On a poultry farm in al-Qassim, the name of Allah is invoked at the beginning of the slaughter, and he intends to slaughter a large number of chickens, and some of them are content with writing the invocation next to the slaughter.
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The questioner : Your Eminence, I visited the national poultry farms and saw how they slaughter the chickens. First, they hang the chickens so that they cannot move, then they pass by the slaughterer who slaughters them without invoking the name of Allah. I asked him why he does not invoke the name? He said: I invoke it at the beginning, and I cannot invoke it for five hundred thousand chickens. I said: When I enter, I say "In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest," and that is sufficient. He said: Who did you ask?
He said: The scholars have issued a ruling on that and permitted it. So I do not know, Your Eminence, the permissibility of this action?
The Shaykh : He must invoke the name for a specific item. For example, if a thousand chickens are lined up, then when the machine is moved, he says: "In the name of Allah," and that is sufficient.
The questioner : I mean, they are hung?
The Shaykh : I see that they are hung with their heads down, then they pass over the blades. If a thousand chickens are lined up and hung, for example, and then the machine is moved to move the blades, that is sufficient if he says: "In the name of Allah" for this row. If another row is lined up, he invokes the name for it.
The questioner : He does not invoke the name, he just says it once and that is sufficient?
The Shaykh : Until the machine stops.
The questioner : Yes, exactly.
The Shaykh : This is not valid, because the invocation must be for a specific item. But if you are certain of this, it is a problem, meaning we do not buy from them in this state.
The questioner : The other matter, Shaykh, is the Astra farms in Tabuk.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The questioner : The Astra farms in Tabuk.
The Shaykh : Do not move on to something else. Clarify this issue for us. Did you find this in al-Qassim?
The questioner : I found it.
The Shaykh : In al-Qassim?
The questioner : In al-Qassim. I was on a full month's official visit with a group of young men, and we saw this thing. We were also on a visit to the Astra farms in Tabuk, and they are slaughtering quail. What do they do? They hang these birds, and after hanging them, they pass over a machine that sprays water on the bird, so it is somewhat stunned. Then it passes over a wall where "In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest" is written, and then it goes to the machine which cuts off its head. I asked him, and he said: This is sufficient, this is "In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest."
The Shaykh : Written?
The questioner : Written without invoking the name?
The Shaykh : All of this is ignorance. This is ignorance. And may Allah reward you, you must now report what you saw with your brothers, sign it, and send it to the Department of Islamic Affairs and Scholarly Research, and clarify when that was, whether it is this year or years ago. The only thing required of you now is this, if Allah wills.
Write and hurry. The problem is that they want the writing to take the place of the utterance.
The questioner : Why not make a visit to some of the Shaykhs so that they can see this thing?
The Shaykh : That is correct, but you have seen it now.
The questioner : All right, Shaykh, they say that a group of Shaykhs have issued a ruling on that.
The Shaykh : No, some Shaykhs may have issued a ruling on something in a manner other than this. Perhaps he ruled for them as I told you, that he gathers a group and then moves the machine over that group, and even if he does not invoke the name for each one individually, like if he sees a flock of birds and shoots at them and says: "In the name of Allah," and twenty birds fall, they are permissible. Yes, so he took one question.
He said: The scholars have issued a ruling on that and permitted it. So I do not know, Your Eminence, the permissibility of this action?
The Shaykh : He must invoke the name for a specific item. For example, if a thousand chickens are lined up, then when the machine is moved, he says: "In the name of Allah," and that is sufficient.
The questioner : I mean, they are hung?
The Shaykh : I see that they are hung with their heads down, then they pass over the blades. If a thousand chickens are lined up and hung, for example, and then the machine is moved to move the blades, that is sufficient if he says: "In the name of Allah" for this row. If another row is lined up, he invokes the name for it.
The questioner : He does not invoke the name, he just says it once and that is sufficient?
The Shaykh : Until the machine stops.
The questioner : Yes, exactly.
The Shaykh : This is not valid, because the invocation must be for a specific item. But if you are certain of this, it is a problem, meaning we do not buy from them in this state.
The questioner : The other matter, Shaykh, is the Astra farms in Tabuk.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The questioner : The Astra farms in Tabuk.
The Shaykh : Do not move on to something else. Clarify this issue for us. Did you find this in al-Qassim?
The questioner : I found it.
The Shaykh : In al-Qassim?
The questioner : In al-Qassim. I was on a full month's official visit with a group of young men, and we saw this thing. We were also on a visit to the Astra farms in Tabuk, and they are slaughtering quail. What do they do? They hang these birds, and after hanging them, they pass over a machine that sprays water on the bird, so it is somewhat stunned. Then it passes over a wall where "In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest" is written, and then it goes to the machine which cuts off its head. I asked him, and he said: This is sufficient, this is "In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest."
The Shaykh : Written?
The questioner : Written without invoking the name?
The Shaykh : All of this is ignorance. This is ignorance. And may Allah reward you, you must now report what you saw with your brothers, sign it, and send it to the Department of Islamic Affairs and Scholarly Research, and clarify when that was, whether it is this year or years ago. The only thing required of you now is this, if Allah wills.
Write and hurry. The problem is that they want the writing to take the place of the utterance.
The questioner : Why not make a visit to some of the Shaykhs so that they can see this thing?
The Shaykh : That is correct, but you have seen it now.
The questioner : All right, Shaykh, they say that a group of Shaykhs have issued a ruling on that.
The Shaykh : No, some Shaykhs may have issued a ruling on something in a manner other than this. Perhaps he ruled for them as I told you, that he gathers a group and then moves the machine over that group, and even if he does not invoke the name for each one individually, like if he sees a flock of birds and shoots at them and says: "In the name of Allah," and twenty birds fall, they are permissible. Yes, so he took one question.