Explanation of the hadith of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: (The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed by a beast that had been branded, with smoke coming from its nostrils, and he said: May Allah curse the one who did this. Do not

The Shaykh : The hadith that follows it, which is on a sound chain of narration: From Jabir, who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) passed by a beast that had been branded, and smoke was coming from its nostrils! The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . This is also a shift in the etiquette of honoring the face, from honoring the face of a human, where striking it is not permissible, to also honoring the face of an animal, where branding it is not permissible. Branding is a mark; you know, for example, some animals like sheep are branded in the ear, or camels on their back... This is permissible because the owner of the livestock has an interest in this branding so that his livestock do not get mixed up with the livestock of others. However, the Lawgiver prohibited and emphasized the prohibition of branding an animal on its face. Therefore, when the Messenger (peace be upon him) passed by a beast that had been branded—meaning on its face; the face is not mentioned here in the hadith, but the full hadith indicates that the branding was on the face—and the face is the most sensitive part of an animal’s body, the animal became distressed and agitated until smoke appeared from its nostrils due to the severity of what it suffered from the effect of the fire, i.e., the branding on its face. So the smoke, meaning steam, appeared due to the intensity of its pain from this branding. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: , meaning May Allah distance him from His mercy, this one who branded this beast on its face. Then he addressed all people regarding the etiquette of branding and said: Do not brand, do not draw a line with fire on the face, and do not strike it—also, it is not permissible to strike an animal on the face; it must be honored in that regard, and it is only to be struck in another place, because this face is also what distinguishes the animal from its other limbs and body. Therefore, if the Wise Lawgiver elevated the Muslims above humiliating an animal by striking it on its face, then it is even more so and more so for a Muslim to elevate himself above striking a human on the face, even if he is a slave, even if he is a disbeliever. That is among the etiquettes of Islam. We ask Allah (Mighty and Majestic) to grant us understanding in the religion and inspire us to act upon it. And all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.