Answered by Shaykh Yūsuf Badāt
Question:
I have a few questions regarding ḥalāl animal slaughter.
Can a sunnī [muslim] slaughter-man accommodate the requirements of shiʿa ḥalāl slaughter? If so, would it be permissible for a sunnī to consume that meat? If such a slaughter is taking place, is it mandatory to inform the ḥalāl cautious consumer?
Answer:
In the Name of God, Most Merciful, Most Kind
Jazāk Allāh Khayr/ Thank you for contacting Mathābah for your question.
If a sunnī slaughter-person has completed all requirements of ḥalāl slaughter of severing the arteries and articulating the recitation (blessing), then the animal will be considered ḥalāl even if the additional requirements of the shiʿa, such as facing the qibla, is incorporated. There is no negative implication on the ḥalāl-ness of the poultry or meat.
As long as the minimum requirements for ḥalāl are fulfilled, it is not mandatory for the slaughter-person to go out of his or her way to inform the public on any additional arrangements that are incorporated which do not have any negative impact on the ḥalāl-ness of the slaughtered animal.
“When the Prophet Muḥammad (peace and blessings upon him) slaughtered two sheep on ʿEīd Al-Adḥā, he faced them towards the qibla.” (See: Musnad Aḥmad, Abū Dāwūd, Ibn Mājah)
It should be noted that in sunnī jurisprudence it is preferred and recommended (mustaḥab) to face the qibla during ritual slaughter, however not mandatory according to all four schools of jurisprudence including Ḥanafī, Shāfʿīe, Mālikī and Ḥanbalī Fiqh. (See: Al-Badāiʾ Al-Ṣanāiʾ, Al-Majmūʾ, Sharḥ Al-Khalīl and Muntahā Al-Irādat)
“Willingly slaughter, for indeed any Muslim who faces his animal towards qibla during slaughter, its blood, excretion and hair will be presented as rewards on the scales of Judgment day.” (Muṣannaf ʿAbd Al-Razzāq, Tirmidhī, Ibn Mājah, Bayhaqī)
ʿAbd Allāh Ibn ʿAbbās (may God be pleased with him) used to say, “You can eat any [permitted] animal that has had its jugular veins cut.” (Muwaṭṭā Mālik)
“So eat of that [meat] upon which the name of God has been mentioned, if you are believers in His verses.” (Qurʾān: 6:119)
And Allāh Knows Best