A Buddhist, A Muslim and the Halal factor

whizpen ♦ January 12, 2013 ♦ 2 Comments

                It was with much confusion that I followed the recent protests by some in the Buddhist community against  Muslims and the Sri Lankan Halaal Certification Authority. I mean, do these guys of the “Bodu Bala Sena” really realize what they are protesting against? Or what actually Halal is? And don’t these guys who proclaim to safeguard, protect and fight for Buddhism understand that Lord Buddha himself repeatedly taught his disciples the importance of a pure mind and soul? And that in Islamic terms is what Halal is about??

                 The Arabic word “Halal” means “Permissible”. It  could cover various aspects of a Muslims life ranging from his daily food to what he wears to who he is permitted to get married to. The food that has been made “Haram” or not permissible are that of blood (e.g. fermentation media and sausages) , the human body (e.g. bread improver from hair and cosmetics from the placenta and embryo), alcohol (e.g. used in cooking and cakes), carrion (that of haram animals and animals slaughtered not according to the Islamic Law) and each and every part of the pig (e.g. gelatine, glycerine, rennet in cheese and shortening in biscuits) and any food obtained through ill gotten means ( i.e. stealing, bribery and corruption). And only these foods that are against human nature have been made Haram in Islam and the rest are considered Halal or permissible unlike the common notion among many that practically everything is made Haram for a Muslim.

                      Anything that is forbidden or made Haram in Islam is solely due to the fact that it, in some way or other it is harmful to man. Blood for example has been made Haram due to its high content of a toxic chemical substance called uric acid, 98% of which is excreted from the human body in the form of urine. It is here that the importance consuming meat only from animals slaughtered in the Islamic manner comes in. The wielder of the knife, whilst uttering the name of “Allah”, makes an incision through the jugular vein and the wind pipe leaving the spinal cord intact, thus causing death by total loss of blood rather than any an injury to any vital organ. Were the organs, for example the heart, liver or brain was crippled or damaged, the animal would die immediately and its blood would congeal in its veins and would eventually permeate the flesh. This would mean that the meat would be contaminated with uric acid and therefore be very poisonous. It is also scientifically proven that the Islamic manner of slaughter causes the animal nearly 0% pain as compared with other methods.

                        The pig and all its derivatives to be forbidden not only in Islam, but also in Judaism and Hinduism is not surprising. It is a well known fact that the pig is an extremely unclean animal and serves as a host for a variety of parasites, viruses and diseases. Apart from this, the pig’s biochemistry excretes only 2% of its total uric acid content and the remaining 98% remains as an integral part of the body. That’s not considering the fact that the pig, according to its natural anatomy has no neck. So even the Islamic method of slaughtering which drains the blood totally from the animal’s body is not applicable here. No prizes for guessing the effect of consuming pork or any of its derivatives on the human body.  

                         The function of the All Ceylon Jammiyathul Ulama Halal Certification Authority is to investigate the nature and components of the food or commodity in detail and ensure its purity from anything that is Haram and thus would be injurious to the human body. The Halal certification, however, is granted only to those firms who seek it and is not forced on anyone or any community .The same with Halal products . It is not forced on anyone and it is a person’s individual choice if they want to consume Halal or not. No reason to object to the existence of an authority that serves to the betterment of the society as a whole and not only that of Muslims.

                        Any food that has not been made Haram is Halal.  And as mentioned before, the food that has been forbidden has been made so solely due to its adverse effects on a human body. It is a pure and healthy body that makes a pure and healthy mind and soul. That is the foundation that Islam wants for every Muslim and that is what Prince Siddhartha taught every Buddhist. And thus Halal is the right of each and every human being.