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the angels nor simply a creature of instinct like the animals. Rather he occupies a position between the
two: he can attain or even surpass the spiritual heights of the angels, or he can sink to the level of the
beasts, or even lower.
From another perspective, the halal and haram are part of the total legal system of Islâm, its Shari‘ah, a
system whose primary objective is the good of mankind. The Islâmic Shari‘ah removes from human beings
harmful, burdensome customs and superstitions, aiming to simplify and ease the business of day-today
living. Its principles are designed to protect man from evil and to benefit him in all aspects of his life. And
they are designed to benefit everyone in the community—the rich and the poor, the rulers and the ruled,
the men and the women—as well as to benefit the whole of humanity throughout the earth in various
countries and climes, with its multitude of groupings, and in every period of time throughout succeeding
generations.
This religion came as a mercy from Allâh to include all His servants in the final stage among the various
stages of man. Concerning His Messenger (s.a.w.s.) Allâh says, (And we have not sent thee except as a
mercy for all the worlds.) (21:107), and the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) himself said, “I am a merciful gift“. (Reported
by al-Hakim on the authority of Abû Hurairah; al-Dhahabi classifies this hadith as authentic.)
One aspect of this mercy is that Allâh removed from the Muslim ummah (nation or community) all traces of
fanaticism and zealotry, as well as all the means of declaring things to be halal and haram; contrary to the
case of the idolatrous and the People of the Book (Jews and Christians), whose priests had prohibited the
good things and permitted the foul. Allâh says: (...My mercy embraces all things. Thus I shall ordain it for
those who are conscious (of me) and who give the purifying alms (zakat), and those who believe in our
revelations.) (7:156)
The Islâmic criteria with regard to the halal and haram are embodied in the following two verses, which we
have placed at the beginning of this book:
(Say: Who has forbidden the adornment of Allâh which He has brought forth for His servants, and the
good things of His providing? Say: They are, on the Day of Resurrection, exclusively for those who
believed during the life of this world. Thus do we explain the signs for those who know. Say: What my
Rabb has indeed prohibited are shameful deeds, whether open or secret, and sin and rebellion without
just cause, and that you associate with Allâh that for which He has sent down no authority, and that you
say concerning Allâh that about which you do not know.) (7:32-33)
In view of the fact that the halal and haram constitute such an important subject, I believe that this book, in
spite of its modest size, will fill a gap in the library of the contemporary Muslim; that it will solve many
problems which he faces in his personal, family, and social life; and that it will answer many questions of
this kind: What is permitted to me? What is prohibited to me? And what is the reason for permitting this
and prohibiting that?
In bringing this introduction to a close, I would like to express my thanks to the scholars of al-Azhar and
the Institute of Islâmic Culture for placing their trust in me to deal with such a vital subject. I hope I have
proved worthy of their trust and have achieved their objective.
I pray to Allâh Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala to benefit those people who read this book, to give us truthfulness in
what we say and do, to keep our thoughts and our pens from aberrations, and to guide us in all our affairs.
It is He alone who listens to supplications.
Dr.Yusuf al-Qaradawi
Safar 1380/August 1960
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Chapter 1: The Islâmic Principles Pertaining to Halal and Haram
The question of what ought to be halal (lawful) and haram (prohibited) was one of the matters concerning
which, prior to the advent of Islâm, the peoples of the world had gone very far astray and were utterly
confused, permitting many impure and harmful things and prohibiting many things that were good and
pure.
They erred grievously, going either far to the right or far to the left. On the extreme right was the ascetic
Brahmanism of India and the self-denying monasticism of Christianity. In addition to these two, there were
other religions which were based on the principles of the mortification of the flesh, abstention from good
food, and avoidance of other enjoyments of life which Allâh has provided for human beings. Christian
monasticism attained its peak during the Middle Ages when the avoidance of good and pure things among
the monks, thousands in number, reached the point at which washing one’s feet was considered a sin and
entering a bath was something to regret and repent. On the extreme left, the Mazdak philosophy emerged
in Persia, advocating absolute freedom and allowing people to take whatever they wanted and do
whatever they pleased, even exhorting them to violate what is naturally held inviolable by human beings.
The Arabs of the pre-Islâmic era provide a noteworthy example of utter confusion regarding the criteria for
making lawful or prohibiting things and actions. They permitted the drinking of alcohol, the taking of usury
at exorbitant rates, the torturing and secluding of women, and many similar practices. Those who had
diabolical minds made alluring to many of them the killing of their own children, until, suppressing their
natural paternal feelings, they obeyed them. As Allâh Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala says: Thus have their partners
made alluring to many of the idolaters the killing of their children, in order to destroy them and to confuse
for them their religion. (6:137)
These “partners” from among the guardians of the idols had devised many impressive arguments to
persuade fathers to kill their children; among them were the fear of actual or anticipated poverty, the
impending shame in case of a daughter, and the closeness to the gods to be attained by the sacrifice of a
son.
It is strange that these same people who permitted the killing of their children by cutting their throats or
burying them alive had prohibited to themselves the eating of certain agricultural produce and the flesh of
cattle. Stranger still is that they considered such prohibitions as part of their religion, attributing them to
Allâh’s command. (It should be noted that while worshipping and ascribing powers to numerous male and
female deities the pagan Arabs of the pre-Islâmic era possessed the concept of a supreme Deity, Allâh,
ascribing to Him many false attributes and laws. (Trans.)) But Allâh rejected their false claim: And they
say, ‘These cattle and crops are sacred; none shall eat of them except those whom we wish‘, —so they
assert—‘and cattle whose backs are prohibited (to burden), as well as cattle on which (at slaughter) the
name of Allâh is not mentioned‘ a forgery against Him. He will assuredly recompense them for what they
have forged. (6:138)
Moreover, the Qur‘ân exposed the error of those who made halal what should have been prohibited and
made haram what should have been permitted: Lost are those who kill their children in folly, without
knowledge and prohibited what Allâh has provided them, forging (lies) against Allâh. They have indeed
gone astray and are without guidance. (6:140)
When Islâm came, the errors, confusions, and deviations with respect to the question of halal and haram
were very widespread. One of Islâm’s initial accomplishments was, therefore, to establish certain legal
principles and measures for rectifying this important matter; these principles were then made the
determining criteria on which the questions of what is halal and what is haram were to be based. Thus this
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