The world we live in is multifaceted thanks to the many different religions and cultures that make up the colourful tapestry of humanity. One aspect of human culture that religion impacts is dietary law and conduct that determines what kinds of food such as meat or plants can or cannot be eaten. In this case, we shall be exploring Islamic dietary law with specific attention on the question of what the Halal way of slaughtering Lamb is.
What makes food Halal?
First off, let us understand what the term Halal means. The term Halal is derived from the Arabic language and means ‘permitted’. In the case of food, Halal food refers to food that is permissible for consumption. In the religion of Islam, Halal food refers to food that is permissible for Muslims to eat based on their holy scripture, the Quran as well as the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad and other Prophets in Islam that are recorded in reports/narrated traditions known as Hadith. Lamb is one of the animals that are considered Halal to consume.
What is the name of the process of Halal slaughtering?
Let us now discuss the name of the process of Halal slaughtering. The term for it is Zabiha (derived from the Arabic language) and it refers to any animal that has been permissibly slaughtered according to the rules of Islamic dietary law.
What is the process of Halal slaughtering like?
We shall now discuss the process of Halal slaughter.
| The Halal slaughtering process. |
| 1. The animal must be permissible/Halal for Muslims to eat. 2. The animal must be alive at the time of slaughter. 3. The animal must be slaughtered with the use of a sharp knife. 4. The windpipe/throat, food-tract/oesophagus and the two jugular veins of the animal must be cut in one stroke. 5. The animal must be slaughtered in the neck from the front of the animal. 6. The head of the animal must not be cut off when it is being slaughtered but can only be removed after it has been confirmed that it has died. 7. Skinning or cutting the animal is also only allowed after it has died during the slaughtering process. 8. The animal must be slaughtered manually. 9. The animal must be slaughtered by a sane adult Muslim. 10. The name of Allah must be invoked at the time when the animal is being slaughtered by saying Bismillah, Allah hu Akbar (In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest). 11. If the person slaughtering the animal may have forgotten to invoke the name of Allah during the slaughtering process, it does not make the animal impermissible for consumption. |
Recap
Let us now recap what we have discussed so far.
| What we have learnt |
| 1. We got to know the definitions of Halal and Zabiha and how they relate to food that is permissible for Muslims to eat. 2. The process of Halal slaughter was described. 3. We also got to know that Lamb is considered to be Halal for Muslims to eat. |
Where can you go to buy high quality Halal Lamb products?
If you are wondering where you can get high quality Halal Lamb products there are quite a few places to get them from. You can get them from online shops such as Pickme, Redmart and Shopee. You can also get them from supermarkets like NTUC Fairprice and Giant. Beyond these options you can also get Halal Lamb products from Halal certified butcher shops.
Some final thoughts
Hopefully this has been an eye opening journey for you as you have gotten a chance to understand what makes food halal alongside getting to know more about the process of Halal meat slaughter of animals such as sheep/lambs. Till our next exploration together, remember to always seek to expand the horizons of what you know and keep learning new things and information throughout your life.