˹Also˺ forbidden to you for marriage are your mothers, your daughters, your sisters, your paternal and maternal aunts, your brother’s daughters, your sister’s daughters, your foster-mothers, your foster-sisters, your mothers-in-law, your stepdaughters under your guardianship if you have consummated the marriage with their mothers—but if you have not, then you can marry them—nor the wives of your own sons, nor two sisters together at the same time—except what was done previously.” (An-Nisa,22:23)

The Prophet (PBUH) said: “What is haram by reason of genealogy is haram by reason of fosterage.” (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

The reasons for this prohibition are as follows:

Entertaining any sexual thoughts concerning such close relatives as one’s mother, sister, and daughter is instinctively abhorrent to human nature.
The respect a man feels for his aunts is like the respect he has for his mother, and likewise, uncles are regarded as fathers.
Since the family must live together in intimacy and privacy but without incestuous relations, the Shariah intends to cut at the roots of any sexual attraction among such close relatives.

Allah Almighty explains in these verses what is Halal and what is Haram in marriage with women.

Married women are also Haram marriage, Allah said:

“Also ˹forbidden are˺ married women—except ˹female˺ captives in your possession”. (An-Nisa,24)

Among the Haram in marriages: the marriage to a polytheist,

Allah says” Do not marry polytheistic women until they believe; for a believing slave-woman is better than a free polytheist, even though she may look pleasant to you. And do not marry your women to polytheistic men until they believe, for a believing slave-man is better than a free polytheist, even though he may look pleasant to you.” (Al-Baqarah,221)

Halal and Haram food

Eating something that is Haram knowingly is a major sin and one that every Muslim should refrain from.

Allah has provided us with such bountiful foods, and there is so much that we can enjoy, so we must make sure to stay away from that which is considered unlawful.

It is also a sin if you neglect to find out whether the food is Halal or not, and it is best to stay away from foods that you are unsure of.

Halal food

Basically, all food is halal and allowed for Muslims to eat except what is forbidden explicitly in Quran and what is Haram by prophet Muhammad saying (hadith) or practices.

All animals on land are permissible, as long as there is no evidence to prohibit them, and as long as they are slaughtered correctly.

“Today all good, pure foods have been made lawful for you.” (Al-Maida,5)

However, everything in the sea is Halal and does not need any slaughtering. Allah says in the Qur’an:

“It is lawful for you to hunt and eat seafood, as a provision for you and for travelers.” (Al-Maida,96)

In the case of Necessity, anything forbidden becomes Halal.

“…But as for him who is forced by severe hunger, with no inclination to sin (such can eat these above-mentioned meats), then surely, Allah is Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Al-Maida, 5:3)

Haram food

Everything on this earth is Halal unless evidence is provided for became Haram.

The evidence could be direct text from the Quran, or from the hadith about specific creatures, like donkeys or swine.

Or it could be indirect, in this case, the Haram animal would be identified by the characteristics of an animal feature described in the prohibition.

Dead Meat:

“Forbidden to you are carrion, blood, and swine” (Al-Maida 5:3)

Blood:

“Forbidden to you are carrion, blood, and swine” (Al-Maida 5:3)

Muhammad bin Idris Ash-Shafi`i recorded that Ibn `Umar said that the Messenger of Allah said, “We were allowed two dead animals and two (kinds of) blood. As for the two dead animals, they are fish and locusts. As for the two types of blood, they are liver and spleen.”

Swine:

“Forbidden to you are carrion, blood, and swine” (Al-Maida 5:3)

Animals Slaughter in the Name another than of Allah:

“Forbidden to you (for food) are: … 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,” (Al-Ma’idah 5:3)

Animals with Fangs:

Narrated Abu Tha’laba: Allah’s Apostle forbade the eating of the meat of beasts having fangs. [Sahih Bukhari]

Birds with Talons:

Ibn ‘Abbas reported that Allah’s Messenger (PBUH) prohibited the eating of all fanged beasts of prey, and all the birds having talons. [Sahih Muslim]

Domestic Donkeys:

Narrated Al-Bara’ and Ibn Abi ‘Aufa: The Prophet prohibited the eating of donkey’s meat. [Sahih Bukhari]

complet list for halal and haram food

Conclusion

And here is a topic that we must know, which is that it is not permissible for us to change the rule of Allah in anything, and if it is Halal, we cannot say that it is Haram.

If it is Haram, it is not permissible to change it and say it is Halal.

Because the one who determines that this thing is Halal or Haram is Allah Almighty alone in the text of the Qur’an or the hadith of the Prophet.

And what is Haram is Haram to everyone, and it is not Haram to some people without others, because the sharia of Islam makes justice between all people, the rich and the poor, the ruler and the ruled.