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Animal Crusaders • Commemorative Issue • October 2010Ritual SacrificeIn a recent report by IANS (Nov30, 2010), century old tradition ofanimal sacrifice on religiousfestivals has been done away withby the erstwhile royal family ofNabadwip following sustainedcampaign by the animal welfaregroup Compassionate Crusaders.This gesture by the royal familyhas inspired Nabadwip CentralRas Committee to take upawareness programme among allpuja organizers against animalsacrifice. The drive byCompassionate Crusaders indifferent districts of West Bengalagainst animal sacrifice hasprompted many religious bodiesincluding the DakshineswarTemple authority to stop thismedieval practice. AnimalCrusaders’ campaign since 2002against animal sacrifice atKalighat Temple foundjustification in the Kolkata HighCourt’s observation of September2006 on a petition that the templeis a tourist place and visitors couldnot be subject to the sight ofopen bloodbath. Our protestforced King Gyanendra of Nepalto abandon animal sacrificeduring his last visit in Kolkata in2002. We condemn shedding ofanimal’s blood in the name ofreligion and highlighted this byorganising a Blood DonationCamp on the day of Kali Puja 2004collection wherefrom was givento the Haemophilia Society ofEastern India.Times of India reported (October1, 2009) ritualistic sacrifice of a 5year old boy on Dusserah nightat Chandrapur in a gory exampleof human sacrifice. Local policerefused to register the complaintof the mother of the missing boy.In another report by IANS fromPatna, financially affected by thedrought of 2008 preceded by adevastating flood, rural people ofBihar were forced to give upsacrificial slaughtering of goatsduring Durga Puja and Dusserah.Importance of money overappeasement of God has thussaved many of the goats.The finest plans are always ruined by the littleness of those who ought to carry themout, for the Emperor himself can actually do nothing. ~Bertolt Brecht53
Animal Crusaders • Commemorative Issue • October 2010Islam on AnimalsAllah loves all creatures and Islamforbids cruelty to animals. Since allcreatures are the children of Allah,He holds as the dearest, thosepeople who are kind to fellowcreatures. Kind treatment of thedumb animals especially those heldcaptive by the humans and madeto work for them or to provide fleshand dairy produce for humanconsumption must not be treatedcruelly. This ruling of Islam appliesirrespective of countries andcircumstances. It also applies to themethod of killing of animals forflesh to serve as food. “Feed for thelove of Allah, the indigent, theorphan and the captive, (saying)‘….feed you for the sake of Allahalone; no reward do we desire fromyou, nor thanks.’(76:8-9)The righteous person does notforget his responsibility towardslooking after the needs of the beastof burden and sees that the Islamspirit of not overworking them, notill treating them is never violated.Natural body parts of the animalsmeant for their protection shouldbe kept unharmed and cruel actslike cutting their manes or tails orcastrating a male animal should notbe resorted to.HuntingHunting for sport is forbidden inIslamic teaching. Other than forfood or any other useful purpose,no animal life should be taken.Killing only for a just cause wherethe ‘just cause’ is explained by theMessenger of Allah as ‘He kills toeat, not to simply chop off its headand then throw it away’. It isforbidden to hunt animals that canbe tamed and may be properlyslaughtered in due course.54Allah does not approve deliberatecruelty other than in animals andbirds bestowed with killing instinctby Allah Himself to prey for food asnatural predators.Only trained animals are to be usedfor hunting. A game if eatenpartially by the hunting dog beforethe hunter reaches it, should not beeaten. Slaughter the hunted animalif it is still alive only in the halal way.Only efficient weapons like sword,spear or bullet should be used forhunting to minimise cruelty to theanimal. Killing a wounded animalby throwing stones or clubbing itis totally forbidden.“Forbidden to you are the flesh ofthat which has died a natural death,and that which has been killed bystrangling or beating or by fallingor by being gored, and that whichhas been (partially) eaten by a wildbeast expect that which you makelawful by slaughtering (before hisdeath)… (5:4). This prohibitionreveals both Allah’s kindness toanimals as well as concern forhuman beings. While humans mustnot harm themselves by meat froman animal that might have diedfrom eating something poisonousitself, or that was diseased, animalsin their care should not die ofdisease and malnutrition and if ananimal in their charge becomesdiseased, either a cure will besought for it, or it will be humanelyslaughtered.Blood SportThe Blessed Prophet forbade anyso called ‘sport’ which involvedgoading animals into fighting eachother, a common enough practicein his time. By the same principle,all modern existing blood sportssuch as fox-hunting, big gamehunting,badger,bear or dogbaiting,or fights to the deathbetween cockerels, are alsocondemned.The Luxury TradeKilling seals for fur for use as luxurygarments is abhorrent to a Muslim.The Prophet does not approve ofwasteful killing of animals just tosatisfy the wealthy. However, bodyparts of dead animals may beutilised.Ibn Abbas recorded: The freed maidservant of the Prophet’s wifeMaymunah was given a sheep andit died. The Prophet passed by itscarcass and said: ‘Why did you nottake its skin to be tanned and useit? They replied: ‘But it is dead.’ TheProphet said ‘What is prohibited iseating it’.Factory FarmingSome modern methods of livestockfarming cruelly deprive the animalsof all their enjoyment of life. Theyare kept in cramped and darkconditions that make their lives notonly miserable but also shortened.With artificial enhancement of thebodies of the farm animals with notenough space, these animals sufferutmost misery. This insensitive wayof distressing animals beforeslaughter is forbidden.Animals In ConfinementSome animals are kept in appallingconditions either for factoryfarmingpurposes, or in zoos. It’sagainst the spirit of Islam to keepany animal tied up, in dirtyconditions or confined in a smallspace just for human convenience.
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