Saying Bismillah & Halaal Food.

Q; Bro , I have come across very strange question by one of my friend. He said that if I have to eat non' halal(Haram) food can I start with Bim'Allah. (In the name of Alla). He doesn't eat pork but some time eat Chicken from KFC etc from non halal fast food shop. Please guide us JazaKhumAllah khair

A; All-Praise is due to Allah,
One must say Bismillah no matter what they put in their mouth because the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) commanded us to do so. It is obligatory to mention the name of Allaah before eating. What is meant by that is saying “Bismillaah (in the name of Allaah)” when starting to eat. It was narrated from Umm Kalthoom from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “When any one of you eats, let him mention the name of Allaah. If he forgets to mention the name of Allaah at the beginning, then let him say ‘Bismillaahi awwalahu wa aakhirahu (In the name of Allaah at the beginning and at the end).’”

(Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 1858; Abu Dawood, 3767; Ibn Maajah, 3264. Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan Abi Dawood, 3202).

And ‘Umar ibn Abi Salamah said: I was a young boy in the care of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and my hand used to wander all over the platter (of food). The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to me, “O young boy, say Bismillaah, eat with your right hand, and eat from what is directly in front of you.”

(Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 3576; Muslim, 2022).


In regards to Halaal issues when it comes to food, it was stated in a Fatwa as follows;

If these restaurants are in a country where the slaughter of meat is taken care of by Muslims or People of the Book (i.e., Jews and Christians), or the restaurant owners take care of the slaughter themselves and they are Muslims or people of the Book, then it is permissible to eat there, even if we do not know whether they mentioned the name of Allaah over the slaughter or not, because the basic principle is that their meat is allowed. Al-Bukhaari (2057) narrated from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) that some people said, “O Messenger of Allaah, some people bring meat to us and we do not know whether they mentioned the name of Allaah over it or not.” The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Say the name of Allaah over it and eat it.”

But if the slaughter of meat is taken care of by people other than Muslims or people of the Book, such as atheists and Hindus, then it is not permissible to eat it. End of quote.

(See Islam Q&A Fatwa: 20805)


It is permissible to eat meat slaughtered by a Jew or a Christian, subject to certain conditions:

1. That it be slaughtered in the same manner as the Muslims; so the throat and oesophagus should be cut and the blood should be allowed to flow. If he kills it by strangling, electric shock or drowning in water, then it is not permissible to eat his meat, just as if a Muslim does that, it is not permissible to eat his meat.

2. The name of Allah should be mentioned over it, and no other name should be mentioned such as the name of Christ or anyone else, because Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Eat not (O believers) of that (meat) on which Allaah’s Name has not been pronounced (at the time of the slaughtering of the animal)” [al-An’am 6:121]. And He says concerning haraam things (interpretation of the meaning): “He has forbidden you only the Maytah (dead animals), and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that which is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allaah (or has been slaughtered for idols, on which Allaah’s Name has not been mentioned while slaughtering)” [al-Baqarah 2:173].

If it is not known how the meat was slaughtered or whether the name of Allah was mentioned over it or not, it is permissible to eat it and he does not have to ask about how it was slaughtered, because of the report narrated by al-Bukhaari (2057) from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her), according to which some people said: O Messenger of Allah, some people bring meat to us and we do not know whether they mentioned the name of Allah over it or not. The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Mention the name of Allah over it and eat it.”

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

So it is permissible to eat even if we do not know whether the slaughterer mentioned the name of Allah or not. Similarly, it is permissible to eat even if we do not know whether it was slaughtered in the proper manner or not, because if an action is done by the appropriate people, then in principle it is valid and sound unless there is evidence to the contrary. If we receive some meat from a Muslim or a Jew or a Christian, we should not ask about it and we should not ask how it was slaughtered or whether the name of Allah was mentioned over it or not. It is halaal so long as there is no proof that it is haraam, and this is one of the ways in which Allah has made things easy for us. End quote.

Liqaa’aat al-Baab al-Maftooh, 20805

(Also see Islam Q&A Fatwa: 128632)

And Allah knows best...