Ruling on Eating Kosher Meat

Question: If someone lives far from a halal supermarket but has a kosher market nearby, is it permissible for them to buy and eat kosher meat?

Summary:

Kosher meat is permissible in general if the Islamic conditions are met, especially when halal meat is unavailable. This is the position of the majority of the Salaf and leading scholars.

Answer:

In the name of Allah, all praise is due to Allah, and may Peace and Blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)

First: Evidence from the Qur’an

Allah, Exalted, says:

From the Qur'an:

  • al-Mā’idah 5
    "Today all good, pure foods have been made lawful for you. Similarly, the food of the People of the Book is permissible for you..."

From the Salaf:

  • Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both) said:
    “Their food means their slaughtered animals.”

    This is the explanation of the Salaf and is relied upon by the majority of scholars.

Second: Evidence from the Sunnah

From the Sunnah:

  • Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2617Narrated by Anas ibn Mālik (may Allah be pleased with him):
    A Jewess brought a poisoned (cooked) sheep for the Prophet (ﷺ) who ate from it. She was brought to the Prophet and he was asked, "Shall we kill her?" He said, "No." I continued to see the effect of the poison on the palate of the mouth of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) .

Third: Statements of the Salaf

From the Salaf:

  • Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both) said:
    “The slaughtered animals of the Jews and Christians are lawful.”
  • Imām Mālik (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
    “There is no harm in the slaughter of a Jew or a Christian if it is properly slaughtered.”
  • Imām al-Shāfiʿī (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
    “The slaughtered animals of the People of the Book are lawful if they slaughter them according to their customary manner.”

Fourth: Does kosher meat fall under the slaughter of the People of the Book? Kosher meat is slaughtered by Jews according to their religious law, which includes: 1. Severing the throat and esophagus 2. Draining the blood 3. Avoiding strangulation or lethal stunning

From the Scholars:

  • Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
    “The slaughtered animals of the People of the Book are lawful, even if they differ from us in some conditions, as long as a prohibiting factor is not established.”
  • Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
    “The default ruling regarding their slaughter is permissibility, and one is not required to ask about the method unless a prohibition is known.”
  • ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn Bāz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
    “The slaughtered animals of the Jews and Christians are lawful if it is not known that they slaughter in a manner other than proper slaughter.”
  • Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
    “If it is established that the meat is kosher and it is not known that it was slaughtered by stunning or strangulation, then there is no harm in eating it.”

Sixth: Conditions for permissibility 1. That it comes from Jews who actually adhere to religious slaughter 2. That it is not established that the animal was killed by strangulation or lethal stunning 3. That the meat itself is not prohibited, such as pork 4. That the Muslim is unable or finds genuine difficulty in accessing halal meat Seventh: When it is not permissible 1. If it is known that the slaughter was not done lawfully 2. If the kosher label is merely commercial without religious slaughter 3. If halal meat is available without significant hardship

And Allah knows best.

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